Les Larmes du tigre noir

Tears of the Black Tiger is certainly a unique cinematic experience; part western, part comedy and part tragic melodrama, this Thai movie is perfect for those looking for an alternative to predictable Hollywood pap.

Dum is the handsome hero of the film, a member of the notorious Black Tiger bandits and a crack shot with a six shooter. Rumpoey is the love of his life, who has agreed to marry Dum; despite their class differences, she has arranged to elope with him. When Dum misses his rendezvous with Rumpoey (due to being caught in a gun battle), she is heartbroken and, under pressure from her father, accepts a proposal of marriage from Police Captain Kumjorn.

In a battle between the police and the bandits, Captain Kumjorn is taken prisoner; Dum is given the job of killing the policeman. As a last request, Kumjorn asks that Dum informs his fiancée of his fate and produces a photograph of his wife-to-be. On recognising Rumpoey's picture, Dum frees Kumjorn, but in doing so, he puts his own life on the line...

Stylish, funny and occasionally completely off-the-wall, Tears of the Black Tiger is an affectionate homage to Thai movies of yesteryear and Hollywood westerns. It is a strange mix, but it works. Only an occasional lull in pace stops this from being a wholly successful film, but don't let that put you off from watching it—the positives far outweigh the negatives.

Heavily stylised scenes and surreal imagery combine with over-saturated hues to produce a most aesthetically pleasing film; the look is reminiscent of musicals from the 50s whilst the occasional moments of graphic ultra-violence could be straight out of a Tarantino movie. Each character is perfectly cast and the comic-book approach taken by the actors in the realisation of their roles complements the overall style of the film.

Tears of the Black Tiger is a fun film that is destined to become a cult favourite amongst fans of bizarre cinema (and may even improve on repeat viewings, as with most cult movies).

After his father was killed a young man named Dum joins a group of bandits who dress up cowboys and roam the countryside of Thailand. After joining them he soon has made a name for himself as the fasted gun in the east and which he is known as the Black Tiger. But in the back of his mind is a childhood sweetheart that grew up in the upper class of society and despite Dum coming from a poor family they decided to meet at a particular place to reunite. Though, Dum gets caught up in gunfight and misses the chance to be with his loved one. So because of that she is married off to a policeman, but this doesn't stop Dum from trying to get in contact with her, even if something always gets in between them.

Wow! Did someone splash some sort of painting on the screen? What a feast for the eyes, but the substance was clearly drowned out by the vibrant plateau of ultra-bright colours and by also the deviously campy style the director opted out for. These visuals just leap off the screen and were more than impressive. Sadly because of the style being the film's main strong hold, the story had to fall by the wayside, really. It's simple, but not always as compelling to that of what's happening in the background. It's one of those films when style is everything. Even the spoof element foreshadows the plot. Closer attention in building something stronger in the plot could have made this a more perfect viewing.

This Thai film is filled with many, that's MANY homage's from the western genre, especially that off Leone's spaghetti westerns. All of this is blended in with formulaic clichés and a romantic twist about fate. This tragic love story isn't particularly new, but the way they interwoven the eastern culture with the western. There are enough unpredictable patterns drawn up. The storyline isn't a linear one, because we explore into our protagonist's past midway through the flick, looking at why he became an outlaw and how important this girl has been in his life. While the opening and ending scenes are set in the present time. Actually, I was kind of confused about the whole setting, but I found out it's set in the modern times, but the outlaws are just dressed up as cowboys. Basically the film goes out of its way to blind us with it's weirdness and zestful context, but amongst all of this it mixes elements of Thai traditions to that of Hollywood successfully to give us a laugh and create some excitement along the way.

The production follows that of the early spaghetti westerns filming techniques. These things range from sharp editing, to the kinetic and circulating camera-work. The quick pans always seem to have a mind of its own. The pulsating score splashes out a variety of eastern, but also western themes. Even one of Ennio Morricone's themes from "The Good, the bad and the Ugly" is continuously given a spin. *Hmm* the score actually seems to be on a loop. The way the film looks it does come across like a stage show and the pacing is somewhat up and down. Although when it gets into Western extravaganza with the wild shootouts and loud explosions it's simply eye catching with the amount flair and wham-bang awe that's generated. These moment are filled with arty images, but they let the red paint spill out gratuitously. They do go over-the-top at times, like its been ripped out of a comic book. That can go to the final stand off, which has some panache about it and ends rather nasty. All I got to say is Ouch! That's gotta hurt! I kept asking myself if I was watching a cartoon and that's definitely because of the look, but also the performances. These characters were beyond cheesy, and all had massive egos, well except for the two leads that were kinda flat. Those outlaws with their colourful outfits and sinister laughter were just ridiculously hilarious! I just love how it found something to take the mickey out of. Everything about the film is well equipped with it being snazzy and polished up. Replacing the grit and rawness found in most spaghetti westerns, by keeping in the mode of the technicolour Hollywood westerns. Oh, well.

It's no more but a terribly cheesy parody (and a decent one too) with steroid pumping visuals. But a definite warning as this film is not for everyone. If you enjoyed the offbeat "The Happiness of the Katakuris" (2001) you might find something to like here.

Now where on earth did this movie come from? Why was there no warning? Shouldn't we have seen it coming somehow? Like PISTOL OPERA, TEARS OF THE BLACK TIGER boldly paints itself across the screen in bold bright colours as if to say to the rest of the movie making world "Are you so fresh out of ideas already?". Unlike PO though, TOTBT is not just utterly removed from filmic convention - it's just in utterly the wrong time and place.

The movie is basically a 1950's Hollywood Western/Melodrama... made in 21st Century Thailand (and with tongue firmly in cheek). The clothes, the hairstyles, the sets, the camerawork, the soundtrack, the acting, the script... all spot on for 50's America. The movie has even been bizarrely colourised in a way reminiscent of very early colour film stock, but obviously done digitally and deliberately, with an eye to the exact shifting of colours that best suits each shot. Hues are shifted to colours the world is not meant to be, and saturation is selectively ramped up to 1000 to create lurid pinks and shocking yellows and an absolutely unique look to the film. It looks weird, but fantastic.

TEARS OF THE BLACK TIGER has two major advantages over PISTOL OPERA. Firstly, they remembered to include a story. And it's a really good one... a melodrama in the finest tradition, featuring love and loss and friendship and rivalry and hatred and sorrow and jealousy and heroism and good and evil and all the finest things in life. The script is very well thought out, full of lots of details that are woven together in a way that keeps you on your toes.

The mood is definitely spoof, and absolutely pitch perfect. I haven't laughed out loud so much since SHAOLIN SOCCER, yet secretly really caring about what was going to happen to the characters. Acting is as over the top as the soundtrack, in permanent crescendo, delivered with a straight face and sincerity that would make the most melancholy of viewers at least giggle a bit.

I enjoyed this movie so much - so utterly out of nowhere, inexplicable, funny, sweet, moving,... where did these ideas come from? It all fits together and makes so much sense you think perhaps the idea was obvious all along, but I'm pretty sure that it was in exactly one persons head ever before he put it on film. And then there are few curveballs that are *definitely* ideas of an insane but brilliant mind .

Very highly recommended!

Tears of the Black Tiger is one of those films that works so hard to entertain you, it is hard not to enjoy immensely, if only for its sheer exuberance.

The story is simple. Dum, the Black Tiger, is the best shot there is. He works for a ragtag group of mercenaries lead by Fai, whose motto is, "If you're against Fai, you die". When they capture the captain of the military group trying to shut them down, Dum has to choose between his allegiance to his men or honouring the wish of his old flame, Rumpooey, who is engaged to the captain. That's about it really, but the story is not the reason to watch this film. Its main appeal lies in its style.

Shot with the tone of a Western but in the style and colours of Thai theatre, it is beautiful to watch and often hilarious in its tongue-in-cheek over-the-topness. Shootouts are frequent and bloody, yet wholly unrealistic. Yet they are never intended to be. The opening sequence sets the tone perfectly. As Dum and his colleague raid the hideout of traitors to Fai, the film plays a particularly extravagant stunt twice, offering the title card "Did you get that? If not, we'll show it again!" in the middle, playing the same sequence in more detail.

The set design and colouring of the film is exaggerated and lush, all deep reds and greens. There are frequent musical interludes, but not in the Bollywood style, rather songs which explain the emotional state of certain characters, the high point being the main love song - ridiculously over-sentimental - and the cowboy-esque Bonanza-style riding song, a country and western inspired, cheery melody about loneliness.

The five main characters - Dum, Rumpooey, Kumjorn, Fai and Mahesuan - are wonderful. Dum is all emotionless precision and repressed feelings, a man of action who hides his deep-down longing for his former love. Rumpooey, the love interest, is quietly hilarious in that she just never seems to do anything, a knowing side-swipe to cheap melodrama of the 50's. Kumjorn is the dashing, slightly pompous good guy that you don't want to win, but don't want to die either. The two best though, are Fai, a classic machine gun and vest bad guy who has the films funniest shot in his first shootout - look out for it, its quite subtle - and Mahesuan, Dum's right-hand man, who has the best evil laugh EVER, using it whenever he gets the chance, also one half of an inspired shootout or two. His duel in the first half hour is also one of the funniest shots for any film fan.

It is a very violent film, but the kind of violence that is truly comic-book, overly-red blood (think cheap hammer horror), taken to a level of exaggeration which rather than making you gag, just makes you wince and laugh. And that is the point. Some people have said that is just terrible, but it is knowingly terrible. It is never attempting to be anything like high art. And in its badness, it is often beautiful and brilliant.

The only niggle is that it has a tendency to slow down a little in its lingering, slow shots, but never for more than a couple of minutes in what is only an hour and a half of mickey-taking, action packed hilarity.

Good looks, good sets, good idea, great fun. 10/10

Sackley

Actually I caught this movie on TV as I was about to go to bed, and

it grabbed me immediately. Sure, it's parody and genre, but it's

other things too. It is visually eye-grabbing for a start. The odd

candy colors are partly reminiscent of The Wizard of Oz and The

King and I, but the total effect is disorientating, colder, more high

pitched: its clashing colors dominated by the piercing fuschia red,

but sometimes slanting off towards yellows, or sepias and soft

blues. In European terms it's like seeing the paintings of

Pontormo and Bronzino - a Mannerist palette on film. There is, I

imagine a lot of filtering and digital enhancement here. It's

self-conscious but no more so than any consistent vision has to

be. So the color comes first.

Immediately, you are pitched in an alternative reality of westerns

(Sergio Leone mixed with Zorro) and romances, but comic as the

'western' scenes are, these are not merely 'cool' parodies. The

style everywhere refers to memory, of period, of genre: if it is irony it

is a strange poignant irony in the service of poetry. The palette

changes with the genre, as does the framing. Parts of it are

presented as scenes in theaters.

The story is simple enough but acute in its balance of belief and

distance. It makes sense as an adult take on the feel of childhood.

I thought it marvelously original, funny and alarming. Oh far far far

better than the vastly cerebral Greenaway whose work might make

a reasonable aesthetic analogy.