Review of Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010) by Ryan H — 05 Jul 2012

While reading through people's comments, I came across this on imdb. Definitely adds some perspective to the film:

"Past lives a metaphor for all the phases of life one has lived through. Earlier moments from one's life, remembering how one was a completely different person at different ages. Uncle Boonmee recalled different parts of his life, as husband, father, soldier, agrarian, Thailander, etc. Perhaps the princess sequence was Uncle Boonmee recalling how at an earlier time in his life he lived and breathed the mythological tapestry of Thailand and believed that death was merely a transformation/mutation into another level of existence.

If Boonmee is Thailand personified, then he's recalling the past lives of Thailand - Thailand's life as Mythology and Folklore and Animism, Thailand's life as Jungle, Hills, and Vales, Thailand's past life as Primitive Animals, Thailand's life as Communism and Militarism, Thailand's life as Buddhism, Thailand's life as Agrariarism, Thailand's life as Cinema (the princess sequence was an homage to Thailand's historical costume drama), Thailand's life as Modern Technology and Materialism, Thailand's life as a life constantly undergoing reincarnation and transformation.

Uncle Boonmee is old Thailand, the myth, the magic, the primitivism, the agrarianism, his sickness a metaphorical sickness caused by the past, present, and future lives of Thailand haunting him, the nostalghia, the regret, the distress for the future to come (a Thailand transformed into a Westernized materialistic spiritualless entity, as witnessed in the end scene).".

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives has plenty of long shots that give the film a constant meditative state. The atmosphere is always set to allow the audience to feel like they are with Boonmee and reflecting on life like him. There were plenty of times when I felt tired because of the way things are set here, but it could have been because I went running a couple of hours before watching it. I still have questions, like why does the catfish have sex with the princess? I get the homage to Thailand's classic cinema, but that confuses me. I'm guessing it has something to do with the idea of Boonmee's son having sex with one of the spirit monkeys and becoming one of them. I really liked the way the ghosts appear here. Boonmee's wife fades into the moment at the dinner table and they stop talking, but their reactions aren't what you'd expect. They are all genuinely curious and Boonmee offers her a water. Has she come to take him away? His sister doesn't even like the question. Boonmee might have kidney problems and dying soon, but it can't be yet. She's not ready for him to go. I really liked seeing the wife take over the job of cleaning his kidneys. That worked really well. The son coming in as a spirit monkey has the same effect on them. Boonmee's always reflective on things. He wants to remember his life since he knows he's dying. Don't we all? I felt like it captured the death of a man that's lived a thorough life well. He's not afraid of dying, but excited and nervous at the same time. I really liked the spiritualism that surrounds the film and the frightened feelings they all have towards westernization in the end. They love this part of their culture and they don't want it to leave. But Boonmee says that he had a dream that people were shining a light on the ghosts and they would disappear. What happens then? Life becomes a little less magical. I think it probably draws a better connection with the Thai people, but I could really appreciate it for what it was doing.