'The Protector' showcases Mui Thai

      "The Protector"
Running time: 84 minutes
      MPAA rating: R
            Grade: C+

Tony Jaa stars as Kham, the protector of a sacred Thai baby elephant and its father, which are stolen by minions of one Madam Rose (Jin Xing), an evil transexual, who buggers off to Aussie Land with the petite pachyderm and its papa. A group of Buddhist monks chant, meditate and use their powers of divination to tell Kham where to begin looking for the poor heffalumps.

And so begins an hour-long string of action sequences (speedboat chases, lots of explosions and many set pieces for Jaa to showcase his mastery of Muay Thai, a martial art specific to Thailand that takes energy concentrated in the abs and releases it through the knees, elbows and shoulders).

Unfortunately, the string of action sequences is broken up with boring, idiotic scenes (that don't include Jaa) that attempt to serve as exposition or comic relief. They bring the film to a screeching halt and don't really serve to advance the story or the entertainment value of the movie.

Kahm (Tony Jaa) uses Mui Thai to defend a baby elephant and its father in "The Protector." One such scene involves a police sergeant on the case of the missing elephants. He's followed around Sydney by a news crew as he mugs for the camera, gets a haircut and foils a convenience store robbery by a local kid he knows. It's supposed to be a played for laughs, but the performance is played way too broadly.

"The Protector" is a movie best watched on home video. When Jaa gets to kick booty, that's when the film cooks. (There's a great fight scene where he has to whoop on about two dozen thugs on inline skates, armed with florescent tubes, that is just plain awesome to watch.) Otherwise, it's best to be able to fast-forward through all the dull, inconsequential stuff.

(c) 2006 King Features Synd., Inc.