''Patong Girl'' is a 2014 German-Thai
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
written and directed by
Susanna Salonen
Susanna Salonen is a Finnish-German film director, screenwriter and cinematographer. Born in 1966 in Finland, Salonen grew up in Lübeck and trained as a camerawoman in Berlin. She has shot several award-winning documentaries, and written and di ...
. The film premiered on the Festival of German film in
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
. It was theatrically released in Germany on 25 December 2014 and in Thailand 21 April 2016. The film premiered in the U.S. at the
Austin Film Festival
Austin Film Festival (AFF), founded in 1994, is an organization in Austin, Texas, that focuses on writers’ creative contributions to film. Initially, AFF was called the Austin Heart of Film Screenwriters Conference and functioned to launch the ...
2014.
Plot
The German Schroeder family spends their Christmas holidays on the Thai island of
Phuket
Phuket (; th, ภูเก็ต, , ms, Bukit or ''Tongkah''; Hokkien:普吉; ) is one of the southern provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, the country's largest island, and another 32 smaller islands of ...
, and in one of the sleazy bars of
Patong Beach
Patong ( th, ป่าตอง , ) refers to the beach and town on Phuket's west coast. It is the main tourist resort on the island of Phuket, and is the centre of Phuket's nightlife and shopping. The beach became popular with Western tourists, e ...
, 18-year-old son Felix falls in love with a young, gorgeous Thai woman. Felix's brother Tommy is sure that Fai is a prostitute, his parents are uneasy about Felix's love for her, too. After a tearful goodbye at the end of the holidays, Felix spontaneously decides to follow his heart - and to stay in Thailand. Alarmed, his mother Annegret forfeits her return ticket - she will not leave Felix by himself in this foreign country with a "prostitute". Felix joins Fai on the bus to her home town in
Isaan
Northeast Thailand or Isan (Isan/ th, อีสาน, ; lo, ອີສານ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pali ''īsānna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 provin ...
. During the bus-ride he learns that Fai is not exactly the woman he thought she was - fearing rejection, Fai had not revealed her transgender identity. Meanwhile, Annegret is looking for her son.
Cast
*
Max Mauff
Maximilian "Max" Mauff (born 3 July 1987) is a German actor.
Life and career
Mauff started acting in the child theatre. Later he had first roles in short movies by Aelrun Goette. In 2002 he had his first leading role as ''Tristan'' in Kai Wes ...
as Felix
*
Aisawanya Areyawattana as Fai
*
Victoria Trauttmansdorff as Annegret
* Uwe Preuss as Ulrich
* Marcel Glauche as Tommy
Reception
In 2016, Patong Girl was awarded the German
Grimme-Award for screenplay, directing, production and main cast.
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, 2974502
Patong Girl - official webpage
2014 films
2014 comedy-drama films
2014 romance films
2014 LGBT-related films
2010s German films
German comedy-drama films
German romance films
Thai comedy-drama films
Thai romance films
German LGBT-related films
Thai LGBT-related films
Films set in Phuket
Transgender-related films