Movie No. 66 (2016): THE TEACHER'S DIARY

The Teacher's Diary (2014)
Director: Nithiwat Tharatorn
Cast: Sukrit Wisetkaew, Laila Boonyasak, Sukollawat Kanaros
In Thai, with English subtitles

I like this movie very much. There isn't any movie of the recent past that has affected this much.

The movie is about two teachers (Ann and Song) who have walked the same path but never met. They were assigned to a school floating on a lake in the outskirts of Chiang Mai but at different times. Both times, the number of pupils of different ages was small: seven during Ann's time, four during Song's. Ann came there first, Song a year later. He found Ann's diary in the decrepit school, which would be his one important connection to Ann. The other connection being the pupils under Song's care during his time. For both characters, their forced exile into the floating school cost them their respective relationships. The agreed on calling the floating school a school of the broken hearts. 

Song learns about Ann's triumphs, misgivings, and frustrations from her diary. The movie cuts from the present to past then from past to present seamlessly, giving the audience the two lead characters' back and present stories. The combined tight script and seamless editing is one of the movie's major strengths. The social relevance of the movie is tackled in a subtle yet resonating fashion. 

One can see this movie is romance-comedy. Indeed, it is as conveyed by the movies theme song a few lines of which go like this: "Have you ever seen what love is like? I haven't, but I feel it." The two lead actors have what it takes to lead in an effective romance comedy. This means their performances are believably great. 

This is very highly recommended.

Rating: 4.0/4.0

Date seen: August 28, 2016