Audience Member
[img]http://static.flickr.com/82/230126993_3c35177ac7.jpg[/img]
Entering the world of Malaysian cinema, [url="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0851579/"]Rain Dogs[/url] is a 2006 film by Yuhang Ho, which offers a snapshot of the ethnic Chinese experience of living in rural Malaysia.
At the center of the tale is Tung, a teenage guy from the country, who comes to Kuala Lumpur with a friend. Tung hopes to track down his older brother, who left home some time ago.
But before Tung can get started on his search, a prostitute invites herself into his guesthouse room. He shoos her out the door, but pretty soon, a couple of tough guys show up and demand he pay her, whether he had sex with her or not.
So, five minutes into the film, the main character finds himself robbed.
Eventually, he tracks down his brother, who's hanging out with a tough crowd that runs a gambling ring out of a snooker hall. Through their conversation, its explained that their father is gone, and their mother is single. She has a boyfriend who comes over to their house and freeloads, and steals her money.
Tung heads home, but soon has to return to KL under tragic circumstances, which leaves him shattered.
He returns to the countryside, and grows more and more fed up with the situation of his mother and her freeloading boyfriend, and he lights out on foot for the next town, where he stays with his uncle and aunt and their little boy. The little boy has a tutor - a key-yute Chinese girl, who provides a love interest for Tung, and the girl also has a hot older sister, so naturally Tung is confused. The older sister has a dirtbag ex-boyfriend whom Tung feels obliged to beat up.
It's a coming-of-age movie for Tung, who wants to follow the footsteps of his tough brother, but can't. He wonders who the heck his father was, and is a bit lost.
The uncle, Tung's mom's brother, tries to be a father figure, and takes Tung to shoot a pistol. But mostly, he's concerned about his own son's trouble at school, and he spends much of his time drop-dead drunk on beer.
A piece of music, Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child by Odetta, is used to set the mood of the film about midway through. Coupled with beautiful cinematography of the forested hillsides of rural Malaysia, Rain Dogs is something to see and experience.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/01/23
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Audience Member
Every single shot is sooooooooooooooooooooooooo beautiful to the point that i no longer care about the plot itself very much. probably the 2nd time I feel like this. Too beautiful. No wonder he is European film lovers & critics' favourite. Wonder how Yuhang being local with this 'englishman in new york' kind of eye. The actor who played the role of Tung's brother is my muse now. He's very, very goodlooking.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/24/23
Full Review
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