Pattaya Heat

Introduction by Ananda Everingham

A glorious ensemble including Thai stars Ananda Everingham (Shutter) and Thaneth Warakulnukroh (Bad Genius) bring their A game to this bodacious postmodern crime-action opus set in the country’s notorious “sin city.” At the center of the madness is an ex con assassin turned drug-dealing pizza maker, a corrupt cop with a twinkle in his eye and a rumble in his belly, a tarot card-dealing femme fatale, and a megalomaniacal crime king who makes Scarface look like a choir boy. These ne’er-do-wells cross and double-cross paths in an elaborate quest for riches in gold, leaving in their wake a trail of ultra-violence, rampant sexuality, and Thai-flavored dark humor. With a little help from movie friends Yang Kil-Yong (action director from the legendary Oldboy) and producer Shang Na (of Detective Chinatown 3 and Sheep Without a Shepherd fame), seasoned Chinese director Yang Shupeng, a NYAFF 2017 guest, has whipped up a plethora of pulpy influences into a furious cinematic cocktail that’s equal parts Tarantino, Woo, and something entirely its own.