Thai Film?

[kkf123]

Ive been watching House of Flying Daggars, Hidden Tiger, and Hero recently. Very enjoyable.

I would appreciate a list of other Asian movies that I should purchase. They dont nessecarily have to be about martial arts.

Also, why dont Thai movies have English Subtitles on VCDs?

If I buy a Thai DVD, will it have English Subtitles?

What are considered to be classic Thai movies? Do they academy awards like Hollywood?

[phibunmike]

Ive been watching House of Flying Daggars, Hidden Tiger, and Hero recently. Very enjoyable.

I would appreciate a list of other Asian movies that I should purchase. They dont nessecarily have to be about martial arts.

Also, why dont Thai movies have English Subtitles on VCDs?

If I buy a Thai DVD, will it have English Subtitles?

What are considered to be classic Thai movies? Do they academy awards like Hollywood?

There are some excellent Vietnamese films - 'Green Papaya Salad" comes to mind, but I might have the name wrong. Search them out....

Unfortunately many Thai films fall into a rather simplistic horror genre.

[GuestHouse]

The Scent of Green Papaya.

[toyicebear]

Most Thai movies are generally targeted to the domestic marked..ie..no english subs.....

Some exceptions though...and some good ones too....for martial artes..have a look at.. oon bath..and tom yam goong...

For hk movies..start off with the movies by WONG KAR WAI , you will not be disepointed...

For chinese movies, the movies by Zang Ymou is a greate start...

But as everywhere in the world, except the mentioned ones, there is a lot of bad, some good and a few exceptional ones.....

[britmaveric]

Shutter

[Guest endure]

Chunking Express by Wong Kar Wai

[girlx]

'old boy' by the korean director park chan-wook (or maybe it's chan-wook park) is great. he has a couple others i have not yet seen. also thai director pen ek ratanuang (sp?) makes good films ie. 'last life in the universe'. also the movie 'kung <deleted> hustle' was pretty good- it's chinese i think.

Edited March 25, 2006 by girlx

[bbigman21]

[thaibebop]

Well, Last Life in the Universe was mentioned, but I think I should mention it again, it is that good.

Also,

Bright Future

Ichi the Killer

Zatoichi The Blind Swordsman (Takeishi Kitano verison)

Warriors of Heaven and Earth

To Live

Rise The Red Lantern

Sharkskin Man and The Peach Hip Girl

Suriyothai

The Emperor and The Assassin

Ran

Throne of Blood

Hidden Fortress

Seven Samurai

Beijing Bicycle

The Blue Kite

Flowers of Shanghai

Farewell My Concubine

The King of Masks

Together

The Road Home

Red Sorghum

Musa The Warrior

Infernal Affairs

Fulltime Killer

Kung <deleted> Hustle

Shaolin Soccer

2046

In The Mood For Love

Samurai Fiction

Ong-Bak

6ixtynin9

Beautiful Boxer

Twlight Samurai

The Emperor's Shadow

Duel to the Death (Chessy but I always liked it)

Iron Monkey

The Sea is Watching

Rashomon

The Missing Gun

Musashi

Taboo

Zhou Yu's Train

Shanghai Triad

Temptress Moon

Ju Dou

The Story of Qiu Ju

Chinese Box

I know I am forgetting some other really good ones, but hope this helps from now.

Edited March 25, 2006 by thaibebop

[toptuan]

The Tin Mine (Thai movie which came out in 2005; English subtitles)

[seonai]

Well impressive Thaibebop !!!!!!! I only knew about a third of those.

Did any one mention the two recent Thai films, not the same calibre but fun, one was Tom Yam Kung and the other was The Seven ......... somethings?????? Rats I forget the name! (About the Japanese at Kanchanaburi but a comedy).

[Neeranam]

I saw "pee sahm baht" last night for the 4th time.

If you like ghost movies, this is a good one.

If you buy the DVD, you can get English sub.

[English Noodles]

I saw "pee sahm baht" last night for the 4th time.

If you like ghost movies, this is a good one.

If you buy the DVD, you can get English sub.

If you can watch that four times there must be something wrong with you mate. In general Thai movies suck.

[seonai]

The one I can't remember the name of - a take on The Magnificent Seven - was a real laugh, try it.

[aaaaaa]

The one I can't remember the name of - a take on The Magnificent Seven - was a real laugh, try it.

yeah? which one - #1 or #2 ?

have anyone seen Fan Chan ? I think nice movie too.

actually most of Thai movies, even horror, have at least a bit of humor.

and for Thais I think most of Western "humour" would suck too - unless there are at least subtitles and perhaps even a background thunder of laugh, indicating the moment WHEN to laugh (sucessfully adopted by THai TV in their plentifull "funny" programs). language barier - one has to be able to understand what's the joke is about, and often that is also not enough, must know many other subtle things as currents trends, cultural aspects etc.

kkf123, you are right - MANY DVDs don't have Engl. subs, at least original copy - this is because of marketing issues. like, you can't find and buy (I bet even Neeranam or anyone else won't be able too as well), say Ong-Bak or its "sequel" (second Tony Jaa's big movie) Tom-Yum-Goong. why ? because some Western company has purchased rights to make and sell DVDs with English dubbing or subtitles. and in Thailand they won't sell such.

but you can buy it else where on internet, where those Western Companies or other dealers sell them. NOT in Thailand, and not in legal stores.

[GU22]

The one I can't remember the name of - a take on The Magnificent Seven - was a real laugh, try it.

Do you mean Born to Fight?

Also very good are:-

Bang Rajan

Bangkok Dangerous

Nor Chor

Buppah Rahtree and Rahtree Returns

Bangkok Loco

One Take Only

Dang Bireley's Young Gangsters - 2499

The Eye

Fa Talai Jone

And anything by one or both of the Pang brothers.

Those I've listed are all available from eThaiCD and most of the DVDs have English subtitles.

For more, see DVD Reviews from T-UK and www.brns.com. The latter having reviews of films from Hong Kong, India, Japan and Thailand. Check out Hong Kong Legends, too.

Edited March 25, 2006 by GU22

[mittheimp]

Well, Last Life in the Universe was mentioned, but I think I should mention it again, it is that good.

Also,

Bright Future

Ichi the Killer

Zatoichi The Blind Swordsman (Takeishi Kitano verison)

Warriors of Heaven and Earth

To Live

Rise The Red Lantern

Sharkskin Man and The Peach Hip Girl

Suriyothai

The Emperor and The Assassin

Ran

Throne of Blood

Hidden Fortress

Seven Samurai

Beijing Bicycle

The Blue Kite

Flowers of Shanghai

Farewell My Concubine

The King of Masks

Together

The Road Home

Red Sorghum

Musa The Warrior

Infernal Affairs

Fulltime Killer

Kung <deleted> Hustle

Shaolin Soccer

2046

In The Mood For Love

Samurai Fiction

Ong-Bak

6ixtynin9

Beautiful Boxer

Twlight Samurai

The Emperor's Shadow

Duel to the Death (Chessy but I always liked it)

Iron Monkey

The Sea is Watching

Rashomon

The Missing Gun

Musashi

Taboo

Zhou Yu's Train

Shanghai Triad

Temptress Moon

Ju Dou

The Story of Qiu Ju

Chinese Box

I know I am forgetting some other really good ones, but hope this helps from now.

Korean cinema is currently considered the new wave - but most big East Asian countries have a very respectable ouput of films -

out of those mentioned above i recommend-

Beijing Bicycle

The blue Kite (recommend this very highly)

Seven Samurai

Rashomon

Farewell My Concubine

Forget about 2046 unless you can't sleep (despite the appearance of a truly stunning Ziyi Zhang!)

Also recommended-

The Shower (Chinese)

Full moon party (Thai)

Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... And Spring (Korean)

Three Seasons (Vietnamese - including guest appearance by Harvey Keitel)

Spirited away (animated Japanese film - more satisfactory in Japanese and subtitles)

OK its south Asian not east Asian but -

Salaam Bombay! ...... is very highly recommended, directed by Mira Nair (monsoon wedding) and this film, and particularly the making of the film - (check the extras on the DVD) is truly remarkable.

[aaaaaa]

I liked Korean movie "My wife is a gangster" - #1 and #2

[thaibebop]

Well impressive Thaibebop !!!!!!! I only knew about a third of those.

Did any one mention the two recent Thai films, not the same calibre but fun, one was Tom Yam Kung and the other was The Seven ......... somethings?????? Rats I forget the name! (About the Japanese at Kanchanaburi but a comedy).

I forgot Tom Yum Gung, that's a good one. All I know is The Seven Samurai, which I don't think is what you are thinking about.

[thaibebop]

The one I can't remember the name of - a take on The Magnificent Seven - was a real laugh, try it.

Do you mean Born to Fight?

Also very good are:-

Bang Rajan

Bangkok Dangerous

Yes, very good one, forgot all about that!

Nor Chor

Buppah Rahtree and Rahtree Returns

Bangkok Loco

One Take Only

Dang Bireley's Young Gangsters - 2499

The Eye

Fa Talai Jone

And anything by one or both of the Pang brothers.

Those I've listed are all available from eThaiCD and most of the DVDs have English subtitles.

For more, see DVD Reviews from T-UK and www.brns.com. The latter having reviews of films from Hong Kong, India, Japan and Thailand. Check out Hong Kong Legends, too.

Well, Last Life in the Universe was mentioned, but I think I should mention it again, it is that good.

Also,

Bright Future

Ichi the Killer

Zatoichi The Blind Swordsman (Takeishi Kitano verison)

Warriors of Heaven and Earth

To Live

Rise The Red Lantern

Sharkskin Man and The Peach Hip Girl

Suriyothai

The Emperor and The Assassin

Ran

Throne of Blood

Hidden Fortress

Seven Samurai

Beijing Bicycle

The Blue Kite

Flowers of Shanghai

Farewell My Concubine

The King of Masks

Together

The Road Home

Red Sorghum

Musa The Warrior

Infernal Affairs

Fulltime Killer

Kung <deleted> Hustle

Shaolin Soccer

2046

In The Mood For Love

Samurai Fiction

Ong-Bak

6ixtynin9

Beautiful Boxer

Twlight Samurai

The Emperor's Shadow

Duel to the Death (Chessy but I always liked it)

Iron Monkey

The Sea is Watching

Rashomon

The Missing Gun

Musashi

Taboo

Zhou Yu's Train

Shanghai Triad

Temptress Moon

Ju Dou

The Story of Qiu Ju

Chinese Box

I know I am forgetting some other really good ones, but hope this helps from now.

Korean cinema is currently considered the new wave - but most big East Asian countries have a very respectable ouput of films -

out of those mentioned above i recommend-

Beijing Bicycle

The blue Kite (recommend this very highly)

Seven Samurai

Rashomon

Farewell My Concubine

Forget about 2046 unless you can't sleep (despite the appearance of a truly stunning Ziyi Zhang!)

Also recommended-

The Shower (Chinese)

Full moon party (Thai)

Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... And Spring (Korean)

Three Seasons (Vietnamese - including guest appearance by Harvey Keitel)

Spirited away (animated Japanese film - more satisfactory in Japanese and subtitles)

Anything from Studio Ghibli (which created Spirited Away) is worth watching. I didn't mention animation before, cause most people aren't into it, but if you are I got a list for that as well. You should watch Grave of the Fireflies, or at least read the book, very good, but very sad.

OK its south Asian not east Asian but -

Salaam Bombay! ...... is very highly recommended, directed by Mira Nair (monsoon wedding) and this film, and particularly the making of the film - (check the extras on the DVD) is truly remarkable.

[kaopadguy]

I loved this movie Monrak Transistor

It's kind of a chick flick, but I found quite funny. DVD should have subtitles, as the theatre version did. Not sure about VCD.

From China check out A Chinese Ghost Story.

On the Japanese front check out Acadamy award winner Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) SPIRITED AWAY

Edited March 26, 2006 by kaopadguy

[seonai]

The one I mean is not Born to Fight - that's a great one though. Or Seven Samuri - at least I don't think so. I'll ask hubby later.

It is about the Japanese being in Thailand and these 7 guys decide they hate them cos they are stealing their Thai women. So they plan a serie of attacks on them at Kanchanaburi while the farang soldiers build the railway. Really good and funny too.

[GU22]

Ah, I think you mean Heaven's 7. There's a sequel, too, 7 Street Fighters.

BTW, Seven Samurai is not a take on The Magnificent Seven. It's the other way round!

[seonai]

That sounds like it GU22. Did you see the movie called "Chom". All about a taxi driver who falls in love with a prostitute? Really good. I was well impressed with the style, not slapstick and quite serious.

[Donz]

My gf always hires these Thai movies and bring them home.

I love the horror movies with ghosts and stuff. Quality stuff.

Ong Bah is one of my favourite action movies

[thaibebop]

Ah, I think you mean Heaven's 7. There's a sequel, too, 7 Street Fighters.

BTW, Seven Samurai is not a take on The Magnificent Seven. It's the other way round!

Yes, and the Samurai is much better.

[GU22]

Did you see the movie called "Chom". All about a taxi driver who falls in love with a prostitute? Really good. I was well impressed with the style, not slapstick and quite serious.

'Fraid not, but I'll look out for it, thanks.

[GU22]

BTW, Seven Samurai is not a take on The Magnificent Seven. It's the other way round!

Yes, and the Samurai is much better.

Agree.

And Yojimbo is a lot better than A Fistful of Dollars, too.

[ProfessorFart]

A few others worthy of a mention are Ai Fak based on Chart Korpjitti's novel 'Kam Phi Paksa' (The Judgement) Well made and quite a grim tale.

Nonzee Nimibutr's stilted yet beautifully shot pair of Nang Nak and Jan Dara.

For some nice gritty realism Chatri Chalerm Yukol's 'See-a Dtai' (both the original and the sequel) are worth a look.

[steveromagnino]

The one I can't remember the name of - a take on The Magnificent Seven - was a real laugh, try it.

Jed Prajarn Bahn