Rak haeng Siam (Thai) [The Love of Siam]

Yes, the primary focus of this film is love between 2 teenage boys but this film is actually much beyond that. It talks and also shows love between everyone and every relationship like grandmother and grandson, wife and husband, brother and sister, pure friendship; everything. Another aspect that the film had so natural and pure acting by pretty much everyone made this 3 hour long film watchable. It was long but you would be so immersed in the purity of love between everyone that you really dont mind the length of the film.

Mew is a young boy who lives with his grandmother. Next door to them lives a very happy family. Tang and Tong are brother and sister who live with their very happy parents. Mew and Tong becomes good friends. Once when the family goes on a vacation, Tong brings back gift for Mew (a wooden doll) which is missing a nose. Tang expresses a desire to stay back with friends for few days and never returns. Saddened by sudden and so unexpected loss of their daughter, the family decides to move away. Of course the young boys are not happy. Fast forward few years when the boys are teenage. Mew has lost his grandmother, is all alone and is now a part of school band as a lead singer and their songs are very famous. Tong is still with his parents but his mom is so paranoid about losing him that she still drops him and picks him up from school. Tong and Mew one day meet in the market and start all over where they left. Tong's father is now an alcoholic because he blames himself for Tang's disappearance. The mom is doing everything to keep the family together but clearly she is so tired of everything that she can't take it anymore. A professional company employs a girl named June to take care of the band. When Mew sees her, she reminds him so much of Tang. He tells Tong about this and Tong and his mother decide to employ her to have her father pick his life pieces together. Tong and Mew are getting close. Mew discusses his loneliness which brings the 2 boys closer. At a party Tong's mother witnesses the first kiss between the 2 boys. She dreads that and begs Mew to not see Tong but Tong and his family sake. Mew wants to do whatever he can or Tong's family. Meanwhile June is trying her best to bring the father back to normal but he can't stop drinking until one day he sees how his wife eating cold food but doing everything perfect for her husband. This incident open his eyes. Then on Christmas, Tong asks his mom whether to pick a boy doll or a girl doll and when the mom says it is his choice, he picks the boy doll. You see that the mother is coming to terms but she also tells Tong that it is his choice but he should choose what is best for everyone. The film ends with Tong giving Mew the missing nose of the doll and telling him "I can't live as your boyfriend but that doesn't mean I don't love you". Mew accepts it and finally relieved to know that there is someone out there who loves him a lot.

There were many instances which were very emotional in the film. When Mew expresses his loneliness to Tong saying "he is so lonely, so terribly lonely, that he still couldn't stop missing his granny". He also says "he understood this as a part of life, but he wondered if he could stand it anymore to separate with somebody he loved most". and that's why when the movie ends the way it does, it makes him feel better that at least he has not lost Tong. Tong's mother' unconditional love for her husband and her son is also shown with purity. Tong's struggle to choose between his pretty girlfriend and Mew is also shown ice. In all this , there is also a girl who is madly in love with Mew and will do anything to get his love but when she realizes that it is Tong and Mew who love each other, she is heart-broken but accepts and salutes their love at the same time. One other very very good thing about the film was that there was no gay bashing or anything. When the band finds out about Mew being gay, they just make fun of him in the normal way as friends do which was so so refreshing, something similar when a young boy has a girlfriend and his friends tease him all the time.

I liked the movie when I saw it but while writing I realize that this film was a great film. It's a movie about accepting the fact that love can hurt & it's worthwhile to make mistakes out of love rather than choosing not loving or not doing anything out of love for fear of getting hurt. The only negative is the 3 hour length of the film. (8/10)