NOSTALGIA (2013, Ninart Boonpothong, A+30)
The story in this play is quite astounding. It spans many centuries.
I think it begins with the time of Ptolemy, and also covers the pre-Soviet
Russia, our contemporary time, and the future. Its ambitions and structure
remind me a little bit of CLOUD ATLAS (2012, Tom Tykwer + Andy Wachowski + Lana
Wachowski, A+), which also deals with many stories in many centuries. But I
think NOSTALGIA is much better than CLOUD ATLAS, partly because the stories in
NOSTALGIA cohere better than CLOUD ATLAS, and maybe partly because there are
more poetic touches in NOSTALGIA than in CLOUD ATLAS.
What I like in NOSTALGIA includes:
1.The tangentially connected stories, which somehow cohere. When
all these stories are combined together, they create a very touching feeling.
The many centuries covered in this play somehow make me realize that we are
just a tiny spot in the history of mankind. Many people suffered before us, and
the struggles with tyranny and dictatorship will continue in the future. (Maybe
like in 20TH CENTURY BOYS)
2.Personally, I seem to like many films/plays which present many
stories which are tangentially connected to one another. NOSTALGIA is one of
these. Many films/plays which have a structure like this make me feel as if
they also create “gaps” between stories. And these gaps are very inviting for
me. These gaps make me feel as if they are “spaces” which allow me to move a
little bit freely inside. Some of these gaps make my imagination run wild. Some
of these gaps give me indescribable feelings. Examples of this kind of gaps can
be found in:
2.1 Many films directed by
Alexander Kluge, especially THE POWER OF EMOTION (1983, A+30)
2.2 DREAMS (2012, Chertsak Pratumseesakhon, stage play, A+15)
2.3 GRINDHOUSE FOR UTOPIA (2013, Tani Thitiprawat, A+30)
2.4 HUNGARY MAN BOO (2012, Viriyaporn Boonprasert, A+30)
2.5 Films/plays in this list:
3.The structure of many plays within a play. In NOSTALGIA, we hear
Macedonian characters talking about the play OEDIPUS. We see a play which seems
to be adapted from Boris Savinkov’s novel (which was onced adapted into a film
called THE RIDER NAMED DEATH (2004, Karen Shakhnazarov, A+)), and we see a play
about a plot to overthrow a ruler in a graduation ceremony in the futuristic
world.
4.The story about Jit (Tatchaky Ky), a son who has serious
conflicts with his father, is the most impressive story for me in this
play. The anger, resentment, and
frustration that Jit feels remind me of my anger, resentment, and frustration
that I felt when I was about 10-20 years old. My problems at that time do not
resemble Jit’s problems in this play, but the feelings are roughly the same.
Jit’s story in this play makes me remember how many times I wanted to run away
from home, wanted to scream out loud, felt as if I was gonna explode, felt as
if some feelings inside were going to explode. I think Jit’s character in
NOSTALGIA should meet the hero of HIMIZU (2011, Sion Sono, A+30), the hero of
BLACK BREAD (2010, Agustí Villaronga, A+30), and the hero of BANG-KERD-KLOAW
(2011, Kamontorn Eakwattanakij, A+30), because all of these four boys remind me
of something I felt when I was young.
5.I like that the play deals with both the “big” and “small”
things. For the big things I mean the history, the politics, the dilemma about
whether we should kill the children of a dictator or not, the political
conflicts between characters, etc. For the small things I mean the WHEN HARRY
MET SALLY scene, the background love story of the father and mother of Jit, the
talk about whether a girl should feign silly to attract more guys or not, and
the ending scene.
This is one of the things that make me like NOSTALGIA a bit more than
LADY MINA: VAMPIRE HUNTER (2011, Ninart Boonpothong, A), the story of which
also spans many centuries. I think the story in LADY MINA: VAMPIRE HUNTER is a
little bit too heavy or too serious to be digested in one viewing. NOSTALGIA is
much lighter.
I also think that the combination of big things and small things in
NOSTALGIA helps me see more aspects of life than when these big things and
small things are separated from each other. Who can imagine that such a serious
political film like THE RIDER NAMED DEATH and such a romantic comedy film like
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY can be presented together in one story like this?