Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening April 28-May 4, 2011

Certified Copy


Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami directs Certified Copy , a much-acclaimed romantic comedy-drama starring French actress Juliette Binoche in a role that won her Best Actress at last year's Cannes Film Festival.

She's a gallery owner living in Tuscany who attends a lecture by a British author (English opera singer William Shimell) on authenticity and fakery in art. Afterward, she invites him on a tour of the countryside, during which he is mistaken for her husband. They keep up the pretense and continue on their afternoon out, discussing love, life and art, and increasingly behaving like a long-married couple.

Critical reception is highly favorable. "The main stars are absolutely perfect in this absorbing, existential drama that dissects human relationships," is the consensus.

It's at House on RCA. Rated 15+.

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Thor


The hammer-wielding Norse god of thunder is the latest Marvel Comics superhero to hit the big screen. In Thor, Chris Hemsworth portrays the powerful but arrogant warrior. The Australian actor became widely known after his high-profile appearance in 2009's Star Trek, playing James Kirk's heroic but doomed father.

After a power struggle in his realm, Thor is banished to modern-day earth, where he lands in New Mexico, is tasered by Kat Dennings and taken in by her and other scientists, among them Natalie Portman and Stellan Skarsgaard. After blustering at the puny humans, Thor goes out for coffee with them, breaks mugs and poses for Facebook photos.

Eventually, the battle in Thor's kingdom comes to Earth, and he has to fight Loki (Tom Hiddleston). Anthony Hopkins is Odin and Rene Russo is Thor's mother. Idris Elba and Clark Gregg also star.

Elevating the pedigree of this movie above the usual comic-book flicks is director Kenneth Branaugh, who likely tapped into all that's mythical and Shakespearean about this tale.

But because Thor is closely allied in the Marvel universe with the Iron Man franchise, expect to sit through the ending credits for a teaser to the Captain America movie coming out in July or to next year's The Avengers. It'll probably have something to do with Samuel L. Jackson and his eye-patch clad character Nick Fury.

Critical reception so far is wildly positive. Also in 3D, including IMAX. Rated 15+.

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Also opening


Drive Angry – The always entertaining Nicolas Cage stars in this crazy-looking movie, which seems to be a mix of Con Air, Gone in 60 Seconds and Ghost Rider. He's a criminal who breaks out of Hell to go on a road-raging drive of vengeance against an evil cult leader (Billy Burke) who is threatening to sacrifice Nic's infant granddaughter in a Satanist ritual. Nic hooks up with Amber Heard and her sweet muscle car and the pair go tear-assing around, shooting anyone who obstructs their path. Meanwhile, Satan has sent his accountant (a scene-stealing William Fichtner), who is tasked with dragging Nic back to hell. Patrick Lussier (My Bloody Valentine 3D) directs. This movie was actually filmed in 3D for maximum exploitive effect. Critical reception is mixed. "It may deliver the over-the-top action pieces, but Drive Angry prefers to work safely within [the] grindhouse formula than do something truly unique," is the consensus. In 3D at some cinemas. Rated 18+.


Ladda Land (ลัดดาแลนด์, a.k.a. The Lost Home) – This is the latest effort from writer-director Sophon Sakdaphisit, who scripted the hit thrillers Shutter and Alone and made his directorial debut a couple years back with Coming Soon. He's now set his sights on the posh housing developments that are popping up around the edges of Thailand's cities. Starring Saharat Sungkhapreecha and Piyathida Worramusik, Ladda Land has a family who are happy in their home until ghostly things start cropping up. The fact-based tale springs from a housing development in Chiang Mai that was eventually abandoned after a series of unexplained deaths. Rated 18+.


Jakkalan (จั๊กกะแหล๋น) – Martial-arts star Jeeja Yanin (Chocolate, Raging Phoenix and the upcoming Tom-Yum-Goong 2) tries her hand at comedy in this crime farce that's directed by Mum Jokmok. She's a mischievous young woman who gets mixed up with gangsters, delivering smuggled goods on her trendy fixed-gear bicycle. There's also a bit of romance for Jeeja as well as gags from Mum and his usual crew of comedians. It's a different kind of movie for Jeeja, who's traditionally played characters who do their talking with their fists. Here, she's got quite the smart mouth, but eventually her Muay Thai fury is unleashed. Rated 15+.


Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son – From the high point when Flip Wilson first donned a dress to portray the sassy woman Geraldine, the schtick of the cross-dressing comedian has grown increasingly hackneyed, thanks to the likes of Tyler Perry and his Madea character and Martin Lawrence in his fat-suit playing Big Momma. Now Lawrence's franchise gets a reboot of sorts, with younger comedian Brandon T. Jackson (Tropic Thunder) joining him for more crude sight gags that take broad swipes at womanhood and people of size. Lawrence and Jackson are father and son who both disguise themselves as large women while on an undercover FBI mission to investigate a murder at an all-girls school. Critical reception is overwhelmingly negative, but the movie proved popular enough at the U.S. box office back in February that they'll probably keep making these. It's only at SF cinemas. Rated 13+.


Tomorrow’s Joe (Ashita no Joe) – The 1960s manga that spawned a 1970s anime series gets a live-action adaptation. Set in 1960s Japan, it stars singer Tomoshita "Yamapi" Yamashita as a teenage hoodlum in a detention center who has talent that's spotted by an alcoholic ex-boxer (Teruyuki Kagawa). In Japanese with English and Thai subtitles at Apex Siam Square. Rated 13+.

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Also showing


Journey Through ASEAN – Two more movies dealing with children and family issues in Southeast Asia are featured in the Film Kawan film series at TK Park at Central World. At 2pm on Saturday it's Laskar Pelangi (The Rainbow Troops) by Indonesian director Riri Riza. The box-office-hit childhood drama deals with 10 schoolboys growing up in the 1970s as they struggle with poverty in their village on a tin-mining island. At 2pm on Sunday there will be a screening of Moving to Mars, a documentary about two families of refugees from Burma, tracking their journeys from a camp on the Thai-Burmese border to their new homes in the U.K. The screenings are in Mini Theater 1 in TK Park on the eighth floor of CentralWorld.


Flandres – Bruno Dumont’s romance and war drama won the Grand Prix du Jury in 2006. It’s about young guy enjoys countryside walks and sex in the hedgerows with his girlfriend. He loves her, but can't quite bring himself to say they are a couple. That leads to problems later. And then the guy is shipped out to fight in some unnamed near-future European war. Critical reception is generally positive, with praise for the beautiful cinematography and convincing portrayals. Screens on Wednesday, May 4 as part of the "Special Festival de Cannes" at the Alliance Francais Bangkok, every Wednesday until May 25.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: Journey through ASEAN, April 27-May 8, 2011

TK Park, the government-sponsored educational media center on the eighth floor of CentralWorld, is back to running regular programs after a closure caused by the fires at the shopping center last year.

This week, TK Park teams up with Film Kawan for the Journey Through ASEAN film series, with a line-up of five youth-oriented movies from across Southeast Asia, starting on Wednesday (April 27).

The screenings are in Mini Theater 1. For details, call (02) 270 1350-4 visit www.TKPark.or.th.

Here's the program:

Mukhsin – This 2006 drama is the third entry in Malaysian director Yasmin Ahmad's Orked trilogy about cross-cultural romances and family dynamics. It has the 10-year-old girl Orked falling in love for the first time when Mukhsin, a 12-year-old boy from a traditional Muslim family, moves to town. Screens at 4.30 on Wednesday, April 27.

Laskar Pelangi (The Rainbow Troops) – Indonesian director Riri Riza's childhood drama deals with 10 schoolboys growing up in the 1970s as they struggle with poverty in their village on a tin-mining island. The movie was a major sensation at the Indonesian box office and won many awards. Screens at 2pm on Saturday, April 30.

Moving to Mars – This British documentary deals with two families of refugees from Burma, tracking their journeys from a camp on the Thai-Burmese border to their new homes in the U.K. Screens at 2pm on Sunday, May 1.

Buddha's Lost Children – This 2006 Dutch documentary is about a Thai Buddhist monk who uses his patience and faith (as well as his Muay Thai skills) to help orphaned children, fight drug abuse and preserve a vanishing way of life. Screens at 2pm on Saturday, May 7.

Homerun – This heartfelt 2003 family drama is directed by popular Singaporean comedian and filmmaker Jack Neo. It's a remake of an Iranian film, Children of Heaven, and is about a poor brother and sister and their adventures over a lost pair of shoes. It's set in 1965, against the backdrop of Singapore's independence from Malaysia and also contains satire about relations between the two countries. Screens at 2pm on Sunday, May 8.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening April 21-27, 2011

Winter's Bone


Jennifer Lawrence gives an Oscar-nominated performance in Winter's Bone as a plucky 17-year-old Ozark Mountain girl who's in charge of caring for her family – a 6-year-old sister, 12-year-old brother and a mentally ill mother.

Her no-good, meth-cooking daddy has run off and is due in court. The family's rural homestead has been put up as collateral for bail, and the sheriff (Garret Dillahunt) comes by, saying if the father doesn't turn up for his trial, the family will be evicted.

With no other place to go, and desperate to keep her family together, the girl takes it upon herself to track down her dad. It's a harrowing, life-threatening adventure that takes her into the dark, grisly methamphetamines underworld of the rugged and impoverished Ozarks region of middle America.

Directed by Debra Granik, Winter's Bone is a small-budget independent production. It had a limited release in the U.S. last year. It's won many awards, including the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Film at the Sundance Film Festival. In addition to the best-actress nomination at this year's Academy Awards, it was also up for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for John Hawkes as the girl's Uncle Teardrop.

Critical reception is overwhelmingly positive. "Bleak, haunting, and yet still somehow hopeful, Winter's Bone is writer-director Debra Granik's best work yet – and it boasts an incredible, star-making performance from Jennifer Lawrence," says the consensus. It's only at the Lido in Siam Square.

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Also opening


Limitless – The Hangover star Bradley Cooper heads up this thriller that is marketed on the premise "what if a pill could make you rich and powerful?" He's an author who overcomes writer's block with the help of a secret new drug that boosts his brain power. He's soon addicted and uses his new superhuman abilities to play the stock market and get rich. He catches the eye of a mega-mogul (Robert De Niro) but also attracts the unwanted attention of criminals who'll do anything to get their hands on his drug stash. Neil Burger directs, and Abbie Cornish also stars. Critical reception is mixed, leaning to positive, with critics saying the script is uneven but it has "plenty of visual panache, and Bradley Cooper makes for a charismatic star". It's only at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld and at SFX The Emporium. Rated 15+.


Ironclad – Paul Giamatti has played hot-tempered characters before, like in Sideways and Shoot 'Em Up, and he blusters as he chews up the scenery in this historical action drama, playing the tyrannical King John. Having been forced to sign the Magna Carta granting men their basic freedoms, he's going back on his deal and has hired Danish mercenaries to help him take back his power. The key is Rochester Castle, where a member of the Knights Templar (James Purefoy) leads a small ragtag band of rebels, among them Brian Cox and Jason Flemyng. They have to hold the castle at all costs against an overwhelming force. Kate Mara also stars in this British production, filmed in Wales, and directed by Jonathan English. Because Ironclad hasn't yet had a major release in the U.S., critical reception is too early to gauge. But the movie was screened at the recent ActionFest in the U.S., where it won praise for its wildly bloody and violent castle-siege scenes. Rated 18+.


Ramayana: The Epic – Made in India, this computer-animated feature cartoon depicts the epic tale of Lord Rama from his birth until his battle with Ravan at Sri Lanka and the liberation of Sita. It's a well-known tale, with the Ramayana adapted into Thai folklore as the Ramakien. Five years went into the production of this animated feature, with more than 400 crewmembers involved. Critical reception is mixed. Confusingly, this film's promotional materials advertise it as 3D, and indeed the type of animation is 3D computer animation, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a 3D film that you need special glasses for. Rated G.


Scream 4 – Ten years have passed and Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), now a self-help book author, returns home to Woodsboro on the last stop of her book tour. She reconnects with her friends Sheriff Dewey and his wife Gale (David Arquette and Courtney Cox). It's also the 15th anniversary of the first Woodsboro Murders and unfortunately Sidney's appearance also brings about the return of the masked serial killer Ghostface. Wes Craven is back as director with series creator Kevin Williamson writing the script. In addition to original trilogy stars Campbell, Arquette and Cox, new faces Emma Roberts and Hayden Panettiere also star. Critical reception is mixed, the consensus being that it's "undeniably an improvement over its predecessor, with just enough meta humor and clever kills." After a sneak-preview run last week, Scream 4 is now on general release. Rated 18+.

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Also showing


Cyrano de Bergerac – Gérard Depardieu stars in this 1990 adaptation of an 1897 stage production that was in turn loosely based on an actual historical figure. Depardieu won the best actor award at Cannes in 1990 (as well as an Academy Award and tons of other prizes) for his portrayal as the storied swashbuckling romantic poet with a big nose. Jean-Paul Rappeneau directs. Anne Brochet and Vincent Perez also star. Critical reception is overwhelmingly positive. It screens on Wednesday, April 27, as part of the "Special Festival de Cannes" at the Alliance Francais Bangkok every Wednesday until May 25.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: Alliance Française Special Festival de Cannes, April 20-May 25, 2011

The Alliance Française Bangkok offers a warm up to next month’s Cannes Film Festival by showing six French highlights of the fest from the past 10 years or so in a "Special Festival de Cannes".

The screening series starts tomorrow (April 20) and runs at 7.30 every Wednesday until May 25 in the auditorium at the Alliance Française. Unless otherwise noted, the films are in French with English subtitles. Admission is free.

Here's the line-up:

Au cœur du Festival (Heart of the Festival) – Released in 2004, this three-part documentary anthology offers a look back at the greatest moments at Cannes by festival president Gilles Jacob, who lifts the curtain on historical backstage secrets and events over the course of 160 minutes. Screens on April 20.

Cyrano de Bergerac – Gérard Depardieu won the best actor award at Cannes in 1990 (as well as an Academy Award and tons of other prizes) for his portrayal as the storied swashbuckling romantic poet with a big nose. I'm not sure he even needed to use makeup. Jean-Paul Rappeneau directs. Anne Brochet and Vincent Perez also star. Critical reception is overwhelmingly positive. Screens on April 27.

Flandres – Bruno Dumont’s romance and war drama won the Grand Prix du Jury in 2006. It’s about young guy enjoys countryside walks and sex in the hedgerows with his girlfriend. He loves her, but can't quite bring himself to say they are a couple. That leads to problems later. And then the guy is shipped out to fight in some unnamed near-future European war. Critical reception is generally positive, with praise for the beautiful cinematography and convincing portrayals. Screens on May 4.

Van Gogh – The final 67 days of artist Vincent Van Gogh's life are depicted in this 1991 biographical drama by Maurice Pialat. Jacques Dutronc portrays the talented but tormented painter. Screens on May 11.

Clean – Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung won the best actress prize at Cannes in 2004 for her portrayal of the drug-addicted widow of a rock star. Directed by her ex-husband Olivier Assayas, she has her hair all frizzed out and is chain-smoking. She's a woman determined to change her ways and get clean in order to take custody of her son from her in-laws. Nick Nolte appears as her father-in-law. Clean was also a nominee of the Bangkok International Film Festival's Golden Kinaree in 2005, as well as loads of other prizes. Critical reception is mostly positive. Screens on May 18.

Ridicule – Director Patrice Leconte’s sumptuously costumed 1996 period comedy is a satiric view of the court of Louis XVI in the 18th century, where a poor lord learns to play the delicate games of palace intrigue as he tries to get royal backing for a drainage project. Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort and Fanny Ardant star. Screens on May 25.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening April 13-19, 2011

Let the Bullets Fly


A bandit robs a conman impersonating a mayor to then try and take over a remote village in 1920s China in Let the Bullets Fly, a wild-west-style action comedy that's directed by and stars Jiang Wen. Playing the bandit, Jiang matches wits with the local crime boss, portrayed by Hong Kong tough-guy Chow Yun-fat. Ge You, Feng Xiaogang and Carina Lau also star.

Much like the spaghetti westerns of the 1960s and '70s had political overtones, pundits say Let the Bullets Fly is loaded with symbolism about China's politics and society. Jiang, however, remains coy about the message of his movie.

A record-breaking box-office hit in China earlier this year, Let the Bullets Fly has also been a critical success. It was nominated for five Asian Film Awards, including best director and screenplay for Jiang, best actor for Chow and supporting actress for Lau. It lost out on best film to Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, but won the prize for costume design.

Critical reception is mostly positive. It's Thai-dubbed except for one place in Bangkok – SFW CentralWorld, where it's playing in Mandarin with English and Thai subtitles. Rated 18+.

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Also opening


Rio – Brazilian-born director Carlos Saldanha, who previously made the Ice Age movies as well as Robots for Blue Sky Animation, turns to a subject near and dear to his heart with this musical talking-animals story of a domesticated macaw named Blu (voiced by Jesse Eisenberg) who embarks on an adventure in Rio de Janeiro with a wacky band of misfit friends, including a foxy female macaw (Anne Hathaway), toucans (including George Lopez), a bulldog named Luiz (Tracy Morgan), a red-crested cardinal named Pedro (Will.i.am) and his canary friend Nico (Jamie Foxx). Critical reception is mostly positive, with Rio praised as "a simple and charming movie [that] hits great heights thanks to its colorful visual palette, catchy music, and perfect vocal performances." In 3D. Rated G.


World Invasion: Battle Los Angeles – It's an apocalyptic crisis as Los Angeles comes under attack by powerful unknown forces in this sci-fi drama. Directed by South African helmer Jonathan Liebesman, the documentary-style action focuses mainly on US marines, soldiers and airmen and their response to the attack – presumably by aliens – and takes inspiration from such movies as Black Hawk Down and Saving Private Ryan. It's a war movie. Pro-military hoo-rah propaganda. Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Michael Pena, Ne-Yo and Ramon Rodriguez star. Critical reception is leaning to negative. "Overlong and overly burdened with war movie clichés, Battle: Los Angeles will entertain only the most ardent action junkies." Rated 13+.


Staten Island – The lives of three residents of New York's Staten Island intersect as they struggle to get ahead. Sully Halverson (Ethan Hawke) plans to rob mob boss Parmie Tarzo (Vincent D’Onifrio) while deaf-mute deli worker Jasper Sabiano (Seymour Cassel) wants to escape the mobsters who have infiltrated his life and business. An indie art-house crime drama that only saw a limited release in 2009, it's also known as Little New York. Critical reception is a bit thin on the ground. It's at House cinema on RCA.


Nang Phee (หนังผี, a.k.a. The Cinderella) – Weird supernatural stuff starts happening after a hot-tempered actor named Rashane dies on a movie set and his mother calls back his soul to take revenge on those who were involved in his demise. Sarunyoo Prachakit stars with Pattaranan "Nannie Girly Berry" Deeratsamee and "Nut" Niranaat Victoria Coates. Sarawut Intaraprom, who did last year's cracking horror thriller Tai Tang Klom (The Snow White), directs this release from Golden A Entertainment. See a bit more in the trailer. Rated 18+.

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Sneak preview



Scream 4 – Ten years have passed and Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), now a self-help book author, returns home to Woodsboro on the last stop of her book tour. She reconnects with her friends Sheriff Dewey and Gale (David Arquette and Courtney Cox). It's also the 15th anniversary of the first Woodsboro Murders and unfortunately her appearance also brings about the return of the masked serial killer Ghostface. Wes Craven is back as director with series creator Kevin Williamson writing the script. In addition to original trilogy stars Campbell, Arquette and Cox, new faces Emma Roberts and Hayden Panettiere also star. Critical reception so far is mixed. The movie is just opening in the U.S. this week and is in sneak previews in Thai cinemas this week, with nightly showtimes starting at around 8 at most multiplexes. Rated 18+.

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Take note

Movies are opening earlier than ordinary this week because of the Songkran (Thai New Year) holiday, which starts today and runs through Friday, though in some places it may go on longer. If you're a Songkran scrooge like me, the cinema offers a great place to take refuge from the watery festivities. However, the trick is getting out of your house and into your theatre seat while staying dry. If you have your own car, you have a good chance if you're heading to a mall multiplex with a covered parking garage. Or, try calling a taxi service, which can dispatch a cab to your door. I recommend the Howa taxis. They are clean and generally always professional. And keep your car doors locked. Use common sense. Take precautions to keep things dry that you don't want to get wet. Rubber sandals and an extra set of clothes are also good ideas. And actually, despite the water-throwing revelers (both at curbside stations and roving in pickup trucks), Songkran is a great time to be in Bangkok – the city empties out because folks go to visit their home provinces.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening April 6-12, 2011

Mindfulness and Murder (Sop Mai Ngeap)


A monk works to solve a mystery in the edgy thriller Mindfulness and Murder, which looks to blend film-noir suspense with Buddhism in much the same way as last year's controversial, critically acclaimed Nak Prok (Shadow of the Naga).

Directed by Tom Waller, it's adapted from one of the "Father Ananda Mystery" novels by Thailand-based expat writer Nick Wilgus.

The Thai title is Sop Mai Ngeap (ศพไม่เงียบ ), literally "the corpse is not quiet".

Vithaya Pansringarm stars as Father Ananda, a former policeman. And when there's a murder of a homeless boy in the temple and the cops are too busy to do anything about it, Ananda is compelled by the abbot to take on the case .

Thaitanium rapper Way Prinya is a junior monk and veteran actor Jaran "See Tao" Petcharoen is the temple's abbot. "Kaew" Charina Sirisinga of the pop group ZaZa plays a reporter. Late actor "Muek" Abhijati Jusakul, who died last September, portrays the weary cop Inspector Somchai. And former Miss Universe Natalie Glebova (recently split from her ex-tennis-star husband Paradorn Srichapan) makes a cameo as a good samaritan.

Mindfulness and Murder has previously won awards on the festival circuit.

Waller's De Warrenne Pictures secured a release through M Pictures, the distribution arm of Thailand's biggest theatre company, Major Cineplex, which will show it exclusively in the chain's 21 digital "Silver Screen" halls. The indie thriller is positioned as alternative programming to a certain mega-budget Thai movie that's been unspooling on virtually all the screens in all the multiplexes over the past week.

There's a Facebook page as well as a trailer. Rated 15+.

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Also opening


Source Code – Jake Gyllenhaal is a soldier who finds himself taking part in a government experiment in which he inhabits another man's body and repeatedly travels back in time to a recent incident in which a bomb aboard a passenger train killed millions of people in downtown Chicago. He has to figure out a way to foil the attack. Michelle Monaghan is his love interest while Vera Farmiga and Jeffrey Wright are Jake's government handlers. David Bowie's son Duncan Jones directs, graduating to a major-studio, big-budget project on the strength of his critically acclaimed indie sci-fi drama Moon. Critical reception is mostly favorable, the consensus being that Jones has found "the human story amidst the action ... [to] craft a smart, satisfying sci-fi thriller." Rated 15+.


Mars Needs Moms – A 9-year-old boy ends up on Mars after his mother is abducted. Turns out there's a shortage of mothers on the Red Planet and the Martians are stealing them from Earth. With the help of a tech-savvy fat guy named Gribble (voiced Dan Fogler) and a weird rebel Martian girl the kid looks for ways to rescue his mother. Released by Disney and produced by Robert Zemeckis' ImageMovers Digital studio, this is a motion-capture animation that's similar to Zemeckis' previous efforts with that technique, The Polar Express, Beowulf and A Christmas Carol, in which the movements of live-action actors wearing special suits and helmets are captured in a virtual environment. Seth Green and Joan Cusack also star. Simon Wells (The Time Machine) directs. It's based on a graphic novel by former Bloom County cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. Released in the U.S. last month, Mars Needs Moms was a major flop at the box office, a bomb that prompted Disney to torpedo Zemeckis' planned motion-capture remake of The Beatles' Yellow Submarine. Critical reception is mixed, the consensus that "the cast is solid and it's visually well-crafted, but Mars Needs Moms suffers from a lack of imagination and heart." In 3D at IMAX.


Wind Blast (Xi Feng Lie) – Four police detectives are assigned to track down a murder suspect and his pregnant girlfriend who've fled into the desert. The tables are then turned when the hunters become the hunted as they are targeted by professional assassins. Chinese director Gao Qunshu directs this contemporary western, which stars Francis Ng, Xia Yu, Charlie Yeung, Duan Yihong, Wu Jing, Ni Dahong and Zhang Li. It's in Mandarin with English and Thai subtitles at Apex in Siam Square.


Ha Zard (ฮาศาสตร์) – Cover your eyes if you don't want to be blinded by the latest hyper-colorful comedic fantasy by Bangkok Loco director Pornchai Hongrattanaporn, better known as Mr. Pink. Produced by Five Star Production, Ha Zard has Fan Chan star Charlie Trairat and Boonchu boy Thanachart Tulyachat teaming up to clown around at a comedy school that's in danger of being shut down. Pimchanok Ponlaboon, Kirk Schiller, Jaturong Mokjok and Kom Chuanchuen also star. In the trailer, I think I also spotted a cameo by the pantomime trio Baby Mime. Rated 15+

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Take note

Movies are opening a day earlier than usual this week because of the Chakri Memorial Day holiday today. That will also be the case next week, for the start of the Songkran (Thai New Year) holiday on Wednesday, April 13, with movies opening that day.