How to watch: Netflix
# of episodes: Season 1: 13 (no info on a second season)
Language: Thai (subtitles available)
Director: Nontakorn Taweesuk
Writer: Nontakorn Taweesuk
Rating: 16+
Release date: September 1, 2018 (USA)
Style: Action, Adventure, Crime, Martial Arts, Muay Thai
For more show details, you can find them on IMDB
Mobsters, Monkeys and Muay Thai
I’m a fan of martial arts cinema as a whole. But also Chinese kung fu tv series, I watch anime and tokusatsu, never got into Japanese or Korean dramas, but I know a bit about them. This one surprised me because it’s from Thailand, a country I know a bit about and have seen some movies from but never a TV series. It was a pleasant surprise because it’s a martial arts series, which brings us to this post. Monkey Twins, it’s Thailand’s first Netflix series. It was written and directed by Nontakorn Taweesuk, who previously wrote Ong Bak 2 (with then-rising Muay Thai star Tony Jaa) and Muay Thai Giant, which he also directed.
There’s very little information out there about the series and I don’t speak Thai so some character names might not be well written. There’s also apparently a movie that tells more or less a similar story with some of the same characters. This series seems to be a remake of the movie, of sorts.
Overview
Thailand, present-day, Mawin is an undercover cop posing as an ex-convict. He’s part of an operation to bring down a drug ring connected to Chanchai. He’s a powerful man called, who’s trying to go legit by getting into politics. After a failed attempt to bring the culprits down, Mawin has to hide somewhere and ends up in a Khon troupe. There we meet our other protagonist Neua, a Khon dancer and Muay Thai fighter with a tragic past. They become sort of rivals as Mawin gets more into Neua’s circle of family and friends. A web of intricate relationships develop amid a series of power grabs by different mob bosses, all affecting the town and the characters, more treason and death than Game of Thrones and lots of Muay Thai fights.
Story Review: 7/10
The characters and their relationships are what moves the plot. There’s Taycho, Chanchai’s son, who killed Neua’s girlfriend and framed him for it. Her sister Li Yin returns from studying Chinese Opera in China and wants revenge from Neuea. Then Namtarn, Neua’s sister, who acts and sings in the plays and is Mawin’s romantic interest (which doesn’t make Neua very happy). And finally Kla their grandfather, a Khon and Muay Thai master who takes a liking to Mawin and teaches him his secret Monkey style. On the antagonist side, we have the aforementioned Chanchai and Taycho. Taycho is your average rich bad boy, but with absolutely no redeeming qualities. Then there’s Saming (played by Dan Chupong) his bodyguard/right-hand man who’s also a master of the Rakshasa Muay Thai style. And a series of mob bosses who try to get Chanchai’s business with more or less success.
The story moves at an uneven pace. There are different threads that end up connecting. Mainly there’s Mawin’s undercover job, and the entire operation, which sometimes leads the viewer to think the cops are too inept. The rivalry between Mawin and Neua feels quite natural. Mawin does some suspicious stuff and Neua’s right to doubt him. Also, his grandfather taking him as a disciple doesn’t make things better. Neua’s attempts to clean his name and Li Yin’s tries to get revenge for her sister also play well. Beneath all this Chanchai’s play to get legit by forcing people to sell their houses to him cheap and sell the land to investors.
Martial Arts Review: 8/10
Most of the fights look pretty cool. The series shows different fighters with different styles. There’s your average mob henchmen who can stand his ground, some random guys who know Muay Thai, Neua’s initial sport like Muay Thai and even some kung fu. The main thing, of course, is Muay Thai, especially the aforementioned styles inspired by ancient Hindu myths, the Secret Art of the Monkey and the Secret Art of the Rakshasa.
Of course, the Muay Thai is the main thing, and you get different flavors of it. First, you have Mr. Kla’s Ancient Monkey Style, which looks like something out of a Jackie Chan movie mixed with Muay Thai from Ong Bak. Which is to say, it looks awesome. The fight choreographies make it really work. You have the kicks, the punches, elbow and knee strikes, with some jumps, lower stances, and some monkey-like pantomime. Second, there’s Saming’s secret art of the Rakshasa. It doesn’t look as cool, it seems more based on the idea of developing a strong body to withstand damage and get somehow preternaturally strong. But it’s a nice contrast to the more dynamic monkey style.
Li Yin’s monkey kung fu, deserves a special mention. She studied Chinese Opera in China and learned to play the Monkey King. This goes along with the monkey theme as Neua and Mawin both play monkey characters in Khon plays. Li Yin’s fighting style looks very much like what you’d expect. Not the acrobatics, jumping and rolling on the floor that you see in some movies and modern performance martial arts but a fighting art (though a scren one of course). She’s also proficient with the staff as one would expect from some style inspired by the Monkey King.
Grade: 7.5/10
All in all, it’s a fun series, but very different from shows like Into the Badlands, Wu Assassins or Warrior. More akin to movies like Ong Bak with more humor and way more charismatic characters. As I said, the pacing at times is slow, which makes the plot drag a bit. The mix of elements is quite characteristic of classic Asian martial arts films and tv. There’s drama, romance, a lot of action, some crime conspiracies and even comedic elements. Sometimes the betrayals feel a bit too much but all works out for the best plotwise. And the fights just make it all better. I don’t think it was meant to have a second season, but hopefully we’ll get more from the same creative team someday.
What did you think of Monkey Twins? Let me know and when you’re done check out the other Netflix movie and TV reviews we have here on Martial Journal.
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