Showing 1 - 10 of 26
Andalusian dreams
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 15/02/2024
» Two Middle Eastern tourists looked excited as they held up a phone to an exquisitely carved arabesque in Nasrid Palace at the Alhambra. No, they're not taking photos. They're comparing the Arabic text on their screen with the 8th century stone calligraphy. I hear them mumble in Arabic -- here's the translation:
Ghosts of various stripes
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 14/09/2018
» Refugees, human-trafficking and a ravenous ghoul show the real and fantastical facets of Thailand in the movies showing this week at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Young at heart
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 23/04/2018
» On some afternoons, Thep Kengvinit would walk to Central Pinklao, sit down at an electric piano in an electronics store, and play random songs from the 1960s. "I walk because it helps loosen my joints," said the 74-year-old grandfather, "and I play because it's relaxing".
Four inspiring tales for the price of none
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 25/10/2017
» The gift of love, kindness and generosity from the late King Bhumibol lives on in the minds of all Thais. It serves as the inspiration behind the anthology film Khong Kwan (The Gift), comprised of four short films by four Thai directors to be screened free of charge beginning Saturday at cinemas nationwide.
Guests of honour
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 15/08/2017
» Last night when the clock struck 12, India turned 70. The birth of India or the rebirth after a century of colonial rule, is an ecstatic occasion that also has a darker edge in the partition of Pakistan, carved out of the former British Raj in a brutal bloodshed between Hindus and Muslims that killed hundreds of thousands and uprooted millions (Pakistan Independence Day was celebrated yesterday).
A look at prison muay Thai
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 24/05/2017
» Thailand is splashed across the main screen of the Cannes Film Festival this year. A Prayer Before Dawn is not a Thai film, but this UK-France production takes place entirely in Thailand -- precisely in the rancid, violence-prone prison where inmates are crammed into small dormitories and fight to stay alive. Based on a book by ex-convict William Moore, who spent years at Klong Prem Prison for selling ya ba, the film, directed by Jean-Stephane Sauvaire, is an intense look at hard life in the hellhole, before Moore (played by British actor Joe Cole) finds redemption in the prison's muay Thai boxing programme.
Noble quest to ease misery is not IS support
News, Kong Rithdee, Published on 26/11/2016
» In 2011 Naiem Wongkasorn crossed the border from Turkey into Syria. The civil war had already plunged the country into chaos and it was just before the Islamic State (IS) swept across the land on their evil rampage. Travelling with two Thai friends and some Turkish NGO workers, Naiem found himself in the town of Idlib in northeastern Syria. They were there to donate money raised from Thai donors to the refugee camps.
Serving up cruelty, a taste of 'Thainess'
News, Kong Rithdee, Published on 20/08/2016
» The debate on the meaning of "Thainess" always fills me with patriotism and stomach ache. After last week's bombings, the army chief warned us to look out for people who wore hats, glasses and carried backpacks, because "Thais don't do that". The general meant well -- that we should watch out for suspicious agents of terror -- but the way he framed it was a crass, militaristic way of monopolising the definition of something that is shifting, malleable, even undefinable.
Dead cool
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 27/11/2015
» Javanese vampires, an undead tribe of immortal warlocks, a hard-boiled detective and an assortment of beautiful demons -- all of which stalk the twilight of Jakarta looking for blood, thrills and power in HBO Asia's original series Halfworlds. Premiering on Sunday at 9pm on HBO, the eight-episode show mixes Southeast Asian folklore with anime-cool and noir cinema, and it shows promise of a regional TV production that carries a dose of international appeal.
The Shrine's history: more than four faces
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 19/08/2015
» Unperturbed, the four-faced Brahma statue still stares out at the Ratchaprasong intersection, the scene of Bangkok's worst bomb attack in recent memory. One of the most popular tourist spots in the capital has become a site of terror and tragedy and as the dust begins to settle, it's worth taking a look at the long and sometimes tortuous history of the shrine. This history is influenced as much by the city's modernisation and superstition as it is by its politics and moments of insanity.