Tears of the Black Tiger

Martial arts action mixes with tongue-in-cheek humor in an action-comedy that was a huge box-office success in its native Thailand. The Black Tiger (Chartchai Ngamsan) is the leader of a gang of bandits who dress in cowboy garb and hide out in a forest when not taking advantage of their village's wealthier residents. The Black Tiger falls in love with a beautiful woman (Stella Malucchi), but fate does not look kindly upon their romance; it seems her father has pledged her hand in marriage to a police officer determined to put the Tiger out of business. Fa Talai Jone had its North American premiere at the 2000 Vancouver Film Festival, where it won the Dragons and Tigers Award for Best Asian Feature.