Lost in Thailand (Blu-ray Review)
Smashing every box office record to date, LOST IN THAILAND is the highest-grossing film in China’s history. Two rival businessmen (Xu Zheng and Huang Bo) must track down their boss at a Buddhist temple to secure a patent on a revolutionary new fuel additive. Xu catches the first plane to Bangkok, where his plans are delayed by the happy-go-lucky Wang (Wang Baoqiang), an unexpected travel companion who will open his eyes to life’s true priorities.
Film 
Xu Lang (Xu Zheng) has invented a revolutionary compound called Supergas that can expand any liquid. A few drops in the gas tank and you have an instant full tank of gas. Rinse and repeat. Xu Lang is the head of this tech company and wants to sell the formula to a giant French company but needs to meet up with the largest shareholder of his company to sign off on the paperwork and that person is on holiday in Thailand. Okay, no problem, Xu Lang will leave his already neglected family and hop on the first plane to Thailand.
All is not as smooth as it seems since his college mate and co-worker also wants to take that formula from Xu Lang, so as to line how own pockets. This is the incredibly shady Gao Bo (Huang Bo). Gao has planted a transmitter and is on the prowl to Thailand, as well. While getting ready to leave for Thailand Xu Lang meets a spaz of a character named Wang Bao (Wang Baoqiang) who is pretty much the child of the trio or the Zach Galifianakis of the group. A PG-13 version of Zach Galifianakis. All Wang Bao wants to do is have fun in Thailand and catch a “lady boy” show. Yes, that opens a giant can of worms right there. Not only does Xu Lang not want anything to do with Wang Bao but he’s also trying to shake Gao Bo from his trail, so an unofficial team-up will probably be in order.
Once the duo land in Thailand hijinks ensues as the pair check into a ritzy hotel, dodge shady taxi drivers, and try to dodge Gao Bo. Xu Lang still needs to meet up with the shareholder in order to get the paperwork signed. This is also not as easy as it seems, because Wang Bao wants to come along, too. Honestly, when Wang Bao entered the frame I began to chuckle, because I figured he would be a warped kind of character but ended up being really simple and almost childlike in a way. I’m not really a fan of those types of characters in Asian cinema, because they tend to devolve into slapstick sideshow characters and derail the film by being one-trick ponies. Thankfully he wasn’t and didn’t.
Lost in Thailand, if you haven’t noticed it already, is basically China’s take on The Hangover films minus the sex, drugs, and vulgarity. Sure, there are a couple of funny in-jokes at the Thai’s expense, but overall the film is extremely light and plays out as more of an adventure as opposed to an ordeal. Xu Zheng as Xu Lang also wrote, produced, and directed the film. It’s an extremely solid effort but not necessarily a great one in terms of overall story. The direction is fine but a script polish should have been in order, because the end goal of getting a shareholder’s signature, in this day and age of technology and the internet, there’s no way it should take this long to get a signature. I don’t care what country the dude is in. Another thing that rubbed me the wrong way was Xu Lang’s co-worker Gao Bo. So they were college buddies and now Gao Bo works at Xu Lang’s company that Xu Lang is President of. Unless I missed something there’s no reason why Xu Lang should even fear Gao Bo or be threatened by him trying to steal the Supergas contract. The way that subplot plays out is weird and very mean spirited.
The promotional materials made Lost in Thailand seem as if it were a buddy flick and that these guys were friends to begin with and that’s not so. In fact Xu Lang and Wang Bao spend the most time together and Gao Bo is sort of the villain. This obviously didn’t bother Chinese audiences since the film is indeed China’s highest grossing film of all time. Personally, I thought it was fairly average, but I would have preferred it to be a bit harder edged from start to finish. Lost in Thailand is not rated but really feels like I’m watching a PG-13 adventure, which is fine, but not that satisfying – it’s a middle of the road type of film. Give it a spin – it may be better than The Hangover 3! 😉
Video
Encoding: AVC MPEG-4
Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Clarity/Detail: Lost in Thailand was shot on location in Thailand and China and the scenery, locales, and just about anywhere that the boys are in look amazing! Hey, it’s not a coincidence that this video presentation is near-reference.
Depth: No, this isn’t a 3-D presentation but you wouldn’t know it, as this 2-D Blu-ray’s video presentation leaps off of the screen and into your home theater.
Black Levels: Black levels remain consistence and that’s a big plus since a lot of the Well Go USA transfers tend to drop the ball in terms of back levels. I’m happy to say that Lost in Thailand hold onto the ball.
Color Reproduction: The colors, man, the colors. Why haven’t I packed my bags and taken a trip over to Thailand yet? Colors leap off the screen. Primary, secondary, and everything in between the rainbow look stellar. It’s like a painting come to life.
Flesh Tones: Flesh tones are natural and complexions, especially from the local Thai people, have that toasty olive color. Everyone looked great!
Noise/Artifacts: I did not noticed any noise, ringing, or debris littering the about. The times I did think I was looking at noise turned out to be gnats or swamp bugs since there are several scenes the are shot in the jungle and other tropical areas in Thailand. The humidity probably didn’t do the cast and crew any favors either.
Audio
Audio Formats(s): Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.
Subtitles: English
Dynamics: Lost in Thailand is a zany comedy that combines many sonic elements. The Blu-ray handles the comedy, action, and drama, as they all contrast very well among each other without sounding like a jumbled mess.
Low Frequency Extension: The bass levels are more than adequate and really kick it up a notch during scenes of slow motion speed down and during scenes of action.
Surround Sound Presentation: There is stellar ambience coming from the rear channels and in one remarkable but unremarkable scene early on in the airport the voice of the girl on the PA system sounds like she’s right outside my door. I was watching this film with company and my door was open and I thought the voice(s) were coming from the outside but it was the movie.
Dialogue Reproduction: Dialogue is crystal clear and centralized. There are instances where folks speak in Thai, English, and Mandarin, and it’s all handled extremely well. Nothing gets drowned out.
Extras
There’s nothing much in the way of supplements. We have a standard making of featurette, theatrical trailer, and previews for upcoming Well Go USA films.
- Making of (HD, 16:25) – A very short making of featurette, with interviews, and fly on the wall footage.
- Trailer (HD, 1:20) – Theatrical trailer for Lost in Thailand.
- Previews (HD) – Special ID, Badges of Fury, The Rooftop
Summary
Lost in Thailand is by no means in the same league as any of The Hangover films even though it’s touted as China’s answer to those films. It’s very lighthearted and zany. There are no vulgar or crass jokes spewed throughout unless you think that the “lady boy” jokes offensive. The Blu-ray looks and sounds fantastic but the extras are lackluster. If you’re at all curious about what a Chinese version of The Hangover films is like then I’d recommend Lost in Thailand as a rental.
Order Lost in Thailand on Blu-ray!