Director: Josh Kim
Running Time: 80 mins
Certificate: NR (US)
Release Date: February 2nd 2016 (US)
How To Win At Checkers (Every Time) was Thailand’s entry for this year’s Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, and it’s a shame it didn’t get a nomination, as it’s a really good movie.
Oat is an orphan, being looked after by his older brother and (to some extent) his aunt. Oat’s brother, Ek, is doing his best to ensure they have enough money to survive, but their lives are slightly precarious. Ek is also dating the much wealthier Jai, a young man who’s very different to him, but who he loves.
While Ek is trying to help Oat’s journey to manhood, their lives are thrown into turmoil when Ek gets a letter from the military telling him that it’s his turn to go into the lottery for the draft – and that if he picks wrong, he will have enter the military for two years. While Jai manoeuvres to bribe his way out of the draft, Oat has ideas of his own on how to stop his brother having to go, but they may just cause more trouble. [Read more…]