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Citizen Dog (2005)
With its visceral imagery and child-like imagination, Wisit Sasanatieng’s new film Citizen Dog proves him to be Thailand’s answer to Tim Burton and Jean Pierre Jeunet. Sasanatieng has once again pushed the limits of popular imagery, as he did in 2000 with Tears of the Black Tiger. However, Citizen Dog has taken a positive new direction — its modern day setting and forceful social commentary give it a real focus and meaning that Tears of the Black Tiger seemed … (read more)
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Buppha Ratree (2003)
Buppha Ratree has to be one of the most unconstrained films I have seen from Thailand. It’s no wonder they screened it for the Midnight Madness program at the Toronto Film Festival this year. The story is over the top, the characters are bizarre and the style that Sippapak chooses to shoot the film is uncontrollable. Nonetheless amongst this fluttering chaos great fun can be found!
At first glance Buppha Ratree is seemingly just another ghost story out of Thailand … (read more)
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Born To Fight (2004)
From the production team that brought you the film Ong Bak, comes Born To Fight, a tale of athletes, terrorists, guns, Muay Thai, and a small nuclear threat. Whilst not a sequel, Born To Fight does have much the same feel as Ong Bak, making it instantly recognisable to fans. The stunts are similar in that neither wire-work or computer graphics are used, and many of the more impressive stunts are played in slow motion to allow … (read more)
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6IXTYNIN9 (1999)
Certainly an interesting film to come from Thailand’s leading director Pen-ek Ratanaruang, however in saying that, a film like this is not uncommon for him. In fact, 6ixtynin9’s story is a precursor of things to come later in Pen-ek’s career, particular in terms of genre and story.
6ixtynin9 makes amusing use of genre; this film seems to sit somewhere between a dark comedy, a drama and a gangster flick. With influences coming from each genre, I find it praiseworthy … (read more)
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Mon-Rak Transistor (2000)
Where on earth can I start with this film? I could start with the beginning of the movie: I’ve seen a lot of common narrative devices used to introduce us to the characters, but I’ve never seen one like this. Perhaps I should explain…
The film begins inside what seems to be a police station cell area. The out-of-focus camera shows only blurred figures, as one of the police takes a call on his phone. It seems he and his … (read more)
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Tears of the Black Tiger (2000)
You know those Thai movie posters?
The hand painted ones?
Where the men are impossibly manly, the women are incredibly gorgeous, and the colours are ridiculously lurid?
Tears of the Black Tiger is a whole movie like that:
That man, that woman, those colours. Man, those colours!
The Black Tiger is the most feared bandit around, a cool-handed killer who can ricochet a bullet ten times around a kitchen before shooting his man in the head. He rides with Mahesuan, … (read more)
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Nang Nak (1999)
There’s not many movies that tell you straight up what’s going to happen. And you’d think that, if they did, you’d be pretty let down by the movie, right? “What a cheap trick”, you’d think. “They must be desperate to find a way to make the point: what must the film be like if they can’t do it in the story?!?”
Well, this film does just that, and it works. We’re told in a voice-over that Nak, a young wife, … (read more)
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