In his first feature, "Bangkok Loco," director Pornchai Hongrattanaporn (or "Pink" to English audiences) creates a pop culture nightmare. It's a hyper-real seventies aesthetic, that actually looks even worse than the real thing. Mop-top hairdos, brown floral patterns, striped bell bottoms, bright blazers, and checkered, long-sleeve shirts, the clothing actually gets uglier from scene to scene.
Vibrant pastel-painted settings create a symbolic, cartoonish Thailand where origami birds fly out of people's ears and a scarecrow masturbates (at least that's what it looks like) to a love song performed by the lead character Bay (Krisada Sukoson). It's an insane world that seems perfectly appropriate for the story.
While preparing for his duel against the Demon Drummer, Buddhist Thai rocker Bay discovers during a practice session that his drumsticks have turned into meat cleavers and he is hacking up the dead body of his landlord. On the run from the cops and aided by his former drum classmate and wannabe girlfriend, Don (Nuntaka Worravanitchanun), Bay must try and prove his innocence, all the while trying to reach Drumming God Level Ten and avenge his former master who died in the last drum duel.
With a background in television commercials, Pink delivers his film at a frenetic, flashy pace and mimics styles of everything from Vaudeville, to the Monkees, to God awful cheesy teen love stories that could star Robby Benson.
He packs his narrative full of sight gags and puns, many of which are completely lost on Western audiences, but still seem funny nonetheless. You may not understand why this cop keeps leaning on Inspector Black Ears' (Nibondh Chaisirikul) shoulder, every time he says, "Who's a complete idiot, then," but it still makes you laugh.
Chaisirikul gives a strong performance as the grizzly police inspector whose inability to kick in doors and his idiotic police dog hinder his Keystone Cop-style pursuit of Bay across the city. One sequence where he chases him through an amusement park on both a merry-go-round and a ferris wheel is particularly entertaining.
The characters are somewhat one-dimensional and the plot does become a little formulaic by the end. They take a backseat to the visuals and weird camera choices which give a peak at the director's psyche. During a sex scene, for instance, Pink cuts back and forth between the point-of-views of Bay's and Don's throats as they spin around on a hotel room bed in a strange musical number. It's like they each have a camera placed just behind their uvulas. Then, of course, they start drumming on each other.
In another scene, with the help of witchcraft, Bay is turned into a human film projector, displaying his memories against the wall, to try and get back the time he lost when he supposedly killed his landlord.
Pink's directorial choices never cease to amaze and confuse.
The rich colour palette and Thai rock sound resonate through the entire film and provide an absurd ride up to the explosive martial arts-style drum duel finale. It's one of the greatest rock videos ever made.
"Bangkok Loco" was presented as part of the Midnight Madness program on Monday. It will show again Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the Cumberland Theatre and on Saturday at 6 p.m. at the Royal Ontario Museum.
