The latest in Dimension’s Dimension Extreme (exclamation point not included) line of over-the-top horror, 13: Game of Death is a strange, engaging Thai thriller about a timid, way-down-on-his-luck salesman, deftly portrayed by the uncannily Arliss Howard-esque Thai pop star Krissada Terrence, who becomes involved in a brutal online game show that promises the contestant millions of baht if they successfully complete 13 morally questionable challenges. To describe any of the challenges would ruin much of the film’s many surprises, but needless to say, none of them are particularly pleasant. In fact, as you could probably guess, the majority of them are delightfully insane.

The fast-paced 13: Game of Death covers some well-traveled ground. At various points it resembles The Running Man, The Game, The 10th Victim, Series 7, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Crank, The Condemned, and Rockstar’s Manhunt video game. However, the film manages to distinguish itself from those efforts through an appealing combination of quiet and naturalistic Japanese-new-wave detachment and inventive, genuinely funny slapstick humor.

Of course, as with so many of these Asian cult films, there are one or two randomly cryptic scenes and dangling plot threads, and the ending becomes a silly melodramatic muddle when the filmmakers try to shoehorn in a Big Statement about reality and violence and morals and voyeurism. Or something.

Mildly and expectedly uneven aspects aside, 13: Game of Death is sharper and less self-involved than other, more celebrated recent Asian genre films, proving once again that the Thai film industry is one to be reckoned with.

13: Game of Death is out today.

(weak) Extras:
-short Making Of
-couple trailers

Bonus note to torture enthusiasts, in tried and true cult film fashion, the cover of the DVD has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with the movie.

GRADE: B

Spread the word!