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

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).

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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+.

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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

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+.

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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.

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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

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.

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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+.

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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.

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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.