Wise Kwai's Bangkok Cinema Scene

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening January 26-February 1, 2012

2012-01-26T11:22:00.000+07:00

Moneyball

In the early 2000s, Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane revolutionized Major League Baseball when he threw out the rule book. Up until then, players were largely scouted and fielded solely on the basis of their abilities. But Beane didn't look at the players and how they held the bat and or threw the ball – he looked at their statistics, and used those numbers to build a competitive team with just a fraction of the payroll of other big league teams like the New York Yankees.

Brad Pitt portrays Bean in Moneyball, which is based on a book by Michael Lewis.Jonah Hill is a statistics whiz who helps Beane devise his strategy, and Philip Seymour Hoffman is the A's manager, who is among the traditionalists who chafe at Beane's new approach.

Moneyball has long been in the works. At one time, Steven Soderbergh was attached to direct, and he wrote a screenplay that took an approach not liked by studio executives. So Bennett Miller (Capote) was brought aboard, and Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network) was drafted to write a third version of the screenplay. He's credited for the final version along with Steve Zaillian.

It's nominated for six Academy Awards, including best actor for Pitt, a surprise supporting actor nod for Hill as well as best best picture and best adapted screenplay. Critical reception is mostly positive. Even if you don't know anything about baseball, you'll probably like Moneyball. It's at SF cinemas. Rated 13+.

Also opening

The Skin I Live In – Before he went to Hollywood to play Zorro, the desperado and voice a swashbuckling cartoon cat, Antonio Banderas acted in a number of films by Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar. The Skin I Live In reunites the pair for a body-horror thriller that you might expect to come from the likes of David Cronenberg or Paul Verhoven. Banderasportrays a plastic surgeon who's haunted by past tragedies. He creates a type of synthetic skin that withstands any kind of damage. His guinea pig is a mysterious and volatile woman (Elena Anaya) who holds the key to his obsession. Premiering in competition at last year's Cannes Film Festival, critical reception is mixed, but mostly positive. It's in Spanish with English and Thai subtitles at House, Paragon Cineplex and SFW CentralWorld. Rated 18+.

The Devil Inside – Here's another horror movie that's made in a documentary style with fake found footage, similar to The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. Here, a young documentary filmmaker becomes involved in a series of exorcisms during her quest to Italy to find out what happened to her mother, who is said to have murdered three people as a result of being possessed by a demon. Critical reception is extremely negative, but that doesn't matter because The Devil Inside opened at No. 1 at the U.S. box office when it was released there earlier this month. Rated 15+.

Always – Ex-boxer Cheol-Min (So Ji-Sub) works a night job as an attendant at a parking lot, which entails a lot of sitting in a tiny booth and watching a small TV. One night a woman named Jung-Hwa (Han Hyo-Joo) walks in, offers him something and sits next to him. Cheol-Min comes to realize she's blind and has mistaken him for the attendant who worked there previously. Or has she? Directed by Song Il-Gon, Always was the opening film of last year's Busan film festival. In Korean with Thai subtitles at Apex, CentralWorld and Paragon Cineplex; elsewhere Thai-dubbed. Rated 13+.

Panya Raenu 2 (ปัญญา เรณู 2) – Last year, actor-director Bin Binluerit made an independent film about Isaan schoolchildren entering a singing contest. It was a project near and dear to his heart and he must have been gratified when audiences turned up to watch it, plunking down more than $420,000 or about 13 million baht at the box office. However, if you were among the many who saw Panya Raenu, you might wonder how there can be a sequel. No matter. Sahamongkol Film International has got hold of it now, and though Bin is still the director and the child stars are the same, the cast has the new addition of such box-office stars as “Tukky” Sudarat Butrprom and Petthai “Mum Jokmok” Wongkhamlao. The story this time around has the schoolkids heading to Bangkok for a music contest, but star singer Panya is missing. Chubby loud-mouthed girl Raenu and the rest have to find him. Rated G.

Rak Sudthai Pai Na (รักสุดท้าย ป้ายหน้) – Last year, two of Thailand's major studios released duelling romantic comedies about thirtysomething women. Sahamongkol had 30+ Singles on Sale and less than a month later M-Thirtynine offered 30 Kamlung Jaew. Both were hits at the box office. Now Five Star Production wants in on the action. So they've released Rak Sudthai Pai Na, in which an unlucky-in-love career gal (Khanuengnit Jakkrasamithanon) finds herself on a city bus, which jerks to a stop and throws her against a short-pants-clad high-school kid (Thakrit Hemannopjit). The two strike up a friendship, but with the age difference, the relationship is a struggle. Kirati Nakinthanon directs. Rated G.

Also showing

World Film Festival of Bangkok – Shortened from 10 days to eight after being moved to this month because of flooding in November, the ninth edition of the World Film Festival of Bangkok ends tomorrow. If you're free tonight, check out Once Upon a Time in Anatolia by Nuri Bilge Ceylan. The crime drama won the Grand Prize at Cannes last year. It's also showing at 8.30 on Friday night. And there's also the debut feature by Rirkrit Tiravanija, premiering tonight and screening again tomorrow. It's a documentary about an elderly farmer in Chiang Mai province, who's been a subject of some of Rirkrit's other artworks. Another premiere tonight is the documentary The Cheer Ambassadors, about the Thailand National Cheerleading Team and their going to compete in the World Cheerleading Championships. The closing films, starting at 6pm on Friday, will be Earthly Paradise from Chile and a collection of Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki's films, including Rocky VI and Total Balalailaka Show. Those will be shown outdoors at the The Nine Neighborhood Center, a trendy new shopping mall on Rama IX Road, just west of the intersection with Sri Nakarin Road.

6th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival – Right on the heels of the World Film Festival of Bangkok is BEFF, which is held every other year or so. The sixth edition is themed "Raiding the Archives", and the festival line-up is a selection of vintage experimental films from the Thai Film Archive and other archives across Asia and around the world. It's being held in various venues around Bangkok, but on Saturday and Sunday, the main focus is at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, with the first program starting at noon and the last one at 5. Saturday's highlights include the South Korean feature An Escalator in World Order, re-edited newsreel and propaganda footage present a parade of past leaders pledging one new dawn after the other. It was the winner of the 2011 Jeonju International Film Festival audience award. There's also a selection from the Hanoi DOCLAB. On Sunday, there's Women on the Move, featuring pioneering female filmmakers in New Zealand in the late 1920s and 1930s. On Monday, screenings are at the Jim Thompson Art Center and on Wednesday at the Goethe-Institute. Click the link for the full schedule.

German Open Air Cinema – Actress-filmmaker Angela Schanelec directs and stars in next week's film, Afternoon (Nachmittag), a 2007 drama in which an an actress travels to her lakeside house near Berlin, where her brother Alex and her son Konstantin still live. It's summertime and the weather is hot. Konstantin’s girlfriend Agnes comes to visit her parents living in the house next door.

Take note

The Thai Film Archive has been organizing regular screenings at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center. Not only old (unsubtitled) Thai films are being shown, but there are movies from other countries too, and those will generally have English subtitles. The screenings are in the fourth-floor conference room, which is not particularly well-suited for film viewing. However, the alternative in catching the Film Archive's programs is making your way out to the Archive itself in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom, about an hour from the city center. Seems some Bangkok folks complained about the difficulty in getting there, so the Archive is bringing the films to them. The showtimes are at 6pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Check the BACC website for details (mostly Thai only).

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening January 18-25, 2012

2012-01-19T11:30:00.000+07:00

We Need to Talk About Kevin

Tilda Swinton stars in We Need to Talk About Kevin, a searing drama about a mother struggling to deal with her grief and feelings of responsibility after her teenage son commits a Colombine-style massacre at his school and then murders his father and little sister.

Scottish filmmaker Lynn Ramsay (Ratcatcher, Morvern Callar) directs. It's adapted from a 2003 novel by Lionel Shriver.

John C. Reilly is the father and Ezra Miller plays the disturbed teenage boy.

The story is told in flashbacks, with the mother looking back on her pregnancy and memories of the troubled boy growing up, from a baby who wouldn't stop crying to an anti-social brat and eventually the angry, out-of-control teenager.

We Need to Talk About Kevin premiered in the main competition at last year's Cannes Film Festival, and has gone on to win the best film award at various other festivals. Swinton was nominated for a Golden Globe, only to lose out to eight-time winner Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady.

Critical reception is mostly positive. It's at Apex Siam Square.

Also opening

A Separation – Simin wants to leave Iran with her husband Nader and 11-year-old daughter Termeh, but Nader, whose father is suffering from Alzheimer's, refuses. Simin sues for divorce, but is turned down, so she goes to live with her parents and the couple's daughter remains with her father. More problems ensue when Nader hires a lower-class woman to care for his father. Directed by Asghar Farhadi, it's the first Iranian film to win the Golden Bear of the Berlin Film Festival and has been met with universal acclaim. It's Iran's official submission to the Oscars and it just won the Golden Globe for best foreign-language film. It was to have opened in Bangkok last June but technical problems with the subtitles prevented that. It's at House on RCA.

ATM Er Rak Error (ATM เออรัก เออเร่อ) – A malfunctioning ATM machine that's spitting out cash provides the backdrop for this romantic comedy from the GTH studio about a couple, Jib (Preechaya Pongthananikorn) and Suea (Chantawit Thanasevee), who work for a bank and have to keep their relationship a secret because it's against company policy. Mez Tharatorn directs. Rated G.

Underworld: Awakening – After taking a break from the third film in this vampires vs. wereswolves franchise, Kate Beckinsale is back in the tight leather catsuit as the vampire warrior princess Selene. She's been captured by humans, who have learned of the existence of the Vampire and Lycan clans, and are seeking to eradicate both species commences. The key to ending the conflict lies in a little girl named Eve, who is a hybrid. It's just be released in the U.S. this week, so there's not yet any critical reception. Filmed in 3D, and it's screening in 3D, including IMAX. Rated 15+.

Faces in the Crowd – Milla Jovovich is a schoolteacher who is the lone survivor of an attack by a serial killer but she can't identify him because she suffers from a bizarre neurological disorder that prevents her from recognizing people’s faces. Julian McMahon also stars, playing a police detective. Released on DVD in the U.S. in October, Critical reception is practically non-existent. At SFW CentralWorld. Rated 18+.

Also showing

The Woman Next Door (La femme d'à côté) – Gérard Depardieu and Fanny Ardant star in François Truffaut's 1981 romance about a love-triangle that reaches a level of intensity that makes it Hitchockian in terms of suspense. Postponed from November because of the flood, it's now the opening film of the 2012 Contemporary World Film Series at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. Admission is 150 baht for non-members and 50 baht for anyone wanting to sample the French win. The show time is at 8 tonight (Thursday, January 19).

World Film Festival of Bangkok – Postponed from November, the ninth edition of the WFFBKK starts this week. After the invite-only opening on Friday night at Paragon Cineplex, the festival moves to the Esplanade Ratchada. Highlights on Saturday includes the 2010 Cannes Jury Prize winner A Screaming Man from Chad; the 1965 Polish film Walkover and the acclaimed quirky festival favorite P-047 by Thai director Kongdej Jaturanrasamee. Sunday offers Taiwan's Pinoy Sunday, about Filipino laborers carrying a sofa across Taipei; Turin Horse, the latest stark black-and-white documentary-style feature from Hungary's Bela Tarr (also screening Monday night); the Polish animation George the Hedgehog and the French animated The Illusionist; and an encore screening the opening film, I Carried You Home, an indie Thai drama. Monday has Dog Sweat, about young folks dealing with the oppressively conservative society of Iran; Las Acacias, a prize-winning Argentine drama; and The Cave of Forgotten Dreams, a mesmerizing 3D documentary by Werner Herzog on ancient French cave paintings. Find out more about the Thai films in the festival at the Thai Film Journal. And a story in The Nation today details more highlights, many of them award-winners from other festivals. Click the links for complete film list and the schedule spreadsheet.

Players – Abhishek Bachchan and Bipasha Basu star in this Hindi remake of The Italian Job. They are a pair of thieves who form a crew to steal a fortune in gold from a train in Russia. Bobby Deol, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonam Kapoor and Sikander Kher also star. It's at Major Cineplex Rama III on Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 4 and at SFW CentralWorld on Sunday at 7.30. There will also be a special 3D digital screening of last week's BollywoodThai presentation, Don 2, starring Shah Rukh Khan, at 8pm on Saturday at Paragon Cineplex. Call (089) 488 2620, (02) 225 7500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

Bangkok Experimental Film Festival – Held every two, three, four or five years or so, the sixth edition of the Bangkok Experimental Film Festival has long been in the works but just so happens to partly conflict with the World Film Festival of Bangkok because the latter was postponed from November due to the flooding. BEFF6 starts on Tuesday with workshops, talks and screenings at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom. The program includes "Conversations: What is an Archive (For)?", and an archival screening of Fai Yen, a.k.a. Cold Fire (ไฟเย็น), a 1965 anti-communist propaganda film that was selected for the first listing of Thai National Heritage Films. More screenings are planned for January 28 and 29 and February 4 and 5 at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre. The Goethe-Institut and the Jim Thompson Art Center also have screenings. Click the link for the day-by-day schedule.

German Open Air Cinema – Next Tuesday's screening is Sasha, a 2010 drama by Dennis Todorovic. The title character is a young man, a piano student in Cologne who is coming to terms with his sexuality. He's developed a crush on his teacher, a man, who then up and announces he's moving to Vienna, leaving Sasha heartbroken. The German Open Air Cinema series runs on Tuesdays until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30pm.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening January 12-18, 2012

2012-01-12T14:03:00.000+07:00

Warrior

Up-and-coming English actor Tom Hardy is already on Bangkok screens in the highly acclaimed Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and will be seen again in this summer's The Dark Knight Rises, but here he is all bulked up and sporting a six-pack in Warrior, opposite rising Australian star Joel Edgerton in a drama about estranged brothers who enter a mixed martial arts tournament and work out their troubled relationship in the octagonal-cage ring.

Nick Nolte is their father, a former boxer, alcoholic and born-again Christian. He agrees to train his prodigal youngest son (Hardy).

Gavin O'Connor, who previously helmed the fact-based Kurt Russell hockey drama Miracle, directs.

While the film's promotional material draws comparisons to Rocky, critics have also noted similarities to other recent critically acclaimed fighting movies, Wrestler and The Fighter.

Warrior is being tipped as one of the favorites of the year's awards season, with Hardy and Nolte being mentioned for laurels. Critical reception is generally positive.

It's at Apex Siam Square.

Also opening

My Week with Marilyn – The Weinstein Company aims to repeat the Oscar-baiting success of The King's Speech with another artful fact-based historical drama that's set in England. This one deals with royalty of a different sort – screen siren Marilyn Monroe, breathlessly portrayed by Michelle Williams, who has already collected a few prizes for the role and is nominated for several others, including a Golden Globe. The year is 1956, and Monroe, having just married playwright Arthur Miller (Dougray Scott), is in England on her honeymoon and to film The Prince and the Showgirl with Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh). A 23-year-old assistant to Olivier (Eddie Redmayne) strikes up a friendship with the actress and ends up writing a couple books about his experience. Dame Judi Dench also stars, portraying actress Dame Sybil Thorndike. Critical reception is mostly positive. At Apex Siam Square, Paragon Cineplex and SFW CentralWorld. Rated 13+.

Contraband – Mark Wahlberg stars in this crime drama as a reformed criminal who is pulled back into his old life after his brother-in-law botches a drug deal. To protect his family, Marky Mark has to go to Panama to retrieve millions in counterfeit U.S. currency by duct-taping the bills around his torso. Kate Beckinsale, Caleb Landry Jones, Ben Foster, Giovanni Ribisi and Lukas Haas also star. Icelandic actor-director Baltasar Kormákur directs, and it's a remake of 2009's Reykjavík-Rotterdam, which Kormákur starred in. This movie is just being released this week in the U.S., so critical reception is too early to tell. Rated 15+.

5 Days of War – Finnish director Renny Harlin caught fire in Hollywood back in the 1990s, directing such cult-classic action movies as Die Hard 2, Cliffhanger and The Long Kiss Goodnight. He was even married to Long Kiss star Geena Davis for a time. Then he directed Cutthroat Island, a pirate movie filmed in Thailand that was a over-budget disaster that bombed at the box office. Since then, he's directed a string of mostly duds and doesn't look to be turning things around with 5 Days of War, in which an American journalist, his cameraman and a Georgian native are caught in the crossfire of the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. Rupert Friend, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Richard Coyle, Rade Sherbedgia and Val Kilmer star. It had a limited release in the U.S. last summer and went to DVD in November. Now it's in theaters in Thailand. Critical reception is mostly negative. Rated 18+.

What's Your Number? – Anna Faris stars as a young woman who begins a frantic search for all her ex-boyfriends in an effort to find out which one was her true love. She get help from a guy played by Chris Evans. Critical reception for this predictable and formulaic rom-com is mostly negative. At SF cinemas. Rated 13+.

Friends Never Die (มึงกู เพื่อนกันจนวันตา, Mueng Koo Phuean Kan Jon Wan Tai) – A once-popular subgenre of Thai cinema was the teenage gangster movie, and they continue to crop up from time to time, and this is one of those. Moving from Bangkok to study in Chiang Mai, the new kid in town, Song ("Mouse" Nattacha Chantaphan), faces problems with senior students and copes by joining a gang led by a guy named Gun (Mario Maurer). Together they overcome the bullying and learn what friendship really is. Rated 15+.

Rak Wei Hei (รักเว้ยเฮ้ย!) – A nerd (Phongphit "Starbucks" Preechaborisuthkul) falls in love with a young female DJ ("Ink" Chayanuj Boontanapibul from Channel [V] Thailand) and learns how to win her heart from a love guru (Nakorn “Ple” Silachai). Rated 15+.

Also showing

Don 2 – Shah Rukh Khan is back as the indisputable king of the Asian underworld, and he aims to take over the European drug cartel. A sequel to a 2006 action drama, it was filmed in Thailand, Berlin, Kuala Lumpur and Switzerland. Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Om Puri, Lara Dutta and Kunal Kapoor also star. In Hindi with English subtitles at SF Cinema Terminal 21 tonight at 7.45 and at Major Rama III tomorrow and Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 4 and 7.30. Call (089) 488 2620, (02)225 7500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

German Open Air Cinema – Daniel Brühl (Inglourious Basterds, Goodbye Lenin!, The Edukators) stars in next Tuesday evening's feature, Elephant Heart (Elefantenherz), a 2002 drama about a struggling amateur boxer. He works a tedious job and still lives at home with his unemployed alcoholic father. His only joy comes from training at the local gym, and he gets a chance at being a contender from a shady promoter. The German Open Air Cinema series runs on Tuesdays until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30pm.

Hiroshima mon amour – Born in colonial French Indochina, writer Marguerite Duras specialized in East-West romances that were based on her own life, penning stories like The Lover and The Sea Wall, both of which have been made into movies. In 1959, she wrote the screenplay for this Japan-set drama by Alain Resnais, about the relationship between a French actress only known as "she" (Emmanuele Riva) and a married Japanese man only known as "him" (Eiji Okada). Touching on themes of the atomic bomb, forgetfulness and memory, the film is generally credited with starting the French New Wave cinema movement. It's showing at 7.30pm on Wednesday, January 18, at the Alliance Francaise Bangkok.

Take note

There are at least five film festivals coming up in the next two weeks and running into February in Bangkok and around Thailand.

Starting January 18 is the Goethe-Institut Thailand's Science Film Festival, with screenings of mostly short documentaries in venues around Bangkok, mainly geared for busloads of schoolchildren. It was postponed from last year because of the floods.

Also postponed from last year is the World Film Festival of Bangkok, which starts on January 20. The opening is at Paragon Cineplex, but after that, the screenings will all be at the Esplanade Ratchadaphisek. The closing films on January 27 will be outdoor screenings at the Village Square at the Nine Neighbourhood Centre on Rama IX Road. Highlights include Turin Horse by Bela Tarr, this year's recipient of the festival's Lotus Award, and the 3D Cave of Forgotten Dreams by Werner Herzog.

The 6th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival runs from January 24 to February 5 in various venues around Bangkok. The special focus is "Raiding the Archive", and the opening on January 24-25 will be at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom. Other screenings take place on January 28-29 and February 4-5 at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre.

The Hua Hin International Film Festival has imposed itself on January 26 to 29, with a selection of around 50 films. Some of them, like the Aung San Suu Kyi biopic The Lady and the South Korean romance Always, will have regular theatrical runs. And six of the films in the HHIFF are also screening in the World Film Festival.

And up in Chiang Mai from February 2 to 5, there's the Lifescapes Southeast Asian Film Festival, with a selection of documentaries and documentary-style dramas that aim to tackle social issues in the five mainland Southeast Asian countries.The Nation had a story about the first four festivals mentioned here plus one more.

Some films you might have missed have been brought back this week at House on RCA: Pen-ek Ratanaruang's hitman thriller Headshot, the original Swedish version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and the psychological thriller Take Shelter.

Bangok Cinema Scene: Movies opening January 5-11, 2012

2012-01-05T13:31:00.000+07:00

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

A veritable who's who of British Isles actors is featured in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, a new adaptation of John le Carre's 1974 novel.

Gary Oldman, still fresh from his work supporting Batman in The Dark Knight, heads the ensemble cast. He's George Smiley, a disgraced intelligence officer who's called back to duty at the height of the Cold War to root out a Soviet mole among the ranks of MI-6, a.k.a. "the Circus". It's a role previously played by many actors, most notably Alec Guinness in a seven-part BBC TV series based on the same novel.

Also starring are Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Toby Jones, Mark Strong, Benedict Cumberbatch and Ciarán Hinds.

Tomas Alfredson, who previously helmed the dark Swedish vampire thriller Let the Right One In, directs this espionage whodunnit, described as "a dense puzzle of anxiety [and] paranoia."

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy premiered at last fall's Venice Film Festival and has been mentioned among many of the round-ups of 2011's best. Critical reception is mostly positive. It's at Apex Siam Square and SF World Cinema at CentralWorld. Rated 13+.

Also opening

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – Just over two years since the release of the original Swedish thriller, adapted from the first book in Stieg Larsson's best-selling Millennium trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo gets the Hollywood-remake treatment under the directorship of suspense master David Fincher. Still set in Sweden, but with dialogue that's friendlier to American audiences who can't read subtitles, the story is the same. Daniel Craig steps into the role of Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist who's trying to solve the 40-year-old mystery of a missing woman. While uncovering many dark secrets, he gets help in his search from the unorthodox computer hacker Lisbeth Salander, a troubled young woman who has deep, dark issues of her own. Memorably portrayed by Noomi Rapace in the original, the Goth girl Lisbeth is now played by young actress Rooney Mara, who underwent a radical change in her appearance, which she's kept up in preparation for filming the final two installments of the Millennium series. The movie is already nominated for several awards, with most of the nods going for the score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, though Mara herself has been recognized for her total commitment, including a Golden Globe nomination. Critical reception is mostly positive. Rated 18+.

The Darkest Hour – Aliens invade Moscow, where five young people figure out a way to work together and defeat the fearsome invisible beings that thrive on electricity or biomatter energy or something. Directed by Chris Gorak and produced by Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch, Wanted), it was actually filmed in 3D, but the effects are gimmicky to be sure. Emile Hirsch, Olivia Thirlby, Max Minghella, Rachael Taylor and Joel Kinnaman star. Critical reception is mostly negative. Rated G.

Flying Swords of Dragon Gate – Tsui Hark gives the 3D treatment to the Dragon Gate Inn tale, previously done in a 1992 picture that Hark produced, which itself was a remake of King Hu's 1966 martial-arts classic. Jet Li stars as a swashbuckling former general who's out to take down corrupt enunchs during China's Ming dynasty. Zhou Xun, Chen Kun, Li Yuchun, Kwai Lun-mei, Louis Fan and Mavis Fan also star, with a special appearance by Gordon Liu. It was entirely shot in 3D, touted as a first for a wuxia film and a milestone for the Chinese film industry. Critical reception, is generally positive, with high praise for the special effects, which were overseen by Chuck Comisky, visual-effects supervisor on Avatar. The Mandarin soundtrack with English and Thai subtitles is at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld, but it's not in the 3D, owing to the technical problem of superimposing the Thai subtitles on a 3D projection. If you want to see it in 3D, you'll have to put up with the Thai-dubbed version. Rated 15+.

Also showing

German Open Air Cinema – The Goethe-Institut Thailand's annual outdoor movie series continues on Tuesday, January 10 with The Day of the Cat (Der grosse Kater), a 2010 political comedy-drama in which the president of Switzerland battles a plot to overthrow him while struggling to maintain the decorum of a state dinner he's hosting for the King and Queen of Spain. Bruno Ganz stars. The German Open Air Cinema series runs on Tuesdays until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30pm.

Les Diaboliques – Henri-Georges Clouzot, riding the critical acclaim that accompanied his previous film The Wages of Fear, directs this classic 1955 thriller that's said to be a major inspiration for the twisty thrillers by Hitchcock, including Psycho. Indeed, it's been said that Hitchcock himself wanted the rights to the movie's source material, but Clouzot was first out of the gate to snatch them. The murder tale has a long-suffering invalid wife conspiring with her husband's mistress, but after the murder is committed, his body disappears, and strange things start to happen. A Hollywood remake came decades later, starring Sharon Stone and Isabel Adjani. Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot and Paul Meurisse star in the original. Critical reception is positive. It's showing at 7.30pm on Wednesday, January 11, at the Alliance Francaise Bangkok.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening December 28, 2011-January 4, 2012

2011-12-29T16:24:00.002+07:00

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn

Steven Spielberg brings Belgian comic-book hero Tintin to the big screen with The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn.

For his first animated feature, Spielberg uses the motion-capture process that's similar to James Cameron's Avatar in which the actors perform on a virtual set, and wear special suits and helmets so their movements and expressions are translated to a computer program. Other scenes are wholly done with computer animation.

Spielberg acquired the rights to the Tintin books when author Hergé died in 1983 and sat on them until he could figure out a way to make the movie that matched his artistic vision. This film, the first of a planned series, is based on three comics, The Crab with the Golden Claws (1941), The Secret of the Unicorn (1943) and Red Rackham's Treasure (1944).

The results look pretty stunning, with the intrepid boy hero Tintin having the same kind of adventures as Indiana Jones did in Spielberg's live-action movies.

Jamie Bell performs as Tintin, the blond-coiffed boy reporter who has a pet dog named Snowy. He teams up for the adventure with the grizzled Captain Haddock, portrayed by the king of motion-capture animation, Andy Serkis, who previously brought to life the characters of Gollum in Lord of the Rings and King Kong, both movies directed by Peter Jackson, who is producer of Tintin, as well as this summer's Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which Jackson's Weta Workshop special-effects house had much to do with.

The cast is rounded out by British comic duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as the bumbling twin detectives Thomson and Thompson and Daniel Craig as the main villain.

Already nominated for several awards, including the Golden Globe for best animated film, critical reception is generally positive. It was filmed in 3D, and will be shown in 3D in most cinemas, including IMAX and IMAX Digital. Rated G.

Also opening

Jiro Dreams of Sushi – This documentary looks at 85-year-old sushi master Jiro Ono, whose restaurant, a 10-seater in a subway station in Tokyo's Ginza district, has been recognized as the best sushi place in the world, earning a 3-Star Michelin rating. Reservations must be made up to a year in advance. Premiering at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year, Jiro Dreams of Sushi has been a hit on the festival circuit. It was bought for release by Magnolia Pictures and won an audience award at this year's AFI Fest in Los Angeles. Critical reception is mostly positive. It's at House on RCA.

Real Steel – Hugh Jackman trains a giant robot to box in this family drama from Disney. He's a former boxer sometime in the near future who's turned to boxing promotion after robots have replaced humans in the ring. Struggling after losing his robot in a crushing defeat, his estranged 11-year-old son re-enters his life and he finds a way to connect with the boy by obtaining a discarded old "sparring bot" and rehabilitating the underdog machine to be a contender. Practical animatronic robots are used in some scenes while most of the fighting is done by digital 'bots animated by the Avatar "simulcam" motion-capture technology in which the movements of real fighters are used. Dakota Goyo and Evangeline Lilly also star. Critical reception is mixed. It's also at IMAX and IMAX Digital. Rated G.

New Year's Eve – Garry Marshall follows up his star-studded ensemble romance Valentine's Day with another sickly sweet all-star ensemble romance that follows several couples and singles on New Year's Eve. The overstuffed cast includes Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Jon Bon Jovi, Abigail Breslin, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Josh Duhamel, Zac Efron, Héctor Elizondo, Katherine Heigl, Ashton Kutcher, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michelle Pfeiffer, Yeardly Smith, Hilary Swank, Robert De Niro and too many other names to mention. Critical reception is overwhelmingly negative. Rated G.

Bangkok Sweety (Sor Khor Sor Sweety, ส.ค.ส. สวีทตี้ ) – For the third consecutive year, in what is now an apparent tradition, director Rerkchai Paungpetch and studio M-Thirtynine, release a Thai romantic comedy during the last week of the year. They have all been critically assailed but are insanely popular with young Thai audiences and have always made a ton of money. Bangkok Sweety, a.k.a. Sweety Movie, portrays different kinds of love, all culminating during Bangkok's New Year's Eve celebration. The cast includes "Dan" Worrawech Danuwong, "Pae" Arak Amornsupasiri, Charoenporn "Kotee" Ornlamai, "Saipan" Apinya Sakuljaroensuk, Keeratee and "Yipso" Ramita Mahaphrukpong. Rated 15+.

Also showing

Hi-So – Indie Thai director Aditya Assarat's profile of cross-cultural confusion, starring Ananda Everingham, is back after a one-month run at SF cinemas in October. It's been revived by House on RCA. The drama, with dryly comic moments, is about an actor who's moved back to Thailand after being schooled in the States. He's acting in a tsunami film when his girlfriend from San Francisco comes to visit. There's Lost in Translation moments and she and Ananda just can't connect. Later, Ananda has a Thai girlfriend, and the same problems happen all over again. A tsunami-devastated resort and a partially demolished Bangkok apartment building represent the wreckage of the soul. Rated 13+.

German Open Air Cinema – The Goethe-Institut Thailand's annual outdoor movie series starts back up next week after taking this week off. Up next on Tuesday, January 3, is Close to You (Ganz nah bei Dir), a 2009 comedy-drama about a quirky obsessive-compulsive bank clerk who aims to make as little contact with strangers as possible. His life changes when he takes a liking to a blind cello player and then his apartment is robbed, forcing him start his life over again. The German Open Air Cinema series runs on Tuesdays until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30pm.

La Bête Humaine (The Human Beast) – Jean Renoir directs this 1938 thriller, based on the book by Emile Zola. Jean Gabin is a train engineer who lusts after the wife (Simone Simon) of his co-worker (Fernand Ledoux). More seduction, betrayal and murder follow. It's at the Alliance Francaise at 7.30pm on Wednesday, January 4.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening December 22-28, 2011

2011-12-22T11:06:00.001+07:00

The Kick

From the director of Thai martial-arts hits like Ong-Bak and Chocolate comes The Kick (วอนโดนเตะ), a South Korean-Thai co-production about a Korean family in Bangkok who join with a pair of Thai friends to battle gangsters.

As the story goes, former Taekwondo champs Moon (Jo Jae-hyeon) and Yun (Ye Ji-won) have settled down in Thailand to open a Korean restaurant and taekwando school. Their three kids are interested in different things; the teenage boy is crazy about K-pop, the girl loves football and Thai dance and only the youngest boy shows any interest in martial arts. Their life changes when they become involved with Korean mobsters who've stolen a sacred Thai sword. A family friend Mum (comedian Petthai "Mum Jokmok" Wongkumlao and his Muay-Thai-fighter niece Wah Wah (Jeeja Yanin) join in the battle.

The Kick premiered earlier this year at the Busan International Film Festival and was released in South Korean cinemas in November. Check out the trailer to see if you'll like this kind of action. Rated 15+.

Also opening

Midnight in Paris – Woody Allen's latest romantic comedy, which premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival, is being hailed as a return to form for the director of such classics as Annie Hall and Sleeper. Owen Wilson stars, playing a screenwriter who's visiting Paris and he has magical, time-travelling experiences each night at midnight, which force him to confront the problems of his relationship with his fiancée (Rachel McAdams). Historical figures he encounters include Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Man Ray, Luis Buñuel, Cole Porter, Josephine Baker, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein and Ernest Hemingway. Wilson and McAdams (also appearing in the new Sherlock Holmes being released this week) were previously paired up in Wedding Crashers. The cast includes Adrien Brody, Kathy Bates, Michael Sheen, Marion Cottilard and French first lady Carla Bruni, playing a museum guide. Critical reception is highly favorable. Rated 13+.

Arthur Christmas – From Aardman Animations, the British studio that brought us Chicken Run and the Wallace and Gromit tales, teams with Sony Animation for this 3D computer-animated holiday treat in which Santa's workshop has become a huge hi-tech enterprise that delivers two billion presents in one night in much the same manner as a military operation. However, Santa's teenage son Arthur (James McAvoy) discovers that one child has been forgotten, so he teams up with Grand-Santa (Bill Nighy) to save the holiday the old-fashioned way. Other voices include Hugh Laurie as older brother Steve Christmas, Imelda Staunton as Mrs. Santa and Jim Broadbent as Santa. Critical reception is highly favorable. In 3D. Rated G.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows – Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law are back with director Guy Ritchie for a second outing about the master detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr. Watson. This time Holmes meets an adversary who is his intellectual equal but whose capacity for evil is unmatched – Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris). Eddie Marsan, Rachel McAdams, Stephen Fry and Noomi Rapace also star. Critical reception is mixed, leaning to favorable. Rated 13+.

Take note

The film festival calendar for Thailand in January just got even more crowded with the announcement yesterday of the Hua Hin International Film Festival, which will take place January 26 to 29. They have trailers for a few of their films on YouTube. The newly announced fest overlaps with the rescheduled 9th World Film Festival of Bangkok, which was postponed from November because of the floods to January 20 to 27. Also in Bangkok, there will be the 6th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival on January 28 and 29 and February 4 and 5 at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre. And in Chiang Mai, there is Payap University's Lifescapes Southeast Asian Film Festival from February 2 to 5.

A few other notes:

The German Open Air Cinema Season at the Goethe-Institut takes a break for the holidays. It'll start back up after the New Year on January 3.
The newly opened CentralPlaza Grand Rama 9 shopping center has the 11-screen SFX Central Rama 9. It's at the intersection of Rama IX and Ratchadaphisek roads at the Rama 9 MRT station.
Major Cineplex at CentralPlaza Bangna has reopened after renovations on the sixth and seventh floors of the mall.
And House, the boutique cinema on Royal City Avenue, has recently redesigned its website, offering showtimes, movie synopses in Thai and English and previews of upcoming films.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening December 15-21, 2011

2011-12-15T13:32:00.003+07:00

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol

Tom Cruise's punctuationally difficult spy franchise returns for a fourth installment with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, which has Cruise back as Ethan Hunt, joined by a team that includes Simon Pegg (returning from M:I3), Paula Patton and Hurt Locker star Jeremy Renner.

The story goes that the Impossible Missions Force has been framed for the bombing of the Kremlin and the U.S. president initiates "ghost protocol", shutting down IMF and disavowing all its agents. The IMF secretary (Tom Wilkinson) gives Hunt a new mission – go rogue in an effort to clear their name.

As with all the other M:I films, there's a daring feat by Cruise, who always performs his own stunts. This time, watch him scale the outside of Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, footage of which was captured with the extra-large 70mm IMAX cameras in the same way action scenes in The Dark Knight were filmed, and not, thank goodness, in 3D.

The director is Brad Bird, who follows Brian De Palma, John Woo and J.J. Abrams in helming the franchise. It's the much-acclaimed Bird's first live-action effort, having previously done 1999's animated feature The Iron Giant and two Oscar-winning Pixar CG-animated movies, The Incredibles and Ratatouille.

It's early days yet for critical reception, with mostly the industry press weighing in. But so far, the buzz is extremely postitive.

The IMAX version with the full height is offered only at the IMAX theatre at Paragon Cineplex, which also has an exclusive prologue to The Dark Knight Rises. It's also at other cinemas including the 4DX thing with the moving seats at Paragon. Rated 13+.

Also opening

Sleeping Beauty – In Sucker Punch, Emily Browning portrayed an orphan girl who's sent to an insane asylum, where she performs as an exotic dancer and goes into a dream state that has her fighting giant samurai, zombie soldiers and a fire-breathing dragon. It's somewhat the same premise in Sleeping Beauty, where she works as a semi-nude waitress at an exclusive gentleman’s club and is promoted to the Sleeping Beauty Chamber where elderly, impotent men pay to have an erotic experience with her while she's sedated. The debut feature by Australian director Julia Leigh and "presented by Jane Campion", it was in the main competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival. Critical reception is evenly mixed. At Apex Siam Square. Rated 20-.

Machine Gun Preacher – Gerard Butler stars in this fact-based biographical drama as Sam Childers, an ex-convict alcoholic drug-dealing gang member who turns to Christianity and then devotes his life to missionary work, rescuing children in war-torn Sudan, and takes up arms again to protect those children from raids by rebel soldiers. Marc Forster (Quantum of Solace, The Kite Runner, Stranger Than Fiction) directs. Critical reception is mixed. At SFW CentralWorld and House on RCA. Rated 15+.

Love, Wedding, Marriage – Mandy Moore is a newlywed marriage counselor who's shocked to learn her parents (James Brolin and Jane Seymour) are headed for divorce. She'll stop at nothing to get them back together in time for a 30th-anniversary surprise party. Kellan Lutz from the Twilight movies co-stars. Dermot Mulroney directs. Critical reception is negative. Rated G.

Thang Yak Wad Jai (ทางแยกวัดใจ) – Each year around this time, the film industry offers special films called "pappayon chalerm prakiat", which honor the achievements of His Majesty the King. This year's offering comes from film studio GTH, which offers a trio of short films, all starring actor Pitisak Yaowanon as a man who affects the lives of others with his good deeds. The segments are directed Chayanop Boonprakob (SuckSeed), Sophon Sakdapisit (Laddaland) and Nithiwat Tharatorn (Dear Galileo). Sponsored by True, viewers can get a pair of free tickets if they figure out how to register their good deeds at the website, IWillDoForKing.TrueLife.com. It's showing only at Major Cineplex.

Also showing

German Open Air Cinema Season – The Goethe-Institut Thailand's annual outdoor screening series continues next Tuesday with North Face (Nordwand), a fact-based mountaineering drama from 2008, directed by Philipp Stölzl. Set in the summer of 1936, a pair of passionate climbers, friends since childhood, aim to be the first to climb the north face of the Eiger, a steep stretch of rock that's known as the "murder wall". The German Open Air Cinema series runs every Tuesday night until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening December 8-14, 2011

2011-12-08T12:57:00.000+07:00

Life Without Principle

Hong Kong director Johnnie To trades his usual bullets for banknotes in Life Without Principle, a drama about three people plunged into dire financial straits when their lives are somehow intertwined with that of a loan shark.

The characters are an investment banker (Denise Ho) who's forced to push a high-risk investment on a greedy but ignorant customer; a dimwitted triad member (Sean Lau Ching Wan) who turns to the futures market to bail out a fellow gangster; and a police inspector (Richie Jen) whose fiancee (Myolie Wu) puts a down payment on a condominium without consulting him first. The loan shark is Lo Hoi Pang.

Life Withouth Principle premiered in the Golden Lion competition at this year's Venice Film Festival. Critical reception is mostly positive. It's already played in Singapore, where there are reviews by A Nutshell Review and FilmsBlitz.

In Cantonese with English and Thai subtitles at House on RCA.

Also opening

Immortals – Tarsem Singh, the director of such visually stunning movies as The Cell and The Fall, returns with this 3D swords-and-sandals fantasy set in ancient Greece. It's from the same producers as 300. Henry Cavill stars as a stonemason named Theseus, who vows to avenge the death of his mother and takes up a sword to fight the brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke), whose murderous Heraklion army is rampaging across Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus. Theseus gets help from the Sybelline Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto from Slumdog Millionaire), whose disturbing visions of the future convince her that Theseus is the key to stopping the destruction. Critical reception is mixed, leaning to negative. "The melding of real sets, CG work, and Tarsem's signature style produces fireworks, though the same can't be said for Immortals slack, boring storytelling," is the consensus. In 3D. Rated 15+.

Happy Feet Two – George Miller, the producer-director of such films as Mad Max and Babe, offers more family-friendly fare with this sequel to his 2006 animated feature about dancing penguins. Tapdancing penguin Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) now has a son who is reluctant to dance like the other penguins and finds himself an outcast. He takes up with another penguin clan and develops an interest in flight. Robin Williams, Pink, Sofia Vergara, Hank Azaria, Hugo Weaving, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon are among the voice cast. Critical reception is mixed. "The animation is as eye-popping as ever, but Happy Feet Two's narrative is too noisily incoherent to recapture the Oscar-winning charm of its predecessor," is the consensus. It's in 3D, including IMAX. Rated G.

Also showing

German Open Air Cinema – The Goethe-Institut Thailand's annual outdoor screening series continues next Tuesday with How About Love, a drama by Stefan Haupt that's set here in Thailand. Adrian Furrer stars as a Swiss surgeon vacationing in Thailand whose life takes a major turn when he visits refugee camp on the Burmese border and decides to stay and try to help. You can find out more about How About Love at the movie's website. The German Open Air Cinema series runs every Tuesday night until February 28 at the institute on Sathorn Soi 1. Show times are at 7.30.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening December 1-7, 2011

2011-12-01T14:22:00.003+07:00

Breaking Dawn – Part 1

It's almost over. The penultimate entry in The Twilight Saga, Breaking Dawn – Part 1, has the young mortal woman Bella (Kristen Stewart) getting married to Edward (Robert Pattinson), her pale-skinned lug of a vampire beau. And, to make matters worse, she gets pregnant! But can Bella bear the child to term? The vampire clan is worried that the baby's physiology isn't compatible.

Meanwhile, the "wolf pack" clan of werewolves, including Bella's lovelorn bare-chested friend Jacob (Taylor Lautner), are circling and growling. They see the vampire-human hybrid as a potential threat and want to kill it.

Oh, how will it end? If you've read the romance novels by Stephenie Meyer you already know. But if you're only watching the movies, you'll have to wait a full year for Breaking Dawn – Part 2 to see how this melodrama plays out.

These final two entries in the Twilight franchise are directed by Bill Condon (Kinsey, Gods and Monsters), who reportedly was in contention for the job alongside such names as Gus Van Sant and Sophia Coppolla.

Critical reception is mostly negative. "Slow, joyless, and loaded with unintentionally humorous moments, Breaking Dawn – Part 1 may satisfy the Twilight faithful, but it's strictly for fans of the franchise," is the consensus. And be forewarned, it might cause epileptic seizures. Rated 15+.

Also opening

Sector 7 – In the middle of the ocean, the crew of an oil rig fight a new mutated lifeform. Ha Ji-won, Ahn Sung-ki and Oh Ji-ho star. Reception has been mixed. This 3D monster flick from South Korea was released there in IMAX cinemas, but it's in ordinary 3D theaters in Thailand. The original Korean soundtrack with English subtitles is at SF World Cinema; elsewhere it's Thai-dubbed only. Rated 13+.

Also showing

Primitive – Filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul's multi-platform art exhibition finally makes its way to Bangkok after touring the world for the past couple of years. It'll be at the Jim Thompson Art Center from today until February 29. Part of the same project as the acclaimed feature film Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, the video installation Primitive is an intimate look at the village of Nabua, Nakhon Phanom, along the Mekong in northeastern Thailand. It was there in 1965 that the Royal Thai Army staged a massacre during an anti-communist offensive. Primitive deals with ghosts of that violent past. The seven-channel video installation also offers a slice-of-life look at the young men of Nabua as well as a music video by Moderndog and a behind-the-scenes film of the building of a spaceship – just one of the art projects Apichatpong came up with as a way of engaging the villagers in his project. Commissioned by Haus Der Kunst, Munich, Primitive has previously shown in Munich, Liverpool, Paris, New York and the Yokohama Triennale. I checked it out at New York's New Museum earlier this year and am glad I'll be able to see how it fits into Bangkok. The Jim Thompson Art Center is on Kasemsan Soi 2, near the National Stadium skytrain station. It's open daily from 9 to 5.

German Open Air Cinema – The Goethe-Institut Thailand's annual outdoor movie season starts next week and runs every Tuesday until February 28 at the insitute on Bangkok's Soi Sathorn 1. The opening film is the Swiss short Scribbling & Tingling from 2010 by Amaury Berger. And then it's Longing (Sehnsucht) from 2006 by Valeska Grisebach. It's a small-town drama about love, loss and infidelity involving a thirtysomething volunteer fireman who's been with his wife since they were teenagers. It was a nominee for the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. The show starts at 7.30. All are shown in German with English subtitles. Admission is free. Call (02) 287 0942-4 extension 82 or visit www.Goethe.de.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening November 24-30, 2011

2011-11-24T13:19:00.003+07:00

Headshot (Fon Tok Kuen Fah)

Pen-ek Ratanaruang aims to turn the hitman genre on its head with Fon Tok Kuen Fah (ฝนตกขึ้นฟ้า), a.k.a. Headshot.

Based on a short novel by acclaimed Thai writer Win Lyovarin, it's a film-noir flavored thriller about a cop who is blackmailed by a powerful politician and framed for a crime he did not commit. Sent to prison, he is eventually recruited to become a hitman for a shadowy vigilante group. While posing as a monk on one job, he's shot in the head and wakes up after a three-month coma to find that he sees everything upside down, literally. He aims to start a new life, but finds himself being hunted by revenge killers.

"Peter" Nopachai Jayanama stars. He's the actor who portrayed the prince's leading general in the Naresuan movies and also starred in Pen-ek's forest thriller Nymph. Cris Horwang, from Saturday Killer and Bangkok Traffic Love Story, also stars.

This is the first feature that Pen-ek's done without the Thai studio Five Star Production. He's gone the indie route and is now with the upstart production marque Local Color, started by producer Pawas Sawatchaiyamet (formerly Saksiri Chantarangsri).

Headshot had its world premiere back in September at the Toronto International Film Festival. It also screened in competition at the Tokyo fest, where Pen-ek did an official interview. You can read it at the festival website. The film also screened at the Vancouver fest, where IndieWire gave it a favorable review. There's even a review in The Nation today. And you can watch the Thai trailer.

It's at SF cinemas. Rated 18+.

Also opening

Take Shelter – The intense actor Michael Shannon stars in this psychological drama, portraying a small-town family man who is disturbed by apocalyptic visions. He sets about building a storm shelter in his backyard without explaining the need for it, and his strange behavior strains his relationship with his family. Jessica Chastain also stars, portraying the man's wife. It's directed by Jeff Nichols, an independent writer-director from Little Rock, Arkansas, who made the critically acclaimed Shotgun Stories, which also featured Shannon. Take Shelter is also gathering critical acclaim as well as awards at film festivals. It's at Apex Siam Square and at House on RCA. Rated 15+.

Puss in Boots – The scene-stealing supporting character from Dreamworks Animation's Shrek movies gets his own feature in this swashbuckling adventure that fractures more fairytales. Here, the swordfighting feline, voiced by the debonair Antonio Banderas, teams up with the street-smart cat burglar Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek) and his old friend, the criminal mastermind Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis) to battle the outlaw couple Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris). Critical reception is mostly positive. It's being released this week in just 3D, including IMAX and at Paragon's 4DX cinema, but will have a wider 2D release next week. Rated G.

Trespass – Another week brings another Nicolas Cage movie. With Seeking Justice released last week, Bangkok movie-goers can now get a double-dose of Nic with Trespass, which reunites him with 8MM director Joel Schumacher. He's a fast-talking diamond merchant who has a pretty blonde wife – played by Nicole Kidman. They live in a lavish mansion and have a troublemaking teenage daughter (Liana Liberato). Suddenly, their home is besieged by masked men, who hold them hostage. Ben Mendelsohn, Jordana Spiro, Cam Gigandet and Dash Mihok also star. Critical reception is mostly negative, the consensus being it's "another claustrophobic thriller that Joel Schumacher can churn out in his sleep ... nasty and aggressive, more unpleasant than entertaining." Rated 15+.

Take note

Although areas of suburban Bangkok continue to be plagued by floodwater, life is returning to normal across much of the metropolis as water recedes and efforts turn to recovery.

The Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhom Pathom, weathered the flood, putting up sandbag barriers and sealing its vault. It served as a haven for flood refugees and survivalists, showing daily matinees. The Nation had a story about it. A video clip, embedded above, captures the mood.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening November 17-23, 2011

2011-11-17T12:48:00.001+07:00

The Thing

Mary Elizabeth Winstead follows in Sigourney Weaver's footsteps into an Alien-like female action role in The Thing, which looks like a remake but is meant as a prequel to John Carpenter’s 1982 thriller that starred Kurt Russell.

Winstead is a plucky paleonthologist who faces an alien lifeform at an Antarctic research base. Joel Edgerton and Ulrich Thomsen also star. Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. directs.

Critical reception is mixed. Rated 15+.

Also opening

Seeking Justice – Nicolas Cage is a schoolteacher turned outlaw vigilante after his wife is brutally assaulted. Also stars Guy Pearce and January Jones. Directed by Roger Donaldson, the thriller is also known as Justice. Af SFW CentralWorld. Rated 15+.

Vampire Strawberry (แวมไพร์ สตรอเบอร์รี่) – In what looks to be a broadly comic spoof of the Twilight movies, vampires feed only on the blood of females. Annie Brook and Chartchai Ngamsan star along with the usual cast comedians, including Kom Chuanchuen, Somchai Sakdikul and Anek Inthachai. Rated 13+.

Phantom of the Opera – The musical production celebrates 25 years with a special video presentation of the October 1 and 2 silver anniversary performance at the Royal Albert Hall. It's as close as you can get to actually sitting in the audience without having to actually be in London. Shows are at Paragon Cineplex until November 23. Check ThaiTicketMajor for prices and showtimes.

Also showing

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation – This childhood drama is set in the tumultuous 1970s in Brazil, where a 12-year-old boy's leftist parents are forced into hiding and he's sent to live with his grandfasther. Though his country is in the grip of a dictatorship and the Vietnam War is raging, all young Mauro can think about is whether the Brazilian team will be Italy in soccer's World Cup. Cao Hamburger directs. Critical reception is mostly favorable. It screens at 8 tonight at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand, with caipirinha rum cocktails and cheesebread served by the Embassy of Brazil. Admission for non-members is 150 baht and it's 100 baht for anyone wanting to eat or drink.

Take note

As the flood crisis in Bangkok continues, there are signs of the waters receding from some areas and the resumption of business as usual. Even though there is still water on the roads, the Central mall and the neighboring Major Cineplex in Pinklao have reopened. Plans are also to reopen Central Lat Phrao.

However, there are new warnings about flooding in new neighborhoods, including the Bang Kapi and Ramkamhaeng areas. So keep an eye on the water level in the canals near your home, and be wary of water rising from the drains on your street.

Unfortunately, a major English-language source of flood information, the #ThaiFloodEng hashtag on Twitter, has become practically useless due to trolls, general nonsense and stupid questions about whether tourism sites and shopping destinations remain open. Out of frustration, some of the reputable news sources and individuals have abandoned the hashtag's timeline. I suppose now it's best to track the flood news on the Bangkok Post and The Nation websites.

If you feel you must go to a movie, check for news about possible flooding in the area you plan to visit. And avoid contact with floodwater if at all possible.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening November 10-16, 2011

2011-11-10T12:30:00.001+07:00

The Help

One of this summer's most critically acclaimed movies in the U.S., The Help is about a young white woman in Jackson, Mississippi, who starts a secret writing project with a pair of black maids – a risky proposition because of societal rules in the American South of the 1960s.

Emma Stone is Skeeter, the college-graduate writer, with Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer as her partners in the project, which explores the daily lives of homemakers and their hired help. Bryce Dallas Howard is the town's snooty racist ringleader. Jessica Chastain, Allison Janney, Sissy Spacek and Cicely Tyson also star.

The movie is adapted from the best-selling 2009 novel by Kathryn Stockett and is directed by Tate Taylor.

Critical reception is mostly positive. "Though arguably guilty of glossing over its racial themes, The Help rises on the strength of its cast – particularly Viola Davis, whose performance is powerful enough to carry the film on its own," is the consensus. The Help was also a surprise hit at the U.S. box office.

It's at Paragon Cineplex.

Also opening

Tower Heist – The employees of a high-rise luxury condo want to take revenge by stealing from the Wall Street swindler who stole their retirement funds. They know nothing about crime, so they hire a streetwise ex-con to help them with the caper. Directed by recently resigned Oscar producer Brett Ratner, Tower Heist has long been in the works, first hatched six years ago as an idea by Eddie Murphy, who wanted to make an "all-black Ocean's Eleven". Now, many rewrites later, with Ben Stiller, Casey Affleck and Matthew Broderick among the bumbling gang of thieves and Alan Alda as the penthouse tenant, it ain't that. But Murphy is still in the movie, playing the smart-alec ex-convict, and Gabourey Sidibe from last year's much-acclaimed Precious is a saucy maid. Critical reception is surprisingly positive. Rated 13+.

Dirty Girl – A troubled and promiscuous high-school student (Juno Temple) in 1980s Norman, Oklahoma, is assigned to the special-education class, where she strikes up an unlikely frienship with a shy gay guy (Jeremy Dozier). They embark on a road trip to Fresno, California, in search of the girl's birth father. Milla Jovovich, William H. Macy, Mary Steenburgen and Dwight Yoakam also star. Written and directed by Abe Sylvia, the coming-of-age comedy premiered at last year's Toronto International Film Festival. Critical reception is mixed. At Major Cineplex (including Paragon, Paradise, Esplanade, EGV).

Racing Love a.k.a. Mid-Mile(มิดไมล์) – Comedian Kohtee Aramboy stars in this motorsports comedy as a tuk-tuk driver who joins a car-racing team. Kom Chuanchuen also stars along with Alexander Mackie and Atsadaphon "Green AF5" Siriwatthonkun. Rated 15+.

Siang Thao Fah Naa Thao Klong – Musician Lek Carabao along with actress "Kratae" Supaksorn Chaimongkol and others explore the tradition music of Thailand's four regions. Pham Rangsri directs. Screenings at 7 nightly until November 16 at House on RCA.

Also showing

Lemon Tree – A Palestinian widow puts up a fight when the new Israeli defence minister moves in next door and orders her citrus orchard cut down because it poses a security threat. Lemon Tree screens at 8 tonight (Thursday, November 10) at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand. Directed by Eran Riklis, the 2008 drama won many prizes, including best actress for Hiam Abbass and best screenplay at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Admission is Bt150 for non-members. Call (02) 652 05801 or visit www.FCCThai.com.

Take note

In the past week, the flood has closed Major Cineplex Ratchayothin and Central Lad Phrao, home to an SFX cinema. According to The Nation, Major Cineplex has closed 12 branches because of the flooding.

The waters, keep bottled up on Bangkok's northern edge by permanent floodwalls and a line of sandbags of unusual size (or SOUSs for short), have seeped in and are moving ever-so-slowly closer to central Bangkok. They threaten to hit the Victory Monument area in a week or so. The water is also creeping through the sewers, rising back up in the eastern suburbs, causing what is now minor flooding along Srinakarin Road.

Due to the amount of water still looming behind barriers in northern Bangkok, the flood disaster is expected to continue for several more weeks. It will likely take a month or two to drain it all.

Avoid flooded areas if at all possible. If you feel you have to go to a movie, consult multiple sources of information to ensure the area you're heading to won't be underwater by the time the movie lets out.

I've been keeping tabs on the flood on Twitter, by following the #ThaiFloodEng hashtag. Like Twitter in general, you have to sift through a lot of nonsense for nuggets of useful information, but at the moment I don't know where else to look. And a good source of practical information about the flood can be found in the videos by Roo Su Flood, the latest of which addresses panic buying in the supermarkets.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening November 3-9, 2011

2011-11-03T13:07:00.001+07:00

Killer Elite

Jason Statham stars in Killer Elite. He plays an ex-Special Air Service agent and hitman who comes out of an early retirement to rescue his former mentor (Robert De Niro, channeling his old Ronin role). He's being held hostage after a botched job in Oman.

In order to save De Niro, Statham takes on an assignment from a sheikh, who wants revenge against three former SAS men for the killing of his sons. This leads to a clash with the head enforcer of a secret society of assassins, played by Clive Owen.

The story is adapted from The Feather Men by novelist Ranulph Fiennes. Yvonne Strahovski, Aden Young and Dominic Purcell also star. Northern Ireland filmmaker Gary McKendry directs, making his feature debut.

"A rote, utterly disposable Jason Statham vehicle that just happens to have Clive Owen and Robert De Niro in it," is the critical consensus. Rated 18+.

Also opening

Texas Killing Fields – A local homicide detective (Sam Worthington) teams up with a New York City cop (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) to track a serial killer who’s dumping bodies in rural Texas, and then the tables are turned and the hunters become the hunted. It's a fact-based story, loosely drawn from the Interstate 45 murders in the 1990s. Chloë Grace Moretz and Jessica Chastain also star. Ami Canaan Mann, daughter of director Michael Mann, directs. The film premiered in competition at this year's Venice Film Festival. Critical reception is mostly negative. At Apex Siam Square and SFW CentralWorld. Rated 18+.

30 Kamlung Jaew (30 กำลังแจ๋ว) – A 30-year-old woman’s life changes when she breaks up with her airline-pilot boyfriend and then catches the eye of a much-younger neighbor boy. “Aum” Patcharapha Chaichua stars and "King" Somjing Srisuphab directs. Released by studio M-Thirtynine, this is the second "thirtysomething" chick flick in less than a month, which might be confusing to some viewers. The other is 30+ Sode on Sale, which is still in most cinemas. There was a story about them both in The Nation awhile back. Rated 15+.

1911 – For his 100th movie, Jackie Chan presses himself into service for the cause of nationalist propaganda, portraying Huang Xin, the co-leader of the rebellion against China’s last imperial dynasty. Winston Chao also stars as nationalist leader Sun Yat Sun with Joan Chen as the empress dowager. Jaycee Chan and Li Bingbing also star. Chinese soundtrack with English and Thai subtitles only at SFW CentralWorld; elsewhere Thai-dubbed. Rated 15+.

Take note

Despite assurances from some authorities that Central Bangkok will be spared from flooding, there is still a lot of water from the north yet to come down, so the crisis continues and the threat remains.

Many shopping malls and multiplexes are closed or have curtailed hours. Events are cancelled. One of the city's biggest multiplexes, Major Cineplex Ratchayothin, is the latest to get hit by flooding.

If you haven't been flooded yet, staying at home might be the best option for now. But you'll still need to take precautions. The latest video from the RooSuFlood group (embedded above) explains what to do. Read more about RooSuFlood and their work in a recent Nation article.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening October 27-November 2, 2011

2011-10-27T13:00:00.004+07:00

Drive

Nicolas Winding Refn, the Danish director of such cult films as the Pusher trilogy, Valhalla Rising and Bronson, won best-director honors at this year's Cannes Film Festival for his latest triumph, Drive, which takes the Los Angeles crime thriller for a spin.

It's territory already covered in such movies as To Live and Die in LA by William Friedkin, Heat and Collateral by Michael Mann and Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown by Quentin Tarantino. But Refn, with actor Ryan Gosling, offers an artfully stylized and existential, yet still violent, twist.

Gosling is a Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a wheelman for robberies. His rule is you have five minutes to get in and get out with your loot. If you take longer than five minutes, he's gone. His driving style relies more on stealth than speed. He chooses a non-descript car in order to blend in. He'd rather park the car in a hiding spot and wait for the cops to give up than get into a chase. He lives a spartan, uncomplicated life, but things take a turn when he becomes involved with a neighbor lady (Carey Mulligan), a single mother with a young son. It turns out her husband (Oscar Isaac) is due out of prison soon, and Gosling's character takes on the responsibility of helping the man out of a jam.

Out comes the hammer as he finds himself in conflict with a mobster, played by Albert Brooks in a major turning point for his career. Ron Perlman is another thuggish gangster, and Brian Cranston is Gosling's game-legged mechanic boss. Christina Hendricks also stars as an accomplice in a heist.

Refn, in Thailand to make his next film, Only God Forgives, a Bangkok-set crime thriller, says Gosling's character undergoes a transformation into a superhero, and his symbol is the giant scorpion, embroidered into the back of his jacket. Gosling has his scorpion just like Thailand as the Red Eagle, Refn said at the recent press screening, referring to Insee Dang, the masked vigilante most famously portrayed in Thai films of the 1960s by superstar Mitr Chaibancha.

Drive has been controversial. The script languished in Hollywood's studio system for years until Refn got hold of it. He tinkered with it so much, the studios rejected it, saying it wasn't the film he'd promised them. So he made it an independent project. Viewers have also been upset. One woman in the U.S. filed a lawsuit, claiming she'd been mislead into seeing Drive because it was touted as a fast-paced hot-rod movie like The Fast and the Furious.

Drive isn't like that. It's a different kind of thrill. Critical reception is mostly positive. It's at Major Cineplex (including Paragon, Esplanade and Paradise) and House on RCA. Rated 18+.

Also opening

In Time – Justin Timberlake is a man living in the future when everyone stops ageing at 25, and time is literally money. The wealthy live forever while the poor have to beg, borrow and steal enough minutes to make it through another day. Accused of murder, he has to figure out a way to expose the corrupt system. Amanda Seyfried also stars. Andrew Niccol directs. He's the writer-producer of such dystopian sci-fi films as Gattaca and The Truman Show, and also the director of Lord of War. In Time faces a lawsuit from sci-fi writer Harlan Ellison, who says it's substantially the same as his "Repent, Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman". It's just being released this week, so there's not yet a critical consensus. Rated 13+.

The Lion King – Back in cinemas in 3D for just two weeks, Disney's 1994 animated tale takes on dark Shakespearian tones as it follows the life of a lion cub who would be king, who is betrayed by his evil uncle Scar. The young lion becomes a fugitive, and is befriended by the ragtag duo of a meerkat and warthog who teach him the philosophy of a carefree life with the song "Hakuna Matata". Music is by Tim Rice and Elton John with the voice cast featuring Matthew Broderick as Simba, James Earl Jones as King Mufasa, Jeremy Irons as Scar, Rowan Atkinson as Zazu and Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin and Jim Cummings as hyenas. When The Lion King 3D was released in the U.S. a month or so ago, it was No. 1 at the box office, leading Disney to plan more 3D re-releases, which will include Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid as well as Pixar's Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo. Critical reception is mostly positive. At Major Cineplex (including EGV, Paragon, Esplanade and Paradise). Rated G.

Grave Encounters – The Canadian filmmaking team who call themselves The Vicious Brothers offer this horror flick that uses the same "found footage" style as The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield in which the crew of a ghost-hunting reality-TV series encounters supernatural occurences in an old psychiatric hospital. Critical reception is mixed. Rated 13+.

Take note

With Bangkok's flood crisis worsening, many movie screenings and events have been cancelled or postponed.

Tonight's screening of Francois Truffaut's The Woman Next Door at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand has been cancelled.

The World Film Festival of Bangkok has been postponed from November 4 to 13 until January 20 to 27.

Several other films that were set to be released this week are now on hold, and will presumably be rescheduled when the flood crisis is over.

In addition, there is a taxi shortage, so it may be more difficult to get around the city. You might emerge from a movie to find yourself stranded. Many roads are under water. Bus services are being re-routed. The BTS skytrain and MRT subway lines might be curtailed.

Embedded above is a video that explains the flooding situation.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening October 20-26, 2011

2011-10-20T12:57:00.000+07:00

Top Secret Wairoon Pun Lan

Top Secret Wairoon Pun Lan (Top Secret วัยรุ่นพันล้าน) – The story of Tao Kae Noi seaweed-snack tycoon Aitthipat “Top” Kulapongvanich is told in this semi-autobiographical account of the struggles of a Thai-Chinese teenager who parlayed his online-gaming wins into a business that made him a millionaire by age 27. “Peach” Patchara Chirathivat, who made his scene-stealing debut in the rock 'n' roll movie SuckSeed earlier this year, stars. Among his co-stars is Somboonsuk Niyomsiri, making his acting debut at age 80. Better known as Piak Poster, Somboonsuk directed a string of classic youth-oriented movies in the 1970s. Songyos Sugmakanan (Dorm, Hormones) directs. Read more about it in a recent Nation article. Rated 15+.

Also opening

Buddha – Prince Siddartha’s early life is depicted in this anime adaptation of the award-winning manga by Astro Boy creator Osamu Tezuka. The theme “Scarlet Love Song” was composed and recorded for the movie by the metal band X Japan. At Apex Siam Square.

Dream House – Soon after moving into their cozy new home, a family learns of a brutal crime committed against former residents of the dwelling, and the dad (Daniel Craig) is in for a shock when he finds out who perpetrated the killings. Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts also star. Jim Sheridan (The Boxer, My Left Foot) directs. Critical reception of this psycho-thriller is mostly negative. Rated 15+.

Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night – What's certainly going to be confusing for moviegoers is the presence of two entries from the low-budget Paranormal Activity ghost mockumentary franchise opening the same week by competing distributors. The M Pictures release, Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night, is a Japanese remake of 2009's Paranormal Activity. It's about a young woman, wheelchair-bound with two broken legs after a car wreck, who starts experiencing supernatural phenomena. Her computer-nerd brother sets up a video camera in hopes of catching the ghosts. Noriko Aoyama and Aoi Nakamura star. Rated 15+.

Paranormal Activity 3 – The other Paranormal movie released this week is from distributor United International Pictures (UIP). A prequel to last year's second film in the Hollywood series, it's set in 1988 and is about two young sisters who befriend an invisible entity that resides in their home. It's directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, the pair who did the controverisal "fake documentary" Catfish. Critical reception, so far, is positive. Rated 18+.

After Dark Horrorfest – House cinema on RCA brings in seven "films to die for" from the After Dark Horrorfest, an annual independent horror film festival that commissions original works. There are seven features: Husk (farm haunted by scarecrows), The Task (night in a haunted prison), Seconds Apart (telepathic twins), Prowl (vampires), Scream of the Banshee (monster with a bone-shattering scream), Fertile Ground (haunted rural home) and 51 (space aliens), all from this year's HorrorFest 5. Check House's Facebook page for the schedule.

Also showing

Le fil (The String) – Back home in Tunisia after the death of his father, 30-year-old Malik (Antonin Stahly-Vishwanadan) is once again living with his mother (Claudia Cardinale). He'd like to tell her that he's gay, but can't bring himself to do so and slips ever deeper into his lies. Mehdi Ben Attia directs this 2009 drama. In French with English subtitles at 7.30pm on Wednesday, October 26 at the Alliance Francaise.

La femme d'à côté (The Woman Next Door) – François Truffaut directs this 1981 romantic drama about the love triangle that shatters the idyllic life of two seemingly happy families in a French village. Gérard Depardieu and Fanny Ardant star. Crtical reception is mostly positive. The screening, courtesy of the Embassy of France, is at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand at 8pm on Thursday, October 27. Admission is 150 baht for non-members and 50 baht for anybody wanting to sip the French wine laid on by the embassy.

Take note

With floodwaters threatening Bangkok, going to a movie might be the furthest thing from some people's minds while others might welcome an escape to the cineplex, especially if it's on a floor high atop one of Bangkok's shopping malls.

If you do venture out, be mindful of the flood warnings, especially for Bangkok's eastern suburbs, including the Rangsit and Fashion Island areas. Many cinemas may be closed and events might be cancelled, so perhaps call ahead before you go.

Or stay at home and watch an old home movie, The Flood in Bangkok 1942 (embedded above). Among the first films to be listed as national heritage by the Culture, the clip was filmed by Tae Prakardwuttisan, who made several documentary records during the era.

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

2011-10-13T13:37:00.001+07:00

Hi-So

Borders are breaking down in indie filmmaker Aditya Assarat's sophomore feature, Hi-So (ไฮโซ).

Inspired by Aditya's own life - he was raised in Thailand but spent half his life going to school in the U.S. - Hi-So is a bifurcated look at a melancholy man who doesn't fit in either place.

Ananda Everingham stars. He plays a Thai actor who's recently moved back to Thailand after years in the States. While making a movie on location in Phang Nga Province (the same setting as Aditya's 2008 debut Wonderful Town), he's visited on set by his American girlfriend (Cerise Leang) and is having trouble connecting to her. Later he's back in Bangkok and has a Thai girlfriend (Sajee Apiwong), and can't relate to her either.

It's a movie of halves, with the first in English and the second in Thai.

"By the nature of the structure, the two halves always reflect each other, and I always thought it would be like the same movie being played over again," Aditya told The Nation last month. "Even some of the conversations are the same, except one is in English and the other in Thai."

Aside from getting a highly personal project out of his system, Aditya says the aim of Hi-So is to depict a modern Thailand that's been changed by globalization.

"It's a contemporary Asian film. It's about what it's like to live in Thailand now and what it feels like to live in Asia now, where there's a breakdown of culture and borders. We're all becoming one Asian culture," he says. "A hundred years ago, to be born in Thailand meant something. It meant that you spoke Thai and you never left the country and you were Thai. Now it could mean anything. You can speak English or Japanese and you don't eat Thai food. You watch Korean TV shows or French movies and you wear your hair the way people wear it in Brazil."

Enthusiasts of contemplative cinema, as well as as fans of indie Thai films and Ananda will probably enjoy Hi-So, which despite all the brooding by its star, has its entertaining moments, thanks in large part to the two fabulous female leads and a colorful supporting cast.

Hi-So premiered a year ago at the Busan International Film Festival and his played the circuit, hitting Tokyo, Berlin and recently Singapore, among other fests. It also had a limit run in New York.

Find out more about the movie at its Facebook page. There's also an official YouTube channel, which includes the trailer (embedded below), cool clips from the soundtrack and a couple of short films by Aditya that are closely linked to Hi-So – 6 to 6 (part 2 here) and Bangkok Blues (part 2 here).

Part of the Extra Virgin Director's Screen Project, Hi-So is in limited release for the next month at three SF cinemas: CentralWorld, Central Lat Phrao and SF Cinema City at the new Terminal 21 mall at the Asoke intersection. Showtimes during the first week of release are at 7 nightly with additional Saturday and Sunday matinees around 2 or 2.30. Check the SF bookings site to make sure. Rated 13+.

Also opening

30+ Sode on Sale (30+ โสด on Sale, a.k.a. 30+ Singles on Sale) – Putthiphong Promsakha na Sakon Nakhon, the director of last year's teenybopper hit First Love (Sing Lek Lek Thee Riak Wa … Ruk, สิ่งเล็กๆ ที่เรียกว่า...รัก,), a.k.a. A Crazy Little Thing Called Love or A Thing Called Love, has another movie out. Only this time, instead of spying on the romantic life of a high-school girl, he's got a 30-year-old woman on his hands in 30+ Singles on Sale. "Ploy" Cherman Boonyasak stars, playing a rare comedic role. She's a photographer, who, at the age of 32, has just been dumped by her longtime boyfriend. Phichitra Siriwetchachaphan and the impish "Tukky" Sudarat Butrprom are her supportive best friends who aim to get her back in action. She soon meets a handsome fortuneteller (musician-actor "Pe" Arak Amornsupsiri) who says if she doesn't find a new boyfriend soon, she'll have to wait years for another. 30+ is one of a pair of Thai thirtysomething romance movies being released. The other, due next month, is 30 Kamlung Jaew, starring "Um" Patcharapha Chaichuea. The Nation has a story about them both. Rated G.

Spy Kids 4: All the Time in the World – Robert Rodriguez reboots his old Spy Kids franchise with a fresh pair of young recruits. Jessica Alba heads the cast in this one. She's a young mother who retired from her life as a secret agent after her last mission went awry. However, her old enemy the Timekeeper (Jeremy Piven) again threatens the world. And, her two stepchildren (Rowan Blanchard and Mason Cook) are drawn into the plot when they are recruited by the spy kids division. Original Spy Kids Daryl Sabara and Alexa Vega are also back, as is Rodriguez regular Danny Trejo. Ricky Gervais is the voice of the kids shaggy dog robotic dog Argonaut. Critical reception is mostly negative, but kids and die-hard Rodriguez fans will probably have fun. The movie is advertised as being "in 4D with Aroma-Scope", meaning it's in 3D and you're supposed to get a scratch-and-sniff card to use during certain scenes to add that fourth dimension. Rated G.

The Smurfs – The little blue people first appeared as a comic book by Belgian cartoonist Peyo in the 1950s and became an animated TV series in the 1980s. Now, in this self-parodying animated/live-action feature, the Smurfs are chased from their magical land by their arch-nemesis the wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria) and end up in New York City. There, they are taken in by an uptight young man (Neil Patrick Harris) and his wife (Jayma Mays). Much smurfing around ensues. The voice cast includes veteran comedian Jonathan Winters as Papa Smurf and singer Katy Perry as Smurfette. Raja Gosnell (Scooby-Doo, Beverly Hills Chihuahua) directs. Critical reception is mostly negative, but children and Smurfs fans will probably enjoy it. Rated G.

Also showing

Home Movie Day – The Thai Film Archive hosts a Home Movie Day event on Saturday, October 15, at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, 5th-floor auditorium, from 11am to 6pm. They'll have various activities, including screening of old movies, highlighting the historical importance of old home movies. Some fine examples can be found on the Thai Film Archive's National Heritage Films Registry. You can find out more about the event, which is held worldwide, at the website, HomeMovieDay.com. For more information, call (02) 482 2013-14, ext. 111.

La folle histoire d'amour de Simon Eskenazy – Ten years after Man Is a Woman, Simon Eskenazy has become a celebrated performer of Jewish traditional music. His intrusive mother, ex-wife and 10-year-old son, who he has never seen, all turn up at his place, followed by Naim, a young Muslim transvestite who will change his life. Jean-Jacques Zilbermann directs this 2008 comedy starring Antoine de Caunes, Mehdi Dehbi and Elsa Zylberstein. In French with English subtitles at 7.30pm on Wednesday October 19 at the Alliance Francaise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening October 5-12, 2011

2011-10-06T12:42:00.005+07:00

Melancholia

Apocalypse looms as newlyweds are celebrating in Melancholia, a much-acclaimed psychological disaster drama by the controversial director Lars von Trier.

Kirsten Dunst stars as the depressed bride at the sumptuous party with her new husband (Alexander Skarsgård). It's taking place at the home of her sister (Charlotte Gainsbourg) and brother-in-law (Kiefer Sutherland).

Meanwhile, the rogue planet Melancholia is on a collision course with Earth

Melancholia premiered in the main competition this year's Cannes Film Festival, where Dunst received the Best Actress Award. However, the film was overshadowed by comments from Von Trier during a press conference in which he said he sympathasized with Hitler, causing Dunst to gape at him in disbelief. The festival then declared him persona non grata. And he may face criminal charges back in France over those comments.

The movie is generally critically acclaimed.

At Apex Siam Square and from Saturday at SFX the Emporium. Rated 13+.

Also opening

50/50 – Joseph Gordon-Levitt portrays a young man diagnosed with a rare form of cancer who's given a 50/50 chance of living. Determined to beat the illness, he approaches life with a sense of humor and renewed vigor, even has he's going through arduous chemo treatments. Seth Rogen stars as his best friend with Angelica Huston as his mother and Bryce Dallas Howard as his faithless girlfriend. Anna Kendrick, Philip Baker Hall and Matt Frewer also star. Directed by Jonathan Levine (All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, The Wackness), the fact-based story is by screenwriter Will Reiser and is partly based on Reiser's bout with cancer. The comedy-drama is generally well received, with the critical consensus being that it's "a good-hearted film about a difficult topic ... maneuver[ing] between jokes and drama with surprising finesse." It's at House, Paragon Cineplex and SFW CentralWorld. Rated 18+.

The Sorcerer and the White Snake – Jet Li stars in this Chinese epic martial-arts fantasy. He's a kung-fu sorcerer who makes it his mission in life to root out evil demons and monsters. He encounters one in a plague-stricken town – the White Snake, who's taken the form of a woman (Eva Huang). She's sacrificed everything in order to help the man she loves, the local herbalist (Raymond Lam). Charlene Choi also stars as the Green Snake. Tony Ching directs. The Sorcerer and the White Snake premiered out-of-competition at last month's Venice Film Festival. It's just now opening outside of China, so reviews are hard to come by, though one at Singapore's MovieXclusive is generally favorable. Chinese soundtrack only at SFW CentralWorld; elsewhere Thai-dubbed. Rated 15+.

Rascals – Ajay Devgn and Sanjay Dutt are competing conmen trying to outdo each other in a series of outlandish schemes. Arjun Rampal and Kangana Ranaut also star. Directed by David Dhawan, this Bollywood comedy was entirely filmed in Thailand. The plot bears remarkable similarity to the Steve Martin-Michael Caine comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. It was recently the subject of a lawsuit in India, though not over the similarity, but due to some dispute about the financing. It's in Hindi with English subtitles at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) on Friday at 8, Sunday at 7.30 and Monday at 8 and at Major Cineplex Central Rama III on Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 4. Visit BollywoodThai.com or call (02) 225-7500 or (089) 488-2620.

Love Summer: Rak Talon on the Beach (Love Summer รักตะลอน ออน เดอะ บีช) – A group of Thai youngsters have an adventurous roadtrip to a beach destination and along the way they befriend a bikini-clad Japanese actress (Yui Tatsumi) and a bearded foreigner named Bob (Jonathan Samson). "Bai Fern" Pimchanok Leuwisetpaibul, Tana Eamniyom and Tanwa Suriyachak star. Trilak Makmeongpad directs. Rated 15+.

Doraemon the Movie 2011: Nobita and the New Steel Troops – The little boy Nobita and his earless robotic cat friend Doreamon build a giant robot that turns into a weapon in the fight against an invading robot army. There have been more than 30 of these annual Doreamon movies, based on the long-running Japanese manga and anime series by Fujiko F. Fujio. This is a remake of a 1986 entry in the franchise and is the first one in 3D, though it appears the Thai release is not in 3D. Thai-dubbed. Rated G.

Also showing

In Memory of Mitr Chaibancha – Forty-one years ago this Saturday, October 8, superstar actor Mitr Chaibancha fell to his death from a helicopter while making Insee Thong (Golden Eagle). As they do each year in memory of Mitr, the Thai Film Archive will have a special program including some of Mitr's movies. They'll screen the 1966 comedy Sam Kler Jer Long Hon (สามเกลอเจอล่องหน, "three friends meet the invisible man"). Following lunch, at 2pm, actress Butsakon Sakonrat, who co-starred with Mitr in some other movies, will have her hand-and-foot impressions made in the Star Terrace outside the Sri Salaya Theatre. And at 3.30, there will be a biographical documentary on Mitr's life.

Eyes Wide Open (Tu n’aimeras point) – A married Orthodox Jewish father of four falls in love with a 22-year-old male student in this 2009 Israeli-French-German drama by Haim Tabakman. It screened in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival and is generally well-received. by critics. It's in French with English subtitles at the Alliance Francais Bangkok at 7.30pm on Wednesday, October 12.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening September 29-October 5 2011

2011-09-29T14:02:00.003+07:00

Friday Killer (Ma Kae Untarai)

The second release in director Yuthlert Sippapak's trilogy of hitman comedies, Friday Killer (Ma Kae Untarai, หมาแก่อันตราย, literally "dangerous dog") stars veteran comedian Thep Po-ngam in a rather downbeat role as an aging assassin.

Released from prison, Pae Uzi is afflicted with failing eyesight. Nonetheless, he takes on a job, which puts him in conflict with the daughter (Ploy Jindachote) he never knew he had. Turns out she's a tough policewoman, and she's now gunning for him, without knowing he's her father.

Along with all that drama, Yuthlert mixes in stylish action and cheeky bits of comedy and satire that poke fun of Thailand's political situation.

With the original Thai title of Meu Puen Dao Prasook, มือปืน ดาวพระศุกร์), Friday Killer screened at last year's Phuket Film Festival, won awards at this year's Shanghai film fest, and also screened at the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival.

It's part of Yuthlert's Meu Puen 3 Pak, which pair up veteran comedians with young starlets. Interestingly, what was intended to be the first film in the series, Saturday Killer (Meu Puen Dao Pra Sao, มือปืน /ดาว /พระ /เสาร์) was released first, coming out last September. It starred "Nong" Choosak Iamsuk and Cris Horwang. A third film in the series, Sunday Killer is yet to be released. It stars Kohtee Aramboy and "May" Pitchanart Sakakorn. Rated 18+.

Also opening

Contagion – Don't touch your face! Stephen Soderbergh directs this thriller about the rapid progress of a lethal airborne virus that kills within days. As the fast-moving epidemic grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself. At the same time, ordinary people struggle to survive in a society coming apart. The ensemble cast includes Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon, Jude Law, Laurence Fishburne, Marion Cotillard, Kate Winslet, Elliot Gould and John Hawkes. Critical reception is very positive. "Tense, tightly plotted, and bolstered by a stellar cast, Contagion is an exceptionally smart – and scary – disaster movie," is the consensus. Rated 15+.

Cars 2 – Pixar's animated automobile franchise continues with star racing car Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) heading overseas to compete in the World Grand Prix. Along for the ride is his redneck tow-truck buddy Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) who is mistakenly recruited as a secret agent by British intelligence. Michael Caine is the Bond-like Aston Martin named Finn McMissile with Emily Mortimer as the sexy spy Holly Shiftwell. They face a gang of evil lemon cars. Other voices include John Turturro, Eddie Izzard, Joe Montagna, Bruce Campbell and racing drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jeff Gordon. Alongside the first Cars movie, this is one of the most unacclaimed movies in the Pixar universe, with the consensus being that "Cars 2 is as visually appealing as any other Pixar production, but all that dazzle can't disguise the rusty storytelling under the hood." Children and racing fans will probably enjoy it. It's in 3D in some cinemas, including IMAX. Rated G.

The Three Musketeers – Resident Evil franchise director Paul W.S. Anderson takes on Alexandre Dumas' often-adapted swashbuckling tale, adding lots of action and eye candy in this special-effects laden production that was filmed in 3D. The story has the trio of swordsman – Athos (Matthew MacFadyen), Aramis (Luke Evans) and Porthos (Ray Stevenson) – eeking out a menial existence. They are coaxed back into action by young D'Artagnan (Logan Lerman), and together they battle their old nemesis Milady (Milla Jovovich), the English lord Buckingham (Orlando Bloom) and his fleet of airborne zeppelin warships as well as the conniving Cardinal Richelieu (Christoph Waltz), who's looking to seize the French throne. Juno Temple and Freddie Fox also star. This is opening in Asia before the rest of the world, so there's not yet any critical consensus, though some mixed reviews are trickling in. It's in 3D in some cinemas. Rated 15+.

Mausam – Actor Pankaj Kapoor makes his directorial debut with this romantic epic about a Kashmiri refugee and a Punjabi Air Force officer. Sonam Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor (the director's son) star. In Hindi with English subtitles at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) on Thursday and Friday at 8pm, at Major Rama III on Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 4 and back at Major Ekamai on Sunday at 7.30. Visit BollywoodThai.com or call (02) 225-7500 or (089) 488-2620.

Also showing

Persepolis – This 2007 animated feature by Marjane Satrapi, adapted from her illustrated books about her life growing up during the Islamic Revolution in Iran, is back for a weeklong run at House cinema on RCA, running as a companion piece to another film at House, Women Without Man, which looks at 1953's CIA-orchestrated coup in Iran. For showtimes, you'll have to look at House's Facebook page; they are slow in updating their website.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: The Cove at the FCCT, September 28-29

2011-09-26T12:52:00.002+07:00

Dolphin activist Ric O'Barry will be in Bangkok this week for two screenings of the Oscar-winning 2009 documentary The Cove at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand.

Produced by the Ocean Preservation Society, directed by Louis Psihoyhos and put together by a team of eco-activists, filmmakers and adventurers using hidden cameras, The Cove exposes the brutality of the dolphin roundup and massacre in a secluded cove in Taiji, Japan.

Taking center stage in the documentary, O'Barry is a former dolphin trainer who handled the dolphins that performed on the TV series Flipper. After one of the dolphins committed suicide in his arms, O'Barry switched to a life of dolphin activism, fighting against their captivity.

The showtimes are at 7.30 pm on Wednesday and Thursday, September 28 & 29, with a Q&A session by O'Barry. Admission is free but you should RSVP at info@lovewildlife.org or call (084) 977-2747

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening September 22-28, 2011

2011-09-22T12:51:00.001+07:00

Abduction

Twilight teen wolf Taylor Lautner stars in this thriller as the missing kid whose picture was on the side of a milk carton.

All his young life, he's had the uneasy feeling that he's living someone else's life, then one day he discovers that he was in fact abducted, and his parents are not really his parents.

Actually, he's a sleeper agent for the CIA.

Soon, he's been chased by government assassins, and he goes on the run with the only person he can trust, the girl next door (Lily Collins).

Alfred Molina, Jason Isaacs, Maria Bello and Sigourney Weaver also star.

John Singleton (Boyz n the Hood, the Shaft remake, 2 Fast, 2 Furious) directs.

This is just being released worldwide this week, so the critical consensus is yet to form. Rated 15+.

Also opening

The Missing Piece – Patana Chirawong directs this documentary about youngsters of varying disabilities who get together to learn about filmmaking and their efforts to make a movie. There's a trailer at YouTube. The Missing Piece was shown last month in a special screening at the 15th Thai Short Film & Video Festival, and now it's in limited release at House on RCA.

Friends With Benefits – Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis are long-time friends who decide that they can simply add sex and still just be friends, without emotional or romantic attachment. Of course, this being a Hollywood romantic-comedy, it's not as easy as that. Woody Harrelson also stars, stealing scenes as the couple's gay friend. Will Gluck (Easy A) directs. Critical reception is mostly favorable, with the consensus being it "adds nothing new to its well-worn rom-com formula, but the chemistry between Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis is almost enough to carry the movie by itself." Rated 18+.

Blitz – Jason Statham stars in this British crime thriller as a tough London police detective hunting a serial killer (Aidan Gillen from The Wire and Game of Thrones) who preys on police officers. Luke Evans, David Morrissey and Paddy Considine also star. Critical reception is mixed. It's at the Scala.

Apollo 18 – Officially, Apollo 17 was the last manned mission to the moon. But there was one more after that, which was kept secret, and man hasn't set foot on the lunar surface since. This mockumentary/horror-thriller, directed by Gonzalo López-Gallego and produced by Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov, aims to show the terrifying reasons why. Critical reception is overwhelmingly negative, the consensus being it's "a boring, suspense-free Paranormal Activity rip-off." Rated 13+.

Baan Phee Pob: Reformation (บ้านผีปอบ รีฟอร์เมชั่น) – There have been something like two-dozen installments in this long-running ghost-comedy series, which goes back to the 1980s. The story, involving much running around, screaming and slapstick antics by villagers who hide in water jars, is about a gut-munching female ghost who disembowels her victims with a sharp thrust of her claw-like hands. There have been many iterations of Baan Phee Pob over the years – 2001's Pop Weed Sayong, a.k.a. Body Jumper, comes to mind – but the original series was revived in 2008 by Golden A Entertainment. They brought back veteran actress Natthanee Sitthisaman as Pob Yib. Now comes the second installment in the rebooted series starring Natthanee, Baan Phee Pob Reformation, which aims to bring Pob into the modern era. You can read more about the long-running a series in a Bangkok Post story by Kong Rithdee. Rated G.

Take note

Camellia, the pan-Asian trio of romance shorts set in Busan, South Korea, is not subtitled, even in cinemas where it is listed as being subtitled.
Additionally, it's only available as Thai-dubbed, which works out fine for the first segment, Wisit Sasanatieng's Iron Pussy: A Kimchi Affair, which is done in a retro style and is actually intentionally dubbed. And even without subtitles, it's still a lot of fun.

Starring Michael Shaowanasai, it's the story of a Thai transvestite secret agent. As a man, Iron Pussy is working in a seafood restaurant, preparing live octopi for dinner. Secret messages are passed to him through phones embedded in the seafood, and a ringing, squirming octopus puts him on his next mission.

Transformed into the fashionable lady secret agent (with a dubbed woman's voice to match), she makes the scene at a swinging nightclub, where she catches the eye of a masked man (Kim Min-jun) and romance blossoms. Masked tommy-gun-wielding thugs are quickly dispatched with a few swift kicks by the lady spy. She then takes her Korean man on a picnic.

Set initially in 1979, Wisit's stylish Iron Pussy actually feels more like 1969 when Mitr Chaibancha and Petchara Chaowarat were the leading man and lady of Thai cinema. It's that era of Thai cinema that Iron Pussy's character pays tribute to, and Wisit, the director of Tears of the Black Tiger and The Red Eagle, is especially adept at capturing.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: Eternally Yours – Sivaroj Kongsakul retrospective

2011-09-16T10:00:00.000+07:00

Sivaroj Kongsakul's award-winning debut feature Eternity (ที่รัก, Tee Rak) has entered the second week of a monthlong limited run in Bangkok as part of the Extra Virgin Director's Screen Project.

It's been screening at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld on weeknights at 7.30 and 2.30 and 7.10pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

After this Saturday's matinee, there's a whole bunch of love of Sivaroj lined up, starting with a Q&A with the director after the movie.

hen, at 5pm, the film-activist group Third Class Citizen will show Sivaroj's short films. That'll be in the Eat@DoubleU restaurant, right outside theater 10 at SFW CentralWorld. They set up some little stools you can perch on while you watch the films for free.

The shorts include his award-winners Always and Silencio.

Most will have English subtitles.

The Nation has more about Sivaroj, as well as filmmaker Pramote Sangsorn and their residencency earlier this year in Paris as part of the Cannes Cinefondation program.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening September 15-21, 2011

2011-09-15T12:32:00.001+07:00

Camellia

Three Asian directors take part in Camellia, a.k.a. The Busan Project, a trilogy of romance shorts filmed in the city of Busan, South Korea. It premiered at last year's Pusan International Film Festival.

The segments are divided into the "past", "present" and "future".

Thai director Wisit Sasanatieng (Tears of the Black Tiger, Citizen Dog, The Red Eagle) directs the "past" with Iron Pussy, a.k.a. A Kimchi Affair. Performance artist Michael Shaowanasai stars as the transvestite secret agent Iron Pussy, who he's portrayed in a series of shorts and a 2005 feature that he co-directed with Apichatpong Weerasethakul. Capturing the colorful spirit of the 1960s Thai romance movies, it has Iron Pussy travelling to Korea on a mission and falling in love with a local man (Kim Min-Jun).

Kamome by Isao Yukisada is set in the present and is about a director (Sol Kyung-Gu) making a movie in Busan and falling in love. Yuriko Yoshitaka also stars.

And Love for Sale, directed by Joon-hwan Jang, is set in a future when the buying and selling memories is common. Gang Dong-Won plays a guy wanting to retrieve his memories of a lost love (Song Hye-Kyo).

It's Thai-dubbed, unfortunately, though that's okay for the Iron Pussy segment, because all her lines are dubbed anyway.

Also opening

Women Without Men – The destinies of four women come together against the tumultuous backdrop of the CIA-backed coup d’etat in Iraq in 1953. It's directed by artist-turned-filmmaker Shirin Neshat, who won the Silver Lion for best director at the 2009 Venice Film Festival. Critical reception is generally positive. At House.

Johnny English Reborn – Rowan Atkinson is back in action as the bumbling British spy. He's spent the past few years in reclusion, honing his unique skills in remotest Asia. However, when his superiors at MI-7 learn there will be an attempt on the life of the Chinese premier, they believe that Johnny English is the man for the job. This movie doesn't open in the rest of the world until next month, so Thailand is among the first to see it. Consequently, there isn't yet any critical consensus. Rated 13+.

I Don’t Know How She Does It – Sarah Jessica Parker is a mother struggling to balance her demanding career with the stress of raising two children, maintaining a healthy marriage and dealing with a flirtatious business associate (Pierce Brosnan). Greg Kinnear, Olivia Munn, Christina Hendricks and Kelsey Grammer also star. Critical consensus is mixed, leaning to positive. Rated G.

Shark Night 3D – A summer weekend on an island in a Louisiana lake becomes a nightmare for a group of bikini-clad vacationers when the place becomes surrounded by blood-thirsty sharks. It's the latest effort by David R. Ellis, director of such films as Final Destination 2, Cellular and Snakes on a Plane. This has the potential for mindless fun, but critical reception is mostly negative, with the consensus that it's "a joyless excursion ... that doesn't even produce good gore or nudity thanks to the neutered PG-13 rating." Rated 15+.

Luer Lae (เหลือแหล่ ) – It's a clash of musical cultures when a ska band led by Luer Lae (Nattawat "Ton AF7" Deeduangkaew) and Cello (Chalermphol Thikampornteerawong) stray into a village that's home to two masters of traditional Thai folk music. Comedians Yong and Note Chernyim direct and also star in this comedy from Phranakorn Film. Rated G.

Also showing

All That I Love – This acclaimed Polish drama follows the lives and loves of four young guys as they struggle to form a punk band against the backdrop of 1980s Poland and its political turmoils stemming from communism and the Solidarity movement. Directed by Jacek Borcuch, it was in competition at the Sundance Film Festival last year, and has won praise from other festivals, including Busan, Rotterdam, Brussels, New York and Los Angeles. It was also Poland's official entry to the Oscars. The screening is at 8 tonight (Thursday, September 15) at the Foreign Correspondents Club. Entry for non-members is 150 baht and 100 baht for anyone wanting to sample the vodka and zhurek from the Polish Embassy.

Mere Brother Ki Dulhan – A young man sets out to arrange a marriage for his brother but finds himself falling for his future sister-in-law. Imran Khan, Katrina Kaif and Ali Zafar star in this love-triangle romantic comedy. In Hindi with English subtitles at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) on Saturday night at 8 and at Major Rama III on Sunday at 4. Call (089) 488 2620 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

Sneak preview

Friends With Benefits – Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis are long-time friends who decide that they can simply add sex and still just be friends, without emotional or romantic attachment. Of course, this being a Hollywood romantic-comedy, it's not as easy as that. Woody Harrelson also stars, stealing scenes as the couple's gay friend. Will Gluck (Easy A) directs. Critical reception is mostly favorable, with the consensus being it "adds nothing new to its well-worn rom-com formula, but the chemistry between Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis is almost enough to carry the movie by itself." Friends With Benefits opens wide next week but is in nightly sneak previews this week, with showtimes starting around 8 at most multiplexes. Rated 18+.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening September 8-14, 2011

2011-09-08T13:17:00.003+07:00

Eternity (Tee Rak)

Sivaroj Kongsakul's debut feature Eternity (ที่รัก, Tee Rak) premiered at last year's Pusan International Film Festival, where it won the New Currents competition and made Sivaroj another Thai name for world cinema followers to get acquainted with. It opened the World Film Festival of Bangkok last year, before heading back out on the road on a award-winning run of festivals in Rotterdam, Deauville and Hong Kong and earning critical praise at the LA Film Fest. It's also been announced for the upcoming London Film Festival. In the meantime, Sivaroj went to France, where he took part in the Cannes Cinefondation Residency program.

Now, finally, Sivaroj's highly emotional, personal and spiritual ode to his late father comes home to Bangkok once again, giving the multiplex crowds a contemplative alternative to the cacophonous Hollywood and Thai-studio blockbusters as part of the Extra Virgin Director's Screen Project at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld.

A quiet, tearful and homespun tale, Eternity (Tee Rak) is a look at man's existence in three segments, tracing back from his lonely sadness in the afterlife, to his all-too-fleeting romance and marriage and finally to the wife and son he's left behind.

It is not to be confused with a much-bigger, much-gaudier film with the same English title released by the Thai film industry last year, the director of which just happens to be releasing an outrageously big movie this week.

Running until October 5, showtimes for Eternity are at around 7 nightly with matinees around 2.30 on Saturdays and Sundays at SFW CentralWorld. Rated G.

U Mong Pa Meung (The Outrage)

Thai melodrama guru ML Bhandevanop “Mom Noi” Devakula directs U Mong Pa Meung (อุโมงค์ผาเมือง), an adaptation of Rashomon, a murder mystery that was most famously depicted in the classic 1950 movie by Akira Kurosawa.

Mom Noi insists this isn't a remake (even though the international English title The Outrage is the same as the 1964 Paul Newman western that was a remake of Rashomon). Rather, this "Thai Rashomon" is an adaptation of a stage play that was translated by statesman and writer MR Kukrit Pramoj from a Broadway version of the story. The movie has the dual purposes of celebrating the centennial of Kukrit's birth and the 40th anniversary of studio Sahamongkolfilm International.

It's set 500 years ago in the Lanna kingdom of northern Thailand. The lush Chiang Mai mountain setting is the same as Mom Noi's romantic epic last year, Eternity (Chua Fah Din Salai). It also has the stagebound, breathless melodrama and lavish costuming that audiences of Mom Noi's films have come to expect. And it has action choreography by Ong-Bak stunt guru Panna Rittikrai.

The Thai title, U Mong Pa Meung, refers to a tunnel under a city wall (instead of a city gate, as in the Kurosawa movie), where a woodcutter (Petthai Wongkumlao), a monk (Mario Maurer) and an old man (Pongpat Wachirabunjong) have taken shelter for the evening and they discuss and argue over the news of a murder in the woods and the conflicting accounts of it in the trial that followed.

Ananda Everingham takes the "samurai" role as a nobleman warrior, murdered while travelling with his wife ("Ploy" Chermarn Boonyasak). Dom Hetrakul is in the Toshiro Mifune role as the bandit. Rated 15+.

Also opening

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark – Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth) "presents" this horror thriller, an amped-up remake of a 1973 made-for-TV movie, about a little girl (Bailee Madison) who moves into a creepy old Gothic mansion with her family and starts seeing nasty little creatures. Guy Pearce and Katie Holmes also star. Del Toro co-scripted the film with veteran screenwriter Matthew Robbins and they handed directorial duties over to comic-book artist Troy Nixey. Critical reception is mixed. "While it's pleasantly atmospheric and initially quite scary, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark ultimately fails to deliver the skin-crawling chills of the original." Rated 15+.

Zookeeper – Kevin James is an unlucky-in-romance zookeeper who receives advice in the ways of mating from his animals. The talking critters include Adam Sandler, Jon Favreau, Sylvester Stallone, Nick Nolte, Cher, Maya Rudolph and Don Rickles. The live-action cast includes Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb, Donnie Wahlberg, Joe Rogen and The Hangover's Ken Jeong. Critical reception is overwhelmingly negative. I think this going to seem like a major comedown after the critically acclaimed hit Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Rated 15+.

Mere Brother Ki Dulhan – A young man sets out to arrange a marriage for his brother but finds himself falling for his future sister-in-law. Imran Khan, Katrina Kaif and Ali Zafar star in this love-triangle romantic comedy. In Hindi with English subtitles at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) tonight at 8, Sunday at 7.30 and Monday at 8 and at Major Rama III tomorrow at 8 and Sunday at 4. Call (089) 488 2620 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com

Also showing

Chulalongkorn University International Film Festival – The annual twice-yearly screening series of acclaimed foreign films closes out on Friday, September 9, with The Illusionist, the latest feature by Triplets of Belleville animator Sylvain Chomet. Based on a screenplay Jacques Tati, it's the story of a French illusionist who finds himself out of work and has an adventure in Scotland with a young woman. The movie is on DVD with English subtitles. The show time is at 5pm in the Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Building, 9th floor, off Henri Dunant Road.

All That I Love – This acclaimed Polish drama follows the lives and loves of four young guys as they struggle to form a punk band against the backdrop of 1980s Poland and its political turmoils stemming from communism and the Solidarity movement. Directed by Jacek Borcuch, it was in competition at the Sundance Film Festival last year, and has won praise from other festivals, including Busan, Rotterdam, Brussels, New York and Los Angeles. It was also Poland's official entry to the Oscars. The screening is at 8pm next Thursday, September 15 at the Foreign Correspondents Club. Entry for non-members is 150 baht and 100 baht for anyone wanting to sample the vodka and zhurek from the Polish Embassy.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening September 1-7, 2011

2011-09-01T12:30:00.005+07:00

Fright Night

Anton Yelchin squares off against Colin Farrell in Fright Night, a remake of the cult 1985 horror comedy.

Yelchin, who played wunderkind ensign Chekov in the Star Trek movie, goes on the offensive after he learns his new neighbor Jerry (Farrell) is a vampire.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse, David Tennant, Imogen Poots and Toni Collette also star.

Australian-born filmmaker Craig Gillespie (Lars and the Real Girl) directs.

"It may not have been necessary to remake the 1985 cult classic, but the new Fright Night benefits from terrific performances by Colin Farrell and David Tennant – and it's smart, funny and stylishly gory to boot," is the mostly positive consensus.

It's in 3D in some cinemas.

Also opening

Colombiana – Avatar and The Losers star Zoe Saldana is still in action mode in this revenge flick. After witnessing her parents’ murder as a child in Bogota, she grows up to be an assassin, taking assignments while also searching for the man responsible for her parents' deaths. Luc Besson is a producer, and it's very much in the same vein as his classic female assassin drama Le Femme Nikita. And, Colombiana was originally conceived as a sequel to Besson's Léon: The Professional. Olivier Megaton (Transporter 3) directs. Critical reception is mixed, with the consensus seeming to be that action fans won't be disappointed, as long as they don't take it too seriously.

Love, Not Yet (รักจัดหนัก, Rak Jad Nak) – Bioscope film magazine editor Suphab Rimthepathip produces this romance omnibus that takes a look at teenage pregnancies. Rated 15+.

Bangkok Kung Fu – Yuthlert Sippapak directs this action-comedy about young martial artists who all grew up under the same master. They seek revenge against the gangsters who stole their lives. The cast includes "Pe" Arak Amornsupasiri, "Film" Ratthaphoom Tokhongsab, Mario Maurer and Yes or No actress Sucharat Manaying along with various teen-idol performers from the RS Public record label. Rated 13+.

Ceremony – A young man heads to an elegant beachside estate in a bumbling attempt to derail the wedding of the older woman he's infatuated with. Michael Angarano and Uma Thurman star. Critical reception is mixed. It's at House, Major Cineplex Ratchayothin and SFW CentralWorld. Rated 18+.

Trust – David Schwimmer directs this psychological thriller about a teenager's life that's ruined after she meets a guy she met online who doesn't turn out to be the dreamboat he was posing to be. Liana Liberato portrays the girl, with Clive Owen and Catherine Keener as her mother and father. Critical consensus is mostly positive, saying Schwimmer "gets some gut-wrenching performances out of his actors but he still lacks the chops to fully ratchet up story tension". It's at the Scala.

Mr. Popper’s Penguins – Jim Carrey is a divorced businessman who turns his life around when he becomes the father figure to six penguins. It's based on a 1938 children's book by Richard and Florence Atwater. Although the South Pole birds are sometimes rendered in CGI, actual penguins were used in the making of this picture. Mark Waters (The Spiderwick Chronicles, Mean Girls) directs. Critical reception is mixed. At SF cinemas.

Born To Be Wild – Morgan Freeman narrates this documentary. It looks at baby wild animals in two places – elephants at a sanctuary in Kenya and orangutans at a sanctuary in Borneo. Only at IMAX in 3D.

Also showing

Chulalongkorn University International Film Festival – Four more films remain in this segment of the twice-yearly screening series of recent acclaimed movies. On Friday, it's the woman-and-her-dog-road-trip drama Wendy and Lucy starring Michelle Williams. The Greek arthouse psychological thriller Dogtooth shows on Monday. The Spanish animation Chico and Rita, set in 1940s Cuba, screens next Wednesday. And the fest closes on September 9 with French animator Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist, based on a screenplay by Jacques Tati. After each screening there's a chance to share opinions with film critics Kittisak Suvannapokhin, Nopamat Veohong and Kong Rithdee. All movies are on DVD with English subtitles. Show times are at 5pm in the Mahachakri Sirindhorn Building, 9th Floor.

Morbid Symptom – The DK Filmhouse (Film Virus) screening series alongside the Dialogic exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre continues on Saturday with the program "Cannot be Born", featuring David Cronenberg's 1979 mutant-children thriller The Brood at 3pm and Night of Counting the Years, a.ka. The Mummy, a 1969 fact-based drama by Egyptian director Shadi Abdel Salam at 5. The screening venue is a corner of the BACC's ninth-floor gallery, on a bare white wall where there are a handful of beanbag chairs strewn around. If you want a seat, get there early.

Lady of No Fear – As the Luc Besson-directed Aung San Suu Kyi biopic The Lady, filmed in Thailand starring Michelle Yeoh, is ready to hit big screens, the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand and the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre will show the documentary Lady of No Fear. Danish director Anne Gyrithe Bonne researched for more than three years, meeting friends and family members of the Burmese pro-democracy leader, going through archives, libraries, and photographs to put together Suu Kyi's life story. Bonne will be here to talk about the film. The first screening is at 8pm on Tuesday, September 6 at the FCCT in the penthouse of the Maneeya Center Building at Chitlom BTS station. Admission is B150 non-members. It will then screen at 7.30pm on Wednesday, September 7, at the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre in the 5th-floor auditorium.

Bernie – Albert Dupontel directs and stars in this quirky 1996 comedy as an orphan, who at age 30, finally decides to leave the orphanage and find out why his parents abandoned him. Along the way, he has an adventure. It screens at 7.30pm on Wednesday, September 7 at the Alliance Francaise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening August 25-September 1, 2011

2011-08-25T12:43:00.000+07:00

Cowboys & Aliens

James Bond meets Indiana Jones/Han Solo in the wild wild west in Cowboys & Aliens, a genre-bending mash-up starring Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford.

Set in New Mexico Territory in 1873, a stranger (Craig) awakens in the desert with a metal band on his wrist. He has no recollection of how it got there. He wanders into the town of Absolution, where he gets into a confrontation with a troublemaking local rich kid. The town sheriff recognizes the stranger as a wanted outlaw. And the rich troublemaker's father, the local cattle baron (Ford), wants the stranger for his own purposes of revenge. Suddenly, alien spaceships begin attacking the town and the reason for that device on the stranger's wrist becomes clear.

Olivia Wilde, Paul Dano, Sam Rockwell, Clancy Brown and Keith Carradine also star.

Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Elf) directs. It's adapted from a 2006 graphic novel by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg.

Critical reception is mixed. "Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford are as dependably appealing as ever, but they're let down by director Jon Favreau's inability to smooth Cowboys & Aliens' jarring tonal shifts," is the consensus.

Cowboys & Aliens was also a disappointment at the box office, being beat for No. 1 by The Smurfs, following the trend of other recent hybridized westerns like Johah Hex, The Warrior's Way and Priest that have performed poorly at the box office. It's blamed for Disney killing its planned big-screen adaptation of The Lone Ranger.

Whatever. I'm anxious to see Cowboys & Aliens. I like westerns. And I like sci-fi. I think I might like Cowboys & Aliens.

In addition to most multiplexes, it's also at IMAX (but it's not 3D). Rated 13+.

Also opening

Kon Khon (คนโขน) – Two veteran stars of the Thai silver screen – Sorapong Chatree and Nirut Sirichanya – are pitted against each other in this dark-looking drama about rival dance troupes in 1965. The story is about performers of khon, the masked-dance artform that's used to depict the Ramakien, Thailand's version of the Ramayana epic poem. It's directed by actor Sarunyu Wongkrachang. Rated G.

Conan the Barbarian – Hawaiian-born model-actor Jason Momoa steps into the role played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in a 1982 film of the same name directed by John Milius. Based on a character created in the 1930s by pulp novelist Robert E. Howard, Conan is a warrior in ancient Cimmeria whose father is killed. Conan the boy grows into strong fighter, bent on taking revenge, which turns into an epic battle. Ron Perlman is the dad and Stephen Lang (Avatar) is the warlord Khalar Zym. Rose McGowan is the warlord's daughter, a powerful witch. Rachel Nichols also stars. Marcus Nispel, who previously helmed remakes of Friday the 13th and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, directs. "While its relentless, gory violence is more faithful to the Robert E. Howard books, Conan the Barbarian forsakes three-dimensional characters, dialogue, and acting in favor of unnecessary 3D effects," is the critical consensus, which is mostly negative. In 3D in some cinemas. Rated 15+.

Also showing

15th Thai Short Film & Video Festival – Closing on Sunday, remaining highlights in the fest include the Queer Shorts tonight (Thursday, August 25) from 5pm and S-Express shorts from the Philippines and Indonesia on Friday. Saturday includes screenings in the International Competition and the Duke Awards for documentaries. On Sunday there's lots of animation, with Shorts for Kids at 11 and then the Payute Ngaokrachang Award competition for Thai animation in the afternoon from 1. Some films don't have English subtitles, but go along anyway and you'll likely see something that'll make you glad you did. The fest is at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center in the 5th-floor auditorium and 4th-floor meeting room. Admission is free.

Thai Film Archive – The 1998 German heist drama Run Lola Run screens today. Directed by Tom Tykwer, this kinetic thriller stars plucky Franka Potente as a young woman whose boyfriend has gotten in trouble and needs 100,000 Deutschmarks. She has 20 minutes to help him. The story is divided into three "runs" – three scenarios with different outcomes. Next Wednesday, it's the acclaimed 2003 Spanish drama Take My Eyes, about a woman trying to break the cycle of domestic violence. Both have English subtitles. Show times are at 5.30pm in the Sri Salaya Theatre at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom.

Chulalongkorn University International Film Festival – The twice-yearly screening series of internationally acclaimed movies continues tomorrow (August 26) with the Japanese revenge thriller Confessions, 2008's drugs drama Afterschool on August 29 and Davis Guggenheim's documentary on the troubled US school system Waiting for Superman on August 31. After each screening there's a talk with film critics Kittisak Suvannapokhin, Nopamat Veohong and Kong Rithdee. All movies are on DVD with English subtitles. Show times are at 5pm in the Mahachakri Sirindhorn Building, 9th floor.

Third Class Citizen 028: Before Samed – Film-activist group Third Class Citizen offers a retrospective on the short fiilms of Pairach Khumwan at 4pm on Saturday, August 27 at E@Double U Restraurant on the 9th floor of SF World Cinema at Central World. Films include Relativity, Distortion, Are You Mac?, Grayscale and The City of Slince Admission is free.

Spider – Tossapol Boonsinsukh will premiere his short film Spider on Saturday, August 27 at the Reading Room, with screenings at 5 and 6pm. The 17-minute film is in Thai with no subtitles. Check the Facebook event page for more details.

Public Enemy Number One – The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand screens a documentary on Wilfred Burchett, the controversial Australian journalist who covered the Korean and Vietnam wars with such a critical eye that he was branded a communist and a traitor. David Bradbury directs, and is expected to be present for the screening. The show time is at 8pm on Tuesday, August 30. Admission is 150 baht for non-members.

La répétition (Replay) – Emmanuelle Béart and Pascale Bussières star in this 2001 drama about two women who are lifelong friends. Their relationship becomes more than friendship, verges on the obsessive and morphs over the course of many years. Catherine Corsini directs. It's screening at 7.30pm on Wednesday, August 31 at the Alliance Francaise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening August 18-23, 2011

2011-08-18T13:27:00.002+07:00

The Future

Multi-hyphenate writer-filmmaker-artist Miranda July follows up her critically acclaimed debut Me and You and Everyone We Know with The Future, a quirk-filled existential comedy about a slacker thirtysomething couple (July and Hamish Linklater) who think they are finally ready to start acting like adults.

So they decide to adopt a cat, who narrates the story. Yes, you read that right – this movie has a talking cat.

However, they have to wait 30 days, so the couple breaks loose with various weird activities before taking on the weighty responsibility of pet ownership.

The Future won praise at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. "A dark and whimsical exploration of human existence that challenges viewers as much as it rewards them," is the critical consensus.

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

Also opening

Come Rain, Come Shine – After five years of marriage, a couple prepares for their breakup. The woman (Lim Soo-jeong) is set to move her stuff out. The man (Hyun Bin), typically male in his inability to articulate his feelings, lends a hand and memories of the good times they had resurface. Lee Yoon-Ki directs. This romantic drama was in competition for the Golden Bear at this year's Berlin Film Festival. In Korean with English and Thai subtitles at House and the Lido. Rated 15+.

One Day – After one day together – July 15, 1988, their college graduation – an idealistic working-class woman (Anne Hathaway) and a wealthy, spoiled charmer (Jim Sturgess) begin a friendship that will last a lifetime. Over the next 20 years, key moments are experienced over several July 15ths, chronicling their friendship and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. Danish-born filmmaker Lone Scherfig (An Education) directs. Critical reception, so far, is mostly negative. Rated 15+.

Final Destination 5 – If you've seen the previous four movies in the Final Destination franchise, you know what to expect – a group of people cheat a strange death thanks to someone's premonition, but it only delays the inevitable, and so the rest of the movie is a string of bizarre, gruesome killings. Here, a bunch of folks are saved from dying in a bridge collapse, but they will die anyway in other messed-up ways. What's different is this one's in 3D. Nicholas D'Agosto stars along with Emma Bell. "It's still only for the gore-thirsty faithful, but Final Destination 5 represents a surprising return to form for the franchise," is the critical consensus. Rated 18+.

Also showing

15th Thai Short Film & Video Festival – Starting today, the fest opens at 5pm with registration and then the new short O.B.L. by the Baby Arabia trio of Panu Aree, Kaweenipon Ketprasit and Kong Rithdee. That's followed by Terribly Happy, the 30-minute drama by Pimpaka Towira that was the first Thai short to compete in the Berlin Film Festival. Only Terribly Happy will have English subtitles. The fest is at the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre with daily screenings until August 28 (except Monday). The line-up includes competition shorts by Thai and foreign filmmakers, student films, animation and documentaries. Special programs include the always entertaining "Best of Clermont Ferrand" showcase from the world's largest shorts fest, the S-Express packages from the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, Shorts for Kids and Queer shorts from all over the world. A special program this year is "B-Sides: The History of Video Art in Spain." Screenings are in the 5th floor auditorium and the 4th floor meeting room at the BACC. There's an English translation of the schedule spreadsheet and the screening timetable with partial notations about subtitles. Watch for updates on the festival's Facebook page.

Thai Film Archive – Movies with English subtitles screening this week are the Korean orphan's drama A Brand New Life today (Thursday, August 18) and the 2000 Brazilian romantic comedy Bossa Nova on Tuesday, August 23. A highlight comes on Wednesday, August 24, with another film in the "Memorial to Ratana Pestonji" program: Sugar is not Sweet, the final feature by the pioneering Thai director who died in 1970. Starring one of the era's top leading men, Sombat Metanee, the 1965 romantic comedy is the story of a dying hair-tonic mogul who is determined to marry off his playboy son Manas (Sombat) to his Indian business partner's daughter Namtan. Manas, who already has a girlfriend, isn't interested in the "roti". With an eye-popping color palette, rollicking musical numbers and wild comedy, Sugar is not Sweet is also a look at how Indians are disdainfully viewed in Thai society, even if, like Pestonji, who came from a family of Indian Parsis, they were born in Thailand. Through the end of the month, other movies to look forward to are the 1998 German bank-heist classic Run Lola Run on Thursday, August 25, and the acclaimed 2003 Spanish drama Take My Eyes on August 31. Show times are at 5.30pm in the Sri Salaya Theatre at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom.

Morbid Symptom – The DK Filmhouse (Film Virus) screening series alongside the Dialogic exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre continues on Saturday with two movies under the theme of "The New". At 3pm it's Cria Cuervos, a 1976 Spanish drama by Carlos Saura about an 8-year-old orphan girl who escapes into a fantasy world as a way of coping with the deaths of her parents. That's followed at 5pm by Xala, a 1975 Senegalese film by Ousmane Sembene. A satire about the corruption in post-independence African governments, the main character is a politician who is cursed with impotence upon the day of his marriage to his third wife. The screening venue is a corner of the BACC's ninth-floor gallery, on a bare white wall where there are a handful of beanbag chairs strewn around. If you want a seat, get there early.

Chulalongkorn University International Film Festival – It's time once again for the twice-yearly Chula film fest, put on by the Department of Dramatic Arts. Starting on Monday, August 22 and running until September 9, it offers a line-up of movies that have been acclaimed hits on the film-fest circuit and, with a few exceptions, somehow passed Bangkok by. The opener on Monday is Poetry by South Korean director Lee Chang-dong, about an elderly woman who begins to take an interest in poetry while struggling with Alzheimer's and an irresponsible grandson. Yoon Jeong-hee stars in her first film role since 1994. Awards included best screenplay at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and best actress at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Next Wednesday is the Indian hit Peepli Live, which BollywoodThai brought to the Bangkok big screen last year. It competed at last year's Sundance Film Festival and was India's official submission to the Oscars. It's a satire on impoverished farmers committing suicides and the media and political response that follows. Others in the screening series are the Japanese thriller Confessions on August 26, 2008's drugs drama Afterschool on August 29, Davis Guggenheim's documentary on the troubled US school system Waiting for Superman on August 31, Michelle Williams in the woman-and-her-dog road-trip drama Wendy and Lucy on September 2, the Greek arthouse thriller Dogtooth on September 5, the animated Cuban romance Chico and Rita on September 7 and French animator Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist, based on a screenplay by Jacques Tati, on September 9. After each screening there's a chance to share opinions with film critics Kittisak Suvannapokhin, Nopamat Veohong and Kong Rithdee. All movies are on DVD with English subtitles. Show times are at 5pm in the Mahachakri Sirindhorn Building, 9th Floor.

Une Vieille Maîtresse – Before getting married to the young daughter of an aristocrat, a notorious womanizer (Fu'ad Aït Aattou) makes a last visit to his long-time Spanish mistress (a torrid Asia Argento). The scandalous relationship has been the talk of Paris society, so before the man can wed his bride (Roxane Mesquida), the young woman's grandmother wants to hear everything about it. The man spills all sordid the details, but says it's over and he's now in love with the woman he intends to marry. And they do and are happy. But then the old mistress reappears and the man is forced to confront his past. Catherine Breillat directs this historical romantic drama, set in 1835. It competed at the Cannes Film Festival in 2007. It screens with English subtitles at 7.30pm on Wednesday, August 24 at the Alliance Francaise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening August 11-17, 2011

2011-08-11T13:15:00.001+07:00

The Legend of King Naresuan Part IV

There's no elephant in the room.

It's tough to get those big beasts to cooperate for the cameras, so the promised "elephant battle" has not emerged for the fourth installment of the Legend of King Naresuan series.

Now the vaunted fight with pachyderms will be depicted in Naresuan 5, which is being filmed at the Prommitr studio in Kanchanaburi.

Meanwhile, enough battle footage has been shot to cobble together another violent and bloody chapter from Siam history – The Legend of King Naresuan Part IV (Tamnan Somdej Phra Naresuan Maharaj 4: Suek Nandabayin, ตำนานสมเด็จพระนเรศวรมหาราช ภาค 4 ศึกนันทบุเรง ). It's being released this week to coincide with the auspicious occasion of Her Majesty the Queen's birthday on August 12, which is also Mother's Day in Thailand.

Naresuan 4 follows the April release of Naresuan 3. Meanwhile, the first two movies in the Naresuan series have been released on DVD in the U.S. as Kingdom of War.

With the movie's subtitle loosely translated to mean "wars with Nandabayin", Naresuan 4 focuses on the 1576 invasion of Ayutthaya by the army of Burmese King Nandabayin.

Jakrit Ammart portrays the Burmese monarch. Lt. Colonel Wanchana Sawasdee returns as Naresuan, back in action with a cast of thousands that includes "Peter" Nopachai Jayanama, Taksaorn Paksukcharoen, Chatchai Plengpanich, Grace Mahadumrongkul and Inthira Charoenpura.

The trailer, playing for the past several weeks in cinemas, on Bangkok's skytrain and elsewhere, has been frightening children and tourists with a graphic beheading scene. Rated P.

Also opening

Tomboy – The new kid in town – a girl named Laure – decides to dress and act like a boy. She fools all the other kids into thinking she's a boy, but things get complicated when she attracts a girlfriend. Directed by Céline Sciamma, Tomboy screened earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival, where it won the Teddy Award, given by a special jury to the best film with gay themes. It's in French with English and Thai subtitles at Apex in Siam Square.

Bad Teacher – Cameron Diaz is a junior-high teacher with a rotten attitude. Bored with teaching, she maintains a steady regimen of booze and pot and sleeping in class to get through her day. When a handsome substitute teacher (Justin Timberlake) catches her eye, she becomes determined to marry him and sets about to change her ways so she can earn a big bonus and pay for breast-enlargement surgery. But she has to compete with a colleague (Lucy Punch) and keep away from a pestering gym teacher (Jason Segel). Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard) directs. "In spite of a promising concept and a charmingly brazen performance from Cameron Diaz, Bad Teacher is never as funny as it should be," is the critical consensus. Rated 18+.

The Dragon Pearl – Sam Neill stars in this family-oriented Chinese-Australian fantasy as an archaeologist working in China. His son Josh and a local girl Ling find a mysterious cave which they think is home to an ancient dragon. Louis Corbett, Li Lin Jin and Jordan Chan also star. Critical reception is mostly negative. Rated 13+.

Also showing

Memorial to Ratana Pestonji – The Thai Film Archive pays tribute this month to pioneering director Ratana Pestonji, who strove for innovations in the Thai film industry and put Thai movies on the world cinema map. His features include Black Silk (แพรดำ, Prae Dum), which is not only regarded as the first Thai film noir, it's also one of the first Thai films to compete at an overseas festival. It screened in competition at the 1961 Berlin Film Festival. It'll show at 1pm on Friday, August 12, with English subtitles. Another of his films is 1958's Dark Heaven (Sawan Mued), about a singing garbageman who enters into a tragic romance with an orphan girl. It'll show at 1pm on Sunday, August 14. Ratana's 1957 debut feature Country Hotel screens on Wednesday, August 17 at 5.30. The stagebound comedy is set in a bizarre bar and guesthouse that has only one room, where a mysterious man and an enigmatic heroine attempt to stay. Various musical acts parade through the bar, which also plays host to arm wrestling and a boxing match. From a hilarious, farcical first half, the movie descends into film-noir territory for its second half. "With its distinctive style and clever screenplay, Country Hotel is one of the best Thai films which everybody must see," says the Film Archive. There are also foreign films with English subtitles. On Tuesday, August 16 at 5.30 they'll show Hiroshima mon Amour, a 1959 French New Wave romance by Alain Resnais, about a French actress working on an anti-war film falls in love with a Japanese architect shortly before her return to France. Emmanuelle Riva and Eiji Okada star as the couple referred to as "she" and "he". The film earned an Oscar nomination for screenwriter Marguerite Duras, as well as a special award at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival. Next Thursday, August 18 at 5.30pm, it's Ounie Lecomte's A Brand New Life, the acclaimed South Korean that recently enjoyed a run at House cinema. It's about a 9-year-old girl left at an orphanage trying to come to grips with her abandonment. It won the Best Asian Film Award at the 22nd Tokyo International Film Festival and the jury award at the 2009 Cinekid Festival in Amsterdam. The screenings are in the Sri Salaya Theatre at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom.

Mother's Day programs – House cinema on RCA will screen two films in celebration of Thailand's August 12 Mother's Day – Me and You and Everyone We Know and Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me and Sometimes Dad. Me and You is the much-acclaimed debut feature by writer Miranda July. It's about a recently divorced shoe salesman (John Hawkes), the father of two children, who gets into a relationship with a quirky cab driver and video artist (July). Tokyo Tower is about an artist who must care for his cancer-stricken mother. The cast includes mother-daughter actresses Kirin Kiki as the mother in her later years and Yayako Uchida, who portrays the woman in recollections about the artist's childhood. See the House website for showtimes.

Les Sœurs fâchées (Me and My Sister) – Isabelle Huppert and Catherine Frot star in this 2004 comedy-drama about sisters with clashing personalities. It screens at 7.30pm on Wednesday, August 17 at the Alliance Francaise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening August 4-10, 2011

2011-08-04T13:50:00.001+07:00

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

The Apes franchise that started with the 1968 sci-fi thriller starring Charlton Heston is rebooted with Rise of the Planet of the Apes, an origin tale that traces the takeover of the earth by those damn dirty apes to the present day.

James Franco stars as a research scientist working on a cure for Alzheimer's. His first test subject is a chimpanzee named Caesar, and the "cure" genetically modifies the chimp to give him human-like intelligence. He breaks free, releases the medicine among other apes and starts a revolution that leads to all-out war between the humans and the apes.

With special effects by Oscar-winners WETA Digital (Lord of the Rings, King Kong), employing some of the technologies developed for Avatar, Rise aims to present "photo-realistic" apes rather than actors in monkey suits.

Behind the creepily expressive face of Caesar is actor Andy Serkis, probably best known for his motion-capture portrayal of Gollum in the Lord of the Rings.

Brian Cox, Frieda Pinto, John Lithgow and Tom Felton also star.

Rupert Wyatt (The Escapist) directs.

Critical reception, so far, is positive. Rated G.

Also opening

Tom Hanks directs and stars in Larry Crowne, a comedy that puts him back in the Forrest Gump mode of an outcast dweeb who becomes an inspiration to those around him.

Hanks, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), is a middle-aged ex-Navy man with what he believes is a secure job at a "big-box" discount store. He's in for a surprise though, when he's downsized because according to company policy he doesn't have enough schooling.

So he sets out to take classes at a local community college and in the process remakes himself, gathering a circle of colorful new friends, new clothes and a battered motor scooter while he starts a romance with his pretty teacher. She's played by Julia Roberts, making for a reunion of lovebirds who previously romanced each other in Charlie Wilson's War.

Cedric the Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson and Gugu Mbatha-Raw also star.

Critical reception for this feel-good romance is mostly negative. "Despite the relaxed, easy chemistry of stars Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, Larry Crowne is surprisingly bland and conventional," is the consensus. Rated 15+.

Also showing

Ghare Baire (The Home and the World) – Two giant figures of 20th century Indian culture – filmmaker Satyajit Ray and Nobel laureate writer-artist Rabindranath Tagore – come together for this epic about women's emancipation set against the backdrop of a nationalist movement sweeping British India. A project long in the works by Ray, Ghare Baire was released in 1984, premiering in competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It's based on a novel by Tagore. Ghare Baire screens at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand tonight in celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Tagore. Part of the FCCT's Contemporary World Film Series, the Embassy of India, will provide wine, beer and food by Mrs Balbir's restaurant. Admission for non-members is 150 baht and 150 baht for anyone wanting to eat. The show time is at 8pm on Thursday, August 4.

Morbid Symptom – The DK Filmhouse (Film Virus) screening series alongside the Dialogic exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre continues on Saturday with two movies under the theme "the Old". At 3pm it's The Seed of Man (Il seme dell'uomo), a 1969 post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller by Italian director Marco Ferreri in which a young couple is rounded up by authorities, taken to an isolated base and ordered to conceive of a child in hopes of repopulating the earth. At 5 it's The Surrogate Woman, a 1987 historical drama by Korean master Im Kwon-taek about the complicated affair of a nobleman and a servant girl he's chosen to be the surrogate mother for his heir. The screening venue is a corner of the BACC's eighth-floor gallery, on a bare white wall where there are a handful of beanbag chairs strewn around. If you want a seat, get there early.

Madame Freedom (Jayu buin) – Romantic entanglements ensue in this classic 1956 South Korean film in which a married university professor finds himself attracted to typist Miss Park while the man's wife becomes interested in a young neighbor and begins to learn dancing from him while also attracting the attention of the owner of the clothing store where she works. Directed by Han Hyung-mo, it's considered a landmark for South Korean cinema as it presented for the first time the commercial potential of modern romantic dramas. The screening, supported by the Korean Film Archive, is with English subtitles at 5.30pm on Wednesday, August 10 at the Sri Salaya Theatre at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya, Nakhon Pathom.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening July 28-August 3, 2011

2011-07-28T14:09:00.000+07:00

Captain America: The First Avenger

Marvel Comics' cinematic universe continues to expand with Captain America: The First Avenger, which is meant as a tie-in with the franchise of superheroes that includes Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Thor.

Captain America: The First Avenger is an origin story, in which a scrawny runt of a guy named Steve Rogers is deemed unfit for military service in World War II. Determined to serve his country, he volunteers for the top-secret Project Rebirth, which turns him into a musclebound Super Soldier. Chris Evans stars.

Dubbed Captain America, he leads a special-ops team into battle against the Nazis and the advanced weaponry of the evil HYDRA organisation, led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving).

Tommy Lee Jones also stars alongside Sebastian Stan as Rogers' sidekick Bucky Barnes, Hayley Atwell as the Cap's love interest Hayley Atwell and Stanley Tucci as the scientist who made the Super Soldier serum.

The director is Joe Johnston, who got his start as a special-effects artist on 1977's Star Wars and then made his directorial debut with Honey, I Shrunk the Kids in 1989. His other films include Jumanji, Hidalgo, last year's The Wolfman and the movie that the 1940s style of Captain America will recall, 1991's The Rocketeer.

As with all the other movies of the Marvel cinematic universe, you'll likely want to remain seated through the closing credits for an "Easter egg" teaser to the next movie in the franchise, The Avengers, due out next year.

Critical reception is mixed, leaning to positive, promising "plenty of pulpy action, a pleasantly retro vibe, and a handful of fine performances, Captain America is solidly old-fashioned blockbuster entertainment."

It's in 2D and 3D (as well as 4D at Paragon Cineplex).

Also opening

Gancore Gud (ก้านคอกัด) – Hip-hop mogul Joey Boy blends gangsta rappers with girls and ghouls for this low-budget horror-comedy that has his Gancore hip-hop collective stranded on a remote island where they hope to party with a bunch of bikini-clad Playboy models. They instead are confronted by zombies and other supernatural beings. Released by Phranakorn, Gancore Gud is the feature-film directorial debut for Joey Boy, a.k.a. Apisit Opasaimlikit, who previously acted in GTH's 2006 rock 'n' roll comedy The Possible (Kao ... Kao) and the "Monk Teng" comedy Luangphee Teng 2 (The Holy Man 2). You can read more about the movie in an article in The Nation. Watch the trailer at YouTube. Rated 18+.

Wu Xia (a.k.a. Dragon) – Donnie Yen is a man with a criminal past in 1917 China. He's working as a paper maker and is seeking a peaceful life for himself and and his family, but after he accidentally kills two robbers in his shop (a plot point that recalls David Cronenberg's A History of Violence), a determinedly canny detective (Takeshi Kaneshiro) turns up and won't let go of the case. A game of cat-and-mouse ensues as Donnie tries to keep his past from being revealed. Martial-arts star of the 1970s Jimmy Wang Yu puts in a powerful appearance as a villain as does veteran Hong Kong actress Kara Hui. Tang Wei (Lust, Caution) also stars, playing Donnie's wife. Hong Kong producer-director Peter Chan (Perhaps Love, The Warlords) directs. Wu Xia premiered out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival this year, and it was picked up for U.S. release by The Weinstein Company and given the rather plain, ambiguous title Dragon. While the original title Wu Xia might bring to the imagination the graceful swordplay of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or Hero, the martial-arts action is rather hard-hitting and gritty and is said to be an homage to the old Shaw Brothers' kung-fu movies, especially One-Armed Swordsman, which starred Jimmy Wang Yu. Critical reception is mixed (see here, here, here and here. In Mandarin with English and Thai subtitles at SFW CentralWorld; elsewhere Thai-dubbed. Rated 13+.

A Better Life – An illegal-immigrant Mexican gardener struggles to make ends meet in Los Angeles as he tries to avoid the immigration agents and steer his son away from street gangs. Chris Weitz, who previously co-directed American Pie and About a Boy with his brother Paul and has also done such big-budget fare as The Golden Compass and New Moon, directs this low-budget indie-flavored drama set entirely in L.A.'s Hispanic community. Critical reception is mostly positive. It's at Lido in Siam Square. Rated 13+.

Horrible Bosses – Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, Jennifer Aniston star as the terrible title trio in this workplace comedy about three guys (Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day) who plot to kill their bosses. Jamie Foxx also stars as the hustling ex-con the bumbling buddies turn to for advice. Of particular note are Colin Farrell sporting a combover-style hairdo and Jennifer Aniston playing against her usual sweetheart type as a sex-crazed dentist trying to put the moves on her assistant. Critical reception is mixed, surprisingly leaning to positive. The consensus: "It's nasty, uneven, and far from original, but [works] thanks to a smartly assembled cast that makes the most of a solid premise." Rated 15+.

Also showing

BollywoodThai – Bangkok's Indian movie promoters BollywoodThai have a pair of encore screenings of their recent releases. The controversially scatalogical crime comedy Delhi Belly shows at 8pm on Friday, July 29, at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai). And the buddy-roadtrip movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara screens at 8pm on Wednesday, August 3 and at 4pm on Sunday, August 7 at Major Cineplex Central Rama III. To book tickets, call (089) 488 2620.

Films on Contemporary Art and Artists – The Reading Room launches a new quarterly screening series on Saturday with two films by artists who take on the subject of our urban environment. First up at 2pm is Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow directed by Sophie Fiennes, bearing witness to German artist Anselm Kiefer's alchemical creative processes. It renders in film, as a cinematic journey, the personal universe he has built at his hill-studio estate in the South of France. Next at 4.30pm is Waste Land, directed by Lucy Walker, following artist Vik Muniz as he journeys from the garbage-dump city of Jardim Gramacho the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro to the heights of international art stardom. An Oscar-nominee for best documentary, Wasteland won the Panorama Audience Award and the Amnesty International Film Prize at last year's Berlin Film Festival, and an audience award at Sundance. The Reading Room is at 2 Silom Soi 19, fourth floor. Call (02) 635 3674.

Ghare Baire (The Home and the World) – Two giant figures of 20th century Indian culture – filmmaker Satyajit Ray and Nobel laureate writer-artist Rabindranath Tagore – come together for this epic about women's emancipation set against the backdrop of a nationalist movement sweeping British India. A project long in the works by Ray, Ghare Baire was released in 1984, premiering in competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It's based on a novel by Tagore. Ghare Baire screens at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand next Thursday in celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Tagore. Part of the FCCT's Contemporary World Film Series, the Embassy of India, will provide wine, beer and food by Mrs Balbir's restaurant. Admission for non-members is 150 baht and 150 baht for anyone wanting to eat. The show time is at 8pm on Thursday, August 4.

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

2011-07-21T12:15:00.000+07:00

Pumpuang (The Moon)

One of the Thai film industry's most anticipated releases this year, Pumpuang (พุ่มพวง, a.k.a. The Moon) is a biographical drama about the revered 1980s superstar Pumpuang Duangjan.

One of 12 children from a hardscrabble farming family in Suphan Buri, the illiterate Pumpuang grew up singing in the sugarcane fields. She worked her way into show business and spearheaded the popularization of luk thung, a form of Thai country music that had mainly only been heard in the rural central plains. With disco beats added and the tempo pumped up, the soulful, lovelorn rural reveries crossed over to become pop hits in the clubs of Bangkok. She went on to become one of the biggest recording artists in Thai showbiz, and made a number of movies. She died from lupus in 1992 at the age of 31.

You can hear some of her music at the MonrakPlengThai blog.

Making her big-screen debut as Pumpuang is Paowalee Pornpimon, a 19-year-old luk thung singer, who, like Pumpuang herself, is from Suphan Buri.

The director is Bandit Thongdee, who made his debut in 2002 with Mon Pleng Lukthung FM, a.k.a. Hoedown Showdown, a comedy about a music contest that featured an all-star roster of actual luk thung singers. Prachya Pinkaew is producing the release for Sahamongkolfilm International.

The Bangkok Post had a story about the movie on Sunday and yesterday. The Nation has one in today's paper.

And you can watch a trailer at YouTube.

It's rated 13+.

Also opening

Lourdes – A wheelchair-bound woman, mostly paralyzed by multiple sclerosis, makes a journey to the pilgrimage site in southwestern France's Pyrenees Mountains. Austrian filmmaker Jessica Hausner directs. A Golden Lion nominee at the 2009 Venice Film Festival and winner of many awards, critical reception is mostly positive. The consensus: "As bewitchingly ambiguous as it is beautifully shot, Lourdes explores profound themes with subtlety and a deft comic touch – and a marvelous performance from its star, Sylvie Testud." In French with English and Thai subtitles at House on RCA.

Hanna – Saoirse Ronan is 16-year-old Hanna, raised from by her ex-CIA-agent father (Eric Bana) in the frozen wilds of Finland to be an assassin. Sent on a mission of revenge, she's tracked by a ruthless rival spy (Cate Blanchett). Tom Hollander and Olivia Williams also star. Joe Wright, who previously teamed with Ronan on Atonement, directs. Critical reception is mixed, leaning to favorable. "Fantastic acting and crisply choreographed action sequences propel this unique, cool take on the revenge thriller" is the consensus. Rated 13+.

Water for Elephants – A veterinary student (Robert Pattinson) is forced to abandon his studies and joins a traveling circus. There, he falls in love with the show's star performer (Reese Witherspoon) who happens to be the wife of the cruel animal trainer and circus owner (Christoph Waltz from Inglourious Basterds). Controversy has surrounded this film since an animal-rights group alleged that the movie's biggest star, an elephant named Tai, was abused during training. The trainer has denied the allegations and has said CGI was used in the depictions of cruelty. Adapted from a 2006 novel by Sara Gruen, this romantic drama is directed by Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend). Critical reception is mixed, the consensus being "it's a tale tastefully told and beautifully filmed, but ... suffers from a pronounced lack of chemistry." At Apex and SFW CentralWorld, SFX the Emporium and SFX Central Chaeng Wattana. Rated 15+.

Kites: The Remix – Hollywood's Brett Ratner produces this English-language release of the 2010 Bollywood hit starring Hrithik Roshan as a dance teacher in Las Vegas who marries immigrant women to get them green cards. He gets mixed up with a Mexican woman (Bárbara Mori) who's destined to marry a dangerous man. The original score is by Remix co-producer Rajesh Roshan, but Graeme Revell almost completely re-scored the film. Critical reception (presumably based on The Remix version) is mainly positive. At House on RCA.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara – Three young guys put their friendships to the test on a road trip to Spain. Among their adventures is a musical number during the La Tomatina festival, which was recreated for the film using more than 16 tons of tomatoes. Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, Farhan Akhtar and Katarina Kaif star. It screens at SFW CentralWorld Friday through Sunday at 8pm and at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) on Monday at 8. Call (089) 488-2620 or look for the BollywoodThai ticket table in the cinema lobby.

Also showing

The King of the White Elephant (Phra Chao Chang Pheuak, พระเจ้าช้างเผือก) – Screening tonight at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand, this 1941 black-and-white historical epic is a rare film for at least a couple of reasons. First, it's one of the few Thai films made in English. And second it's one of the oldest surviving complete Thai features. Produced by statesman Pridi Banomyong, The King of the White Elephant was an anti-war propaganda piece in the months leading up to the Japanese invasion of Thailand. Not long after the film was released, Thailand was allied with Japan and Pridi had joined the Seri Thai resistance. With elephant battles and palace intrigue, as well as lots of humor, it's the story of a peace-loving king who finds himself having to go to war when his borders are attacked. The cast are all non-actors, students and faculty from Thammasat University, which Pridi founded. Though the 35mm prints were lost, a 16mm print was found in the U.S. Library of Congress and efforts were undertaken by the Thai Film Archive to make a restored 35mm print with the generous assistance of Kodak and Technicolor Asia. The restored film was presented at the 2007 Phuket Film Festival. The FCCT's screening (on DVD) will be introduced by the archive's deputy director, Chalida Uabumrungjit. And there will be a ranad (Thai xylophone) performance by Thaweesak Akarawong of the Office of Performing Arts. Pridi's daughter Dusdi Banomyong will be a special guest. Admission for non-members is 150 baht and 50 baht for anyone wanting to eat the Thai snacks. The show time is at 8pm on Thursday, July 21.

The Terrorists (ผู้ก่อการร้าย, Poo Kor Karn Rai) – Controversial filmmaker Thunska Pansittivorakul's latest feature will screen in Thailand after all. With its mix of politics and penises, it would never be passed by censors for a commercial cinematic release, but it will be shown as part of an exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, Dialogic exhibition at the BACC, which runs from today until September 25. The opening reception is at 6pm on Thursday, July 21. Thunska will have a video installation in Dialogic called KISS = ปี้, which looks at "farang-styled kisses" vs. "Thai-styled kisses", and, in the same vein as The Terrorists and his other recent features Reincarnate and the banned This Area is Under Quarantine, will comment on politics and history and the treatment of homosexuals and "terrorists" – folks on the fringes of Thai society. You can find out more about Thunska's work at the Dialogic website. Other artists taking part in Dialogic are writer Lom Penkaew, designer Pracha Suveeranon, visual artist Surasri Kusolwong, performance artist Pattarasuda Anuman Rajadhon, multimedia artists Mahasamut Bunyarak and Sedhawat Aoudha, architect Singh Intrachooto and singer Tul Waitulkiat of the rock band Apartment Khunpa. In the exhibition, the artists "interpret the cycle of birth, pain, and death and all that it entails, from eating to sleeping to having sex", according to an item in the Sunday Nation. The Terrorists, which premiered earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival and is in competition this week at the New Horizons International Film Festival in Poland, screens at 3.30pm on Saturday, July 23 at the BACC. The screening venue is a corner of the BACC's eighth-floor gallery, on a bare white wall where there are a handful of beanbag chairs strewn around. If you want a seat, get there early. It's on the sidelines of Dialogic and is the opener of the Morbid Symptom screening series by Film Virus. See the DK Film House blog for the complete line-up.

Third Class Citizen 027: Spark With Electric Eels – In the latest installment of its ongoing screening series, the film-activist group Third Class Citizen offers a retrospective on the short films by young filmmakers Wasunan Hutawach and Wichanon Somumjarn who are part of Electric Eel Films, the production company started by Mundane History director Anocha Suwichakornpong. Shorts by Wasunan open the program: Small World (2008), Love Me Love My Dog (2010), This Way (2010), The Visitors (2011, done for Third Class Citizen's Postcard Cinema project) and A Railroad Engineer (2011). Her Love Me Love My Dog was featured at last year's World Film Festival of Bangkok. Wichanon's shorts are W.C. (2005), A Brighter Day (2007), the award-winning Four Boys, White Whiskey and Grilled Mouse (2009), All That Remains (2010) and a teaser for his upcoming feature Like Raining at the End of April, which was recently previewed at the Paris Project Screenings. The show time is at 4pm on Saturday, July 23, in the Eat@Double U Restaurant on the ninth floor of SF World Cinema at CentralWorld. Admission is free.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening July 14-20, 2011

2011-07-14T13:37:00.001+07:00

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Well, this it. After seven movies, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is the final installment in the film franchise that was spawned by the best-selling novels of J.K. Rowling.

Plunging right in from last November's Deathly Hallows: Part 1, the young student wizards Harry, Ron and Hermione continue their battle against the evil Lord Voldemort and the dark forces that threaten to take over the world.

Returning for the final time are the child actors all grown up, Daniel Radcliffe as Harry, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasely and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger.

Critical reception is mostly positive, mostly, I'm guessing, out of a sense of relief that it's all over. The consensus is that it's a thrilling conclusion to a cinematic story that's been 10 years in the making.

It's in 3D (converted) in some cinemas, including IMAX. Rated G.

Also opening

The Lost Bladesman — The co-director and writer of Infernal Affairs, Alan Mak and Felix Chong, turn to China's Three Kingdoms epic for their latest thriller, blending historical martial-arts action with palace intrigue. Donnie Yen portrays the legendary General Guan Yu in his crossing of five passes and slaying of six generals. Jiang Wen portrays the rival general Cao Cao, with Alex Fong, Edison Wang and Betty Sun also starring. Critical reception (also here and here) is mixed. Chinese soundtrack only at SFW CentralWorld, elsewhere Thai-dubbed. Rated 15+.

Also showing

European Union Film Festival – Continuing through Sunday at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, one highlight of the EU fest is the British documentary Exit Through the Giftshop, about an eccentric shopkeeper's quest to capture the shadowy graffiti artist Banksy. It's showing tonight at 7.30 and on Saturday at 7.25pm. There's also the Spanish prison drama Cell 211, at 5.25pm Friday. The screenings are on DVD, with the original soundtracks and English subtitles, in the first-floor auditorium at BACC. Check the full line-up in an earlier blog entry, the festival's Facebook page (which has links to trailers) or a Google calendar.

Indie Spirit Project – Bioscope magazine's screening series continues for one more week at SF World Cinema at CentralWorld with Breakfast Lunch Dinner (no commas), a compilation of shorts by three female Asian directors, China's Wang Jing, Thailand's Anocha Suwichakornpong and Singapore's Kaz Cai, and Lumpinee, a documentary by Chira Wichaisuthikul on youths in a Muay Thai camp in Trang. Screenings run nightly until Wednesday, with Breakfast Lunch Dinner at 7 and Lumpinee at 9.

Delhi Belly – Having caused upset in India for its vulgar language (as well as its depiction of a Hyundai car) BollywoodThai has organized one more screening next week of Delhi Belly. The scatalogical comedy is about a trio of hapless young men, Imran Khan, Vir Das and Kunal Roy Kapur, on the run from mobsters in India's capital. It's screening at 8pm on Tuesday, July 19 at SFX the Emporium. Call 0894882620 or 022257500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

The King of the White Elephant (Phra Chao Chang Pheuak, พระเจ้าช้างเผือก) – Screening next week at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand, this 1941 black-and-white historical epic is a rare film for at least a couple of reasons. First, it's one of the few Thai films made in English. And second it's one of the oldest surviving complete Thai features. Produced by statesman Pridi Banomyong, The King of the White Elephant was an anti-war propaganda piece in the months leading up to the Japanese invasion of Thailand. Not long after the film was released, Thailand was allied with Japan and Pridi had joined the Seri Thai resistance. With elephant battles and palace intrigue, as well as lots of humor, it's the story of a peace-loving king who finds himself having to go to war when his borders are attacked. The cast are all non-actors, students and faculty from Thammasat University, which Pridi founded. Though the 35mm prints were lost, a 16mm print was found in the U.S. Library of Congress and efforts were undertaken by the Thai Film Archive to make a restored 35mm print with the generous assistance of Kodak and Technicolor Asia. The restored film was presented at the 2007 Phuket Film Festival. The FCCT's screening (on DVD) will be introduced by the archive's deputy director, Chalida Uabumrungjit. And there will be a ranad (Thai xylophone) performance by Thaweesak Akarawong of the Office of Performing Arts. Pridi's daughter Dusdi Banomyong will be a special guest. Admission for non-members is 150 baht and 50 baht for anyone wanting to eat the Thai snacks. The show time is at 8pm on Thursday, July 21.

Take note

When it opened two weeks ago, Transformers: Dark of the Moon not only took over nearly all the screens in Thailand's multiplexes, screening in 3D and giving movie-goers little else to choose from, it's also been showing in the Major Cineplex Group's new 4D cinema at Paragon Cineplex. It's in Paragon's theater No. 5, one of the smaller halls tucked behind the big Siam Pavalai auditorium.

The Nation had a story about it last Friday.

So not only is there the 3D explosions popping out of the screen, there's also shaking seats, wind blowing and water spraying. Said to be popular in South Korea, where the technology originates, it's yet another gimmick to entice viewers away from their comfortable homes, their Blu-ray players and plasma screens. Priced at around 500 baht, it seems a bit too much punishment to take to have to endure. To me, the thought of spending 150 minutes being pummeled by the Transformers is not appealing.

In related news about ticket prices, the leading cinema chains Major Cineplex and SF cinemas have instituted price increases, meaning most movies now cost 140 or 160 baht, and that's just the starting price. Depending on where you sit, what movie you're going to see and the location of the theatre, you might end up paying as much as 200 baht for an ordinary movie.

Be careful where you select your seat, particularly at SF cinemas, which first show you "light blue available" in the back, where the expensive seats are. You have to get them to re-select things on the computer screen to show chairs up front for the lower prices. This is a deceptive practice.

The price increase was quietly instituted back in May, but movie-goers have been quite vocal in their complaints, taking to Facebook, Pantip.com and other Internet forums to vent their frustration. BK magazine had a look at the issue recently, as did The Nation in today's paper.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening July 7-13, 2011

2011-07-07T11:26:00.001+07:00

The Tree of Life

Director Terrence Malick ponders the mysteries of the universe in The Tree of Life, winner of the Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

It's the chronicle of a Texas family in the 1950s, headed by Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain, and focuses on the eldest son, from the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his domineering dad. Played as an adult by Sean Penn, the son Jack is a lost soul, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.

The impressionistic, nonlinear story depicts the creation of the world in a much-talked-about 20-minute sequence created by pioneering 2001: A Space Odyssey special-effects wizard Douglas Trumbull, featuring exploding stars, primordial ooze and dinosaurs.

It's the fifth film in nearly as many decades from the enigmatic director of Badlands, Days of Heaven, The Thin Red Line and The New World. An LA Times profile reveals more about the reclusive Malick, including his love of quoting the Ben Stiller comedy Zoolander.

Critical reception is mostly positive, although it drew a mixed response at Cannes and even a few boos.

A theater in Connecticut earned much notice after it instituted a "no refund" policy as a result of the polarized audience response, advising patrons that the film "does not follow a traditional, linear approach to storytelling" and encouraging them to "read up on the film" and "go in with an open mind".

It's at Apex Siam Square, Paragon Cineplex and SF World Cinema at CentralWorld. Rated 13+.

Indie Spirit Project

Bioscope magazine kicked off its Indie Spirit Project last year by organizing a monthlong limited theatrical run of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives. Having just won the coveted Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, it was one of the hottest tickets in town, with Bangkok's trend-followers flocking to see it. Now the screening series continues with two more independent films, screening nightly at SFW CentralWorld for the next two weeks starting on Friday:

Lumpinee – Director Chira Wichaisuthikul looks at the lives of youths in a Muay Thai camp in Trang, where they live and train from morning until night. Taking its name from the Bangkok boxing stadium where some bouts are filmed, Lumpinee screened earlier this year at the Salaya Doc Fest and premiered at last year's International Documentary Film Festival Rotterdam and was supported by the fest's Jan Vrijman Fund. Watch a trailer at YouTube. Rated 13+.
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner – Female empowerment is the common thread running through this trio of short mealtime romances by three Asian female directors, China's Wang Jing, Thailand's Anocha Suwichakornpong and Singapore's Kaz Cai. It premiered at last year's World Film Festival of Bangkok. Rated 15+.

Lumpinee and Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner are showing in back-to-back screenings nightly from Friday, starting at 7 at SFW CentralWorld. This week, Lumpinee is first, followed by BLD. Next week, the positions are reversed.

Also opening

Delhi Belly – Taking its name from the gastrointestinal ailment you might contract if you eat street food in India, this scatalogical comedy is about a trio of hapless young men, Imran Khan, Vir Das and Kunal Roy Kapur, who run afoul of New Delhi's underworld. Featuring a torrent of foul language, toilet humor, moronic mobsters and fast-moving action through India's capital, it's been likened by critics to The Hangover and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. It's also been banned in Nepal. BollywoodThai brings it to Bangkok for screenings at 8pm on Friday at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai), 8pm on Saturday and 4pm on Sunday at Major Rama III and 7.30 on Sunday and 8pm on Monday at Major Sukhumvit. Call 0894882620 or 022257500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

Also showing

European Union Film Festival – Starting today at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center, the EU Film Festival will have screenings daily (except Monday) until July 17. This week's shows include the Polish thriller Erratum, the acclaimed Spanish childhood drama Camino, the German drama When We Leave, the Dutch speed-skating epic The Hell of '63, the Polish children's story The Magic Tree and the acclaimed Spanish prison drama Cell 211. The screenings are on DVD, with the original soundtracks and English subtitles, in the first-floor auditorium at BACC. Check the full line-up in an earlier blog entry, the festival's Facebook page (which has links to trailers) or a Google calendar.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: European Union Film Festival in Thailand 2011

2011-07-04T21:30:00.007+07:00

The European Union Film Festival marks 20 years in Thailand this year, with a line-up of 22 movies from 16 countries.

There are children's films, thrillers, fact-based historical dramas, romance, comedies and even a documentary.

Highlights include the U.K. documentary Exit through the Giftshop, about the shadowy grafitti artist Banksy. There's also The Escape, a Danish thriller about a journalist's life in peril in Afghanistan, the award-winning Finnish coming-of-age drama Forbidden Fruit, two much-acclaimed Spanish dramas, Camino and Cell 211, and several fact-based historical dramas, including the Dutch ice-skating drama, The Hell of '63. Children's films are Poland's award-winning The Tree of Life and the Czech teddy-bear tale Kooky

The fest runs from July 7 to 17, and just like last year's event, it will be held at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre in the first-floor auditorium. All screenings are on DVD in their original soundtracks with English subtitles. Showtimes start in the afternoons daily except Mondays, when the BACC is closed. Admission is free.

In celebration of the EU Film Festival's 20 years in Thailand, there will be musical performances on the closing weekend of July 16 and 17. The fest moves to Chiang Mai's Vista Kad Suan Kaew from July 22 to 31.

Find out more details on the festival's Facebook page.

Here's the line-up:

Bánk Bán (Hungary, 2002) – In 13th century Hungary, the king is fighting abroad while his German-born queen plays host to courtly feasts. Meanwhile, the king's deputy tours the poverty-ridden country while the queen's brother tries to seduce the deputy's wife. A group of nobles, anxious for the fate of their homeland and the honour of deputy's wife, plot a conspiracy against the queen. Thursday, July 7, 1pm and Sunday, July 10, 5.05pm.

Erratum (Poland, 2010) – A young man who years ago left his hometown, has built up a comfortable life for himself in the big city. When work takes him back to his hometown, he hopes to avoid seeing any of his old acquaintences, but a car wrekc thwarts those plans. And investigation ensues, and he must confront the choices he's made. Thursday, July 7, 3.10pm and Thursday, July 14, 5.45pm.

Camino (Spain, 2008) – An 11-year-old girl must simultaneously face two completely new events in her life – falling in love and dying. This fact-based drama is a winner of nominee of multiple awards, including Best Actress, Best Director and Best Film at the "Spanish Oscars", the Goya Awards. Thursday, July 7, 4.55pm and Saturday, July 9, 6.10pm

The Escape (Flugten, Denmark, 2009) – A journalist is taken hostage in Afghanistan, but she manages to escape. Back home in Denmark, her career takes flight. Then her one of her former captors makes his escape and comes to Denmark seeking her help. Thursday, July 7, 7.20pm and Sunday, July 10, 1.10pm.

With Friends Like These (Dagen zonder lief , Belgium, 2007) – A young woman returns to her Belgian hometown after some years away in New York City and is dismayed to find her friends have changed. Friday, July 8, 2pm and Sunday, July 10, 3.15pm.

Above The Street, Below The Water (Over gaden under vandet, Denmark, 2009) – A Copenhagen couple's seemingly happy marriage is put to the test when the husband decides he wants to take a break. Friday, July 8, 3.50pm and Wednesday, July 13, 7.10pm.

The Last Pulcinella (L'ultimo Pulcinella, Italy, 2009) – An unemployed actor is forced to leave Naples with his son after he witnesses a mafia killing. In Paris, he meets an actress who owns a theatre. Together they try to stage a play about the traditional Neapolitan character of Pulcinella. Friday, July 8, 5.40pm and Friday, July 15, 2pm.

When We Leave (Die Fremde, Germany, 2010) – A young woman of Turkish descent, fighting for an independent and self-determined life against the resistance of her family, finds herself in a life-threatening situation. Friday, July 8, 7.20pm and Sunday, July 17, 2.45pm.

Kooky (Kuky se vrací, Czech Republic, 2010) – An ailing six-year-old boy is forced to part with his mouldering pink teddy bear. The discarded stuffed animal then makes his way into a mysterious forest for an adventure against evil forces. Saturday, July 9, 11.30am and Sunday, July 17, 11am.

Weekend With My Mother (Weekend cu mama, Romania, 2009) – A woman who 15 years before left Romania for a fresh start in Spain, leaving behind her 3-year-old daughter, is dismayed to learn the now-teenage girl is a drug addict with a 2-year-old daughter in an orphanage. Overwhelmed by guilt, the woman attempts to save her daughter and redeem the mistakes of her youth. Saturday, July 9, 1.15pm and Friday, July 15, 7.30pm.

Assault on the Santa Maria (Assalto ao Santa Maria, Portugal, 2010) – This fact-based historical drama about Operation Dulcinea is set during 1960, when a young emigrant joins a group of opposition movement members in the seizure of the South America-bound Santa Maria cruise ship in a bid to bring attention to the fascist regimes in Portugal and Spain. Saturday, July 9, 2.55pm.

The Hell of '63 (De hel van '63, Netherlands, 2010) – This fact-based sports drama is about the Elfstedentocht, the world's largest and longest speed skating competition that is held irregularly in Friesland in the northern Netherlands. In 1963, thousands of skaters competed in the 200-kilometer race, but only a few crossed the finish line. Saturday, July 9, 4.10pm and Tuesday, July 12, 4.45pm.

The Magic Tree (Magiczne drzewo, Poland, 2009) – A red chair, made out of wood from a magical oak tree, leads children on a fantastic adventure. Winner of several film-festival awards, including the Chicago International Children's Film Festival and the BAMkids Film Festival, New York. Sunday, July 10, 11.30am and
Saturday, July 16, 11am.

The 1,000 Euros Generation (Generazione mille euro, Italy, 2009) – A young man working in the marketing department of a company learns his firm is being "reorganised". The arrivals of a new female colleague and a female housemate lead to an comical series of trials and tribulations. Sunday, July 10, 7.10pm and Wednesday, July 13, 2pm.

The Paper Will Be Blue (Hîrtia va fi albastrã, Romania, 2006) – This fact-based historical drama is set during the Romanian Revolution of 1989 and focuses on a young militiaman who escapes from his unit in hopes of joining the rebels. An officer assembles a patrol to hunt down the deserter, while nervous citizens watch history unfolding on their television sets. Tuesday, July 12, 3pm and Friday, July 15, 3.40pm.

Run If You Can (Renn, wenn Du kannst, Germany, 2009) – A wheelchair-bound young man and his caretaker fall for the same woman, a cellist who is working to finish her music degree. Tuesday, July 12, 6.45pm and Saturday, July 16, 4.15pm.

Cell 211 (Celda 211, Spain, 2009) – A rookie prison guard finds himself in the midst of a riot after an unforeseen turn of events. With the inmates around him unaware of his position, he must pretend to be a prisoner to survive. A winner of multiple awards, including Best Actor, Best Director and Best Film at the "Spanish Oscars", the Goya Awards. Wednesday, July 13, 3.40pm and Friday, July 15, 5.25pm.

An Ordinary Execution (Une exécution ordinaire , France, 2010) – A young urologist practicing in a Moscow hospital in the 1950s desperately tries to get pregnant from her husband, a disillusioned physician. Meanwhile, the doctor, to her horror, is assigned to treat Stalin. Wednesday, July 13, 5.15 and Saturday, July 16, 2.20pm.

The Wedding Photographer (Bröllopsfotografen, Sweden, 2009) – When the factory in his hometown shuts down, a young man decides to try his luck in Stockholm as a wedding photographer. Thursday, July 14, 2pm and Sunday, July 17, 12.45pm.

Exit through the Giftshop (United Kingdom, 2010) – Eccentric French-born Los Angeles thrift-shop owner Thierry Guetta attempts to capture one of the world's most elusive graffiti artists and pranksters – Banksy – with wildly unexpected results. Critical reception is wildly positive. Thursday, July 14, 7.30pm and Saturday, July 16, 7.25pm.

Dust (Luxembourg, 2009) – Teenage twin siblings survive in a post-apocalyptic world in a secluded mansion left by their parents. They lead a quiet and simple life, growing their own food, swimming in a nearby lake, reading and playing chess. With the unexpected arrival of a young man throws their harmonic life into disarray. Thursday, July 14, 4pm and Saturday, July 16, 12.40pm.

Forbidden Fruit (Kielletty hedelmä, Finland, 2009) – A pair of 18-year-old girls from a restrictive Christian order are on their summer break and go to Helsinki for the first time. One of the girls wants to cut loose and experience life before getting married while the other only wants to make sure they return safe. By the end of the summer, one of them will be changed for good. An award-winner and nominee at several film festivals. Sunday, July 17, 5.30pm.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening June 30-July 6, 2011

2011-06-30T11:35:00.000+07:00

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

NASA's 1969 moon landing was in fact a secret mission to inspect the wreckage of a crashed alien spacecraft, which it turns out was from the machine planet of Cybertron – a fact the US military kept secret from the benevolent Autobots.

Now the race is one between the Autobots and their evil counterparts, the Decepticons, to recover that wreckage.

Part of the action takes place in Chicago, where Decepticon weapons snake around a skyscraper, strangle it and make it topple to the ground, creating much destruction.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the third movie in the franchise, aims to be even more epic than the previous two.

For this one, director Michael Bay turns to 3D, joining the film industry's revolution after first resisting it. However, Avatar director James Cameron convinced Bay that 3D was the way to go.

Back for Transformers 3 is the everyman hero Sam Witwicky, played by Shia LaBeouf.

Others returning include Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson as American soldiers and airmen who are allied with the Autobots. John Turturro also returns as a former member of a shadowy government agency.

New to the series is Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, a Victoria's Secret model. She plays Carly, the new love interest for Sam. She replaces sultry actress Megan Fox, whose mouth got her fired from the franchise when she compared Bay to Hitler, a joke that executive producer Steven Spielberg did not find funny.

Others new to the Transformers franchise include Ken Jeong from The Hangover movies, Patrick Dempsey, the racecar-driver boss of Carly, Frances McDormand, playing the secretary of defense, and John Malkovich, Sam's boss.

Critical reception mixed, though perhaps a bit more positive than the previous entries in the series. It's in 3D, including Imax.

Also showing

The Star (Zvezda) – During World War II, a team of Russian scouts is sent behind enemy lines to find the location of the German armor. Directed by Nikolai Lebedev, this 2002 Russian war drama is based on a short story of the same name by Emmanuil Kazakevich and is a remake of a 1949 Soviet film. It screens at 8 tonight (Thursday, June 30) at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. Entry for non-members is 150 baht and 150 baht for anyone wanting to sample the vodka, wine and snacks being laid on by Russian Ambassador Alexander G Mariyasov.

Double Dhamaal – Four good-for-nothing jokers, Riteish Deshmukh, Jaaved Jaafery, Arshad Warsi and Ashish Chowdhry, are dreaming of the high life, where they have everything by doing nothing. A chance encounter with their old archenemy, a corrupt ex-cop (Sanjay Dutt), gives them the idea to hatch a blackmail plot. Kangna Ranaut also stars, as does Mallika Sherawat, who had a bikini scene that was chopped. This is a sequel to Dhamaal, a hit 2007 comedy. Indra Kumar directs. It's at SFW CentralWorld on Sunday at 4. Call 0894882620 or 022257500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

Take note

Only one movie is opening in Bangkok cinemas this week, with the multiplexes and distributors clearing the decks to make way for the behemoth that is Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

If you want to watch something else, head over to the Lido cinemas in Siam Square or House on RCA.

Cinephiles can look forward to July 7's scheduled release of the much-acclaimed new movie from auteur Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life, which will be at Apex Siam Square, SF World and Paragon. There's also Bioscope magazine's Indy Spirit Project, which will screen the pan-Asian indie female-directors short-film compilation Breakfast Lunch Dinner and the Thai boxing documentary Lumpinee at CentralWorld.

The week after that, July 14, it will be another summer blockbuster, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II, which marks the final chapter of that franchise.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening June 23-29, 2011

2011-06-23T11:07:00.007+07:00

Arrietty

Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli adapts Mary Norton's 1950s fantasy novel The Borrowers for Arrietty (Kari-gurashi no Arietti, a.k.a. Arietty the Borrower).

It's the tale of a teenage girl who lives with her family of “tiny people” under the floorboards of a house. Her life changes when she’s discovered by a human boy.

Hiromasa Yonebayashi directs, with the screenplay by the master himself, Hayao Miyazaki.

Named Animation of the Year by the Japan Academy last year, critical reception, so far, is mostly positive. More opinions will emerge when the film is released in the U.S. and U.K., in August and next February respectively. That version will feature the likes of Will Arnett, Amy Poehler and Carol Burnett as voice talent.

Here, it's in Japanese with English and Thai subtitles at the Lido in Siam Square.

Also opening

The Conspirator – Robin Wright portrays Mary Surratt, the owner of the boarding house where John Wilkes Booth and others hatched the plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. She was charged as a co-conspirator in the crime, and, with the whole country calling for her blood, she is forced to rely on her reluctant lawyer (James McAvoy) to uncover the truth and save her life. Kevin Kline, Tom Wilkinson, Justin Long, Danny Huston, Colm Meaney and Toby Kebbel also star. Robert Redford directs. Critical reception is mixed. At the Scala in Siam Square.

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night – A detective who deals with the paranormal takes a case that puts him in the middle of a battle among vampires, werewolves, zombies and a guardian of Hell. This monster-movie fantasy is adapted from a 1980s Italian comic series. Brandon Routh (Superman Returns) stars along with Anita Briem and Sam Huntington. Critical reception is mostly negative. Rated 15+

Mai Ka Mum Don Ka Don (หนัง ใหม่กะหม่ำ และ โดนกะโดน) – Actor-director-comedian Petchtai “Mum Jokmok” Wongkumlao teams up with veteran singer-actress Mai Charoenpura for this romantic comedy about a man whose relationship with his best friend upsets his heavyset wife Kapro, who's played by Mum's cross-dressing TV comedy cohort Choosak “Nong” Iamsuk. Things get complicated when Mai gets pregnant and Kapro falls for another man (Pongsak “Teng” Pongsuwan). Rated 15+.

Double Dhamaal – Four good-for-nothing jokers, Riteish Deshmukh, Jaaved Jaafery, Arshad Warsi and Ashish Chowdhry, are dreaming of the high life, where they have everything by doing nothing. A chance encounter with their old archenemy, a corrupt ex-cop (Sanjay Dutt), gives them the idea to hatch a blackmail plot. Kangna Ranaut also stars, as does Mallika Sherawat, who had a bikini scene that was chopped. This is a sequel to Dhamaal, a hit 2007 comedy that was inspired partly by 1963's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Indra Kumar directs. It's at SFX the Emporium on Friday at 8, Major Cineplex Rama III on Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 4 and at Major Sukhumvit on Sunday at 7.30pm. Call 0894882620 or 022257500 or visit www.BollywoodThai.com.

Take note

This blog has resumed weekly operations after a two-week break. Movies that opened in Bangkok over the past couple weeks include:

Super 8 – Boys making a monster movie with their home-movie camera capture a train crash and begin noticing strange happenings in their small town. J.J. Abrams directs and Steven Spielberg produces. Also at IMAX Digital. Rated 13+.
Killing Bono – A pair of Irish rock musicians (Ben Barnes and Robert Sheehan) look on in jealousy as their old school chums become the biggest band in Ireland. At Major Cineplex, EGV, Esplanade, Paragon. Rated 18+.
Green Lantern – Ryan Reynolds plays the earthling who is granted a mystical green ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers and membership into an intergalactic squadron tasked with keeping peace within the universe. Rated G.
Sex and Zen – The ’80s Hong Kong erotic movie franchise is relaunched for the new 3D era, with a story about a pleasure-seeking couple in ancient China. In 3D and Thai-dubbed only at most cinemas; in 2D in Cantonese with English subtitles at House. Rated 20-.
Small Ru Ku Naew – A rock band takes over a family’s bakery so they can use it as their practice space. Poj Anon directs. Rated 15+.
Mr. and Mrs. Incredible – Husband-and-wife retired superheroes contend with the high cost of living, infertility and other contemporary life issues. Directed by Vincent Kok, it stars Louis Koo, Sandra Ng and Chapman To. Rated 15+.

Update: Screenings of Nader and Simin: A Separation at House RCA have been cancelled because of technical problems.

Bangkok Cinema Scene: Movies opening June 2-8, 2011

2011-06-02T12:35:00.001+07:00

The Beaver

In a movie that could be seen as an allegory for his career, Mel Gibson stars in The Beaver as a toy-company executive who experiences a mental breakdown and adopts a beaver handpuppet as his sole means of communicating with his family and co-workers.

Jodie Foster directs and co-stars.

The Beaver has had its general theatrical released repeatedly pushed back for the better part of a year because of a controversy over leaked phone messages in which Gibson made violent threats against his ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. Facing an ongoing investigation for domestic violence, the troubled star had previously tarnished his image in 2006 after he made anti-Semitic remarks during an arrest for drunken driving.

However, The Beaver was recently shown in Cannes, where it got a standing ovation. Foster has also been quite vocal in her support of Gibson.

Critical reception is mixed. It's at Paragon, Esplanade Ratchada, Major Ratchayothin and House RCA. Rated 15+.

Also opening

X-Men: First Class – Marvel Comics' X-Men franchise gets a reboot with this origin tale that goes back to the early years of Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr to a time when they were the closest of friends and before they took the names of Professor X and Magneto. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender star. The action is set during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, with Xavier and Lensherr teaming up to form the first team of mutant superheroes and seeking a way to end the nuclear threat and prove that mutants can be beneficial to society. Characters making appearances include the telepathic diamond-skinned White Queen (Mad Men's January Jones), Dr. Hank McCoy as the Beast (Nicholas Hoult) and the shape-shifting Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence from Winter's Bone). Kevin Bacon also stars as Sebastian Shaw, the leader of the Hellfire Club, a secret society that aims to take over the world. Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake, Stardust, Kick-Ass) directs. He had earlier been tapped to direct 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand, but dropped out over family considerations. Critical reception is mostly positive. Rated G.

Insidious – Saw franchise directors James Wan and Leigh Whannell team with Paranormal Activity writer-director Oren Peli to offer this haunted-house tale. Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne star as parents who move into an old house and when their son falls into a coma they have to fight evil spirits from taking the kid's soul. Barbara Hershey and Lin Shaye also star. Critical reception is leaning to positive. "Aside from a shaky final act, Insidious is a very scary and very fun haunted house thrill ride," says the consensus. Rated 18+.

Sabaidee Wan Wiwa (สะบายดี วันวิวาห์, a.k.a. Lao Wedding) – Director Sakchai Deenan completes his Sabaidee trilogy of cross-border romantic comedies with this story of a Thai magazine writer ("Boy" Pakorn Chatborrirak) who visits Laos and falls for local lass Kam (Khamly Philavong). The series started in 2008 with Sabaidee Luang Prabang, which starred Ananda Everingham and Khamly. Ananda was also executive producer. The film was co-directed by Sakchai and Laotian director Anousone Sirisackda. Then came last year's Sabaidee 2: From Paxse With Love, which starred Ray MacDonald as a down-and-out filmmaker hired to take wedding photos who becames smitten with Khamly. This third episode was filmed back-to-back with Sabaidee 2.

Ready – BollywoodThai is back in action after a few months' break with this romantic comedy starring Salman Khan as a young guy who aids lovers in distress. He falls for a girl (Asin) who he helps escape from a marriage. Parts of this film were shot in Thailand, where Asin was dared by Salman to eat a popular local delicacy. It's showing at Major Cineplex Sukhumvit (Ekamai) at 8 on Friday, 7.30 on Sunday and 8 on Monday and at Major Rama III at 8 on Saturday and 4 on Sunday. Visit www.BollywoodThai.com or call (089) 488 2620.

Take note

This blog is taking a vacation-time hiatus. Look for the next update on the week of June 23-29, 2011.

Bangkok Cinema Scene special: Italian Film Festival, June 8-12, 2011

2011-05-31T17:15:00.000+07:00

Contemporary and classic Italian films and even a couple of Thai movies will be presented in the Moviemov Italian Film Festival from June 8 to 12 at SFX the Emporium cinema.

The program features an Italian Showcase of recent films, a special screening, a retrospective of classics by Mario Monicelli and a tribute to Thai filmmaker Pen-ek Ratanaruang.

And for the first time, the Italian Film Festival in Bangkok will have a juried competition for the new crop of Italian films. Thai theater and film director Ekachai Uekrongtham, Chulalongkorn University cinema professor Elio De Carolis and the Thai Film Archive's Chalida Uabumrungjit will award the Moviemov Plate to the film that best represents Italy abroad.

In addition to SFX the Emporium, screenings will also be at Chulalongkorn University and at the Thai Film Archive in Salaya. See the Thai-Italian Chamber of Commerce website for the full schedule or download the brochure PDF.

Italian Showcase

Manuale d'am3re (Manual of Love 3, a.k.a. The Ages of Love), directed by Giovanni Veronesi (2011) – The third entry in this series of romantic comedies as an anthology of four love stories. Robert De Niro plays a divorced university professor who woos Monica Bellucci. Shot in Tuscany and Rome, the cast also features Laura Chiatti, Riccardo Scamarcio, Valeria Solarino and Donatella Finocchiaro.
Mine Vaganti (Loose Cannons), directed by Ferzan Ozpetek (2010) – A large traditional Italian family is upset by the sudden news that the youngest son is gay. Riccardo Scamarcio stars.
Una vita tranquilla (A Quiet Life), directed by Claudio Cupellini (2010) – Toni Servillo is a former mafia hitman who has left the life of crime for 15 years and built a new identity in Germany only to have his criminal past catch up with him.
La scuola è finita (School's Out), directed by Valerio Jalongo (2010) – A drug-dealing student is given a chance at redemption by a pair of teachers.
La doppia ora (The Double Hour), directed by Giuseppe Capotondi (2009) – Romantic sparks fly and then turn tragic when an Eastern European waitress meets an Italian ex-policeman on a speed date.
Dieci inverni (Ten Winters), directed by Valerio Mieli (2009) – The director's debut feature follows a relationship over 10 years that begins with glances between a young man and woman on a Venice water taxi and undergoes many changes.
Io sono l’amore (I Am Love), directed by Luca Guadagnino (2009) – Tilda Swinton gives a widely acclaimed performance in this drama about an Italian family wracked by turmoil.

Special screening

Valzer (The Waltz, directed by Salvatore Maira (2007) – A man and a hotel maid meet in this award-winning drama that is shot in one continuous 90-minute take.

Classic retrospective

Regarded as one of the masters of commedia all'Italiana, Mario Monicelli directed films that have been described as a perfect mirror of Italian society during the 1950s and 1960s. Among his best-regarded work is 1959's La Grande Guerra (The Great War). Monicelli died last year at the age of 95. In all, seven of his classic movies from the 1950s to the 1990s will be shown. Here's the line-up:

Guardie e Ladri (Cops and Robbers), 1951 – Comedian Toto stars as a thief who has eluded the law for years. The latest lawman to give pursuit is Aldo Fabrizi, a detective who's given three months to bring the robber to justice – a job that becomes complicated when the thief ingratiates himself into the detective's family circle.
I Soliti Ignoti (Big Deal on Madonna Street), 1958 – This jewel-heist comedy stars Vittorio Gassman and Marcello Mastroianni. They are heading a caper that involves digging a tunnel from an apartment into a neighboring business, but plans go awry when their tunnel comes up in the wrong place.
La Grande Guerra (The Great War), 1959 – Alberto Sordi and Vittorio Gassman are mismatched army buddies who are drafted into service during World War I and serve in the trenches on the Austro-Hungarian frontlines. Produced by Dino DeLaurentis, this is Monicelli's best-regarded film. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for best foreign-language film.
Amici Miei (My Friends), 1975 – Four middle-aged Florentines engage in idle pranks in a continuous attempt to prolong their childhood. This hit comedy spawned two sequels.
Un Borghese Piccolo Piccolo (An Average Little Man), 1977 – When his only son is killed in an armed robbery, a meek middle-aged man (Alberto Sordi) takes justice into his own hands. Shelly Winters also stars.
Il Marchese del Grillo (The Marquis of Grillo), 1981 – Alberto Sordi portrays the larger-than-life title character, a womanizing man who is always inventing stories and cracking all types of jokes.
Parenti Serpenti (Dearest Relatives, Poisonous Relations), 1992 – A large family reunites in their ancestral home for Christmas, as they do every year. But this year the elderly mother and father spring a surprise on their sons – one of them will inherit the family home if they agree to care for their aging parents.

Tribute to Pen-ek Ratanaruang

One of Thailand's most-popular directors on the international scene, Pen-ek Ratanaruang has selected two of his movies to be shown. He'll receive the Best Thai Director 2011 Award presented by Ciak magazine in the Ciak d’Oro ceremony in Rome. Here's the line-up:

Ploy, 2007 – A jet-lagged Thai-American couple (Pornwat Sarasin and soap actress Lalida Panyopas) check into a Bangkok hotel after a long-haul flight from the U.S. and their tenuous marriage is tested when the husband invites a young woman (Apinya Sakuljaroensuk) up to their room. Meanwhile, the hotel's bartender (Ananda Everingham) is engaged in a playful tryst with a maid (Porntip Papanai). Ploy premiered in the Directors' Fortnight program at the Cannes Film Festival. Pen-ek will present the film along with Goffredo Bettini, artistic director of Moviemov, and Piera Detassis, artistic director of the International Rome Film Festival and director of Ciak Magazine.
Last Life in the Universe, 2003 – Tadanobu Asano stars in this quirk-filled black comedy as an eccentric, suicide-obsessed librarian living in Bangkok, hiding from his secret past. Violent circumstances lead him to take up with a young Thai woman (Sinitta Boonyasak) at her ramshackle house by the sea. Last Life is one of a pair of pan-Asian co-productions Pen-ek did with Asano and cinematographer Christopher Doyle (the other is 2006's Invisible Waves). The cast also includes cult Japanese actor Riki Takeuchi and a cameo by filmmaker Takashi Miike. Asano received the Upstream Prize for Best Actor at the 2003 Venice Film Festival.