Movie Review: Bangkok Love Story

It's clearly monsoon season. Can't you tell from all the rain?

To say that Bangkok Love Story is a gay movie is spot on – it has quite the exhibitionistic streak. Bathing in the open, smooching in the streets, having sex on a water logged rooftop – it appears that while killing people is a crime in Bangkok, lusty gay sex in the open isn't. If only Singapore were like that, oh what a gay place it would be.

Besides the exhibitionism, it appears that Bangkok is also facing a shortage of clothes. Stone, played by Chaiwat Tongsang, is clad in very skimpy boxer briefs for a large part of the movie, and seems to have no sense of shame running around in them 24/7. For a brief (pun unintended) while I contemplated the fact that perhaps his clothes were dirty, but wait – even in the comfort of his highly luxurious home, he's still topless, and I highly doubt it's because he wants to seduce his wife.

Not that I'm complaining of course. Stone's rekindled my interest in Thai men, and has given rice queens all over the world a new reason to celebrate. This boy is drop dead gorgeous from head to toe.

While the actors might be one of the most gorgeous guys that Asian film has seen, the plot itself suffers from an overdose of melodrama. In general, most movie characters seek to have a sense of emotional progression. Dramatics are good, if there is a build up that manages to soften its shock value.

But Bangkok Love Story, being a groundbreaking gay movie, has dispensed with this tradition. You'll find yourself jumping from one end of the emotional spectrum to the other in a matter of seconds. Mothers hang themselves, tears pour forth in buckets, wives open fire on their gay husbands, and the rain, oh, the rain. Suffice to say that the proponents of the Save Water campaign would not be pleased.

I have a small quibble with the love story too. Stone falls in love instantly. I know being the saved damsel in distress often precipitates this sort of affection, one only needs to look at fairy tales for a precedent.

But this is a bit too much of a jump here – holing up in a rooftop for a few days and scrubbing each other down doesn't quite necessitate the kind of undying, unrequited, and highly persistent love that Stone seems to have for Cloud. If you ask me, the best man in his wedding video didn't look like a bad alternative at all. At least that one didn't seem to come with all that emotional baggage.

Yet, if you ignore the implausible ground from which this unconventional love sprung forth, you'll find pretty sweet depictions of love. You can't quite fault the actors in this department – the loving that goes on at the rooftop is rather tender, be it gingerly feeding each other food, playing glancing games, or passionately making out in the streets. It's so sweet that when it ended, in a Bollywood hide-and-seek game of unrequited love no less, I did feel a small tug at my heartstrings.

Perhaps the photography played a part. The true beauty in this film lies in the cinematography. Images are juxtaposed to interesting effect, and unconventional angles capture the scraggly Bangkok city against the wondrous open sky. With scenes like the shootout in a Buddha statue factory, the grunge of Bangkok is contrasted with slow, moving music that creates an interestingly engaging effect. I was particularly struck by the image of the two leads making out on a reflective sheet of water, so much that I forgot the incredulity of it for a moment.

In essence, the key to enjoying this movie is to believe in it. The story, at its very basic premise, is engaging. It's a romantic gay love story filled with manly shoot-out action that's portrayed in an artistic yet nail-biting way. Throwing away stereotypes of traditional Thai kathoey and replacing them with hard gangsters results in a drama that involves the audience, instead of alienating them through comedy. Add a socially responsible sub-plot aimed at raising awareness for AIDS victims, and you've got a movie that has the potential to engage most gay audiences, if you believe.

And while I was a little skeptical, judging from the teary-eyed audience, it seems that it succeeded

- Tim, Trevvy