GAME CHANGER (โกงพลิกเกม) (2021)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Tiwa Moeithaisong
Cast: Pittawat Pruksakit (Twopee Southside), Issara Kitnitchi (Tom), Kyutae Sim, Khunnaphat Pichetworawut (Pond), Ploypailin Thangprapaporn, Day Thaitanium
Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins
Rating: NC16 (Violence & Coarse language)
Released By: Clover Films
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 7 October 2021

Synopsis: The city is overrun by competing gangs of mafia. Each of them runs a different kind of racket, and all of them are hungry for money and power. But because of BOSS, they co-exist in a sort of peaceful agreement: Boss collects dirty money from every gang, manages it for everyone's interest, and finds a balance between law and lawlessness. TEE, KID, SIM and TUEK have come from anonymous background, but they're Boss's closest aides. The game changing point arrives when Boss dies unexpectedly, and the four of them now want to take over his rule. They decide to keep Boss's death a secret and continue to run the rackets as he did. By pretending that Boss is still alive and using his name to collect money from other gangs, the four friends find themselves in a more dangerous situation. Their plan to deceive others is double crossed, and when they think they're the hunters, they end up being hunted themselves. Will their secret be safe from the outlaws as well as the law enforcers?

Movie Review:

If this movie was made in Hong Kong, you’d expect plenty of stylistic violence, many exhilarating gunfight sequences and guys dressed in cool (but not very practical) trench coats. But a Hong Kongmafia movie this is not. Directed by Tiwa Moeithaisong, this action comedy is set in Thailandand you can expect a bit of everything in this adequately entertaining popcorn flick.

We are introduced to the movie’s four lead characters Tee, Kid, Sim and Tuek as they carry out somewhat of a mini heist when a group of rich hotel guests check in. It is a fun sequence, and we begin looking forward to what the movie has in store. Then we are told that the four guys are aides to a character simply known as Boss. The backdrop of the story is a messy one, with different mafia gangs running the show. Things are kept in check by Boss, who dies suddenly (and funnily, in our opinion). The four guys then step up to assume Boss’s identity, and as you’d expect, things become amok.

The movie tries its hand at everything. Being a Thai production, there is what you’d expect from a Thai comedy, but it doesn’t go all out because essentially, this is still a story about gangsters and violence. There are some gritty moments filled with violence (hence the NC16 rating), complete with trippy cinematography inspired by British mafia movies. There is even a scene involving drugs that reminds us of Trainspotting (1996). And what’s a movie without some romance? There is a side plot about one of the guys falling in love with the antagonist’s sister – cue sappy sequences featuring motorcycle rides, ice cream and a sandy beach.

The actors do a fine job with the roles they are given. Pittawat Pruksakit’s Tee is the suave one oozing with charisma, Issara Kitnitchi’s Kid is the cool one who gets to showcase an attitude while sucking on a lollipop, while Kyutae Sim’s Sim and Khunnaphat Pichetworawut’s Tuek are the goofy ones in charge of generating laughs. Ploypailin Thangprapaporn’s Joy is Tee’s love interest, so you can expect her to be sweet, demure and immensely likeable. There are a few other side characters (read: the bad guys) who unfortunately do not get enough screen time for us to understand their personalities. Amidst the frenzy, they just serve as snarling villains who are out to make things difficult for the good guys.

As the 102 minute movie progresses, you can guess where the story is headed towards (the film actually begins with Tee lamenting how he got himself into a bad situation, before the tale is told as a flashback), but you don’t mind that things are being revealed in a predictable manner (complete with some radio friendly Thai tunes) because we’re all in it for entertainment, which is what we’ll get when the end credits appear.

Movie Rating:

(An entertaining popcorn flick with a bit of everything - style, violence, humour and romance)

Review by John Li