'Tom Yum Goong' movie shoots to No4 in the US

[wowpow]

Tom Yum Goong shot to fourth place in the US box office rankings in its first weekend on release, a record for a Thai film. The action movie, titled The Protector in the United States, earned US$5 million (about 190 million baht).

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It trailed behind supernatural film The Covenant, which took in $9 million, Hollywoodland, which pocketed $6 million, and US football drama Invincible which fetched $5.8 million.

Tom Yum Goong features Thai martial arts star Phanom Yeerum, also known as Tony Jaa, as a country boy who travels to Sydney to recover his stolen elephants.

Thai director Prachya Pinkaew only gets better. His 2003 blockbuster Ong Bak: the Thai Warrior climbed to 17th place at the US box office, making it the first Thai film ever to make it into the top 20.

Tom Yum Goong was released by the Weinstein Co, run by former Miramax Films chiefs Harvey and Bob Weinstein.

But the film grossed below expectations and is unlikely to do much business in coming weeks, according to The Hollywood Reporter.BANGKOK POST, REUTERS

... a really good martial arts film, not something I am normally into, but a fab film all the same.

It may be in at number 4 on the list, but it's also been a slow weekend at the box office. Apparently takings for the weekend releases are about 2/3rds down on the same weekend last year and the number one film 'The Covenant' is the lowest grossing number one film for 3 years (BBC). I wonder if Tony Jaa would make the top ten on a normal weekend?

The critics aren't terribly impressed:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/protector/