“Facing the jungle, the hills and the vales, my past lives as an animal and other beings rise up before me.”
Even though he had been gaining a reputation over the years, it was not until “Uncle Boonmee…” won the grand prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethaul received wider recognition. While his other five features including “Mysterious Object at Noon” (2000), “Blissfully Yours” (2002) or “Tropical Malady” (2004) had come from a similar foundation, to be honored for a work like “Uncle Boonmee…” must have been very special to the filmmaker given the amount of time and energy he had spent on the project long before he worked on most of his other films.
In his notes on the so-called “Primitive Project”, a video installation by the director which, for example, is part of an exhibition at the Tate Modern, Weerasethakul recalls some of the most important inspirations for the film.
Even though he had been gaining a reputation over the years, it was not until “Uncle Boonmee…” won the grand prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethaul received wider recognition. While his other five features including “Mysterious Object at Noon” (2000), “Blissfully Yours” (2002) or “Tropical Malady” (2004) had come from a similar foundation, to be honored for a work like “Uncle Boonmee…” must have been very special to the filmmaker given the amount of time and energy he had spent on the project long before he worked on most of his other films.
In his notes on the so-called “Primitive Project”, a video installation by the director which, for example, is part of an exhibition at the Tate Modern, Weerasethakul recalls some of the most important inspirations for the film.
- 9/1/2018
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
In the 2015 omnibus film Ten Years, five Hong Kong filmmakers offered visions of what their country might look like in 2025. Dystopian and fiercely critical of China’s interference in Hong Kong politics, it proved a massive public hit despite the Chinese government’s efforts to suppress its distribution. In light of that success, the Ten Years International Project was born with the intention to export the concept and give voice to filmmakers from other Asian nations. The first of these to be completed is Ten Years Thailand – two more from Japan and Taiwan are in the works – featuring contributions by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Wisit Sasanatieng, Aditya Assarat, and Chulayarnnon Siriphol.
Aditya’s opening short could easily take place in the present. Shot in black-and-white, it is set in a small art gallery that is hosting a photography exhibition. A group of soldiers arrive and order the pictures to be taken down...
Aditya’s opening short could easily take place in the present. Shot in black-and-white, it is set in a small art gallery that is hosting a photography exhibition. A group of soldiers arrive and order the pictures to be taken down...
- 5/11/2018
- by Giovanni Marchini Camia
- The Film Stage
Loong Boonmee raleuk chat (original title)
On his deathbed, Uncle Boonmee, recalls his many past lives.
Director:
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Writer:
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Stars:
Thanapat Saisaymar … Boonmee
Jenjira Pongpas … Jen
Sakda Kaewbuadee … Tong
Natthakarn Aphaiwonk … Huay
Geerasak Kulhong … Boonsong
Plot | Story
Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives starts out slowly. Well to be honest the entire movie sort of meanders along. The first twenty minutes of the movie consists of visuals of a normal day to day life in the country. Things don’t really start to get odd and slightly more interesting until dinner. That is when a ghost and a fur covered creature arrived. I loved the minimum of reaction to these two abnormal guests arrival to the dinner table.
Even though it is not overly exciting at any point, Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives flows well and is weird enough that it kept my attention.
On his deathbed, Uncle Boonmee, recalls his many past lives.
Director:
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Writer:
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Stars:
Thanapat Saisaymar … Boonmee
Jenjira Pongpas … Jen
Sakda Kaewbuadee … Tong
Natthakarn Aphaiwonk … Huay
Geerasak Kulhong … Boonsong
Plot | Story
Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives starts out slowly. Well to be honest the entire movie sort of meanders along. The first twenty minutes of the movie consists of visuals of a normal day to day life in the country. Things don’t really start to get odd and slightly more interesting until dinner. That is when a ghost and a fur covered creature arrived. I loved the minimum of reaction to these two abnormal guests arrival to the dinner table.
Even though it is not overly exciting at any point, Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives flows well and is weird enough that it kept my attention.
- 12/11/2011
- by FallaWolf
- AsianMoviePulse
Rank the week of July 12th’s Blu-ray and DVD new releases against the best films of all-time: New Releases Arthur
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG13 | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #5711
Times Ranked: 827
Win Percentage: 52%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: Jason Winer
Starring: Russell Brand • Helen Mirren • Greta Gerwig • Jennifer Garner • Luis Guzman
Genres: Comedy • Farce
Rank This Movie
The Lincoln Lawyer
(DVD and Blu-ray | R | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #2807
Times Ranked: 1535
Win Percentage: 55%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: Brad Furman
Starring: Matthew McConaughey • Marisa Tomei • Ryan Phillippe • William H. Macy • John Leguizamo
Genres: Drama • Psychological Thriller • Thriller
Rank This Movie
Rango
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #595
Times Ranked: 5790
Win Percentage: 38%
Top-20 Rankings: 18
Directed By: Gore Verbinski
Starring: Johnny Depp • Isla Fisher • Abigail Breslin • Ned Beatty • Alfred Molina
Genres: Action • Adventure • Animation • Comedy • Family-Oriented Adventure • Family-Oriented Comedy • Western
Rank This Movie
Insidious
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG13 | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #3119
Times Ranked: 1785
Win Percentage: 52%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: James Wan...
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG13 | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #5711
Times Ranked: 827
Win Percentage: 52%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: Jason Winer
Starring: Russell Brand • Helen Mirren • Greta Gerwig • Jennifer Garner • Luis Guzman
Genres: Comedy • Farce
Rank This Movie
The Lincoln Lawyer
(DVD and Blu-ray | R | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #2807
Times Ranked: 1535
Win Percentage: 55%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: Brad Furman
Starring: Matthew McConaughey • Marisa Tomei • Ryan Phillippe • William H. Macy • John Leguizamo
Genres: Drama • Psychological Thriller • Thriller
Rank This Movie
Rango
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG | 2011)
Flickchart Ranking: #595
Times Ranked: 5790
Win Percentage: 38%
Top-20 Rankings: 18
Directed By: Gore Verbinski
Starring: Johnny Depp • Isla Fisher • Abigail Breslin • Ned Beatty • Alfred Molina
Genres: Action • Adventure • Animation • Comedy • Family-Oriented Adventure • Family-Oriented Comedy • Western
Rank This Movie
Insidious
(DVD and Blu-ray | PG13 | 2010)
Flickchart Ranking: #3119
Times Ranked: 1785
Win Percentage: 52%
Top-20 Rankings: 6
Directed By: James Wan...
- 7/12/2011
- by Jonathan Hardesty
- Flickchart
Strand Releasing will release Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, a colorful comedy-drama fantasy movie from Thailand, on DVD on July 12.
There are strange things going down in the forest in Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Suffering from acute kidney failure, Uncle Boonmee (Thanapat Saisaymar) has chosen to spend his final days surrounded by his loved ones in the countryside. Surprisingly, the ghost of his deceased wife (Natthakarn Aphaiwonk) appears to care for him, and his long lost son (Geerawsak Kulhong) returns home in a non-human form. Contemplating the reasons for his illness, Boonmee treks through the jungle with his sister-in-law (Janjira Pongpas) and nephew (Sakda Kaewbuadee) to a mysterious hilltop cave – the birthplace of his first life…
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Uncle Boonmee won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010 and enjoyed a successful worldwide release in theaters and at...
There are strange things going down in the forest in Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Suffering from acute kidney failure, Uncle Boonmee (Thanapat Saisaymar) has chosen to spend his final days surrounded by his loved ones in the countryside. Surprisingly, the ghost of his deceased wife (Natthakarn Aphaiwonk) appears to care for him, and his long lost son (Geerawsak Kulhong) returns home in a non-human form. Contemplating the reasons for his illness, Boonmee treks through the jungle with his sister-in-law (Janjira Pongpas) and nephew (Sakda Kaewbuadee) to a mysterious hilltop cave – the birthplace of his first life…
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Uncle Boonmee won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010 and enjoyed a successful worldwide release in theaters and at...
- 4/22/2011
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Chicago – “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” opens with one of its most striking, memorable, and essential images. A buffalo stands in a forest at what appears to be dusk, as we can see him only in shadow. He moves slowly around a tree, almost ghostly, before escaping and running through a field and into a forest. As the film unfolds after this unusual prologue, one can trace its themes back to the power of that image — as the natural and spiritual worlds seem to intertwine in the picture of a majestic creature.
The very non-linear and untraditional “Uncle Boonmee” was the surprising winner of the Palme D’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival and played last year at the Chicago International Film Festival before opening at the Music Box this weekend. It is certainly not a film for everyone. It is a piece that...
Chicago – “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” opens with one of its most striking, memorable, and essential images. A buffalo stands in a forest at what appears to be dusk, as we can see him only in shadow. He moves slowly around a tree, almost ghostly, before escaping and running through a field and into a forest. As the film unfolds after this unusual prologue, one can trace its themes back to the power of that image — as the natural and spiritual worlds seem to intertwine in the picture of a majestic creature.
The very non-linear and untraditional “Uncle Boonmee” was the surprising winner of the Palme D’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival and played last year at the Chicago International Film Festival before opening at the Music Box this weekend. It is certainly not a film for everyone. It is a piece that...
- 4/15/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Reviewed by Aaron Hillis
(from the 2010 Festival de Cannes)
Directed/Written by: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Starring: Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwonk and Geerasak Kulhong
Unless you’ve ever given yourself over to the abstract narratives of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (he would prefer you call him “Joe”), it’ll sound like a joke to hear that his deservedly Palme d’Or-winning “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” is his most accessibly structured work in years , especially since it would be a sucker’s game to explain what it’s definitively about. An extension of his “Primitive” multimedia project (consisting of shorts and installations), Joe’s latest cinematic riddle is leaps and bounds more demanding, imaginative and flat-out bewildering than any other feature in this year’s Cannes competition, rewarding multiple viewings as it gently sets us on a trance-inducing saunter through what seems like someone else’s dreamscape.
(from the 2010 Festival de Cannes)
Directed/Written by: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Starring: Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwonk and Geerasak Kulhong
Unless you’ve ever given yourself over to the abstract narratives of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (he would prefer you call him “Joe”), it’ll sound like a joke to hear that his deservedly Palme d’Or-winning “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” is his most accessibly structured work in years , especially since it would be a sucker’s game to explain what it’s definitively about. An extension of his “Primitive” multimedia project (consisting of shorts and installations), Joe’s latest cinematic riddle is leaps and bounds more demanding, imaginative and flat-out bewildering than any other feature in this year’s Cannes competition, rewarding multiple viewings as it gently sets us on a trance-inducing saunter through what seems like someone else’s dreamscape.
- 3/4/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Magazine
Reviewed by Aaron Hillis
(from the 2010 Festival de Cannes)
Directed/Written by: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Starring: Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwonk and Geerasak Kulhong
Unless you’ve ever given yourself over to the abstract narratives of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (he would prefer you call him “Joe”), it’ll sound like a joke to hear that his deservedly Palme d’Or-winning “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” is his most accessibly structured work in years , especially since it would be a sucker’s game to explain what it’s definitively about. An extension of his “Primitive” multimedia project (consisting of shorts and installations), Joe’s latest cinematic riddle is leaps and bounds more demanding, imaginative and flat-out bewildering than any other feature in this year’s Cannes competition, rewarding multiple viewings as it gently sets us on a trance-inducing saunter through what seems like someone else’s dreamscape.
(from the 2010 Festival de Cannes)
Directed/Written by: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Starring: Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwonk and Geerasak Kulhong
Unless you’ve ever given yourself over to the abstract narratives of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul (he would prefer you call him “Joe”), it’ll sound like a joke to hear that his deservedly Palme d’Or-winning “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” is his most accessibly structured work in years , especially since it would be a sucker’s game to explain what it’s definitively about. An extension of his “Primitive” multimedia project (consisting of shorts and installations), Joe’s latest cinematic riddle is leaps and bounds more demanding, imaginative and flat-out bewildering than any other feature in this year’s Cannes competition, rewarding multiple viewings as it gently sets us on a trance-inducing saunter through what seems like someone else’s dreamscape.
- 3/4/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Network
Strand Releasing have unveiled the first official trailer for Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives.
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethaku, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives won the coveted Palme d’Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and stars Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwong and Jeerasak Kulhong.
On his deathbed, Boonmee recalls his previous lives.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives will hit Us cinemas on March 2, while a UK DVD/Blu-ray release, courtesy of New Wave Films, has been penciled in for March 28.
Watch the Us trailer below:
Source: Apple [via: The Playlist]...
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethaku, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives won the coveted Palme d’Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and stars Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Natthakarn Aphaiwong and Jeerasak Kulhong.
On his deathbed, Boonmee recalls his previous lives.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives will hit Us cinemas on March 2, while a UK DVD/Blu-ray release, courtesy of New Wave Films, has been penciled in for March 28.
Watch the Us trailer below:
Source: Apple [via: The Playlist]...
- 2/16/2011
- by Jamie Neish
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (12A)
(Apitchatpong Weerasethakul, 2010, Thai/UK/Fra/Spa/Ger/Neth) Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee. 113 mins
Not for nothing was this dubbed "Uncle bong hit" when it took the top prize at Cannes this year. With its non-linear plot and fantastical elements – ghosts, ape-men, talking catfish, etc – woven into a story of a dying farmer in modern-day Thailand, it sounds like a far-out 1960s head-trip. But in reality (if that's the right word), it's a calm, sensual, captivating daydream of a movie that wears its weirdness without affectation. It makes the world feel like a rich and mysterious place. More of a natural high, then.
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part I (12A)
(David Yates, 2010, UK/Us) Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint. 146 mins
Given the choice between giving their audience a treat and milking them as much as possible,...
(Apitchatpong Weerasethakul, 2010, Thai/UK/Fra/Spa/Ger/Neth) Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee. 113 mins
Not for nothing was this dubbed "Uncle bong hit" when it took the top prize at Cannes this year. With its non-linear plot and fantastical elements – ghosts, ape-men, talking catfish, etc – woven into a story of a dying farmer in modern-day Thailand, it sounds like a far-out 1960s head-trip. But in reality (if that's the right word), it's a calm, sensual, captivating daydream of a movie that wears its weirdness without affectation. It makes the world feel like a rich and mysterious place. More of a natural high, then.
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part I (12A)
(David Yates, 2010, UK/Us) Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint. 146 mins
Given the choice between giving their audience a treat and milking them as much as possible,...
- 11/20/2010
- by The guide
- The Guardian - Film News
An elusively poetic film from Thailand that stunned Cannes. By Peter Bradshaw
This beautiful, mysterious and playful film by the Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul – winner of this year's Cannes Palme d'Or – is about ghosts, past lives and the fear of death, things that in another sort of movie would be presented as scary or sentimental, but are here accepted as alternative phenomena, existing alongside day-to-day normalities. The poetry is all in this calm and gentle equivalence. The film's sublimely spiritual quality induces a benign narcosis.
The Uncle Boonmee of the title, played by non-professional Thanapat Saisaymar, is a middle-aged man who is terminally ill with acute kidney failure; he has returned to the forests of north-eastern Thailand to settle his affairs concerning a modest property he has there. Boonmee is a widower, but has a gentle supportive friendship with his late wife's sister Jen (Jenjira Pongpas) who has come with him,...
This beautiful, mysterious and playful film by the Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul – winner of this year's Cannes Palme d'Or – is about ghosts, past lives and the fear of death, things that in another sort of movie would be presented as scary or sentimental, but are here accepted as alternative phenomena, existing alongside day-to-day normalities. The poetry is all in this calm and gentle equivalence. The film's sublimely spiritual quality induces a benign narcosis.
The Uncle Boonmee of the title, played by non-professional Thanapat Saisaymar, is a middle-aged man who is terminally ill with acute kidney failure; he has returned to the forests of north-eastern Thailand to settle his affairs concerning a modest property he has there. Boonmee is a widower, but has a gentle supportive friendship with his late wife's sister Jen (Jenjira Pongpas) who has come with him,...
- 11/18/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
This deadpan animist fable is a mystical tone poem about memory, at least in part, and stunningly filmed in the lush jungles of northeastern Thailand. In smoky 16mm chiaroscuros, midnight-blue skies butt up against the emerald horizons of an Isan farm estate, where our avuncular hero Boonmee (Thanapat Saisaymar), a kind-hearted widower, is dying of acute kidney failure. His dedicated sister-in-law Jen (Jenjira Pongpas), nephew Tong (Sakda Kaewbuadee) and a Burmese immigrant keep him company and care for him, but they soon discover they're not alone. One night out on their terrace, Boonme's dead wife Huay (Natthakarn Aphaiwonk) materializes for conversation at the dinner table, followed by their son Boonsong (Geerasak Kulhong), who has transformed into a "monkey ghost" (sort of a glowing-red-eyed, black Sasquatch) after mating with one himself.
Deservedly Palme d'Or-winning, "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives" is Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s most accessibly structured work in years.
Deservedly Palme d'Or-winning, "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives" is Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s most accessibly structured work in years.
- 5/27/2010
- Moving Pictures Magazine
Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives—which last night won the 2010 Palme d'Or, becoming one of the most adventurous, most experimental, and best winners of that award in Cannes history—is a film that you slip into as you would a warm blanket, greet it as you would an old, dear friend, sigh with contentment as when a gentle breeze cools the end of a day. Expanding on his Primitive Project—which includes the short A Letter to Uncle Boonmee, which debuted online on our site—centered around the northeast border of Thailand, Uncle Boonmee stretches out in the countryside to take a final, deep, accepting breath of air and live life before passing on, from animals to men to ghosts and myths.
Boonmee (Thanapat Saisaymar), a good-hearted, land-owning widower, is taken ill with kidney failure and retires to his farm to be...
Boonmee (Thanapat Saisaymar), a good-hearted, land-owning widower, is taken ill with kidney failure and retires to his farm to be...
- 5/25/2010
- MUBI
Dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Thai movie has a cumbersome title, but it is a gloriously worthy winner of the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes film festival. This is a visionary film in the director's characteristic style: mysterious, dreamlike, gentle, quiet, magical. It has elements that are at first glance absurd, and at second or third glance, too, come to that. But they are beguiling and beautiful as well: the extended, wordless opening sequence in which a water buffalo appears to break free from its rope and roam the plains and forests of north-east Thailand at dusk is superbly filmed.
Boonmee is a middle-aged man, in need of kidney dialysis, who has come to the remote forest to end his days: this is an important place from his childhood, and, he believes, the location for his former existences. His recalling of these past lives is partly, but only partly,...
Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Thai movie has a cumbersome title, but it is a gloriously worthy winner of the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes film festival. This is a visionary film in the director's characteristic style: mysterious, dreamlike, gentle, quiet, magical. It has elements that are at first glance absurd, and at second or third glance, too, come to that. But they are beguiling and beautiful as well: the extended, wordless opening sequence in which a water buffalo appears to break free from its rope and roam the plains and forests of north-east Thailand at dusk is superbly filmed.
Boonmee is a middle-aged man, in need of kidney dialysis, who has come to the remote forest to end his days: this is an important place from his childhood, and, he believes, the location for his former existences. His recalling of these past lives is partly, but only partly,...
- 5/24/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
HONG KONG -- Fortissimo Films has acquired worldwide rights to Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Syndromes and a Century, one of seven films commissioned by the New Crowned Hope Festival that is part of Vienna's Mozart Year. The festival, which runs Nov. 14-Dec. 13, has invited international artists from diverse cultures to show works and interpretations of Mozart's ideas and visions. Thailand's Syndromes stars Nuntarut Sawaddikul, Nuntarut Jaruchai Leamaram, Jaruchai Nu Nimsomboon, Tow Sophon Pookanok, Sophon Arkaney Cherkham, Arkaney Sin Kaewpakpin, Sin Sakda Kaewbuadee and Jenjira Jansuda.
- 5/11/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
HONG KONG -- Fortissimo Films has acquired worldwide rights to Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Syndromes and a Century, one of seven films commissioned by the New Crowned Hope Festival that is part of Vienna's Mozart Year. The festival, which runs Nov. 14-Dec. 13, has invited international artists from diverse cultures to show works and interpretations of Mozart's ideas and visions. Thailand's Syndromes stars Nuntarut Sawaddikul, Nuntarut Jaruchai Leamaram, Jaruchai Nu Nimsomboon, Tow Sophon Pookanok, Sophon Arkaney Cherkham, Arkaney Sin Kaewpakpin, Sin Sakda Kaewbuadee and Jenjira Jansuda.
- 5/11/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
CANNES -- Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethaku makes experimental films outside that country's studio system. Rigorously uncommercial and for most viewers impenetrable, his second feature, "Tropical Malady", will prove a strain for even his loyal fans. Certainly for most audiences the viewing experience will prove not only tedious but bewildering. If the walkouts and boos mingled with applause at its press screening here mean anything, the film may stump the art-film crowd as well.
The film comes in two parts. In the first, a young soldier Keng (Banlop Lomnoi) falls for a country boy named Tong (Sakda Kaewbuadee). They sit around with his Tong's mother, listening to the sounds of the night air. Away from his home, Keng kisses and fondles Tong's hand. (Whatever does that mean? one wonders.)
Then the screen goes blank and we are meant to understand that Tong has disappeared. Now we enter the folkloric section of the movie, in which the soldier enters the jungle looking for Tong or a ghost or a wild beast that is slaughtering cows. It is not clear.
This section is shot at night in a jungle in northeast Thailand. This effectively keeps the screen nearly pitch black so one is lucky to see anything. The highlight comes when a monkey is glimpsed and his gibbering is given subtitled dialogue. Later a tiger appears, but isn't given anything to say.
Finally, a ghost appears in the form of a naked man who wrestles and apparently defeats the soldier. Hard to say though since this, too, takes place in the dark. Which is where Weerasethakul leaves his audience for most of the film.
TROPICAL MALADY
An Anna Sanders Films production co-produced by TIFA Downtown Pictures, Thoke+Moebius film and Kick the Machine
Credits:
Writer/director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Producers: Paiboon Damrongchaithaqm, Marco Muller, Christoph Thoke, Axel Moebius, Pantham Thongsang
Directors of photography: Vichit Tanapaniktch, Jarin Pengpanitch, Jean Louis Vialard
Production designer: Akekarat Homiaor
Costume designer: Pilaitip Jamniam
Editor: Lee Chatamethikool
Cast:
Keng: Banlop Lomnoi
Tong: Sakda Kaewbuadee
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 120 minutes...
The film comes in two parts. In the first, a young soldier Keng (Banlop Lomnoi) falls for a country boy named Tong (Sakda Kaewbuadee). They sit around with his Tong's mother, listening to the sounds of the night air. Away from his home, Keng kisses and fondles Tong's hand. (Whatever does that mean? one wonders.)
Then the screen goes blank and we are meant to understand that Tong has disappeared. Now we enter the folkloric section of the movie, in which the soldier enters the jungle looking for Tong or a ghost or a wild beast that is slaughtering cows. It is not clear.
This section is shot at night in a jungle in northeast Thailand. This effectively keeps the screen nearly pitch black so one is lucky to see anything. The highlight comes when a monkey is glimpsed and his gibbering is given subtitled dialogue. Later a tiger appears, but isn't given anything to say.
Finally, a ghost appears in the form of a naked man who wrestles and apparently defeats the soldier. Hard to say though since this, too, takes place in the dark. Which is where Weerasethakul leaves his audience for most of the film.
TROPICAL MALADY
An Anna Sanders Films production co-produced by TIFA Downtown Pictures, Thoke+Moebius film and Kick the Machine
Credits:
Writer/director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Producers: Paiboon Damrongchaithaqm, Marco Muller, Christoph Thoke, Axel Moebius, Pantham Thongsang
Directors of photography: Vichit Tanapaniktch, Jarin Pengpanitch, Jean Louis Vialard
Production designer: Akekarat Homiaor
Costume designer: Pilaitip Jamniam
Editor: Lee Chatamethikool
Cast:
Keng: Banlop Lomnoi
Tong: Sakda Kaewbuadee
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 120 minutes...
CANNES -- Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethaku makes experimental films outside that country's studio system. Rigorously uncommercial and for most viewers impenetrable, his second feature, "Tropical Malady", will prove a strain for even his loyal fans. Certainly for most audiences the viewing experience will prove not only tedious but bewildering. If the walkouts and boos mingled with applause at its press screening here mean anything, the film may stump the art-film crowd as well.
The film comes in two parts. In the first, a young soldier Keng (Banlop Lomnoi) falls for a country boy named Tong (Sakda Kaewbuadee). They sit around with his Tong's mother, listening to the sounds of the night air. Away from his home, Keng kisses and fondles Tong's hand. (Whatever does that mean? one wonders.)
Then the screen goes blank and we are meant to understand that Tong has disappeared. Now we enter the folkloric section of the movie, in which the soldier enters the jungle looking for Tong or a ghost or a wild beast that is slaughtering cows. It is not clear.
This section is shot at night in a jungle in northeast Thailand. This effectively keeps the screen nearly pitch black so one is lucky to see anything. The highlight comes when a monkey is glimpsed and his gibbering is given subtitled dialogue. Later a tiger appears, but isn't given anything to say.
Finally, a ghost appears in the form of a naked man who wrestles and apparently defeats the soldier. Hard to say though since this, too, takes place in the dark. Which is where Weerasethakul leaves his audience for most of the film.
TROPICAL MALADY
An Anna Sanders Films production co-produced by TIFA Downtown Pictures, Thoke+Moebius film and Kick the Machine
Credits:
Writer/director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Producers: Paiboon Damrongchaithaqm, Marco Muller, Christoph Thoke, Axel Moebius, Pantham Thongsang
Directors of photography: Vichit Tanapaniktch, Jarin Pengpanitch, Jean Louis Vialard
Production designer: Akekarat Homiaor
Costume designer: Pilaitip Jamniam
Editor: Lee Chatamethikool
Cast:
Keng: Banlop Lomnoi
Tong: Sakda Kaewbuadee
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 120 minutes...
The film comes in two parts. In the first, a young soldier Keng (Banlop Lomnoi) falls for a country boy named Tong (Sakda Kaewbuadee). They sit around with his Tong's mother, listening to the sounds of the night air. Away from his home, Keng kisses and fondles Tong's hand. (Whatever does that mean? one wonders.)
Then the screen goes blank and we are meant to understand that Tong has disappeared. Now we enter the folkloric section of the movie, in which the soldier enters the jungle looking for Tong or a ghost or a wild beast that is slaughtering cows. It is not clear.
This section is shot at night in a jungle in northeast Thailand. This effectively keeps the screen nearly pitch black so one is lucky to see anything. The highlight comes when a monkey is glimpsed and his gibbering is given subtitled dialogue. Later a tiger appears, but isn't given anything to say.
Finally, a ghost appears in the form of a naked man who wrestles and apparently defeats the soldier. Hard to say though since this, too, takes place in the dark. Which is where Weerasethakul leaves his audience for most of the film.
TROPICAL MALADY
An Anna Sanders Films production co-produced by TIFA Downtown Pictures, Thoke+Moebius film and Kick the Machine
Credits:
Writer/director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Producers: Paiboon Damrongchaithaqm, Marco Muller, Christoph Thoke, Axel Moebius, Pantham Thongsang
Directors of photography: Vichit Tanapaniktch, Jarin Pengpanitch, Jean Louis Vialard
Production designer: Akekarat Homiaor
Costume designer: Pilaitip Jamniam
Editor: Lee Chatamethikool
Cast:
Keng: Banlop Lomnoi
Tong: Sakda Kaewbuadee
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 120 minutes...
- 5/19/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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