October Sonata (2009) - full transcript

In this place,

there isn't just sand,

rocks,

or the sea.

For me,

a lot has happened here

and every time I come back,

the sea breeze
brings back all those memories.

I can still remember that day.

It was the day that Mitr Chaibancha,

my most favorite actor,



passed away.

OCTOBER 8TH, 1970

Please don't shove each other.

The hall can't fit any more people.

Please stay in the front of the hall.

Don't push or shove.

Mr. Mitr Chaibancha is really dead.

In just a moment, we will show you
Mr. Mitr Chaibancha's body

through the hall's window.

Please don't push each other up the hall.

Hey!

Hey!

Are you okay now?

Where are you headed?



To Chon Buri.

I'm heading there, too.

I'm taking these things
to my friend's house.

Can I go with you?

You came here
for Mitr Chaibancha's funeral, too?

How come those who play the villains

aren't the ones to go first?

Why did it have to be the hero
Mitr Chaibancha?

It's not fair.

Whether they play a hero or a villain,

their lives matter equally
in real life, right?

How can a hero's life be viewed
as equal to that of a villain's?

But all lives have equal value.

No, they don't.

No matter what.

Of course, they do.

No, they don't.

They do.

They don't.

-They do.
-They don't.

-They do!
-They don't!

Stop, stop, stop.

Where exactly do you want me
to drop you off?

What is it?

Is this Dongtan Beach?

No.

I want to go to Dongtan.

Why do you want to go there?

I want to see where Mitr Chaibancha
fell from the helicopter.

Where is your house exactly?

Bobae Market.

I have to go abroad tomorrow.

Shit.

Hey!

Hey!

Hey!

Hey!

Here.

If you want to go to Dongtan Beach,
you'll have to go on your own.

But if you want to go home,
you can come with me.

Hey.

You want to see something beautiful?

Wow.

Just by turning the lights off
and on,

the world we see
can look completely different.

Turn it off again then.

How can I drive without the lights?

Na!

Na!

Na!

Maybe I arrived too late.

Will it be a problem

if we have to find a place
to stay around here?

SANMOOK HOTEL

Here we are.

What happened to your foot?

I cut myself on a rock.

Come.

Hello.

Can we have two rooms, please?

We only have one bungalow left.

We do have to stay here tonight.

You understand, right?

Please give me the key then.

Sure.

Please sign here.

What's your name?

MR. RAWEE

I'm Rawee.

It means "the sun."

Your name is the opposite of mine.
I'm Saengchan.

Your name means "moonlight"?

That's a beautiful name.

Here's your key.

You go and shower first.

I'll wait outside.

Haven't you slept yet?

But where will you sleep?

Don't worry about me.

It's just a few hours until dawn.

And you really have to go abroad tomorrow?

Yes.

What are you going to do there?

I'm going to study for my master's degree.

Wow.

You must come from a rich family.

No, not at all.

Actually,

my family are farmers.

What are you doing?

I'll clean your wound.

Who hit you?

My Aunt Shoob.

What about your parents?

I've never seen my father.

As for my mother...

she promised

she'd bring me home.

My dad

left me at the temple...

and never came back.

How long ago was that?

Eleven years ago.

Mine has been ten years.

Thank you.

Have you ever read this book?

WAR OF LIFE
BY SRI BURAPHA

What's it about?

It's a love story of a poor couple.

"Home

has such a nice ring to it, Plern.

Sometimes I love home,

sometimes I can't stand it.

Actually, I wouldn't even have time
to be bored of home

even if every house in this world
were the same.

Young orphans

were sadly punished since birth.

I pray for those kids every single night.

I even pray for the King's children.

I still pray without fail."

"Please consider me your friend,

to share your grief and happiness forever.

I won't leave you,

just like the sun doesn't leave the Earth,

and I won't forget you,

just like you don't forget to breathe."

"I won't leave you,

just like the sun
doesn't leave the Earth."

I want to be like Plern.

Here, finish reading it.

Then tell me

if you still want to be like Plern.

But you're leaving tomorrow.

How can I tell you?

Then tell me in two years.

And where would I find you?

Here.

On the 8th of October, then.

Okay.

On the 8th of October.

Promise?

Promise.

Have you seen Rawee?

The one who came with you last night?

Yes.

He left at dawn.

What's wrong?

What happened to you?

My Aunt Shoob burnt me
with a cigarette.

What a cruel woman!

Stop sobbing now.

No one will abuse you here.

But if you don't do a good job,
you'll get fired.

Supaphorn?

Can you...

Can you read this for me?

"You were asleep,

so I didn't want to wake you.

I'll drop my luggage at Mana's home first.

When I'm done,

I'll return to take you back to Bangkok.

Wait for me.

Love,

Rawee."

Rawee didn't leave me.

Who is Rawee?

Rawee...

He's studying abroad.

He'll come back to see me in two years.

No wonder your Aunt Shoob kicked you out.

Supaphorn.

Can I go and study in the evening?

What?

I'd like to ask if I can go to school.

A-N-T, ant.

A-N-T, ant.

B-E-E, bee.

B-E-E, bee.

C-A-T, cat.

C-A-T, cat.

D-O-G, dog.

D-O-G, dog.

F-R...

I...

E...

N...

D.

Friend.

"Friend."

It's pronounced "friend."

Hello.

Excuse me. Sorry.

-Wait.
-What?

Your zipper broke.

Sorry.

Hello.

I have something for you.

What is it?

Zippers.

Well, we sell these in my house.
We've got dozens.

Thank you.

We sew clothes at home as well.

So we have dozens of zippers, too.

And where do you live?

Around Saket Temple.

And you?

Oh, I'm at Sampheng.

Sampheng Chinese merchant.

So, why are you just studying now?

I've only been in Thailand for five years.

So where were you before that?

In China.

Where?

China.

China.

Oh, so you're an immigrant.

No.

I'm Thai, but of Chinese descent.

My last name is Sae Lim.

How about this?

I'll call you gege Lim.

No, that's not good.

Just call me Lim, it's more Thai.

We're here.

This is it.

Supaphorn's house.

My employer.

I'll see you again tomorrow
then, Saengchan.

You can call me "Plern."

I'll change my name to Plern.

Plern is a nice name, too.

Well, then,
can I walk with you again tomorrow?

Of course, Lim.

Thank you, Saengchan.

Plern!

Oh. Yes, Plern.

-Goodbye then.
-All right.

I...

Apostrophe...

D...

I'd.

L...

I...

K...

E...

Like.

"I'd like to be a writer,

so that I can use sweet and poetic words

to pursue Plern."

He...

has...

fish.

Thank you, Lim.

Of course.

"She came and kissed me goodbye

for the last time.

It's time for us to die."

"The story in this last chapter

is so dark

that I can't see a thing."

"I have to say goodbye to you,

my love."

"Don't kill me in cold blood.

Kill me like I'm your lover

and let me die as your lover, my love."

This is the book I was talking about.

Lim, you should read it.

It's very good.

Thank you.

Oh, sorry.

It seems like you really love this book.

Sorry.

That's okay.

Plern, would you like to have
your own clothing store?

Then you'll have to learn,
how to draw patterns.

I don't have time
to go to school for that.

You don't need a school.

Just learn from someone
who's good at it.

But who would I learn from?

I'll take you there later.

Thank you.

Hello, Mrs. Ratree.

I have a delivery for you.

Hello, Lim.

Hello, ma'am.

Is this the girl you were talking about?

Yes.

Did you stitch this outfit yourself?

Yes.

Is everything there?

Yes.

And did you deliver
the school's order?

Yes, I did that yesterday.

When can you start?

You're going to hire me now?

Yes.

Tomorrow then.

MOM - DEVIL

DEVIL

"People vary and are different.

It's the reality, no doubt.

There are the lower class,
upper class, servants, owners,

bondmen, bosses.

But another thought,

a more modern one,

believes

that the difference between us

is just perception.

So,

it is something that can be changed."

-Hello, Lim.
-Hello, Jib.

Oh, Lim.

Who is this?

Rawee.

He's studying aboard right now.

He'll be back in a few months.

What kind of book is this?
It's not even fun to read.

Why don't you like it?

I think it's very profound.

You don't like it?

I didn't finish it.

It's a waste of time.

Sign here, please.

PLERN

Sign again.
Your name is Saengchan, not Plern.

What's the matter with you?

OCTOBER

Three meters, please.

"You were asleep,

so I didn't want to wake you.

I'll drop my luggage at Mana's home first.

When I'm done,

I'll return to take you back to Bangkok.

Wait for me.

Love,

Rawee."

MISS PLERN WONG...

OCTOBER 8TH, 1972

Bungalow 11.

Thank you.

Rawee!

SANMOOK HOTEL

Plern.

Oh, Lim.

Let me give you a ride.

Is that your car?

Yes, hop in.

I have something to show you.

What is it?

I can't tell you right now.

You have to come with me.

Come on.

Mind your head.

My father bought this house for me.

I'm going to be the owner of my own store.

So you'll be your own boss now.

Yes.

Now,

I have a house

and my own store.

I...

I'm ready to start a family.

Bring back democracy!

Bring back the constitution!

We don't want to be ruled
by a dictator!

Marry me.

Will you marry me?

I...

I don't think of you that way.

Hang on...

But I love you.

Let go.

Lim, let go.

I want to go home.

You're still waiting for Rawee,
aren't you?

What are you talking about?

Last year,

you waited for him, but he didn't show up.

How do you know?

I...

I followed you.

Are you a detective now?

Following me around.

Whatever I do
and whoever I want to wait for

is my business.

That man has forgotten about you.

It's none of your business!

You read that novel too much.

Plern isn't even your real name.

Your name is Saengchan.

Plern is the heroine's name in a novel.

If I want to be called Plern

or Saengchan,

that's up to me.

It has nothing to do with you!

COLLEGE STUDENTS ARRESTED

STUDENT DEMONSTRATORS FILL THE CITY
DEMANDING CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

Excuse me.

I'll be off now.

Is Mrs. Samon's outfit ready?

Yes, it's done.

Okay, off you go.

Anything else?

Well,

I haven't received any pay.

How can you ask for money?

I don't have anything on me.

I give you three meals a day,

provide you with shelter.

Is that not enough?

But...

I've worked for you
for two years already.

So you're saying I owe you?

No.

It's just...

I think it's only fair...

And I've been unfair to you?

Tell me,

when have I been unfair to you?

If you were me,

and worked for no money,

you'd...

Don't ever compare yourself to me.

We were different from birth.

But doesn't every life have equal value?

Do you know who you're talking to?

Get out of my house.

Get out!

OCTOBER 8TH, 1973

Why are you here?

I was at your employer's house.

I've never seen her so mad or angry.

I just asked to be treated fairly.

So where are you
going to stay now?

How will you survive?

How can you wait for a man
who deceived you?

Don't bother me!

You know...

when my dad

moved to Thailand from China...

he promised my mom

that once things are sorted,

he'll bring my mom here.

Every single day,

she waited,

waited for my dad to come back...

but he never did.

Because

once he came to Thailand,

he had a new wife.

So why are you telling me this?

I think this man, Rawee...

he's like my dad.

Rawee is a good,

educated man,

not a loser roaming around
with a reed mat and pillow like your dad.

You haven't eaten all day.

Eat something first.

Eat.

Why are you doing this?

Because I love you, Plern.

Call me Saengchan.

You were right.

My name is Saengchan.

Plern...

is just the heroine's name in a novel.

My name is Saengchan.

I'm Saengchan.

SAENGCHAN

That will be 63 baht.

-Thirty.
-Thank you.

Your outfit will be ready on the 7th.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Are you hungry?

That's a good idea.

It's still quiet.

Wait for a second. I'll heat up the soup.

OCTOBER 8TH, 1974

MRS. SAENGCHAN

Here's the key.

Thank you.

Are you Saengchan?

Yes.

There's a letter for you.

It arrived a long time ago.

Thank you.

Saengchan.

Why did you arrive only now?

Where were you?

Why did you just get here?

Why did you just get here?

Why did you just get here?

Why did you just get here?

Why?

In the year 1972, I was still in America,

but I sent Mana a letter for you.

Excuse me.

Can you deliver this letter to Saengchan?

SAENGCHAN

Is this the letter?

And the following year,

where were you?

I was in prison

for persuading people to conspire
and protest against the government.

And all this time,

how have you been?

I went to school.

Now I can read.

When we met,

you couldn't read?

It must be a monsoon

that passes through every year.

It's a seasonal wind

that comes around as promised.

Why does it have to
bring back memories, too?

Who are you with now?

Would it be okay if...

we don't talk about our personal lives?

I just want to stop the world for a day.

Then let's not allow the rain
to trap us in this room.

Right?

"The weather is so clear this morning.

I don't want to leave,

but I have to go back to reality.

I can't just turn off the lights

and lie to myself

that the lights we see
on the fireflies are stars."

"I asked myself all the time

why you weren't there
waiting for me that morning."

"It might sound cruel

to compare our relationship

with just a dream

that goes away when we wake up."

"If you receive this letter,

it means

you have come back to Sanmook Hotel

as we'd promised."

"I still haven't answered you,

if I still want to be Plern.

Honestly,

I now understand Plern better.

I understand why she had to marry
the man she didn't love.

I understand her sorrows

of being apart from the person
she really loves.

I don't want to be like Plern,

but I've already become Plern."

"If anything changes again,

I hope that you will keep this date,

time,

and this place

as our rendezvous."

BANGKOK - CHON BURI

I went to Sanmook bungalow.

I was about to come and pick you up,

but couldn't get there,

because the road was closed off.

Aren't you going to ask

where I've been?

You're very drunk.

Go to sleep now.

I went to a gentleman's club.

I was wenching.

Go and take a shower.

No.

If not, then go to sleep.

Let's go. I'll take you.

Go to sleep.

Be careful.

OCTOBER 8TH, 1975

I'M WAITING FOR YOU HERE.

Rawee!

Rawee!

My friends and I built this place

so that the kids can read.

You're so generous and kind.

I've received help
from others before.

Now I'm ready to help those in need,

even though
a professor's salary isn't much.

All your students are very lucky.

I have something for you.

What is it?

My first typewriter.

Is it for me?

Yes.

It's something I love.

I want you to keep it.

But I'm not a writer.

It won't be of much use to me.

Just try it

and then tell me if you can be a writer.

In that case,

this student will submit something
to you next year,

Professor.

Promise?

Promise.

Thank you.

Young man,
your girlfriend is very beautiful.

When I was a young man,
my girlfriend was beautiful, too.

Bullshit.

No, I'm not.
I'm still sexually active.

AT NIGHT

THAT WAS WONDERFUL

Here's your key.

-Your room is upstairs.
-Okay.

Due to the current situation,
the groups involved

consist of college students
and the general public

who have assisted in communist terrorism,

causing trouble in the city.

In order to end this
and bring back peace,

the democratic reform committee

has taken over the government

from 6:00 p.m.

on October 6th, 1976.

PEOPLE - POLICE
FLEE OUT OF COUNTRY

SENI CALLS ON EMERGENCY
CABINET MEETING

DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY

FULL OF IDEOLOGY

OCTOBER 8TH, 1976

-Why are you burning them?
-They're books of communists.

They are not.

The people who built this place
are communists.

These are books of communists!

Move!

They're all children's books.

OCTOBER 8TH, 1977

Here's your order.

Thank you.

Can you leave it in the room, please?

Okay.

BECAUSE LIFE

SANMOOK HOTEL

OCTOBER 8TH, 1978

SANMOOK HOTEL

OCTOBER 8TH, 1979

Rawee!

Lim.

That man doesn't love you, Saengchan.

Come back to me.

How long have you been
waiting for him?

Do you ever see him?

How long are you going to wait
for a man who doesn't even exist?

How many days,

months, and years?

This man...

exists.

I have feelings

and I love you everyday,

every month,

every year,

and every single minute.

Lim, don't love someone like me.

But I love you, Saengchan.

Let go.

Lim, let go!

We all make mistakes.

I'm not mad at you.

Can we start again?

So we can be part of the same family

with a dad,

a mom,

and children.

Our children will call me "Papa"

and you "Mama."

Lim...

You're a good man.

I don't deserve you.

If I'm such a good man...

why do you have to leave me?

I don't want to be good anymore.

Lim. Enough.

I don't want to be
a good person anymore.

I don't want to be a good person.

Lim. Let go!

Don't!

Don't!

Let go of me.

Lim!

Let go!

Lim!

POLICY NO. 66/2523:

THE GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES
THAT ALL COLLEGE STUDENTS

AND THOSE INVOLVED
IN THE COMMUNIST PARTY

CAN COME OUT OF THE JUNGLE
AND TURN THEMSELVES IN

FREE OF PRESSED CHARGES.

SAENGCHAN

You're shutting down the business?

There's a lot to deal with at the factory.

Not enough time for this store.

-Lim.
-Yeah?

Let's go.

FOR SALE
TEL 221915

Excuse me.

The owner of this shop, Saengchan,
where did she go?

She packed up all her things
and went after a man a long time ago.

And do you know
where she could be now?

Who knows?

Even her husband doesn't know.

This typewriter,

the new owner of the land
let you borrow it.

Who is he?

Mr. Somchai.

He's from Bangkok.

He bought this land
from the previous owner

and asked me to take care of it.

When he comes back,

can you let me know?

I want to thank him

for letting me stay here.

Okay.

Make yourself at home.

I'll come back tomorrow.

Thank you.

Rawee, you don't look too good.

Maybe you should see a doctor.

I'm okay.

Did Saengchan write this?

I saw Saengchan

typing all day and all night.

If I may ask,

where were you during that time?

I had to hide in the jungle

because I was accused
of being a communist.

But now,

everything has calmed down
and is back to normal.

So, Saengchan...

comes here every year, right?

Yes.

On every 8th of October,

she kept coming
until the bungalow shut down.

Even after that,

she still came.

"He's like the sun,

the light piercing through my heart.

I...

I'm like the moon

shining soft dreamy light
throughout the night.

Every morning,

I'm at the edge of the Earth

glancing at him, shining on everyone."

OCTOBER 8TH, 1981

THREE YEARS LATER

Hello.

Come on in.

Would you like anything?
Coffee or

-water?
-No. Thank you

What did you want to talk to me about?

This latest work of yours

is different from the earlier ones.

You've been close to people
in the labor industry

and all of a sudden, what inspired you
to write a romantic piece like this?

If...

you don't see it suitable to print,

that's okay.

It's not that.

I didn't say I wouldn't print it.

So...

why did you call me here?

Well, your story...
I'd like you to see this one.

It's like

it's been written by the same person.

...BECAUSE I LOVE HIM.

HIS NAME IS RAWEE, WHICH MEANS THE SUN

Where did you get this manuscript from?

Someone sent it to me to get printed.

What's the person's name?

I don't know.

But when he knew it was similar to yours,

he was very happy,

and he asked me to tell you

that he'll meet you

on the 8th of October.

OCTOBER 8TH, 1984

You didn't expect
to see me here, right?

You're the one who gave
the manuscript to the publisher?

Yes.

But where did you get it?

So, you're Rawee?

And you're Somchai?

The one who bought this bungalow.

You don't look too well.

Did you see a doctor?

I...

I'm not going anywhere.

I just want to stay here.

Let me stay here.

Today is the 8th of October.

Saengchan will be back.

Saengchan will be back.

Saengchan will be back.

Saengchan will be back.

He's gone...

because the malaria
had progressed to his brain.

Saengchan.

Rawee.

Today

is the 8th of October,

the same day Rawee left this world.

Even though we had
only a short time together,

he changed my life...

My entire life.

DEDICATED TO SRI BURAPHA
KULAP SAIPRADIT