‘Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad’ (Original title: Tee Yai Rerk Dao Jone), written by Chanchana Homsap and directed by Nonzee Nimibutr, follows a part of the titular criminal’s life, deemed as the most notorious in the country’s history. It presents him less as a villain and more as a troubled anti-hero, who chose the wrong path because he was wronged as a child. That’s an overdone but compelling emotional hook, which can work if presented with depth and sincerity. What we get instead is a cloying narration without the substance or character distinctions to make it work.
It’s difficult to care about the characters in this Thai film since the script doesn’t care much about them either. They are simply in service of conventional genre thrills in this crime drama that stays serviceable at best. So, it becomes a moderately well-meaning but largely forgettable addition in Netflix’s ever-increasing content pile.
Spoilers Ahead
Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad (2025) ‘Netflix’ Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
‘Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad’ follows the titular thief, reputed for his criminal adventures, who escapes from under the nose of the authorities only to be confronted by them over and over again.
What happens in Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad?
Nonzee Nimibutr’s crime drama mainly follows the cat-and-mouse chase between a criminal and a police officer expected to catch him. It introduces Pairoj Changkian, known as Tee Yai (Apo Nattawin Wattanagitiphat), as an elusive criminal who vanishes into thin air every time he gets caught. That’s why many believe he knows spiritual magic, even if he is simply using tricks to get out of trouble. His popularity knows no bounds, which makes him seem all the more of a threat to those who hold power. They can’t let him keep getting away with his unlawful plans. Be that as it may, he remains committed to never getting caught, while standing up against the world that once wronged him.
As a kid, Tee Yai saw his friend Rerk Srivichien’s (Most Witsarut Himmarat) father being taken away by some goons, who believed he was selling narcotic drugs. After the father’s arrest, Rerk was looked after by Tee Yai. The two stayed close friends till their early adulthood. One day, Rerk noticed Tee Yai getting beaten up badly by people whom he couldn’t pay back on time. At the time, Rerk rescued him, and it led them on the path of criminal life. Since then, Tee Yai committed a string of robberies, where Rerk supposedly stayed by his side and got him out of trouble if need be. Eventually, after gaining notoriety for their crimes, the two are captured by the police. They soon escape and return to Luang Por, a monk who had cared for them since Rerk’s father’s arrest.
After this incident, Officer Jakkrarat (Joke Akarin Akaranithimetrad) is roped in by a high-positioned official to locate Tee Yai, who likely poses an existential threat to his status.
Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad (2025) ‘Netflix’ Movie Ending Explained:
Does Tee Yai get caught by the cops?
Jakkarat ropes in two officers who let the arrested Tee Yai and Rerk slip through their fingers. They locate Kith (Nont Sadanont Durongkavarojana), whom they suspect of having helped the criminal duo in the past. As it happens, Tee Yai and Rerk show up at a shady location to find Dao (Kao Supassara Thanachart) getting beaten up by arrogant men while she defends her honor. Tee Yai shoots those men, and Rerk stops him from killing them. Rerk develops feelings for Dao and hopes to rescue her from this risky line of work. Her manager soon learns about her affair with Rerk and threatens to end it. Tee Yai and Rerk, who are already on the run from the police and have a bounty on their heads, save her from that wretched place. While helping them, Kith gets arrested.
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Tee Yai and Rerk dress up as cops to rescue Kith. On their way out, they get ambushed but find a way out right in time. Then, Rerk learns about his mother’s untimely death and decides to avenge her by killing her murderer. It happens to be a trap that gets him caught by the police. Dao assumes Rerk may never return, but he does, determined to go on one final robbery. This time, he is the one trapping Tee Yai to earn freedom for him and Dao and to secure Tee Yai’s life. He informs cops about the specifics of their robbery plan. They show up there at the exact time, but accidentally shoot Dao in his stead. Rerk drives Dao and Tee Yai back home. Tee Yai accepts that there is no way out of karmic retribution for his crimes. So, he returns to face the police.
During the final face-off, Jakkrarat shoots Tee Yai with a sniper rifle, which doesn’t kill him. Tee Yai sits in his car, bleeding. In that moment, he urges Rerk to kill him and end his misery instead of being arrested and tortured in prison. Rerk regretfully does what is asked of him and runs away. Well, it doesn’t bode well for him either. Kith kills him for betraying Tee Yai, who himself gets killed, moments later, by a cop. As a result, Dao is left as a single mother to raise her and Rerk’s child.
Why does Jakkarat resign?
In the end, Jakkarat is honored as the officer who killed a ruthless criminal like Tee Yai, even if he didn’t do the deed. The ending implies that Jakkarat doesn’t want his secret plan to be traced back to him. So, he burns the document of a cop who was working undercover for him. It’s the same cop who killed Kith. It seems to be his way of getting rid of Rerk, whom he used earlier to reach Tee Yai. After all of this, he regrets all his choices leading up to that moment, and instead of priding himself on his work and sucking up to the soulless bureaucracy, he resigns from his job.
Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad (2025) ‘Netflix’ Movie Review
For an investigative thriller about a country’s most famous criminal, ‘Tee Yai: Born to Be Bad’ is surprisingly dull. That’s mainly because of its loose characterisation, which makes it difficult to set its lead characters apart. Their traits can be easily replaceable, which leaves them with little to no personality. The film portrays Tee Yai’s magnetic appeal through his makeup, costume design, and hairstyling, leaving his gravitas feel woefully plastic. It introduces flashbacks to Tee Yai and Rark’s tragic past through sappy melodrama, which dampens its desired effect.
The makers heighten the drama even further through predictable music cues, which makes it all the more difficult to distinguish this film from any other film about an infamous criminal. Besides, the slowed-down footage during some crucial action scenes ruins their inherent suspense since it builds it in the most predictable manner. So, even the conventionally thrilling sequences detailing the criminal’s sly escape or an intense gun fight become forgettable moments that can be easily placed in any standard genre affair, and you won’t realize the difference.
The film works moderately better when characters take a step back from chasing thrills, since it allows them to live and breathe as people beyond what they mean to the world. Unfortunately, those moments are few and far between to salvage this muddled film. It’s a shame since there is a fascinating tale about an anti-hero and how we determine heroes and villains.
