Two years ago, I introduced a new feature film directed by Lasse Nielsen: The Story of Net. Thanks to Discovery Communications Pte Ltd and Living Films, I had the opportunity to watch the movie. The Story of Net focuses on the experiences of one 12-year-old Thai boy. After the death of his mother, he sets out on a quest to find his father (who never knew he had a son). As if that isn’t a challenge on it own, the little Net can neither speak nor hear, although through the years he has learned to read the lips of the people who speak to him.
Taking into consideration that The Story of Net is a low budget film, I must admit that the quality of the picture and the sound does not suffer from the lack of resources. When it comes to the film’s soundtrack, while I liked most of the soft music accompaniment, at times the recording included some classical songs which felt artificial and unsuitable for the premise of the story.
If anyone expects a highly charged drama, The Story of Net will not offer it. Instead, the film feels like a daily account of life in small village in Thailand. The actors (all amateurs with no previous acting experience) did a good job in the film, especially the young lead in the role of Net. He was so convincing in his role that I would have remained with the impression that the boy really can’t speak, had it not been for the Making of Net feature included with the DVD). The dialogue is in the Thai language, with English subtitles provided.
Whether you will like this film or not is quite subjective. The storytelling is intriguing and, while you are unlikely to be touched by emotional scenes or excited by the action scenes, the film is entertaining in its own way, providing the viewer with a sneak peek into the life of the young protagonist and the people he encounters. The coming of age element is present and things such as friendship, discovery and first-love may intrigue the most devoted fans of the genre.
The DVD of the film can be purchased from Discovery Releasing
It is impressive how Mr. Nielsen has been able to motivate and excite
the villagers – a group of Thais that has never before been in contact
with film, except as passive onlookers in front of the family
television.
Aside from the basic story, the film realistically portrays village life in a
small, hot part of Thailand, including the daily struggles as well as
joys and hopes of the villagers.
The boy that plays Net impressed me greatly. He plays the role so convincing
that it is a surprise to know that he is not deaf in real life.
The picture and sound quality is also impressive, considering
the film crew were learning while recording the film.
The soundtrack at first surprised me, as it consists of both Thai music and
‘western’ classical music. But after thinking about it for a while I
think it is one of the ways the director is trying to pull the
story out of any narrow Thai context and suggest a universal meaning.
The history is, as I see it, the storytelling villagers combined hopes for the future.
One point of the movie is that even when conditions are difficult,
life can still move toward harmony. It is here you can sense the villagers Buddhist
background.
“The Story of Net” is a movie with scenes of great beauty – a
‘coming-of-age’ film that leaves you with an optimistic feeling about
the future of mankind.
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