BABY HERO (被逼英雄) (2025)

Genre: Comedy/Action
Director: Kok Man Hon
Cast: Wang Weiliang, Long Lee, Ya Hui, Vithaya Pansringarm, Hayley Woo 
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Sexual References)
Released By: Shaw Organisation
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 23 January 2025

Synopsis: A fantastical journey of unlikely heroes, compelled by fate and circumstances. Overwhelmed by the pressures of chasing his music dream, Sun (Long Lee) retreats to his hometown, Happy Village. At Happy Village, Sun’s family runs a small tourism business and Sun’s girlfriend, Leena (Hayley Woo), joins the tour group heading there, hoping to bring Sun back. Among the tour group is an infamous thief “Ah Jiu” (Wang Weiliang) sent to steal a magical statue from the village. The tourists from the group, each with unique personalities and intentions, have to rely on their fists and wits to resist the villains from stealing the magical statue. Together, they are forced to become heroes, protecting both the magical statue and Happy Village… 

Movie Review:

The first thing that we noticed about this CNY offering isn’t its ensemble cast, but its movie title. The English title “Baby Hero” suggests that the protagonist is some sort of an immature character. Then we looked at the Chinese title which literally means “a hero who is forced into becoming one”, and we applauded how the first two words of the title cleverly sounds like “Baby”. Kudos to whoever came up with this.

Then there is the movie poster which features many, many faces. Like a Hong Kong CNY movie which often stars countless celebrities in the spirit of prosperity, the promotional poster of this Thailand Singapore production gives the same impression as the many characters ‘rush’ towards you, as if they are going to deliver a series of new year greetings.

The huge ensemble cast includes familiar local faces like Wang Weiliang, Hayley Woo, Ya Hui, Chen Tianwen, Joshua Tan, Tay Zo En and Lim Yew Huat, as well as Thai names like former Muay Thai trainer Long Lee, veteran actor Vithaya Pansringarm (whom you may recognise from other movies like Only God Forgives, The White Storm and Operation Mekong), Chotpipat Suttijun and Kongkid Wisetsiri.

Lee plays Sun, an aspiring singer based in Singapore. And lucky him, because he has a girlfriend Leena (Woo) who is always looking out for him. But a man has got to do what a man has got to do. When he needs to head back to his hometown in Thailand to settle some family business, he jets back in a jiffy, leaving Leena bewildered.

We are then introduced to Happy Village, a scenic spot in rural Thailand where Sun’s grandfather (Pansringarm) needs to get rid of pesky bad guys who want to steal a magic artifact that supposedly allows its owner to have eternal happiness. This sounds like quite a stretch, but we continue going along for the ride.

Oh, Happy Village is also a tourist resort, and that explains why we next see a group of Singaporeans arriving. As expected, it is a motley crew and this group includes a small time burglar (Wang) who calls himself the “Southeast Asian God of Thieves”, a sad woman (Ya) who wants to end her life because she has been dumped by her boyfriend, a money minded businessman (Chen) and his nephew (Tan), an enthusiastic influencer (Tay), and not forgetting Leena who has flown to Thailand to find out what Sun is exactly up to.

What ensues is a series of events that cover both comedy and action, which are perfect for a CNY movie. Wang is on form here as the bumbling burglar who keeps interrupting the heartbroken lady’s suicide attempts. It shouldn’t be funny if this happened in real life, but the moments are chuckle worthy. Then there is the bit where he wriggles his butt because of a voodoo spell, and that made us laugh too. Elsewhere, the Thai cast are natural in their roles, especially Pansringarm who actually sounds convincing when he talks about the magical artifact’s powers.

The action sequences are well executed too. Watch out for a chase sequence through the forest where the good guys are trying to escape on a fumbling vehicle, as well as a one take drone led fight scene where the good guys are punching the bullies in their faces.

Given the number of characters in the story, is a 105 minute movie enough to give all their characters equal development? Obviously not, but we gladly go along for the ride anyway, because it is meant to be a CNY movie after all, and it’s no time to be a grouch.

Movie Rating:

(Let the cheerful ensemble cast of this CNY movie bring you along for a fuss-free ride to Happy Village)

Review by John Li