Butterfly Man

This film starts off like so many others with a couple on holiday in a remote and utterly stunning background, usually in Asia. Unlike the rest this film explores the contrast of Thailand from the picturesque beaches for relaxing and gazing as the sun sets to the other extreme. It begins slowly letting the audience be encaptured by the swaying palm trees and secluded spots and then accelerates into a excellent drama about the redemption of a man. The location shots are something to revel in as they bring out the raw beauty of Thailand.

Featuring an ex Eastenders star could have made this film go from beauty to action thriller a matter of minutes but neither the director or the actors portray any sense of improbability. The plot is closely driven to show the change that Thailand has gone under.

Everything considered this makes refreshing watching compared with the Hollywood rota changing between the very sentimental and the very action packed. With its underlying message this film shows that nothing is truly pure and that things only last for a short time.

Grade B

Butterfly Man is a touching and complex movie about the despair and hope of a British backpacker who finds a deeper sense of purpose in the colorful and beautiful world he experiences in Thailand. The visuals of this movie will make you feel that you are in an island paradise yourself, as they're filled with prelapserian visions of purity and sweetness.

Plus, there's a truly wonderful theme underneath the movie: the dangers of Colonialism and expansion, and the exploitation that such endeavors come with. I really liked this movie.

The two main characters, Adam and Em, acted expertly by Stuart Laing and Napakpapha "Mamee" Nakprasitte, share a passionate bond, one that will make you believe in the redemptive and soulful power of compassion.

Again I noticed that votes on IMDb are not always representable. When you compare 'The Beach' the MTV kids vote higher because DiCaprio plays in it. I watched both movies in a short period, and this movie 'Butterfly Man' was a real good story! I liked it even more because there were no real famous actors in it, which made it more realistic. Nowadays you see george clooney in every movie, with beard - without, you get tired of the same faces in every movie. The cast & acting was great!!!! You really should hire or buy this one if you like real good movies, suspense is build up good, you can't easily predict what is going to happen. I'm not going to reveal the story, don't read the rest, just go for the movie, you won't regret. It's not as lame as the beach where DiCaprio stops a shark with his HAND :) that was a laugh! It's realistic, you see real Thai life, atmosphere, and the nice Budha statues and sunsets. One word : definitely recommended, 8/10. Beware of other movies with low votings due to mtv kids! They need famous actors, guns and violence. I need a good story,good acting and atmosphere, that is what movies are about. I wandered about 1 hour in the local videostore and chose this one. I think I'm becoming a movie-geek with all the bad movies coming out :)

There is little doubt that this is a very low budget film. It has that "shot on a home video camera from 1989" look, and everything--the directing, acting, editing, and so on--is a bit rough around the edges. You're either familiar or not familiar with this kind of "guerilla" film-making. If you're familiar with it, you know what to expect and know whether you should avoid Butterfly Man based on your opinion of those kinds of films, which have to be watched a bit differently than the high gloss stuff. If you're not familiar with it, don't initiate yourself with this film, because this is a pretty good one, and you don't want to waste the experience on trying to acclimate yourself to the style.

The first sign of success is that to a large extent Butterfly Man feels like a transparent home movie made by Adam (Stuart Laing). The film somewhat vacillates between a rough travelogue, almost ala "Globe Trekker" (which happens to be my favorite travel series of all time), and a more normal narrative. It's an iffy mixture that ends up working quite well here. It also affords a stronger immersion in Thailand as a foreign culture, which is very important to the plot.

Because the film begins more like a travelogue with a thin dramatic overlay, it's something of a surprise as it turns into a "hell-in-a-handbasket" film with a well-constructed thriller plot. Unfortunately, this is a case where a fat budget would have helped immensely, but writer/director Kaprice Kea and crew still do a more than decent job with the resources available. The ending is also notable for being very unusual, poetic and admirable. Fans of recent microbudget indies shouldn't miss this one and everyone else should check out five or six of the crappy recent micro-budget indies before coming back to some of the good ones like this film and Milk and Honey (2003).

This is a truly amazing film, if you understand Thailand… As a frequent traveler to Thailand, I can tell you that this movie is one of a few that truly captures the 'feel of Thailand' I know a lot of people are bashing this movie, yes there is some bad acting, yes it's low budget, but it has a great feel to it.

Warning: If you think Pattaya is Thailand. If you think Thai are stupid people. If all you do is sit on the beach drink and go out at night if you are in Thailand then this film will mean nothing to you.

But if you know Thai, if you hang out with them iso farang then check out this movie. Just sit down and enjoy….. It comes highly recommended by me.