The hit Thai film
moving TikTokers to
tears
5 hours ago
By Kelly Ng, BBC News
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GDH 559
The internet is awash with teary faces of those
who have watched the hit Thai film
A Thai film about a young man caring
for his dying grandmother as he vies
for her fortune has struck a chord in
South East Asia, where TikTokers'
teary responses are going viral.
How to Make Millions Before
Grandma Dies has topped box offices
across the region since it was released
in April.
The film follows M, who is plotting to
win an inheritance from his cancer-
stricken grandmother, but begins to
question his motives as he grows
closer to her.
The story appears to have deeply
resonated with moviegoers, who have
been sharing emotional videos of
themselves before and after watching
the film.
"Running over to hug my grandma
now! Exceptionally touching film...
This movie hit even harder because it
reminded me of my own relationship
with my grandma," wrote a TikTok
user ianjeevan.
Young people have posted online
about how they were especially moved
by scenes where the grandmother was
in pain and kept calling out for her late
parents to “take [me] with them”.
"I cried so much that all of my make up
was gone after the movie," one
TikToker said, referring to those
scenes.
Another, diariesofswan, said: "After
the movie, cry. Just cry, when you
miss someone, whom you can't even
hug or hear their voice anymore."
The movie was inspired by
scriptwriter Thodsapon
Thiptinnakorn's relationship with his
grandmother. And it is director Pat
Boonnitipat's first feature film. He told
the BBC he was "really surprised" by
the overwhelming response, and that
the movie's appeal lay in its ability to
tap into the "conflicted" nature of
family relationships.
Part-dark comedy and part-tear-
jerker, the story revolves around a
dysfunctional family that uses the
matriarchʼs diagnosis to scheme for
her fortune.
M, played by 24-year-old singer-actor
Putthipong Assaratanakul, is one of
them. The college dropout moves in
with his ailing grandmother,
ostensibly to help care for her.
Well aware of her family's intentions,
the matriarch – Mʼs grandmother,
played by Usha Seamkhum –
nevertheless loves and accepts her
children.
Ms Seamkhum, 78, has recieved rave
reviews for her acting debut. Film
critic James Marsh called her
“absolutely sensational” as the
“figurehead of this morally
questionable rabble”.
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The realtionship between M and his grandmother
has moved many who have watched the film
Other than her, the characters are far
from likeable - Mr Marsh described
them as "loathsome" even. Yet this tale
of scheming family versus loveable
grandmother appears to have touched
many.
"We love them, we also hate them, but
we also have to live with them. And
sometimes we neglect them. Perhaps
this movie reflects the many, many
angles of that complexity of a big
family," director Pat Boonnitipat said.
Some of those who watched the film
said it reminded them to spend time
with their loved ones, while others
said it rekindled memories of their
grandparents or parents who had died.
One TikTok user advised people to
"bring many boxes of tissue if you are
going to watch this movie". Some clips
online show staff handing out tissues
to moviegoers as they walk into the
cinema.
Malaysia's largest cinema GSC has
marketed the film as a must-watch for
people who "need a good cry", while
SM Cinema in the Philippines had
staff giving out tissues outside
theatres showing the film.
Ticket sales in Thailand crossed 250m
baht ($6.9m, £5.3m) in the first 14 days
of its release, making it 11th highest
grossing Thai film.
It has also become the most successful
Asian movie to hit screens in
Indonesia, and the highest-grossing
Thai movie in Singapore and Malaysia.
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