Search - Bangkok Love Story on DVD

Raw Yet Tender Love Story From the Underbelly of Bangkok

Grady Harp | Los Angeles, CA United States | 08/30/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The cover of the DVD for this very fine film is misleading: the photograph of the two leads in a rather quiet and elegant setting is about as far from the content of the cinematic adventure as imaginable. Writer/Director Poj Amon has created a love story that is more from the underbelly of the poor section of Bangkok than it is from the expected physical beauty of that Thai city, and rather than focusing on the 'tourist view' of Thailand, he instead finds a different kind of beauty molded into a love story from a far different perspective. And it works very well.

In the world of Thai organized crime there is a star assassin - Maek ((Rattanaballang Tohssawat) - who kills 'bad people' to satisfy his bosses but cannot kill 'good people'. He is the sole support of his mother and younger brother, both of whom suffer from AIDS - the source of their infection is the abusive live-in stepfather. Maek wants to provide a good home for his little family, somewhere away from the slums of Bangkok, so that his little brother will no longer have to ply the hustler role on the streets to help support his ailing mother. Maek is assigned a 'hit' and in stalking the young lawyer he is supposed to assassinate he finds an attraction to the obviously good, married, handsome Iht (Chaiwat Thongsaeng). When the moment comes to complete his grim duty, Maek cannot kill a 'good man' and in the setup Maek himself is shot. Iht is compassionate and rescues Maek from the streets, taking him to his shelter to nurse him back to health. The two men bond and eventually submit to their passion. Yet when Maek recovers, he cannot face the truth of his feelings and separates himself from Iht. Iht's wife is suspicious about Iht's distance, stalks him, and witnesses a secret moment of passion between Maek and Iht, and the discovery turns her into a potential assassin herself. Iht is now by himself, unable to regain Maek's commitment until a series of events leads to the ultimate arrest of Maek: from the imposed separation caused by Maek's incarceration, Iht remains faithful to his love. The ending could have been triumphant (and for moments it is, emotionally), but instead Poj Amon opts for tragedy, a writer's decision that makes the film even more powerful.

The cast of actors is excellent and the chemistry between the two leads is undiluted by the forces that are meant to separate them. In the end, this is a love story between two classes of people whose discovery of a forbidden love emphasizes some universal truths. It is a well-made, beautifully photographed film (Tiwa Moeithaisong is the gifted cinematographer) that deserves a wider audience. Grady Harp, August 08"

Runtime discrepancy

GODFREY HAMILTON | HOLLYWOOD, CA USA | 06/17/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This brilliant movie ran 110 minutes at the London LGBT Film Festival. IMDB.com lists the runtime as 110 minutes. But both the Region 1 and Region 2 DVDs released by TLA state 90 minutes as the runtime. OK. Where'd the missing 20 minutes go? Is TLA offering the censored version that so frustrated moviegoers in Singapore? Demand an explanation from TLA before parting with your hard-earned cash...
UPDATE! UPDATE!
Like the "Fan of the Avengers etc" who has commented here, I wrote to TLA Marketing and in a very prompt and polite reply TLA did confirm that the DVD contains the deleted scenes that the director chose to excise for reasons of storytelling focus."

Simply beautiful

Saul M. Parreira | Uberlandia, MG Brazil | 06/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The kind of story that we don't usually see everyday: An assassin hired to kill someone falls in love with his target and struggles against this love because for him this is wrong. And his victim in return not only saves him but fights against everything and everyone for this love. Although sometimes too melodramatic, on the verge of exageration, this movie is quite beautiful and the love scenes are superb. The main actors are also great in this role and quite convincing. Beautiful scenes of Bangkok sunsets and night skies.Highly recommendable!"

Update regarding running time discrepancy

Fan of The Avengers The Saint The C | Santa Barbara | 07/30/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Per the comments here, I wrote to TLA asking about the running time, and here is their reply:

"The film was edited down to 90 minutes with the director's approval to tighten the structure of the film. The edited scenes will be included as extras in the DVD release for both the US and the UK.""