Namtan Mai (2009)

I'm new to the thai entertainment. Of the douzain of lakorns that I've watched, I think the majority were either slap kiss or comedy. So my judgement may be biased by my lack of knowledge. Still this drama has much more qualities than I would have expected, from the ratings. I'll try to make this review simple.
What is great about this drama:
-The acting is really good, especially from the main leads and the older actors. Some of the support cast were not as great but at least everybody was on tone. Nobody was overacting or stomping their feet. Not even the antagonist. No shrieks, no sharp breathing...
-The relatable characters: the characters were very realistic, with very clear and simple motivations, and a rather sound way to get what they wanted. The protagonists were flawed and the antagonists were reasonable in their evilness.
- An almost feminist portrayal of women. Women are not passive victims in this drama. They have agency and make their own decisions. I was flabergasted to see an independant single mom working to support herself. And though I may be mistaken, I don't recall anyone talking of women as single use commodity. How refreshing. Also, miracle, no violence towards women per say in this lakorn!!
-The treatment of queer people as human beings. Nobody is caricatural and I really applaud the actors for that. They acted like all the gay people I've met (i.e in a normal way). And the gay relationships are really compelling and interesting. I only liked one of the gay characters and it was because of their actions, and not the "attitude".

As for the negative, I'd say there was not enough passion in this lakorn. Although the chemistry was sizzling between the main leads, and I even felt embarrassed watching some of their scenes in the beginning (I felt like peeping at a real relationship!), there is just not enough cute scenes throughout the drama. I think that may explain why the ratings are so low over all. But I was not too disappointed by that fact, I like well executed, well acted stories.
Overall I'd recommend this drama for the days when you don't want just a funny, cutesy story but something a bit heavier and more mature.

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