Loong Boonmee raleuk chat (2010)

Dying of kidney disease, a man spends his last, somber days with family, including the ghost of his wife and a forest spirit who used to be his son, on a rural northern Thailand farm.

Director:

Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Writers:

Phra Sripariyattiweti (inspired by the book of), Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Stars:

Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, Sakda Kaewbuadee

10 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Thanapat Saisaymar	...	Boonmee
Jenjira Pongpas	...	Jen
Sakda Kaewbuadee	...	Tong
Natthakarn Aphaiwonk	...	Huay
Geerasak Kulhong	...	Boonsong
Wallapa Mongkolprasert	...	Princess
Kanokporn Tongaram	...	Roong (as Kanokporn Thongaram)
Samud Kugasang	...	Jaai
Sumit Suebsee	...	Soldier
Mathieu Ly	...	Farmer
Vien Pimdee	...	Farmer
Akachai Aodvieng
Prakasit Padsena
Nikom Kammach
Chophaka Chaiyuchit

Storyline

Suffering from acute kidney failure, Uncle Boonmee has chosen to spend his final days surrounded by his loved ones in the countryside. Surprisingly, the ghost of his deceased wife appears to care for him, and his long lost son returns home in a non-human form. Contemplating the reasons for his illness, Boonmee treks through the jungle with his family to a mysterious hilltop cave - the birthplace of his first life.

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Plot Keywords:

cave | deathbed | funeral | deadpan comedy | zoophilia | 

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official site [Japan]

Country:

Thailand UK France Germany Spain Netherlands

Language:

Thai French Lao

Release Date:

1 September 2010 (France)

Also Known As:

Amcam önceki hayatlarini hatirliyor

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$23,540, 6 March 2011, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$183,605, 7 August 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kick the Machine, Illuminations Films, Anna Sanders Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Weerasethakul, the film is primarily about "objects and people that transform or hybridize".

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Goofs

The first time a ghost appears, during dinner, the nephew passes the ghost a glass of water. You can see the ghost image superimposed over the nephew's arm when he places the glass of water on the table.

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Connections

Features Rak/Saam/Sao (2008)

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Soundtracks

Acrophobia
Written, Produced, and Vocals by Jettamon Malayota (as Jettamont Malayoda)
Mixed Down and Mastered by Penguin Villa and Vannareut Pongprayoon
at Smallroom Publishing Rights and Copyright: Smallroom Co., Ltd.

User Reviews

Not a movie, an experience.

This is one of the finest films I have seen all year and I am certain that this film will stay with you for a long, long time.

Uncle Boonmee belongs to a category of films that harks back to the days of the invention of the moving image; when audience members were stunned in disbelief to see pictures and images in motion. The dawn of cinema came about as an experience and a work of art, much like a painting that people could experience and interpret how they liked. It is great to see film makers in todays commercial age still holding on to that vision and delivering the same.

The story, if there is one, is about the protagonist Boonmee who, close to the end of his current life, recollects how this one went by, with the help of ghosts and spirits of the forest where he lives. He has the ability to go back and forth into his past and future lives and relate his memories.

The movie, like other mood-pieces, can be fairly divisive with its audience. People who are not prepared for it will be left confounded whereas a small minority for whom the movie is made will leave the cinema stunned at the experience of it all. Therefore, this movie should rather be called an experience instead of a movie.

It is a little surprising that it won the Palm D'Or at Cannes, but not because it does not deserve it, but because it surprises me that the judges actually saw the beauty behind it. I say this one deserves the award more than the others did.