GLASGOW FILM FESTIVAL 2020 - The Long Walk (Bor Mi Vanh Chark)
GLASGOW FILM FESTIVAL 2020
A genre-bending tale of ghosts, grief, and time travel, The Long Walk is an incredibly ambitious project, one that stumbles along the way but ultimately offers a unique experience that is unlike most other films out there.
Set in Laos, The Long Walk’s narrative is split into two different timelines: the first where a boy (Por Silatsa) figures out he can see the spirits of people who have died, and the second where the boy, now an old man (Yannawoutthi Chanthalungsy), learns that one of the spirits can allow him to travel in time. That’s all that can really be said without spoiling the film.
Silatsa gives a good performance. He delivers the appropriate emotions when needed and makes you feel sympathy for his character. Chanthalungsy also does a solid job. His motivations and desires are unclear for most of the running, and he portrays that mysteriousness in a compelling way. Vitaya Sombath, who plays the boy’s father, is the one noticeably weaker actor. His performance isn’t terrible but he tends to overact at certain points throughout, making those scenes harder to take seriously.
The script by Christopher Larsen cleverly reveals information about the characters and the plot very slowly, keeping audiences in a constant state of intrigue. The narrative may seem a bit obtuse at first, but the trail of breadcrumbs that is left behind helps the viewer be able to grasp it. However, some of the dialogue can be clunky. At times, the characters say things that don’t feel authentic, and it comes across like the writers trying to deliver information through the characters instead of coming across as naturalistic. Other bits of dialogue are written well, but the film is definitely better at visual storytelling. The subtle sci-fi elements are intriguing and help to establish the world and time period. They never attempt big special effects to show that it’s the future, instead relying on little technological things that fit in seamlessly. There are a lot of motifs and themes that serve to enrich the narrative. It is a disturbing experience, but unconventionally so. It takes a while for the darker elements to fully poke their head through, but once they do, it can be spine-tingling.
Mattie Do is a director to look out for if her future projects are as out of the box as this one is. She has a vision that is singularly unique, and it would be great to see what she can do with a higher budget. Matthew Machar’scinematography is great. It’s a pretty, cinematic-looking film, not too overly showy and rich with fantastic natural lighting. The way the camera moves and what it shows always feels purposeful and full of meaning. The score by Anthony Weeden never quite works as well as it should. Some tracks are simply too droning and menacing for the more subtle nuance of the rest of the film, and it seems like it’s trying to coerce you into being unsettled. However, there are ideas within the pieces, such as the all-too-brief vocals, that work well.
The Long Walk is not a film for everyone. Its slow pace and non-traditional narrative will put off a lot of people, but an equal amount will find it profound, disturbing, and moving. There are a fair few problems here, but the ambition shines through and makes it an unpredictable and mind-bending ride from start to finish.