YMMV / Ong-Bak

• First Installment Wins: Although it is not considered anymore the uber-hit which was hailed up as at his day, Ong-Bak is still seen as the best of the trilogy, one of the best films of its generation, and pretty much the only work by Tony Jaa which is not considered unsatisfactory or suffering from Sequelitis in any grade.
• Germans Love David Hasselhoff: Even if it was successful in it home country, the film became international phenom. This film, along with the same year's Banlieue 13, was what made the entire world realize the Hong Kong veterans did not have the monopoly on choreographic brilliance after all.
• Hype Backlash: With its intense action and colourful quirks, Ong-Bak paved a new way in the martial arts cinema and managed to stay high for many years, helped by its sister film Tom-Yum-Goong and its up to eleven action. However, after films like Merantau and Ip Man surfaced on its wake, people realized that martial arts films of the same caliber could be worked out with actual plots and drama beyond the typical action flick Excuse Plot, and their opinion Ong-Bak became tepid over the years (although it is still considered an undisputed classic).
• I Am Not Shazam: The main character's name is Ting. Ong-Bak is the name of the statue's head he spends the entire movie trying to retrieve.
• Moment of Awesome:
  • In the first movie, a horribly battered Humlae shielding Ong-Bak with his body when Komtuan tries to smash it with a hammer - and then keeps shielding the statue while the crime lord keeps beating on him. For a character as selfish as Humlae has been throughout the movie, that is saying something.
  • Tony Jaa lights his legs on fire and kicks someone in the face!
• Signature Scene: The scene where Ting fights 3 fighters in a row in the underground fight club is this for the first film. While the film has a number of spectacular scenes, this one tends to be most remembered by fans.

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