Uncle Boonmee is suffering from kidney failure. As an avid practitioner of Yoga, he is well aware of his body. He knows that he will die in 48 hours. He feels his illness must be related with his bad karma. He has killed too many communists, he says. Boonmee calls his distant relatives to take him back from hospital to die at home, a longan farm. There, they are greeted by the ghost of his deceased wife who has re-appeared to take care of him. His lost son also returns from the jungle in an ape-like form. The son has mated with a creature known as a ‘monkey ghost’ and has lived in the trees with her for the past 15 years. On the first night, Boonmee talks about his past lives that he remembers. On a second night, while the ghost wife is doing his kidney dialysis, Boonmee has a sudden urge to visit a place she has mentioned. So the group takes a journey into the jungle at night. It is full of animals and spirits. They finally reach a cave on top of the hill. Boonmee realizes that this is the cave in which he was born in the first life that he can remember. Then he passes away, taking with him tales that span hundreds of years. –The Match Factory
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
I've taken my time getting around to seeing 'Joe's' stuff, as I'm usually not one for contemplative cinema. What a great introduction to his work this was. Beautifully dreamy.
Joe meets Joe: Eerie, glowing stares from The Grey & Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives.
Adrian Curry selects his favorite new movie posters of the year, from Boonmee to Bill.
"My sense is that Joe and his films bring out the best in people. And that his swift rise to prominence, to the upper ranks of
"There are few contemporary filmmakers who grasp narrative as an expressive instrument in itself, and even among them Apichatpong Weerasethakul
A couple of months ago I featured all the international posters for Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Palme d’Or routing Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall
Back in May I wrote about the posters of Apichatpong Weerasethekul in excited anticipation of his newest film at Cannes. However, when I saw
Above: Ricardo Iscar's Dance to the Spirits. "When I become death, death is the seed from which I grow."—William S Burroughs, Ah Pook Is Here
Vincent Gallo’s Promises Written in Water and Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
"What should be mentioned first is the quiet," advises Michael Koresky in Reverse Shot. "But when discussing Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall
Put on your best costume jewelry: this evening, as every New York cinephile knows, the 48th New York Film Festival kicks off at Lincoln Center
Photo by Fabrizio Maltese/EF Press/fabriziomaltese.com. Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives was awarded
Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives—which last night won the 2010 Palme d'Or, becoming one
Fantastic. "Surreal," says Apichatpong Weerasethakul. He's just won the Palme d'Or for Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives. Grand
Todos vós sodes capitáns (Oliver Laxe, Spain) Another simple one: I like the title. The film is about children learning to make movies, and
Apichatpong Weerasethakul has generated the first truly electric buzz to come out of Cannes this year. Twitter began lighting up all but
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, like all of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s work, is a strange and hypnotic experience, sure to captivate some viewers while alienated… read review
English Title: Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Original Title: Loong Boonmee raleuk chat
Year: 2010
Country: Thailand, UK, France
Language: Thai
Genre: Drama, Fantasy… read review
In a spirit haunted primordial jungle a joyful man is quietly, harmlessly dying, though there is never less than a smile on his face.
The phases of his life play out before him. He is a farmer… read review