10 Years of Second Run: Pedro Costa selects and introduces Tropical Malady (Sud pralad)

"A work of outstanding originality and power." Sight & Sound
"Sumptuous and scary, and a brilliant adventure in structure and style." The Guardian
"A beguiling masterpiece by the most exciting and adventurous young filmmaker in the world." The New York Sun

The film is introduced by Pedro Costa.

Winner of the Jury Prize at Cannes Film Festival 2004

A work of striking originality, Apichatpong’s visionary film exists in dual realms, exploring connected themes of love and desire in a radically different way. A fractured love story is interrupted by a feverish nighttime odyssey into the heart of the jungle where shape-shifting spirits and tigers abound. The conscious and the subconscious, the modern and the ancient, reality and myth - all become magically entwined in this hypnotic, mysterious drama.

Filmmaker Avi Mograbi also selected Tropical Malady with these words:

“My choice is Tropical Malady. All of Apichatpong’s films are indeed mysterious and much more than that. Again and again I find myself watching one of his films, get lost in the narrative, understanding very little, yet completely magnetized to the screen. Tropical Malady is no exception. I fell in love with the delicate and fragile love story of the first part and was completely dazed by the man/beast/ghost/cat jungle tango of the second. I was very happy that the film remained mysterious, strange and unresolved. What a piece of beauty.

When looking left and right on the Second Run DVD shelf, I see only distinguished films and distinguished filmmakers. From Miguel Gomes, from Mania Akbari to Miklós Jancsó, and Pedro Costa and Nicolas Philibert and so many more. So to find myself on this shelf, in the company of those remarkable filmmakers is a compliment."

Pedro Costa is one of the most celebrated voices in contemporary cinema. His unique works include Casa de Lava (1994), In Vanda’s Room (2000), Colossal Youth (2006) and Ne change rien (2009). His latest work, Horse Money, won the Best Director Prize at the 2014 Locarno International Film Festival, and is released in UK cinemas on September 18.

Tropical Malady, dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Thailand 2004, 114 mins, Thai with English subtitles.

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