สอง - Hello Stranger

Went on an impromptu trip to Bangkok a month ago and while I didn't really have much money on me, I was determined to take home a Thai movie DVD to add to my collection. Others might have thought about bringing home Thai silk, fisherman trousers, miniature Buddhas and other knickknacks, but I had my eye out for an official dvd release with English subtitles of something light like Seasons Change or Fan Chan, maybe even a film festival entry I missed like Love of Siam. It seemed like a sound idea at the time, unfortunately for me, our travel itinerary didn't give me much time to poke around---the Big C which was beside our hotel was closed for renovations and the video stores I happened to walk into at Central World predominantly had Hollywood movies on their shelves. There was a limited number of Thai movies to choose from and most, if not all of them, didn't carry English subs.

I had no choice but to declare my movie excursion a bust. So with only a bag of tamarind and a pair of trousers to show for my trip, I went home to Manila without the elusive DVD. Later, I found out that Thai movies were usually released without subtitles as part of the industry's policy to combat piracy and that I had a better shot at buying the above mentioned flicks as distributed in Hong Kong and Taiwan than hunting them down in their country of origin.

It was a wild goose chase from the start.

To cheer me up, my sisters agreed to do a Thai-movie marathon with me and since they were not in the mood to see another horror flick, and were too queasy to see Meat Grinder despite my prodding, we ended up doing a romantic comedy line-up, which explains this series of posts on Thai movies. 

There were quite a number of films to choose from but we ended up picking Hello Stranger for the following reasons: first, it was Thailand's top grossing film for 2010, so despite having reservations about it being another GTH romcom project, we thought it was worth taking a look at because (from what I heard) it was well received in countries like Singapore and Indonesia. Second, saw the trailer and recognized the actor who played the spooked film projectionist in Coming Soon and the boyfriend fighting off temptation in Hormones, so being somewhat familiar with his looks (ahem! Christian Bautista 0_o) work made it a no-brainer. Third, and this is what really sealed the deal, the movie was co-written and directed by Banjong Pisanthanakun---the person behind the hilarious segments featured in the 4bia and Phobia 2 anthologies. He might have been more known for films like Shutter and Alone, but this writer-director also knew how to tickle his audience's funny bone. So all systems go!

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Hello Stranger basically tells the story of two Thai tourists who meet each other while on holiday in South Korea. He's (Chantavit Dhanasevi) a sulky, brokenhearted tourist, who opts to go on a package tour over the Songkran Festival despite having been dumped by his travel-companion/girlfriend, while she's (Nuengtida Sopon) on a personal trip to enjoy the sights as a kdrama enthusiast en route to her friend's wedding. They're strangers in a foreign land but through the force of circumstances, they end up being travel buddies who agree not to tell each other their names so as not to complicate their newfound [yet temporary] friendship. 

If there weren't any tv series here, would there be any tourists?

The two of them spend their time in South Korea together, visiting tourist spots, partying like the natives and living up the kdrama dream. They tease and bicker, share their sorrows and get to know each other that by the end of the trip, they find something resembling love even though they're both afraid to admit it.

There really isn't much to say about the plot of the movie, (for like Bangkok Traffic Love Story,) Hello Stranger runs the course of a typical love story wherein two people meet, fall in love and hurdle whatever personal issues or conflicts that are thrown into the mix. However, what differentiates Hello Stranger from its contemporaries is its specific brand of comedy. It's something that's clearly designed to win over kdrama afficionados (who would automatically be in on the joke), without necessarily throwing off or intimidating random moviegoers.

It has a script that hits the right notes, referencing Korean pop culture with a combined sense of awe and curiosity whilst poking fun at hallyu tropes and icons that hold sway over the region. There's a considerable amount of lampooning  involved and believe me, it'll make you laugh out loud and even stomp your feet at the lengths they went through to achieve this.

Writers Banjong Pisanthanakun and Chantavit Dhanasevi have a knack for putting a spin on cliches, infusing the movie with the kind of humor that's easily cognizable by Southeast Asian viewers. They make use of everything from the language barrier to the local cuisine to create funny scenarios that would put a smile on  the face of not only die-hard kdrama fans but also any hard-nosed viewer.

Shot on location to feature not only scenic spots but usual hangouts to provide a comprehensive view of South Korea, the whole movie plays out like a mini-excursion to a land that people have come to know through various cultural/media exports.

Apart from its stunning production value, the movie can also boast of the undeniable onscreen chemistry of its leads who by default become the viewer's guide/representative in this foreign country. Chantavit Dhanasevi impresses as the snide outsider who brings some mischief and perspective in all the hoopla behind Korean  movies and series while newcomer Nuengtida Sopon exudes the irresistible charm and infectious excitement of a fangirl who's surfing the Korean wave. Their scenes together are both outrageous and surprisingly touching; their interaction with the locals, particularly the elderly, is pure gold and classic comedy.

Perhaps the only complaint that one may find about this movie is that it ran a bit long. Co-produced by a Korean company, it appears that it was somewhat necessary to jam in every tourist spot and scenic location in South Korea into the story---which explains the rather lax and sinuous road that  had the movie clock in at  a whopping 127 minutes. Now despite being an obvious vehicle to promote cross-cultural friendship and tourism, Hello Stranger is something that's easy to recommend to anyone looking for fun, easy viewing; some might bemoan how the movie's ending left viewers hanging but considering how the whole concept behind the project was to reflect how much Korean culture has invaded the consciousness of its viewing public, then the ending of the movie can be interpreted as something in keeping with South Korea's cinematic style and imagery.

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หนึ่ง - Lonely Hearts and Bangkok Traffic

I must confess that I have a rather ambivalent attitude when it comes to watching Thai films. It's not that I have a particular reason to love them or even have sufficient cause to hate them, it's just that Thai movies are pretty hard to come by in my part of the world and my choices are very much limited to whatever's available for international distribution. Interestingly enough, my foray into Thai cinema started with two Nonzee Nimibutr films---the classic ghost story Nang Nak and the erotic period piece Jan Dara---which made a huge splash in the international scene at the turn of the century. Most of the stuff I've seen after that were  commercial picks or mainstream productions, a few were good but most of them didn't leave much of an impression.

By force of habit, I watch at least two to three Thai films a year. And since the focus of Thai cinema appears to have shifted gears in terms of genres in the last two years, the last batch of movies that I had the  occasion to see turned out to be all romantic comedies. I didn't feel like doing a proper review since there's very little to deconstruct by way of style and substance but given that Bangkok Traffic Love Story, Hello Stranger and A Little Thing Called Love turned out to be three of our Southeast Asian neighbor's top grossers in recent memory, I figured it wouldn't hurt to share my thoughts; pick on parts of the aforementioned movies and be done with it.

Furthermore, given that it's also the month of hearts, this 1-2-3 Thai movie roundup that features an old maid, a jilted lover and an ugly duckling wouldn't seem like such an odd fit. So without further ado, I hereby present to you a capsule review of an urban love story; the first in this line-up being yet another ode to the modern, single woman living in the big city...

 

In Bangkok Traffic Love Story, thirty year-old Mei Ly (Sirin Horwang) is the last among her friends to remain unattached and unmarried. Devastated over being the only singleton in a bunch of happily married folk, she makes up her mind to address the situation and sets her eyes on a mild-mannered engineer named, Loong (Theeradej Wongpuapan), whom she believes to be the one that destiny has sent to her. But alas, true love doesn't come easy as the object of her affection follows a work schedule that requires him to stay up and work on the Skytrain System when the rest of the world is asleep.

With her work cut out for her, Mei tries to get Loong's attention---planning chance encounters in the train station, staking out that video rental store that he frequents to get porn, even going as far as asking neighborhood hottie, Plern (Ungsumalynn Sirapatsakmetha), for advice in ways to win over this elusive, one of a kind bachelor.

As chick flicks go, Bangkok Traffic Love Story provides a hilarious albeit exaggerated take on how women nowadays are expected to have it all, as Mei juggles the demands of her family and career alongside her quest to win over Loong. Fluffy and formulaic, this movie offers cheap laughs in depicting the plight of a female singleton by hurling Mei into extremely awkward and embarrassing situations, utilizing lowbrow humor to punctuate her helplessness and desperation. Much of what happens in it is typical of its genre---with Mei undergoing one setback after another, with little or no hope of success or indication that she would find the love she's chasing after. As a result, the movie inevitably stumbles and stutters as it shows Mei's path to romance to be more difficult and tiresome than her daily commute around the metro.

Bangkok Traffic Love Story follows a predictable course to a requisite happy ending, impeded by a distended script that fails to tie everything neatly together as evidenced by the rough transition between scenes. It could have greatly benefited from proper editing since the movie sometimes feels like a random compilation of comic sketches and running gags, none of which, unfortunately, made it easier to sit through all 129 minutes of the film.

Like most romantic comedies to come after Ally McBeal and Bridget Jones's Diary, the movie features a female lead that is a trifle quirky and sassy; someone accessible and by all respects a fool for love. The only hitch is that it's been done a hundred times before and worked to the bone that viewers are already way too familiar with the mechanics of the story to the extent of either becoming annoyed at or indifferent to the vagaries of singledom.

It's a sad fact but female characters in such films tend to fall under certain archetypes and when the story is about a single lady nearing the end of her so-called "shelf life", one can very much expect her to be either a lovable klutz who's trying to find her way in life or a fierce dragon lady who's knowledgeable in everything except the matters of the heart. At times you get a slight variation thereof but you can always expect them to eventually get drunk and/or commit a major blunder in the course of the movie, preferably with mascara running down her tear-stained cheeks.

Nevertheless, romantic comedies as a rule aren't entirely judged on the the basis of its story nor its witty script. A lot of it rides on its execution and the ability of its audience to relate to the main character or the situation that s/he is in, which surprisingly, is something that the creators of this movie got right in select scenes.

There's nothing really special or memorable about Mei as a character. She's flighty and unsure, doesn't have a plan in life and gets in a whole lot of trouble. By all respects, this movie could have easily gone down the path of Sophie's Revenge minus the glossy finish but while Bangkok Traffic Love Story may not win any points for originality, it certainly gets credit for showcasing the everyday challenges of a woman who's trying to find  emotional stability in this day and age. Writers Benjamaporn Srabua (Metrosexual), Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit and Adisorn Trisirikasem (Fan chan) might have missed the mark on the comedy but they  were certainly able to create something that genuinely captures the loneliness that a thirty-year old singleton feels. From the diminishing number of friends who can keep you company, to the depressing reality that when your phone rings it's either your boss or your mother calling, to reluctantly competing with young vixens more adept in "the game", to surprise dinners designed to set you up with the son of a family friend---the saving grace of this movie is its ability to tap into the experience of every single woman who's going through life on her own.

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