szaller

A very brave choice of topic (i.e. the bloody events of 6 October 1976, which are rarely talked about in Thailand) but what is even more impressive is the way the story is told. On the surface, BTTIGD is about a young female director preparing for making a movie about the events of '76. The story slowly unfolds, in the present days, as she is interviewing one of the leaders of the student protests against the military coup. However, the movie's clear linear structure quickly erodes and each scene, each event, each recollection of memory, and even person(!) gets multiple interpretations thus making it harder and harder to tell what has really happened (and what is happening on the screen). Director Anocha compared it to a photo or a painting that is never limited by its frame, since our brain can always add more details beyond the physical boundaries. But with each addition, with each filling of the gaps, our memories lose a tiny bit of their authenticity making it practically impossible to recall and understand past events, especially traumatic ones. And although every scene is banal and everyone acts completely normal, the movie slowly becomes a surrealistic piece of art culminating in a rather unexpected final shot (about which the director had to warn the projectionist in advance).

One of the most uplifting movies ever made by any director. This is not just another war story from Vietnam, not a depiction of an impoverished family, not a tale of a mysterious white silk dress (a traditional 'ao dai', the only valuable property they own), not a coming of age story of the peasant's daughters, nor an insight into Vietnamese culture. No, this movie is all of those things in one plus a wonderful ode to all Vietnamese women: to their resilience, determination, sagacity, and beauty. The story is brilliantly told, shot, scored, and does have a few surprising turns to keep you in your seat for its two hours and twenty minutes length.

The film is not about the countryside, not about the Hungarian way of living, not even about the decade it was made in, but much more. It's a beautiful movie about choices and learning to accept what we are meant to do in life. Yes, we can dream about something more, but eventually we must learn to cope with our (small or big) failures, and then join the life set out for us. The one that wishes for an average life is laughed at, but the one that realizes what to do to achieve it is the hero of this movie. He's choosing Eastern Sugar, the most obvious choice but he has to go far before he can see it. The final scene with the binoculars is outstanding.