nick s
The debut feature film by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit is a sophisticated and thought-provoking lyrical glance at love, time and memory. The director summarises the idea of film as it is a story about fragile love and digital memory recorded on the lost photo.
Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit is a young Thai photographer and director who shots music videos, short films, documentaries, Internet films, etc. The first film 36 had gained very positive feedback from the audience and critics being praised for sublime minimalism, beautiful symbols and gentle way of storytelling. I came across 36 accidentally, but absolutely loved this film, and it has been one of the strongest impressions from Thai cinema I have gotten, something to stand together with Anocha Suwichakornpong, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang or Rooth Thang.
This is a story of man Oom (Wanlop Rungkumjad) and women Sai (Koramitr Vajrasthira) who met working at the location of future film capturing the pictures for the director. They have developed the feelings for each other, and very few photos of them were recorded on the hard disk. One day, the photos disappeared from the hard disk, and Sai realized a part of her memory is also gone. At first, she wants to get these pictures recovered, but later she shows no more happiness knowing there is a way to get them back. Ruminating, she feels that the fragile love has been lost forever, and it may be useless to try restoring the chips of it. Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit never shows the face of Oom clearly filming him from behind or sides. We can only imagine him, as well as Sai now who hasn't seen him for a long time. And now Sai is also not sure if she remembers him well, and if this poignancy is something she should recover. The mood of the film is very lyrical, and the simple story happens to say a lot in such a minimalistic but precise language.
The film is shot in 36 static long takes. The camera never moves, and protagonists just pass by or step into the shot. Sometimes, the camera just films some different props, while characters talk on the background. Every short chapter of this 68 minutes film has its own name which is linked to the plot. And the aesthetic style of 36 is very pleasant and clear. It looks like a brilliant work of a photographer who came up with impeccable and original ideas of these 36 takes. All of them are beautiful and take a part in creating a mood emphasizing the fragility of our feelings. Some shots are silent, and I really loved how Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit shows Oom in the end. The ways of Oom and Sai split, but he had secretly saved some of the photos from her hard drive. In the end, he turns on his laptop with a picture of them on the wallpapers. And Sai would never learn about his feelings.
36 is a vivacious debut of young Thai filmmaker Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit. The feature film of this type is not demanding to equipment, edition methods or actor's performance as it relies upon the principal photography and director's vision and taste. Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit shows himself to be a master who creates a lyrical, poignant mood of lost love, telling his story in slow paces with plenty of wonderful shots and tender music. This is a fantastic film and a great example to the filmmakers on debut features.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
A moving melancholic meditation on memory which feels technologically dated but still rings true emotionally.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/27/23
Full Review
Audience Member
I admire the way Thamrongrattanarit wants to tell his story in 36 simple static shots, but the result is not so effective as he takes for granted our engagement and his scenes feel more like impressions that, when put together, don't lead to something as telling as it could be.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
Full Review
Read all reviews
>
