Dynamite Warrior

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Dynamite Warrior (Kon fai bin)
The Thai movie poster.
Directed by	Chalerm Wongpim
Produced by	Prachya Pinkaew
Starring	Dan Chupong Panna Rittikrai
Distributed by	Sahamongkol Film International Magnolia Pictures
Release date(s)	December 21, 2006
Country	Thailand
Language	Thai
Official website

Dynamite Warrior (Thai: ฅนไฟบิน, or Kon fai bin) is a 2006 Thai martial arts film directed by Chalerm Wongpim. The star is Dan Chupong (from Born to Fight).

1 Plot
2 Production
- 2.1 Film title
- 2.2 Location
3 Cast
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The story is set in 1890s Siam.^[1] Jone Bang Fai (the Firecracker Thief) is a young Muay Thai warrior and rocketry expert who steals back water buffalo taken from poor Isan farmers by unscrupulous cattle raiders. He is also searching for a man with a tattoo who killed his parents.

Meanwhile, a local nobleman, Lord Waeng, wants to create a market for the steam tractors he's selling. So he hires a hulking convict, "The Thief", to kill all the cattle traders and round up all the water buffalo for slaughter, depriving farmers of the draft animals they need to cultivate rice. Lord Waeng's men are eventually pitted against Nai Hoi Sing, a cattle trader with supernatural martial arts powers and a tattoo on his chest. The tattoo gets Jone Bang Fai's attention, and while the Thief is trying to steal Sing's cattle herd, Jone Bang Fai tries to attack Sing, but is repelled.

Lord Waeng then enlists Jone Bang Fai in a scheme to defeat Sing. To do so, they also need the help of the Black Wizard, who was once cursed by Sing so that he cannot withstand sunlight. The Black Wizard says the only way to defeat Sing and reverse his spells is to use the menstrual blood of a virgin – the Black Wizard's daughter, E'Sao.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Production

[edit] Film title

The film's working title was Tabunfire,^[2] but was renamed Kon Fai Bin by Sahamongkol Film International chief executive Somsak Techaratanaprasert who wanted the film's name to be similar to the Thai title for Chen Kaige's The Promise, which was Kon ma bin (literally "flying horseman"). Kon fai bin means "flying man of fire".^[3] Kon is also spelled with the obsolete character ฅ, presumably still in use at the time of the action, but since replaced by ค.

The English title underwent a change as well, to Dynamite Warrior, as the film was sold to Magnolia Pictures, an American distributor.^[4]^[5]

In Thailand, the English title has been listed as Fire Warriors.^[6]

[edit] Location

The film was made with an all-Isan cast and crew, filming for several months in a small village in Phu Wiang district, Khon Kaen Province. "With over a hundred buffalo in the village, it provided the perfect backdrop for the movie," star Dan Chupong said in an interview.^[7]

[edit] Cast

Dan Chupong as Zieng (or Siang), "Jone Bang Fai" ("Firecracker Thief")
Phutiphong Sriwat (Leo Phut) as Phraya Waeng
Samart Payakaroon as Nai Hoi Sing
Panna Rittikrai as Black Ogre (or Black Wizard)
Somdet Kaewleu as The Thief
Kanyaphak Suwankut as E'Sao

[edit] See also

Rocket Festival

[edit] References

^ Lord Waeng mentions that the railway to Korat has been newly opened, placing the time frame of the story sometime in the 1890s. (Historical background, State Railway of Thailand, December 29, 2006.)
^ Tabunfire, ThaiCinema.org.
^ Soop Sip. October 18, 2006. "Director Chalerm Wongpim likes to keep busy", The Nation, Page A12 (print edition).
^ Frater, Patrick. November 2, 2006. "Magnolia to handle Thai 'Dynamite', Variety (retrieved on November 7, 2006).
^ "It's Official! Magnolia Pictures Picks Up Tabunfire AKA Dynamite Warrior!", Twitchfilm.net, November 1, 2006.
^ MovieSeer synopsis (retrieved on December 23, 2006).
^ Behind the Scenes, BK Magazine, p. 24, December 29, 2006-January 4, 2007.