Translated material
Thai Roulette
Thailand Film Festival at the 35 MM Cinema
“The whole world knows what they think about Thailand! - sacramentally says the mafia boss in the well-known film by the Siamese Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (yes, that’s right) called “6sty nine9” (and there is no mistake here!). “All our women, of course, are prostitutes, and the men sell drugs.” In fact, of course, the achievements of the Kingdom of Thailand are by no means this untidy crime. Much more attention is attracted to such industries as Thai cuisine, the martial art of Muay Thai and Thai massage (real, classified as an integral part of local culture and medicine, and not a pseudo-erotic surrogate). Local cinema is also of no less value. Recently (about three years), not a single self-respecting festival (including Moscow) can do without Thai films, films by local directors are highly valued by specialists, and more recently Thailand acquired a real world-class star - her became a phenomenal master who has no equal in the field of martial arts (and at the same time a very passable film actor) Tony Jaa, who starred - without stunt doubles and special effects - in two hand-to-hand super action films ("Ong Bak" and "Tom Yum"), which were very successfully screened on wide screens in Europe and the New World. Unfortunately, the program of the upcoming festival has bypassed Jaa, but even without his amazing battle entrechat there will be something to see.“Shutter” (2004) by Banjong Pizanthanakun (October 13 at 21.00), perhaps the most famous film in the program now in the West, also known as “They are among us” and managed to win the audience award at the significant fantasy film festival in Gerardmer. This is a mystical thriller in the spirit of Japanese "neo-kaidan" (ghost films) about a couple facing the Unknown; the heroes witnessed a road accident, which for some reason no one else noticed, but which was imprinted with ominous signs on the photographs they took. It makes sense to look at all this before Shutter, as is tradition, is promptly re-shot for America (the rights have already been purchased, the premiere of the American version is scheduled for next year). Overseas producers did not show such attention to “The Righteous” (2005) by Note Chern-Yim (October 13 at 19.00 and October 15 at 23.00), and no wonder. This movie is from a completely different opera, either an absurdist or simply a ridiculous story for internal use about a Buddhist monk with a dark past who went to a distant village to fight religious prejudices. Director Yangiut Tongkontun, out of habit, forces his characters to do unusual things: in his previous relatively well-known film “The Iron Ladies,” a team of gays and transsexuals performed at a professional volleyball championship, and the heroes of the new adventure comedy “Combat Cleaners” (2004, October 14 in 17.00 and October 15 at 19.00) four masters of dry and wet cleaning, who are also an elite team of spies, became sort of “mop angels”. The latest film of the festival, the romantic comedy “Love Without Memory” (2006, October 14 at 19.00 and October 15 at 21.00) from the director of the Thai superhit “Sexy Phone” Haeman Chatemi - the story of a relationship that, by chance, finds itself far from civilization (but at the same time in incredibly beautiful places) superstars of the silver screen, whose name is simply Film (played by the real star of Thai cinema Ratchapum Tonogpap) and paparazzi photographer Jaa (not the one, or rather, not the one in “Ong Bak”, Paula Taylor is in this video) . Finally, for the little ones in the program there is a cute cartoon by Campin Kemgurnird “Han Luai” (October 15, 15.00) about the adventures of a baby elephant in the forest, and for those who prefer “shorter, but more”, an hour-long selection of short films Futureshorts Thai Special (October 14 at 21.00 and October 15 at 17.00), made up of the most interesting films, some of which seem much shorter than the names of the directors who shot them.