At the Horizon

I saw this because I'd never seen a Laotian movie before and my friend is married to a Laotian woman. It started out as a revenge drama but had an unexpected ending that left me thinking about the film after I'd left the theater.

Sin (and I think his name was no accident) is a rich young man in Laos whose arrogance and ego know no bounds. He constantly cheats on his girlfriend and thinks he can buy his way out of any situation. Lud is a mute man who works as a scooter repairman and has a wife and daughter. Sin wrecks Lud's world and Lud seeks revenge. That's all I'll say about the plot.

Perhaps the director through the movie sought to blast the inequality in Laos, one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world. I have no doubt that people like Sin exist in Laos, and that money is often considered a solution to any problem there. Also, Laos is a Buddhist country and Lud's character displayed traits of compassion that the Buddha taught. The ending was unexpected but satisfying and enlightening nonetheless. The film's quality was quite high though you could see it was a low-budget work.

Incidentally, the actor who played Lud resembles Manny Pacquiao. No wonder he got a part.

Highly recommended.