Here's a question - I have to chuckle every time I watch the Thai boxer in the film, because he goes out of his way to be surly and makes it a point to often spit on the ground. He's the anti-Tony Jaa. It was the constant spitting that got my attention. It seems that there must be some kind of cultural slur at work, and I was wondering if anyone knew what it was and how it originated.
shareI don't know about Thailand, but people spit A LOT in China today. This makes me think it isn't a particular slur on Thai people, though it certainly wouldn't surprise me.
shareI'm betting it was supposed to be a bunch of little naughty cliches about other asian cultures. Sort of like when Americans call Mexican's lazy or Canadians boring.
They are boring but that's beside the point.
americans call mexicans lazy? what the hell i have never heard that one in my life, canadians are boring though.
shareI hear the expression "lazy mexican" all the time
shareIt's a very provincial attitude really, Chinese believe they were direct descendants from God and that China was the middle kingdom between heaven and earth, so to a Chinese person a Thai kickboxer has got to the equivalent of what we see shopping at Walmart most of the time.
Also remember Pai Mei's response to Uma Thurman in Kill Bill about she doesnt know Chinese but she knows Japanese or Johnny Vang's comment about sushi in Crank 2.
... just as all Canadians think typically that Americans are loud, boorishly overly-agresssive, and incredibly conceited even when lacking any individual achievement (USA! USA! USA!!!!). Obviously, not all Americans are like this, but a lot of them are.
I'll concede as a Canadian that we are "boring" in the sense of being more reserved and dignified, which can come across as boring to a person who has no personal experience whatever with either of these qualities.