Thailand Voice

The Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum has dedicted an award to the memory of producer Wouter Barendrecht, which will go to new filmmakers. Barendrecht is credited with helping a generation of Asian filmmakers reach a global audience. In addition to such names as Wong Kar-wai and Iwai Shunji, the producer and co… Read full story >>>

Three years in production , Kantana’s historical epic Kon Tai Ting Pandin ( คนไท ทิ้งแผ่นดิน ), a.k.a. The Edge of Empire , is set for release on April 10. There’s a website that may or may not be up and running when you click … Read full story >>>

GreenWave Thai Online Radio is broadcast in the Thai language and available 24 hours a day. GreenWave online radio brings the best of Easy Listening with Thai Pop and Thai Charts. Broadcast from Bangkok it is also available within Thailand on 106.5FM Read full story >>>

As mentioned in last week’s post about the Singapore DVD , Jija Yanin’s sophomore action effort Raging Phoenix is being released in the U.K. The date is now set for April 12. Amazon.co.uk has a page ready. No details about special features yet, but DVD… Read full story >>>

If you asked most blog writers to name their favourite post they’ve ever written and then asked them the same question one week later, there is every chance you’d receive two different answers. I think you would if you posed that question to me. … Read full story >>>

Beyond reasonable doubts: Thaksin’s “Judgment Day” has become another unforgettable event in the Thai political history. After weeks of being second guessed by academics and political pundits, nine judges of the Supreme Court spent almost eight hours reading their historical verdict which was broadcasted nationwide. … Read full story >>>

Finally, some decent water buffalo battle action in the upcoming Bang Rajan 2 ( บางระจัน 2 ), director Thanit Jitnukul’s sequel/reboot of his 2000 patriotic battle epic, which appears to be just as blood-soaked, violent and full of sword-clanging rage as the first film. Similar to the Alamo… Read full story >>>

This post is a six part New Mandala series.  Readers are warned that some of the content in this series is graphic.  Part 1 is available here . We were on a long range patrol down south following the tracks of a Communist Lisu unit that had just … Read full story >>>

With the three day grand opening of the new City Mall complex still ringing in my ears I was surprised as well as excited to hear news of a possible new shopping centre to be developed in Ubon. Most people are aware of Centrals plans to develop the site next door to Bic C… Read full story >>>

Read full story >>>

Is Johnny Depp insulting the gap toothed, or what? The actor, who has a fixation on teeth for his different celluloid personas but no discernible gap (the highly revered distinction diagnosed as diastema ), chose to define his character as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s new “Alice in … Read full story >>>

Written, produced and starring martial-arts actors and stuntmen, Bangkok Adrenaline will be released on DVD in the U.K. on March 22 by Optimum Home Entertainment. Amazon.co.uk has it . Directed by Raimund Huber, the story involves a group of foreigner backpackers who… Read full story >>>

I first heard of the Tiger Temple over 10 years ago on a TV documentary but it’s taken me this long to get around to going there. The documentary showed the temple in a good light, a few conservationists argued against it, but their argument was that tigers should be… Read full story >>>

Slice , Mundane History , A Letter to Uncle Boonmee and Lumphini 2552 will be featured in the 34th Hong Kong International Film Festival , which opened for businss yesterday . Slice ( Cheun ), is a top nominee for both the Thailand National Film Association Awards and the Bangkok Critics Assembly , and… Read full story >>>

Poj Arnon is the latest Thai filmmaker to be caught up in the trend of Korean pop culture. He started shooting a movie last week in Gangwon Province, South Korea. Sorry Sarahaeyo ( Sorry Sa Rang He Yo ) is a Thai-South… Read full story >>>

The portmanteau films Tai Hong ( Still , aka Die a Violent Death ) and My Valentine topped the Thai box office during their opening weeks of release. Box Office Mojo , back to updating its Thai charts after a long spell, had Phranakorn Film’s Tai Hong scaring up an impressive US$483,407 (about 16 million… Read full story >>>

In Thai culture, being solemn is a cause for concern. Hardly a week passes by without hearing the Thai phrase, “don’t be so serious”. In the taxi the other day, I wanted to express that same sentiment to my pensive-looking cabbie, but I changed my… Read full story >>>

Phranakorn Film has a new comedy opening this week, Kongphan Kruekkruen Tor Tahan Kuekkuk ( กองพันครึกครื้น ท.ทหารคึกคัก ), which comes at a time when the Thai military is already looking quite foolish for its reliance on a “bomb detector” that has been thoroughly debunked. Directed by … Read full story >>>

Back in my year in India when I was looking for enlightenment one of the toughest part was the goddamn meditation. To sit quiet for a few minutes that’s OK. But for hours! They are saints back there in India, and … Read full story >>>

The very first Chiang Mai Smile Full Moon Party will be held on 27th February 2010 at Huay Tung Tao, just outside Chiang Mai. The Reggae Music in the Park will feature several Bands playing Rock, Ska, Reggae and Latin music together with DJs selecting the very best of Hiphop, Techno and Electro music… Read full story >>>

The other week a few teachers and I attended a night at Sunee Hotel for our school. We had slipped out for a few beers and a chat away from the dancing. We had made our way to this place. It isn’t a disco but the tenpin bowling centre. One… Read full story >>>

Shortly ago, I posted on two strange administrative villages only named Mu 77 and Mu 78. Since I just stumbled on yet another website which lists them – this time the one of TAO Phan Thong in Chonburi province, I tried once more to find any explanation on the meaning of these two villages. And … Read full story >>>

Shock Horror. The man of her dreams turns out to be a Thai Katoey. You can just feel the heartbreak of her broken dream in this amusing Thai commercial which shows an overweight Thai girl sitting with a plate piled high with food as she… Read full story >>>

Kevin Bacon has joined the cast of Elephant White , the English-language action drama being directed by Prachya Pinkaew and starring Djimon Hounsou. The addition of the Footloose star is according to The Hollywood Reporter . Hounsou, most recently on the Bangkok big-screen in the supernatural action… Read full story >>>

One local administration using the internet, and especially the Google tools, to a great extend is the provincial administrative organization (PAO) of Nakhon Phanom ( องค์การบริหารส่วนจังหวัดนครพนม ). The chairman of the PAO (นายก อบจ.) Somchop Nitipoj (สมชอบ นิติพจน์) has his own blog , as… Read full story >>>

First, to quote Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, The Nation: “As the scientific testing proves, they don’t work, and we must rely on results that are in line with tests in foreign countries,” he told reporters yesterday. “It’s too risky to continue using Read full story >>>

As a follow-up to news of Yuthlert Sippapak’s trilogy of hitman movies, Meu Puen 3 Pak , I have a set of character posters that I found on Yuthlert’s Facebook page , but hadn’t seen anywhere else. I asked if I could share them here, and of course … Read full story >>>

AP: Thailand: British-made bomb detectors unreliable Tests conducted by Thailand’s government have found that British-made bomb detectors it bought for a total of $21 million have an accuracy rate of only 20 percent, but they will continue to be… Read full story >>>

I had referenced the committee on name changes of province, district, subdistrict and villages (คณะกรรมการพิจารณาเรื่องการขอเปลี่ยนแปลงชื่อจังหวัด อำเภอ และตำบล หมู่บ้าน) in several postings on Royal Gazette announcements already, but the only details I had about this committee so far were the rules on … Read full story >>>

After his mistake about Thai Airways (read here ), the Finances Minister, again, lost a good opportunity to shut his mouth . Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij on Wednesday expressed concerns over Thailand’s ranking in Maplecroft’s Terrorism Risk Index (TRI), where the country slipped into … Read full story >>>