What a sly, subversive film this is, as director Ratanaruang mixes several genres, adding his own quiet powers of observation to upend the viewer's expectations! The first thing that should be said is that very little is spelled out for the viewer, so that if the viewer comes to the film expecting a conventional meet-cute love story, or a Yakuza shoot-out, or a film with a conventional beginning, middle and end--well, look for something else--you're with the wrong movie.
As it follows an obsessive neat-freak about to commit suicide to his introduction to the girl he will come to love in spite of the fact she's an unbelievably messy housekeeper with a checkered past, the film veers from oddly comic scenes of death to quietly contemplative meditations while decisions are being made. This is a complex film with gorgeously lush photography and naturalistic acting, but if you want easy entertainment--this ain't it--the director makes the viewer work as time and space are frequently mixed. This film is an entertaining challenge; if you like puzzles, you'll likely be in movie heaven!
As it follows an obsessive neat-freak about to commit suicide to his introduction to the girl he will come to love in spite of the fact she's an unbelievably messy housekeeper with a checkered past, the film veers from oddly comic scenes of death to quietly contemplative meditations while decisions are being made. This is a complex film with gorgeously lush photography and naturalistic acting, but if you want easy entertainment--this ain't it--the director makes the viewer work as time and space are frequently mixed. This film is an entertaining challenge; if you like puzzles, you'll likely be in movie heaven!