Thai film re-opens festering wounds with Burma
source : Asiatimes/(Inter Press Service)
By Chayanit Poonyarat
BANGKOK - When the Thai film Bang Rajan, based on the struggle of villagers who tried to fend off Myanmese invaders, began to make money, its director and even moviegoers themselves were surprised.
After all, the film, centered on an event that took place in 1765 and which chronicled the patriotism of the people of Bang Rajan, a small village north of Bangkok, was released amid a sea of commercial movies. The film has hit the 135 million baht mark (US$3.2 million) at the box office in only two months of general release. The movie began showing in late December.
This year Bang Rajan also won 11 of the 21 Tukkata Thong awards, the top prizes in the Thai film industry, including best picture. It has been invited for showing in film festivals in different parts of the world and foreign film distributors are trying to get it shown in Europe, the United States and elsewhere in Asia.The film's visual appeal - though too violent for some critical viewers - helped draw in the crowds. "First I went to see this movie just because I think it is much easier to learn Thai history from the film instead of reading a pile of books. But then, I found out that I do really like it," said Damrong Jitbuntao, a 40-something office worker.
The film re-enacts the struggle put up by the Siamese shortly before Ayutthaya, the ancient Thai capital, fell to the Myanmese. Bang Rajan is located in Singburi town 142 kilometers north of Bangkok, on the banks of the Chao Phraya river.
Asked about the purpose of the film, its director Thanit Jitnukul said: "It is to urge the Thai people to recognize the need for patriotism [and] to make them realize how hard the ancestors tried to save our homeland."
Indeed, the film shows the Bang Rajan villagers fighting neither for political purposes nor to expand the kingdom. They were in fact defending their homes and their peaceful way of life. They were only ordinary villagers who lived happily with their families and community. Family was of such precious value for the people back then and so was Buddhism, as temples and monks dealt with almost every affair in the community, from birth to death. Moviegoers also remember the two main female characters, Sa and Taeng-Orn. "My favorite character in Bang Rajan is Sa. She loves her husband so much and always takes good care of him. She did not tell her husband that she was pregnant, because she feared he would worry about her when he goes to battle," said Thitima Nuntasak, 21, a junior university student.
Not everyone was impressed, though. Twenty-five-year-old Amonya Ongpaiboon said: "I think the film is quite nice, but I just can't help feeling that what I see is rather a Western film style. It rather reminds me of [the Hollywood films] Brave Heart or Gladiator than making me recognize our own ancestors." Some thought the battle scenes and violence were overdone. But director Thanit says not so. "What we are talking about is the Bang Rajan battle. They [villagers] were small in number, but their bravery was great. We just mean to point out that war is not something beautiful, we chose to present it in the raw and real ways. All pictures in Bang Rajan reflect our anti-war ideas." The film's makers and research team said they worked on the historical angle, but did not want factual information to destroy the story's dramatic element lest all enjoyment be lost. "If we made a documentary film about the same story, we would regard all facts as our top priority," said Thanit.
The appearance of Bang Rajan on the film scene at a time when Thailand's tensions with neighboring Myanmar are on the rise has also raised some questions. While some observers may point to it just as an historical film, looking at it against the backdrop of events in recent years - the takeover by Myanmese students of the Myanmese embassy in Bangkok, the hospital siege by Myanmese rebels near the border with Thailand - is inevitable. Clashes at the Thai-Myanmar border also took place earlier this month, as the Myanmese military was going after ethnic rebels.
"Whether they mean to do this or not, the film really emphasizes the loathing Thais feel toward the Myanmese," an article in the Thai-language daily Matichon said in late January.
Whatever the criticism against the film however, some moviegoers say the success of Bang Rajancan only be good for the Thai film industry - buoyed by a string of well-received films. "I think Bang Rajan just made a big difference for the Thai film industry." said 23-year-old Pathomporn Ruksapolmuang. "Other producers have to think and work harder to impress their audiences. I believe they all now expect some more masterpieces to come."
In the beginning, Thanit recalled, "the biggest obstacle in the Thai film Industry ... was a limited budget. That situation remained unchanged until such successful films in box-office terms as Dang Bireley and the Young Gangsters earned 75 million baht and Nang-Nak 150 million baht," Thanit explained.These films - Dang Bireley went into real-life gangs of the past and Nang Nak is a dramatic film about love and family - "gave the green light for other Thai films," he added.
The makers of Bang Rajan expect to have even more to celebrate later on. They are expecting the film to hit the 150 million baht mark very soon.