Film Review: DIARY (2006)

Directed by Oxide Pang Chun (of the Pang Brothers fame) "Diary" is a psychological thriller less showy than his previous films "The Eye" Trilogy or "The Messengers" or his other 2006 film "Re-Cycle" as it involves a young woman Winnie (Charlene Choi) who is having a difficult time getting over the break-up with her boyfriend Seth. To fill her time she finds solace in her hobbies of creating puppets and writing in her diary. When she encounters Ray (Shawn Yue), who reminds her so much of Seth, she decides to get involved with him as a means to rekindle what she had with her previous boyfriend. As Ray and her get closer her defenses start to break down and Ray soon discovers that Winnie is not entirely telling the truth as her stories about Seth seem to continue to change at will.

This is not one of Pang's strongest films but it is one of his more interesting ones especially in terms of the great performance he gets out of Choi who carries the whole film. Yue cannot possibly keep up with her (and if you've seen a Pang Brothers' film then you already know that the male characters are weaker compared to the female characters). The film is made even stronger by the cinematography of Anuchit Chotrattanasiri. Some of Pang's previous films have been mundane compared to this one (i.e. "The Eye 10" or "Bangkok Haunted," two of his worst films) and this film shows off his mastery of style and story. For some this film might be a tad slow (the film is a slow burn) but it's to show the mental breakdown of Choi's character and I commend Pang for sticking to his guns.

The Pang Brothers have made it impossible to determine where their next film will come from (they had 3 films released in 2009 and 2 films in 2010) which is good because they are unpredictable as are their films which add to the enjoyment of each new film that they release upon audiences. One thing is for certain, I'm hoping that Choi's character of Winnie is given another film and chance to shine through.