Tropical Malady

Sud pralad

Thailand, Germany, France, Italy

2004

118 Min

Color

1.85:1

Thai

Subtitled in English

Audio in Thai

Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
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1,188 Views

PROD Charles de Meaux, Alex Möbius, Paiboon Damrongchaitham, Marco Müller, Christoph Thoke, Pantham Thongsang

DP Jarin Pengpanitch, Vichit Tanapanitch, Jean-Louis Vialard

CAST Banlop Lomnoi, Sakda Kaewbuadee, Huai Dessom, Sirivech Jareonchon, Udom Promma

ED Lee Chatametikool, Jacopo Quadri

SOUND Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr

Cannes (In Competition): Jury Prize, Toronto (Visions), New York, São Paulo: Critics Award, Outfest (Features), Queer Lisboa (Digital Cinema Cycle), Rotterdam (S.E.A. Eyes), Melbourne (Thai Breakers), Vancouver (Dragons & Tigers), Chicago, London, BAFICI

Synopsis

Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and an Official Selection of the New York Film Festival, Tropical Malady is a lyrical and mysterious film by maverick Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Blissfully Yours, Syndromes and a Century), one of the most prominent young directors of the Thai New Wave. Tropical Malady chronicles the mystical love affair between a young soldier and the country boy he seduces, soon to be disrupted by the boy’s sudden disappearance. Local legends claim the boy was transformed into a mythic wild beast, and the soldier journeys alone into the heart of the Thai jungle in search of him.

Director

Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Apichatpong “Joe” Weerasethakul (Thai: อภิชาติพงศ์ วีระเศรษฐกุล; born July 16, 1970) is a Thai independent film director, screenwriter, and film producer. His feature films include Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, winner of the prestigious 2010 Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or prize; Tropical Malady, which won a jury prize at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival; Blissfully Yours, which won the top prize in the Un Certain Regard program at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival; and Syndromes and a Century, which premiered at the 63rd Venice Film Festival and was the first Thai film to be entered in competition there.

Working outside the strict confines of the Thai film studio system, Weerasethakul has directed several features and dozens of short films. Themes reflected in his films (frequently discussed in interviews) include dreams, nature, sexuality (including his own homosexuality), and Western perceptions of Thailand and Asia, and his films… read more

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Jarkko Tornberg

26Dec11

Hmmm... The second part of the film, did not see that one coming. Did I understand it, no. Did I like it, yes. Read some of the reviews and others seems as puzzled as I am. Is that a bad thing, no I don´t think so. Go, see for yourself. Watch and enjoy in quiet surroundings and let the film just take you. Will definitely watch again, hopefully in big screen someday...

walker and 2 others like this

barbudean, sTuff

johncpickens

9Dec11

I leave others to tell you the story. But a word to the viewer pay close attention to the beginning and the end of the film. There are many versions of what the meaning behind the story. It would be interesting to hear or read Apichatpong's version of the tale and what his meaning were or what was met to be. The removal of a key piece of the film would have made it more understandable. 5 out of 5 Excellent

walker likes this

eric

30Aug11

Tropical Malady is one of the best films from the past decade, and no wonder, Apichatpong Weerasethakul's film won the 2004 Cannes Jury Prize. This ghost story, unlike many Thai films, defies the genre with its late summer palette brushed with cinema verite, magical realism, mystery, and a quiet desire lingering in the afternoon heat. A soldier's seduction of a young man eerily leads him on an obsessive hunt.

barbudean and adrianmendizabal like this

Raquel Machín Herrero

8Aug11

Me gustó más que la de Uncle Boonmee, pero sigo sin entender el mundo interior de este director por mucho que la cahiers le ponga por las nubes. Me da la sensación de que en 10 años sus pelis habrán envejecido un montón y no serán más que un "hype"

Roberto Lara likes this