Cinema scene

IN THE WORKS long before the junta’s takeover made political talk a risky endeavour, the independent film festival Thai Aurora at the Horizon will screen 14 short films by 15 young directors on Sudnay, offering different perspectives on politically charged issues.
“From power relationships and education to the media, each film takes on a different topic to create awareness and encourage political participation,” the organisers say. “We do not expect to change the country, directly or immediately. But this project might be one way to approach the current crisis.”

Starting at 2pm, the venue is TK Park on the eighth floor of CentralWorld, above the Central Food Hall. Running 102 minutes in total, all have English subtitles. There will be a directors’ talk afterward. Entry is Bt20. And, the entire programme will be repeated at 2pm on June 22 at the Reading Room on Silom Soi 19.

Also opening
“Pob Na Pluak” (“The Ugly Ghost”) – Cutie-pie comedienne Sudarat “Tukky” Butrprom plays on her popular “ugly” image in a horror-comedy reworking of the Phi Pob tale. Here, the malicious entrail-eating spirit is haunting a furniture factory. Tukky is a manager in charge of interns, screaming uniformed female university students, who all claim to be possessed by the ghost. Tony Rakkaen also stars along with comedian Ping Lumpraploeng, who directs.

“Mun Pleaw Mak” (“Paranoid”) – If you’re not into a Disney villainess nor Vikings riding dragons (see left if you are), then perhaps this homegrown horror comedy will offer a distraction. Tana Chatborirak as a guy haunted by various comical spirits, including a dummy traffic cop who rides a spirit-house zebra. It’s a horror-comedy omnibus from studio M-Thirtynine, with directors Teekayu Thamnitayakul, Sakon Tiacharoen and Phairot Prasartong.

Also showing
The Friese-Greene Club – Tonight, actor-director Tim Blake Nelson offers a modern twist on Shakespeare’s Othello with “O”, set in an American high school. “Really a lot better than it sounds,” advises the club’s programme. Tomorrows challenge to the censors is “Intimacy”, a 2001 British drama with unsimulated sex scenes between a lonely bartender who wants more from his no-strings-attached relationship with an anonymous woman. Shows are at 8pm. Book seats at FGC.in.th.

Filmvirus K-PopPop – A taxi driver takes an assignment as a hitman to pay off a mob debt in “The Yellow Sea”, a 2010 crime thriller from director for Na Hong-jin. That’s followed by “Life Track”, a 2007 drama about a disabled man who encounters a deaf-mute girl on the run from the cops. The show starts at 12.30 on Sunday in the library at Thammasat University, Tha Prachan. Bring an ID. Call (02) 613-3529 or (02) 613-3530.

Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand – After a bit of a hiatus due to the curfew, the Contemporary World Film Series is back on with the first film made in Bhutan. Screening at 7pm on Monday, “Travellers and Magicians” follows a junior government official who falls in with a colorful group of other travellers. It’s directed by Khyentse Norbu, a holy man who is believed to be a reincarnate lama. The free screening is courtesy of the Royal Embassy of Bhutan, which will provide free drinks and snacks and promote its Bhutan-Thai Friendship discount travel deal. For details, see www.FCCThai.com.