walletss Posted December 30, 2002 Report Share Posted December 30, 2002 Given that there is much interest in books and writers that focus their material on Asia, I would like to ask the posters to post their suggestions on movies with Asian themes. I just returned from the video library with a new DVD to watch tonight ? Lies? a film by Jang Sun-Woo. ??controversial film that chronicles the bizarre sexual relations of a 38 year old married man and an 18 year old student who is intent on losing her virginity before graduation?? ?? the hottest film in South Korean Eastern history?. ? The village voice. Anybody else want to post their suggestions on any movies or documentaries to watch out for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markle Posted December 30, 2002 Report Share Posted December 30, 2002 Here is my Top Ten of Thai cinema if that's what you are after. I've given the English titles that I can remember. 6ixty-nine9 - violent black comedy that restored my faith in Thai cinema. Only negatives are a lot of in-jokes that require a good knowledge of Thai culture, and the story is a copy of "Shallow Grave" Monlak transistor - Bleaker than '69' but also more poignant. More of a social commentary. Must see. Goal club - The most honest portrayal of disaffected youth produced in this country- possibly SEA. Criminally overlooked by theatre goers. Fah Talai Jone (Tears of the Black Tiger)- a homage to old Thai movies without being overindugent or spoofing them. Jan Dara - ambitious, controversial, well-made, but ultimately hollow. Fun Bar Karaoke - quirky and engaging but still very rough production values. Satree Lek (Iron Ladies) - surprisingly mature handling of a tricky subject matter. Funny without being demeaning. I doubt it could be done in the West. Nang Nark - Kicked off the recent revival in Thai films. Well made with a strong storyline (it should be there have been more Thai movies about Mae Nark Prakanong than any other subject) but falls down in the casting, Sai Chalernrung wailing "Ai Mark Ai Mark" drove me batty. Also they messed up the marketing, presenting it as a horror movie instead of the tragic romance that it is. Suriyothai - too long, too dry, and too many characters but no where near as bad as some make out. A useful insight to Thai history. Dang Birley - Not a bad period piece but pretty formulatic. I wrote this a while ago so I would add Mekhong Full Moon Party - made me want to move to Nong Khai. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khunsanuk Posted December 31, 2002 Report Share Posted December 31, 2002 Hi, Only saw a few of these.. "Jan Dara - ambitious, controversial, well-made, but ultimately hollow." I thought this really sucked. Did not get it at all, which I first attributed to me watching it in Thai, but the missus felt the same way. "Nang Nark - Kicked off the recent revival in Thai films." Kinda enjoyed this one. Fairly easy to understand as well (saw it in Thai) "Suriyothai - too long, too dry, and too many characters" Agree with the too long and too many characters (I had a hard time telling the 2 main female chars apart), but did rather enjoy the movie. Some others I saw: - Bang Rajan Really liked this one. Especially the ending, which is rather different than most movies, i.e. not a happy ending. - The Trek (I think) Movie about a couple of kids off to find a white elephant. Really, really bad. Also saw bits of a movie on a guy going to jail for a couple of years. Looked pretty cool, but the level of Thai was too high for me and I did not get large chuncks of it. Decided not too bother after the first 20 min. There have been more, but all of them have been so bad that I never bothered finish watching them. Sanuk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harlequinbkk Posted December 31, 2002 Report Share Posted December 31, 2002 Of all the Thai movies I have seen, "Mekhong Full Moon Party" was my favorite. I have spend most of my time in BKK, so this movie was a good exposure for me to life in small town Issan. Like most of the world, I enjoy Hollywood movies, but sometimes you need to try something different and this movie fits the bill perfectly. About "Suriothai" - it was difficult to follow the plot; the court intrigues were positively Byzantine. I had a Thai friend explain to the the political background to the movie and it made more sense. Perhaps to fully understand the movie you need to get it on VCD and watch it at home with a Thai friend who can give you a running commentary on it. That aside, Suriothai really brought 16th century Thailand to life - the buildings, costumes, and of course, the war-elephants! Makes me want to grab a halberd, jump on one of these magnificent beasts and go give the Burmese what for, just like Queen Suriothai did (not so thrilled about dying for my country, though). Interesting to see Conquistadors (Portugese?) in Suriothai. Didn't know farang mercenaries were used back then in Thailand. Imagine having to bear all that armor in the opressive heat and humidity. I understand Francis Ford Coppola is editing the movie for International release. Probably better for non-Thais to watch this version. Harlequin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted January 3, 2003 Report Share Posted January 3, 2003 A little bit off topic. By accident I saw tonight two old movies on TV playing in Thailand: James Bond: The man with the golden gun, 1974 Bad rated James Bond movie. This film made the small islands near Phuket famous. Karate Tiger Tiger 3, with Jean-Claude van Damme, 1988. Bad movie. There is a short funny scene in Patpong in front of the Gogo Bar Supergirl? : van Dammes film bother picks a bunch of orchids and gives it to a girl in front of a Gogo bar and he looks very proud that the girl accompanies him to the hotel. It seems that they cut the barfine part :: :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limbo Posted January 4, 2003 Report Share Posted January 4, 2003 There's another Bond movie, I think it was with the original Bond, Sean Connery, where they drive over Thanon Ratchadamnoen Klang and around the Democrazy Monument. Forgot the name of the movie. Jandara wasn't that bad.......? I liked Suriyothai, but had also troubles following all the intrigues and the two female main characters. Great scenes and customes though. Limbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markle Posted January 5, 2003 Report Share Posted January 5, 2003 Thailand was used a lot for Vietnam War movies, two that come to mind are "Good Morning Vietnam" and "Saigon" they come to mind because of the slip-ups. In "Good Morning" Robin Williams is riding through Klong Toey and you can see the odd shop sign written in Thai. Then in "Saigon" Willem Dafoe is interviewing a 'Vietnamese' bargirl with a GI interpreter, the interpreter asks questions in Vietnamese, the girl answers in Thai, and the interpreter translate into English! Hilarious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted January 5, 2003 Report Share Posted January 5, 2003 I don´t remember excatly, but Rambo II or III started in Thailand where he did some repair work in a temple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pom Michael Posted January 6, 2003 Report Share Posted January 6, 2003 Kamui, Why is your alligator/dinosour running so fast ? Very annoying to try to read any of your posts. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limbo Posted January 6, 2003 Report Share Posted January 6, 2003 Hi Markle, today on tv in Thailand was Off Limits with Willem Dafoe. The movie is set in Saigon, but shot in Bangkok in 1988. The theme is that whores are getting killed by a US trooper, could this be the same movie, under a different name? Limbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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