Yesterday, I went with my friends to see Pee Mak, the much-hyped Thai horror comedy currently in theatres. I say ''much-hyped'' because it seemed like everything about this film was flawless, even before I had a chance to watch it. Earlier last month, Pee Mak topped all Thai movie rankings as the highest-grossing film in the country's history (over 1 billion baht!). surpassing previous record-holder, The Legend of Suriyothai by a long shot. It also managed to get IMDB 7.8, which is quite impressive considering horror comedies tend to be looked down by film critics. What made me most astonished, however, is that I couldn't get a good seat even when I bought the tickets TWO DAYS in advance. At this point, most of you must be asking whether this Pee Mak film really deserves all the praise and hype, to which a hardcore Thai movie fan like me would say yes.
For starters, horror comedy is exactly what its name suggests: a film which combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. This genre, I believe, is still alien to a vast majority of Vietnamese audiences. Just a few days ago, a friend of mine expressed his disapproval of Pee Mak on Facebook by insisting that people go see horror films for the scares, not for the jokes, and mixing them up would be a disaster. Pee Mak, however, proved him wrong by having a logical and meticulously-written script, a good cast and a talented director, resulting in a pretty enjoyable film.
In this regard, the director has achieved the impossible feat by combining two unrelated scripts into a logical and believable one. First is Nang Nak (1999), a ghost film with an almost identical storyline to Pee Mak and Phobia 2 - In The End (2009), a horror comedy with lots of twists and turns. The script, therefore, is not original but originality is hardly attainable nowadays. What matters is whether the viewers feel entertained and satisfied, and I think Pee Mak has done both without much effort. Despite serving twists and turns in ample portions, the film is surprisingly void of plot holes, so you can leave the cinema without feeling cheated. This sadly can't be said for other horrors, often replete with illogical scenes. The jokes, the soul of the film, are also very funny and make references to many pop-culture phenomena, ranging from Ang Lee, 300 to David Blaine and The Last Samurai. Most of the gag scenes are done by the four supporting dudes (Ter, Puak, Shin, Aey) who did a phenomenal job. Although they're listed as the supporting actors, their screen time is even more plentiful than that of the leading actor.
Oh, and the leading actor, my favorite part. Mario Maurer, Thailand most famous heartthrob and my everlasting celebrity idol (prepare for the bias lol), plays the titular role. Mario, as some of you may already know, is far from being the best actor in the world. When people think of him, they think of an incredibly cute teenager playing the confused schoolboy in The Love of Siam, or more recently, A Little Thing Called Love. Little did they know he is also experienced in the horror comedy industry, most notable example being Saranae Siblor, in which he played a role very similar to the one he did in Pee Mak. When watching Pee Mak, I sometimes got annoyed with his childish behavior, but later recognized that's a critical part of his character. He portrayed a childlike, wife-loving, phasmophobic soldier returning home after a long battle only to discover day by day his wife is not what she looks. There are still some scenes where I think he could have done better, but overall he played his part very well. I also like that he sacrificed his usual angelic looks by darkening his skin and teeth to better fit the film (as if that could mask his beauty lol). You would be hard-pressed to find another Thai actor more suited for this role.
For people sitting on the fence about this movie, I suggest giving it a try. It's not your traditional horror with a lot of jump scares. Instead, it's a laugh-out-loud crowd pleaser with some creepy scenes here and there. Seeing the film with your friends will be a terrific experience, that I can guarantee. After all, you get the chance to see Mario Maurer on screen, what more would you hope for?
1 comments:
I cried at the end =D
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