Thailand Voice

Belay that order! Thai film fans in the U.S., if you’re still thinking about getting that Taiwanese disc of Queens of Langkasuka ( Puen Yai Jome Salad ), you might want to pause for a bit — Nonzee Nimibutr’s historical pirate epic will … Read full story >>>

The mounting tension between Thailand and Cambodia is providing a distinctly unfriendly and unneighbourly backdrop for next month’s Southeast Asian Games in Laos, the motto for which is ‘Generosity, Amity, Healthy Lifestyle’ (see the official website here ). Of course, this is why… Read full story >>>

Directed by Pleo Sirisuwan Starring Narathit Namkang, Pimpawee Kreuangsai Released in Thai cinemas on October 29, 2009; rated G Wise Kwai’s rating: 2/5 An labored exercise in anti-climax, The Scout ( Bit Pi-pop Ta-lu Lohk , บิดพิภพทะลุโลก ) is a kid-friendly adventure yarn about children who enter an ancient… Read full story >>>

Muay Thai Chaiya ’s Akara Amarttayakul and busy young actress Apinya Sakuljaroensuk have a snake problem in The Intruder — เขี้ยว อาฆาต , Kieow Akaat , literally “fang feud”. It’s a Phranakorn Film that’s being produced by the ever-prolific Poj Arnon and features… Read full story >>>

Nirmal Ghosh has an interesting article in the Straits Times (subscription only, but available in full from Malaysia Insider) on unity, reconciliation, and the Thai elite. This includes HM the King’s recent speech on unity. Key excerpts from Nirmal’s article:In recent months, as the … Read full story >>>

While the Bangkok International Film Festival is set for September 24 to 30, there’s another culture festival going on this month in the city, making Bangkok a real culture hub, according to Lekha Shankar. She takes a look at the offerings of Bangkok’s 11th International Festival of Dance and Music … Read full story >>>

Don’t miss award-winning journalist and author — not to mention uber-blogger — James Fallows discussing all things China and technology-related on the Sept. 2 installment of the Motley Fool podcast. You can find the 25-minute episode here . Fallows, a correspondent for the… Read full story >>>

Thai Takes By PHILIP GOLINGAI ON TUESDAY, in a packed conference hall at Bangkok’s prestigious Chulalongkorn University, a panel of academics spoke about Thailand’s unspoken. “We’re going to discuss what is unspoken in Thailand – the sensitive topic of the role of Thai military in politics,” said Chulalongkorn … Read full story >>>

The Sitges Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantástic de Catalunya — the world’s premiere genre festival — has released a few early titles for its 42nd edition from October 1 to 12, among them Nymph , the brooding and atmospheric psychological drama and ghost story by Pen-ek Ratanaruang. It’s… Read full story >>>

Awards were handed out at the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (PiFAN), with Prachya Pinkaew’s Chocolate picking up the European Fantastic Film Festival Asian Award.KoreanFilm.org’s Darcy Paquet had a few things to say about Chocolate star Jija in one of the festival’s… Read full story >>>

[Bangkok Post] Expected Drop in Tourism Numbers [The expected number of tourist arrivals had been reduced from the expected 14.1 million to 11, he said. The A(H1N1) flu outbreak could make tourism contract by three to four per cent, causing the country … Read full story >>>

There will be plenty of Thai action at the Fantasia International Film Festival, which starts on Thursday in Montreal and runs until July 29.Browsing through the full festival program, there are three Thai films, all making their North American premieres: Nonzee Nimibutr’s historical pirate fantasy Queens of… Read full story >>>

One Democrat MP from the Northeast has been criticizing Abhisit for conceding the Northeast to Newin. It seems that the Democrats won’t be, but will include Newin in on their plans as Matichon reports – see Thailand Politics summary and commentary here . BP : It doesn’t necessarily mean a general election is in the… Read full story >>>

Written and directed by Taweewat WanthaStarring Nopparit Suriwong, Keerati MahaprukpongReleased in Thai cinemas on June 11, 2009Rating: 3/5A childlike playfulness has imbued Taweewat Wantha’s feature films so far. There’s been a sense of wonder as the director has crafted fantastic films seemingly out of whatever toys and bits and pieces of household junk he … Read full story >>>

… NOT for the mosque killing, but for distributing pamphlets as the Bangkok Post reports : Two men were detained in Narathiwat’s Rangae district after they were found in possession of leaflets accusing state authorities of masterminding the June 8 mosque massacre, police said. Abdulloh Samae and Mafari Ma allegedly went around Bayo village in tambon … Read full story >>>

An ancient curse is deforming a family and the only way to stop it is to find a secret tomb hidden somewhere in Bangkok. It’s Bangkok Fable , the next project by Fireball director Thanakorn Pongsuwan. Here’s the synopsis: Anek is the last remaining descendent of the Brahmin priesthood. However, he rejected the heritage of the… Read full story >>>