Tropical Malady – Director’s Vision Edition
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: B Film: B
The last time we looked at a film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, it was one of the first reviews
this site ever posted. That film was
Plexifilm’s DVD release Mysterious Object At Noon (2000), which I have
adjusted slightly in honor of this review of his new film Tropical Malady. This 2004 film is less experimental than the
previous film, but shows he is growing in power and skill as a filmmaker and is
becoming one of the key auteurs of his generation and in world film.
This time, we join a military troop in
Thailand. He meets another young man in
the countryside and as soon as he is off duty, they fall in love. Instead of being the kind of formulaic post
Gay New Wave junk we keep seeing, the film actually offers a rich portrait of
their relationship, their connection and life.
However, instead of just avoiding being a melodrama, a strange Shaman
intercedes. This entity can change into
various creatures and has an instinct to read any species exceptionally
well. Now, the men must face their
greatest challenge and try to reconnect in the middle of nowhere. That is unless that connection has been
broken.
Unlike Mysterious Object At
Noon, there is an actual supernatural
force at work. The original title of
the film (Sud pralad) refers to the ability of anything to happen in
this film. There are shades of
Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979) and that is not a bad thing in this
case. Additionally, for those expecting
the shape-shifting character to be as gimmicky as Catherine Schell in Space:
1999 (reviewed elsewhere on this site) or Iman’s similar character in Star
trek: The Undiscovered Country (1991) or even the more integrated Diablero
played by Richard Kiel in the Kolchak: The Night Stalker episode Bad
Medicine (the 1974 – 75 series is also reviewed on this site) are in for a
surprise. Furthermore, this never
becomes a Horror piece, though some of its look and feel in the latter half
will remind one of that.
This DVD is from Strand and is part of their Director’s
Vision Edition series. As solid as
Plexifilm’s Mysterious Object At Noon DVD was, this disc is even
better. The anamorphically enhanced
1.85 X 1 image was shot by three cinematographers (Jarin Pengpanitch, Vichit
Tanapanitch and Jean-Louis Vialard) and they cohere surprisingly well, not
unlike a more commercial film shot in that part of the work: Guy Hamilton’s
final James Bond film The Man With The Golden Gun from 1974. That had Ted Moore and Oswald Morris, both
B.S.C., shooting the film because Moore had to bow out. There are some detail and Video Black limits
to this image, in part possibly because it may have originated in PAL-based
video and this is an NTSC DVD, but it still has its moments, if not as
consistent as one would like. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 Stereo has no real Pro Logic surrounds, but may have been at least
a bit more dynamic in its Dolby Digital theatrical release. One thing is certain. The sound design is exceptional and furthers
the narrative more than most films we have seen lately.
Extras include brief deleted scenes, a few
stills, trailers for four other Strand DVDs, storyboards, and an outstanding
audio commentary with Weerasethakul by film scholar Chuck Stephens that should
only be heard after watching this film and his 2002 film Blissfully
Yours because there are too many spoilers for both. It is still excellent. Plexifilm has picked up Blissfully Yours
and we look forward to catching that one next.
In the meantime, don’t miss Tropical Malady. It is a very accomplished film, worth going
out of your way for and gets better with each viewing.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
