RedLife

Ekalak Klunson's 2023 Thai film is set on the edges of Bangkok. Som is the daughter of a sex worker; Ter is a young man living off small crimes. The film runs the two lines apart and crosses them at intervals. Both take love for something that can be bought or that will get them out; the narrative does not correct the mistake and shows what follows from it. The cast are young and the locations real. The tone is dark and the close offers no way out. Violence and drug use are shown directly. Who it's for: viewers of Thai independent cinema and hard realist film. Who it's not for: viewers for whom detailed depiction of sex work, drugs and violence would be difficult.