Released: September 2017
Director: Jimmy Henderson
Not Rated
Run Time: 92 Minutes
Genre: Action
Cast:
Celine Tran: Madame Butterfly
Jean-Paul Ly: Jean-Paul
Tharoth Sam: Tharoth
Dara Our: Dara
Savin Phillip: Playboy
I’ve seen action movies from all across the world. From the United States and Russia to China, Japan and Indonesia. I’ve even managed to catch action movies some pretty unlikely places like India, Vietnam, and Chile in South America. Each country has a particular flavor and design that separates them from the rest of the world. India in particular, throws in musical numbers with their surprisingly brutal action flicks, and yet, it works. Thailand’s action films tend to include that country’s proprietary martial art, Muay Thay to a very brutal and spectacular degree. Indonesia gave us Iko Uwais and Silat, Indonesia’s martial art. So, imagine my surprise when I found out about Jailbreak, an action film from Cambodia. That was a new one for me, so….let’s see what they’ve got.
The story of Jailbreak involves a handful of police officers tasked with escorting a prisoner to a notorious prison somewhere in northern Cambodia. This prisoner apparently has information that could cause trouble for the all-female gang known as the Butterfly Gang, so the gang’s leader does everything she can to make sure that this prisoner doesn’t see the light of day. That’s pretty much it. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the simplicity in story-telling. Sometimes you don’t need anything overly complex, but the story in Jailbreak is so simple, it doesn’t really go into specific motives for why some of these characters do what they do. We have no idea what this prisoner did to get into so much trouble, and we aren’t given a reason why the gang is after him. If you’re not going to provide any kind of motivation, you’re essentially setting these characters up to be cannon fodder. It also doesn’t help that this film draws some pretty heavy inspiration from superior films like The Raid. Honestly, don’t go to this movie for the story. It’s easily the weakest part of the film.
This film has been heavily hyped up for its action sequences. That is where this movie truly excels. The action and the fight sequences are among the best that I’ve seen a movie of this sort. While the one-on-one fights are intense, the best action sequences involve large groups of people fighting each other. The guy that choreographed these fights, Jean-Paul Ly, who also stars in the film, clearly has a very strong grasp on what makes a great fight sequence. There is no wire work and almost no CGI, at least none that I could detect. The other fantastic thing about these fights is the camera-work. Action movies work best when you can see what’s going on, and Jailbreak does a pretty good job. You’ve got a lot of wide shots, so you can see the action clearly, and there is very little in the way of shaky-cam. A number of the main cast also happen to be martial artists so, a lot of what you see is pretty authentic. The action also comes at you pretty constantly, so there’s rarely room to breathe. For a 90-minute film, that’s perfect.
Seeing as this is the first movie that I’ve seen that’s from Cambodia, I can’t properly judge the acting here, without being able to compare to another Cambodian film. I’m not going to say it’s horrible, however, because it’s not. That being said, some of these actors don’t seem very comfortable in what they are doing that isn’t action-oriented. There’s not really a whole lot of emoting or drama. Although, when you cast a porn star as one of your main villains, your credibility could take a huge hit. Celine Tran, who plays Madame Butterfly, the leader of the gang, made a living in the adult film industry, but strangely enough, she’s fairly convincing as a sword-wielding bad-ass. That kind of casting can be a huge risk, but it seems to have paid off in this case. Jean-Paul Ly is one to keep an eye on, as he’s worked as a stuntman on films like Doctor Strange, Lucy, and the upcoming Krypton TV series. This guy’s got some serious moves. Tharoth Sam is an actual MMA fighter trained in the Cambodian style of Bokator. Overall, the acting isn’t terrible.
Since this is a very low-budget film, there are going to some cheap-looking aspects. The biggest offenders are the set designs and the costumes. With the exception of the all-female gang, the costumes are ugly. The police and prison uniforms have very little detail and look like janitor uniforms. The prison itself is not very well-designed in my opinion. Again, this is a low-budget film, so corners had to be cut, but I still think that the prison could have been done a little better. Jailbreak was also touted as an action-comedy. Action? Definitely. Comedy? Not so much. The fights are extremely violent and there’s a scene in which the female cop is grabbed by some prisoners and they attempt to rape her. Does that sound like it belongs in a comedy to you? There are some moments of levity, but the whole thing doesn’t feel like a comedy. The humor in the film also feels forced.
Hype can be a double-edged sword. It can be used to generate real excitement for a movie. However, if you use it too much, the movie might not deliver on that hype and could damage the film’s credibility. The hype for Jailbreak’s action sequences is justified. Those are some pretty awesome scenes. However, the film as whole, doesn’t quite measure up. The lack of character development as well as some really cheap production values bring down a film that could have been something truly special. As it stands, though, I can only recommend the film for it’s action sequences. But action sequences alone don’t make for a good movie. With all that in mind, I would still say to you to keep an eye on Jean-Paul Ly, Dara Our, and Tharoth Sam when it comes to action movies. These folks definitely have a future in the business.
My Final Recommendation: Come for the action sequences, stay for the action sequences. 6.5/10