With no pretenses of film artistry, Petchtai Wongkamlao's highly entertaining The Bodyguard packs far more belly laughs into its martial arts driven narrative than Albert Brooks has during the last decade. Heavily influenced by Hong Kong cinema (Bruce Lee is even referenced directly by a T-shirt), this film is guaranteed to make Americans laugh along with their Asian brethren and cause native Thai people to swell with pride that their country is fast becoming a real player in the film industry.

Like the wondrous Ong Bak, the film is distinctively Thai with culturally unique locales and customs. It also re-unites the principles from Thailand's signature film: Wongkamlao (director and lead actor), actress Pumwaree Yodkamol as Pok, and Tony Jaa in a hilarious cameo as a kick boxing supermarket customer. Jaa even reverts to the "wrong film" when encountering Wongkamlao. But the professional comedian isn't satisfied with merely referencing Ong Bak; he humorously transforms the action-thriller into his style.

Hong Kong's most famous director in the genre receives homage throughout—most notably in the large shootout scenes where choreographed gunfire spills globs of crimson blood, Wongkamlao acrobatically flies slow motion through the air while firing, and even uses a host of beer bottles to roll by the enemy with blazing gunfire. No white doves, but pigeons fulfill the traditional Woo scene on a plaza and more than one Mexican standoffs take place (including a spectacular flying four way car crunch).

Wongkamlao even borrows from Fellini and Bunuel for surreal comic moments—a running joke has "villain" (built like a Sumo-wrestler) who can never dress appropriately by appearing for duty in swim wear or garish clown attire. Another toss-in scene features a wife-beating midget. Most outrageous, however, is Wongkamlao himself—most notably being chased through Bangkok clasping only a rice bowl over his genitals for cover. As he's peering around a brick corner to shoot at his pursuers, a weird homeless guy starts talking to Wongkamlao's naked buttocks and then begins squirting a water pistol into the crack.

But despite the silliness, the story follows a standard thriller outline, that includes betrayal and a mundane love story between Pok and Chaichol (Piphat Apiraktanakorn). It's as if Pok's mother acknowledges the real reason that two young actors were cast when she says at the end, "Hug each other; you look good." Wongkamlao does weave some social commentary into the narrative, so viewers can't just slam him for poking fun of Hong Kong action thrillers. After leading sheltered life of luxury, Chaichol escapes the villains via a dump truck, eventually winding up in the slums. He sees how the lower rungs scratch out a meager living and comfortably eases into their lifestyle. It's apparent that he will use his father's wealth to do good things once he's able to return to his family position.

Above all, The Bodyguard is high camp farce—at times puerile and relying too much on obscenities—but it's a fun ride, headlined by the writer-director who seems determined to carve a unique niche in Thai cinema. While always retaining his comic timing, Wongkamlao demonstrates deeper character nuances and shows a great deal of creativity from his director's chair. His final fight sequences are quite original and clever, and his choice of having the comic pot-bellied "villain" berate the film director for his lack of lines as he's being loaded into the police car is a real trip. Ong Bak remains atop the ladder as the best Thai film currently available, but don't overlook this one if you're in the mood for comedy.