Certainly someone, somewhere, must be offended by the premise of
Chocolate. An autistic girl learns karate by watching kung-fu movies on
television and then, after learning that her mother doesn’t have the
money for chemotherapy, she goes on a rampage to collect from debtors.
Surely this autism-fu is insensitive—the American trailer says,
“From the people who brought you Ong-Bak, comes a special-needs girl
with a special need to kick some ass”—but it’s also the premise
for one of the best kung-fu movies to be released in America in recent
memory.
As Zen, JeeJa Yanin is the ideal kung-fu heroine: She looks small
and vulnerable until she starts to actually attack. Her limbs strike
out like daggers in a perfect sphere around her body, and in some
sequences it appears that she could kick the back of her own head if
she stretched a bit more beforehand. She also seems perfectly
unselfconscious when portraying the spazzy, inward motions of an
autistic girl. She doesn’t talk so much as bleat with frustration and
anger, but it’s not some elementary-school mockery of a mentally
challenged child. There’s real acting there.
Not everything about Chocolate is as note-perfect as Zen’s
portrayal. The first five minutes—the scenes that are meant to
establish the story—are a confusing hash that only make sense on
repeat viewings. And none of the other characters are developed at all.
But the action scenes are exquisite. Zen goes from place to place in a
small Thai city—a slaughterhouse, a warehouse, a seafood packing
plant—exacting vengeance on people who owe her mother money, and
things escalate as they should until the final 20-minute-long action
sequence which involves an elevated train, a three-story building, and
a full city block. The bad guys crash with their entire bodies into
window ledges and hanging signs before slamming into the pavement
below, and the choreography is reminiscent of Jackie Chan’s early
inventiveness without the unnecessary attendant precociousness. Her
preternatural skill at violent—and stuntman-less—kung fu
makes every American Jet Li movie look like a Merchant Ivory film. It’s
been a long time since an action sequence sent literal chills up and
down my spine, but Chocolate delivers that sensation repeatedly. 
Yea, the beginning was quick and rather confusing, if you weren’t paying special attention, but the rest of it flowed well. Had the perfect amount of action w/ style and authenticity, good breaks between fights, and managed to build up the heat just right.
At times both funny and awe inspiring, the action will have you alternately cracking up and cringing in your seat w/ sympathy for anyone who gets in her way.
She “learns karate by watching kung-fu movies”? That’s like picking up German from taking Spanish class.
I do agree with you on the acting, though–Jeeja’s great.
I really enjoyed this flick.
The beginning was a little confusing, but once I caught on I really appreciated how fast everything was set up. They did NOT waste a bunch of time setting the pieces in motion. The star-crossed romance was by the numbers, but that just let it get to the good stuff all the quicker.
I _would_ disagree that NONE of the other characters were developed. I thought the blink-and-you’ve-missed-it part about the father in the beginning set things up nicely, both for the character of his offspring, his initial interest in the mother, and the denouement.
I particularly liked how wind turbines represent hope for the future now – I wonder when that started?
I’m kicking myself in the back of my own head for missing this. Does it get a real run at any point, or should I start keeping my eyes peeled at the vid store?
Howdy thelyamhound: It’s on DVD right now. Not quite as good as a theater, but you can at least rewind and watch the crazy-ass moves over and over again.
Excellent!
And I’d like to thank you, Paul, for always responding to my frivolous queries in the comment field of your reviews of various head-cracking action flicks. It’s awfully kind of you to indulge me. 🙂