Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
Suffering from acute kidney failure, Boonmee has chosen to spend his final days surrounded by his loved ones in the countryside. Surprisingly, the ghost of his deceased wife appears to care for him, and his long lost son returns home in a non-human form. Contemplating the reasons for his illness, Boonmee treks through the jungle with his family to a mysterious hilltop cave—the birthplace of his first life.
Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Palme d'Or winner is one of cinema's most genuinely singular works — a slow, meditative drift through Buddhist cosmology, animism, and mortality that operates on dream logic rather than conventional narrative. Cinematography is exceptional, with lush jungle imagery and ghostly apparitions rendered with quiet, matter-of-fact beauty that feels utterly distinctive. Novelty is very high: no other filmmaker makes films quite like this, blending folk mythology, reincarnation, and everyday Thai rural life in such an unhurried, non-hierarchical way. The plot is deliberately elliptical and non-dramatic — effective on its own terms but demanding patience. Acting is understated and naturalistic, appropriate but unremarkable. The ending, including the famous catfish digression, is dreamlike and thematically resonant but may frustrate viewers expecting resolution, making it above average rather than exceptional.