April 22, 2025 (NYC, NY)– Tony Jaa Returns to Form in Striking Rescue. In this surprisingly good release from Well Go Entertainment, Thailand’s Tony Jaa stars in this Chinese martial arts, action film available digitally NOW and hitting Blu-Ray May 13, 2025.
Synopsis
Bai An’s (Tony Jaa) wife and daughter were brutally murdered in front of him, now he’s out for revenge and the path will be brutal and bloody.
Review:
Tony Jaa is a legendary martial artist and film star. He secured his place in martial arts film lore with the 2003 International sensation, Ong Bak. While he has done a number of other films since then, including having roles in Jesse V. Johnson’s Triple Threat and one of the Expendables franchise films, none have quite achieved the acclaim of his launching pad. Striking Rescue (2025) marks his triumphant return, and demonstrates he hasn’t lost a beat in the past twenty (20) years.
Striking Rescue is a low budget, revenge driven martial arts with a lot to offer. Its story of a man whose wife and daughter are murdered by a large corporation with ties to the underworld, and his pursuit of revenge, are time honored martial arts movie themes. However, what makes this one stand out from so many of the ordinary films in this genre is the execution. The execution here is very good. Director, Siyu Cheng, does a good job making the final product greater than the sum of its parts.
Jaa does an admirable job in the lead role. His acting is passable, but his fight choreography is unique and riveting to watch. He captivates the audience in every one of the many fight scenes that populate this roller coaster ride of an action film. Jaa does for the knees and elbows style of Muy Thai what Steven Seagal did for Akido; he uses his martial art to carve out his unique identity in the martial arts film world. Like Seagal, Jaa is super fun to watch.
The film has a very strong supporting cast. Jaa is not afraid to share the screen with talented martial artists and film fighters, and that is one of the strengths of the film. Jaa’s climactic fight scene with co star, Xing Yu, is one of the highlights of the film; however, one of the best fight scenes in the movie is, undoubtedly, a tribute to Ike Uwais’s The Raid. There also appears to be some influence from Timo Tjahjanto, who is, in my estimation, the most important martial arts Director in the world today.
One of the most interesting elements of this film is that it is Chinese in origin. It does not have many of the structural, thematic, and cinematic elements of a modern Chinese made martial arts film. It has a true independent feel, and I can’t help but wonder if that is the beginning of a trend in Chinese cinema.
Striking Rescue is a surprisingly good movie and worth watching. I highly recommend it.
Watch it in Mandarin, with English subtitles.
Striking Rescue, the Well Go USA Entertainment is available on digital NOW and will release on Blue-Ray on May 13, 2025. You can find out more about this film at: https://wellgousa.com/films/striking-rescue
NOTE: we have several copies of Striking Rescue to give away on Blu-Ray. Clink this link to enter https://tkdlifemagazine.com/contact-us/ and use the Code “Striking Rescue Giveaway”
Hong Junjia
Shi Yanneng
Philip Keung
Chen Duoyi
Run Time: 106 Minutes/Unrated
Country of Origin: China
-review by Marc Zirogiannis, Editor in Chief
