Me and Suteerak1099 watched this movie during the week and found it quite entertaining...there are subtitles at the cinema, but we were more engrossed with how the story was written...and as usual, the climax ~ that was almost "Shutter" quality.
JWNY rates 3 out of 5 stars
JWNY
Me...Myself ~ ขอให้รักจงเจริญ
Directed by Pongpat Wachirabunjong
Produced by Thanya Wachirabunjong / Piyaluck Mahatanasab
Starring Ananda Everingham / Chayanan Manomaisnatiphap
By Sorradithep Supachanya
He cooks. He cleans. He loves her for who she is, and he is everything her ex-boyfriend is not: gentle, sensitive, and supportive (no, you don’t look fat in that dress). What’s the problem? He’s gay and she doesn’t know it. Neither does he.
Such is the premise of Me Myself, a big screen directorial debut from veteran actor and television director Pongpat Wachirabunjong. It opens with a heartbroken Oom accidentally hitting a man and giving him amnesia. Feeling guilty, Oom takes him into her own apartment and calls him Tan after the word on the necklace found on him. They fall in love but soon discover that Tan is gay and, more shockingly, the star of a transvestite cabaret show in Phuket (don’t worry, this is not the climax; I’m not spoiling the movie for you).
Me Myself is supposedly a tear jerking romance but I had some troubles shedding tears because one element of the character and plot seems so incredible: can an amnesiac transvestite who suffers identity loss but fully retains his personality and normal intelligence “forget” his gay experience? As the movie later shows, Tan grows up among transvestite cabaret showgirls and has been cross-dressing and putting on makeup since childhood. So, it seems a little unrealistic that one tragic accident can completely suppress all these experience (yes, suppress because all the memories later return), and Tan feels nothing when he goes through Oom’s cosmetic kit and wardrobe or sees a cute guy walks on by.
After discovering Tan’s gay past, the movie seems to wanders aimlessly as it dabbles with various unconnected subplots, such as Tan’s readjustment to his cabaret lifestyle, Oom’s problem at work, and her relationship with her young nephew. It ignores topics of love, sexuality, or social acceptance. Was their love real? Is their love based on friendship rather than attraction (platonic vs. romantic)? Is he ready to question his sexuality and feeling? Can they live together? These are questions that come up after the revelation, but are never answered in the movie.
Personally, I feel that this movie would work better if Tan is never a transvestite showgirl. Cut out that element and we still have an enjoyable romantic story about guy without a past falling in love with a girl who wants to forget about her past. After all, the movie already seems that way, as it devotes most of its time to showing the audience how the two protagonists fall in love. In the beginning we see Oom treating Tan as a suspicious stranger and putting on three levels of locks on her bedroom door to keep him out. But, soon Oom notices how Tan supports her when she needs somebody (the stage show scene) or how he makes a fool of himself for her (the karaoke scene). This part of the movie is well-paced and the romance not only heavy on the emotions but also logical and believable. Here I must applaud screenwriter Kongdej Jaturanrasmee (whose work includes another tear jerker The Letter in 2004) for such as feat
Chainant Manomaisantiphab makes her acting debut here as Oom and is convincing as a sassy 20-something career woman, a reluctant host to a stranger, and a surrogate mother to her nephew. But, she is a little too stoical when it comes to displaying complex emotions after discovering Tan’s identity. Ananda Everingham (of Shutter fame) is excellent here playing Tan. Keep an eye on his small gestures, such as the way he sits or waves his hands, they clearly communicate his character of a guy with elusive past and conflicting emotions. He is surely among the best of his generation.