15. World Film Festival Bangkok, 2.12 - 11.12 2022 - Film And Review
15. World Film Festival Bangkok, 2.12 - 11.12 2022
Reviews, news and analysis from 15. World Film Festival Bangkok, 2.12 11.12 2022
A selection of the most important films from the popcinema.org editorial team.
Author Roberto Matteucci
A HUNDRED FLOWERS
Director Genki Kawamura
“‘Get me a flower!”
Yuriko abandoned Izumi, her small kid, she followed her lover. After the romance ends, she returns to Izumi. Izumi is now a man, married to a beautiful girl who is expecting a baby. However, Izumi's soul is full of a grudge against his mother.
Yuriko has got old. She starts to forget things, her flat is a mess and she keeps buying countless eggs. For Izumi, the only solution is to hospitalize her in a nursing home.
A delicate story about the parental relationship between mother and son. It is not an ideal relationship but it is a suffering relationship. Yuriko is an imperfect woman. She committed an unforgivable crime for a mother. Izumi has a strong sense of guilt, he does not understand the reasons for being left alone.
Being a parent is not easy. Izumi is full of doubts: will he be a good father? Was he a good son?
Read the review here
TORA’S HUSBAND
Director Rima Das
“He is a compassionate man
”
Jaan is a good person, an affectionate family man, generous to everyone. He runs a pastry shop, always polite and professional with customers.
He is always ready to help his employees. It is COVID time. Strict rules have also arrived in India. People suffer. If Indians slavishly followed them, they wouldn't have the money to survive. It is the usual contrast in India. Contrast is perennially the dominant element in the country. Jaan is the protagonist, and it is impossible not to love him. He obviously has flaws. Stress and worries push him to drink a lot at night. The film has a structure of various fragments, all edifying episodes.
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SCALA
Director Ananta Thitanat
“The last chair is done.
”
Scala was a cinema in Bangkok. It was located in Siam, in the centre of the metropolis. It was a large cinema, opened in 1969, in which thousands of young Thais discovered international cinema. Nevertheless, the world has changed. Now, near Scala, there are many huge malls with comfortable and modern multiplex halls. There is no future for Scala and it must close. In its place, another massive building will be built. The film Scala is the poetic and moving narration of its slow dismantling. Dozens of workers remove huge chandeliers, armchairs and furniture. A voice-over, a dialogue between the labourers and the authors, narrates a nostalgic past. The last film was screened on 5 July 2020. A symbolic, non-random film was chosen: it was Giuseppe Tornatore's film, Cinema Paradiso.
Ananta Thitanat's film is poignant, painful and dusty but thrills. In many similar halls, all over the world, the public had fun, cried, got excited, got scared.
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THE SEAGULL - NANG NUAN
Director M.L. Pundhevanop Dhewakul
In southern Thailand, in a place of stunning sea beauty, some boys live their dreams. Thep is a writer. He is the son of a famous actress. Thep is in love with Nual, an innocent young girl. She is very beautiful. She wants to move to Bangkok to be an actress. Her ambition, however, becomes a drama. A magnificent melodrama with the topoi of a majestic tragedy.
Jury, prizewinners and director of the 15. World Film Festival Bangkok
CLOSE
Director Lukas Dhont
“I miss him.”
In Belgium, two young boys, Léo and Rémi, are great friends. They are always united. They often sleep together. Every morning, they meet at the same intersection for school at the same time. Nevertheless, childhood friendships are destined to break down and so Léo is left alone. He is just a child, he does not know how a grieving process works.
Unfortunately, the adults around Léo have a cold and impersonal sensibility, forced to respect a role. Léo must succeed alone, when he breaks his arm, he starts how to live with the pain.
An easy, classic film. This type of friendship is common in literature. In comparison with the other films, Close adds an abundance of light.
The Dardenne brothers represent a model from which to be inspired or copied.
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ARNOLD IS A MODEL STUDENT
Director Sorayos Prapapan
“Bangkok traffic is terrible.”
The Thai school system has an organization typical of Asian nations. The most prestigious educational institutions are private. Enrolling is difficult. It is not enough to pay, they also have to pass complicated and competitive exams. Arnold is a student at a prominent high school. He is an intelligent scholar, he is a maths champion, he attended an institute in the United States for a year. When he returns, the principal celebrates him. The aim is to use him as an attraction, as an example, to get new subscribers. Out of boredom or money, Arnold agrees to commit an infamous unlawful act. He has to help stupid candidates from rich families. Arnold has to suggest the answers to them during exams. In return, he receives thousands of baht.
The film has different structures. Is it a funny and ironic film or a social film or a political film? In the end, something is missing, it disappears in a confusion of technical levels.
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ARU OTOKO - A MAN
Director Kei Ishikawa
“Nobody lives without a few scars."
n cases where a person does not like the way they live, or has suffered inconceivable traumas, is it possible to abandon the past and drastically change their name, life, and habits?
According to the director Kei Ishikawa, all people in Japan need a new identity. The story proceeds like a thriller, with lots of flashbacks to create personalities.
Read the review here
ARU OTOKO - A MAN
Director Kei Ishikawa
“Nobody lives without a few scars."
n cases where a person does not like the way they live, or has suffered inconceivable traumas, is it possible to abandon the past and drastically change their name, life, and habits?
According to the director Kei Ishikawa, all people in Japan need a new identity. The story proceeds like a thriller, with lots of flashbacks to create personalities.
Read the review here
