This review may contain spoilers
A line from the movie: " Let go of everything you don’t need anymore."Jean, an interior designer, wanted to apply the minimalistic style to her house. In the first 2 minutes of the movie, you can see that she has achieved this, she has converted their old storefront into her office. She is interviewed and asked how to get rid of things. Then begins her journey in decluttering her house as well as facing the memories and consequences the past may bring.
First of all the movie was excellently made. Every element from the cinematography, the film score and music, the editing, the acting, the setting, and even the clothes have cohesion. It's like an indie film that usually relies on the emotional impact of the story.
The main problem for me was how the movie ended. The ML's acting was superb. That's why I wanted it to continue. I think the character's growth should be explored more.
Warning!! Do not read ahead if you don't want to be spoiled!
Jean started a plan to convert their house including their old repair shop into a minimalist home without even consulting her brother and mother. She needs to declutter a house that was so full of junk! She got her brother on board but her mother was still against the renovation. But she did it anyway. Here on out, I loved watching Jean's journey. She seems heartless at first but as she was going through some of the stuff she can't deny that she still had a sentimental attachment. I loved that she tracked down her friends and gave back some of the things she borrowed and even gave stuff she bought for them years back.
One of the most important objects of the movie was the piano. I feel like it was a metaphor for her father. Jean wanted to sell it while her mother didn't want to let it go.
Now the plot with the ex, Aim, and it was a lot. Returning the items to her ex opened up a lot of unhinged emotions for Jean. She had to deal with guilt over cutting him off. The dialogue in every scene between these two was so raw and vulnerable. And honestly, every line was quotable.
The movie ends with the closeup of Jean’s pained expression.
This end was so hard to watch (but tremendous acting by Chutimon) because I think we were left with a cliffhanger of what happens to Jean. That scene says so much that her self-realization that even though she has achieved her goal, in the end, she just choose what she wants to believe in and she isn't happy.
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in some ways they were kinda like hoarders xD they had too many things laying around, they couldn't let go of them. everyone has boxes of memories hidden somewhere, gifts, childhood stuff, CDs and anything that has sentimental values. and in someways getting rid of the objects was like getting rid of that memory so it's actually harder than it seems.
now I didn't get why most of the things she had were actually things she borrowed or took from other people xD tbh I do keep things but I'd never keep something that's not "mine"..
aokbob is a really great actress, this was basically mostly about her character, though her brother was a cutie and her friendship with pink was nice too~
the directing and camera work were good quality but the audio was weird, especially that random horn(?) sound when her korn friend asked about his picture..
also tbh other people were selfish too, the moment they heard she was giving things back they started asking her to look for a random photo or a belt. I get the photo but it kinda seems random that everyone remembers what she took..
I never rewatch stuff so it's eitehr a 1 or a 10
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I usually write my opinion down right after finishing something so that the impression is still clear and fresh.
For this I had to take a different approach.
I even took a break in the last half of the film and I had to let it sink in awhile.
Happy old year starts on a very cool and distanced note but as the movie progresses weighs down your soul more and more.
The colors are muted and cool almost straying into the black and white. The ambiance quiet and atmosphere heavy.
No unnecessary background noises, sometimes accompanied by a classical piece.
The approach is "minimal" much like the main persons wish to convert her house into a minimalistic office and living space.
Her approach: simple. Throw it out. No matter what it is. Don't get attached. Don't think about it
That changes abruptly with almost throwing a friend's present away.
"Some things won't go away just because you pretend to forget about it. It has to come from both sides for it to end"
So she brings back all the trash.
With each item she returns you can see her mood getting lighter almost a change to her stoicness
Until. There is a person she doesn't want to see.
( Im trying my best not to spoiler here but Im not too sure)
Relationships are difficult. Even more when you don't end them and just dissapear.
Feelings remain, things remain.
Is the issue solved with apologizing and being friends again?
The film doesn't take the predicted turn but instead dives even deeper.
People change as you dissapear. Even without you things happen.
"Why didn't you tell me?
Because I couldn't."
You never know ehat happens in a persons life after you leave. You never know what they were going through or what stage of their life they are in.
The question brought up: "aren't you doing it for yourself?"
Is she doing it for herself?
Apologizing returning all the stuff.
Is she just giving ger emotional baggage to other people thinking she did something good and feeling happy again?
Maybe some things returned make people happy and maybe some things shouldn't be returned at all, opening an old wound or bringing back the memories of broken relationships.
The zoom ins on the trashbags I think don't show the thrash but the things and feelings in them.
Out of mind out of sight. Or is it?
We take something with us from every person in our lifes. Be it memories or inspiration be it pain or fondness.
They change our lives in one way or another. It's impossible to pack it all up and throw it out.
Her mom holding on to her dads piano.
Even though he left.
Her throwing it away.
Did she break the circle or did she overstep the boundaries?
"We all do what's the best for us"
I think it's a very challenging and thought provoking movie. It's not made in a classic film pattern. No happy ending.
It makes you think about yourself and the people around you. It's more about the feelings and memories attached to things than it is to clean.
Throw it away or keep it?
Forget it or remember it?
Challenge yourself or give up?
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De-cluttering your life can be very depressing
This movie is called Happy Old Year but does not seem to have an ounce of happiness in it... As you rather need to be completely heartless to lead a minimalist lifestyle or you have to confront all you past memories and well some of those can hurt like h*** and be the very reason you want to de-clutter your life in the first place.The move is really well made and does a great job conveying emptiness, loss, sorrow as well as invite the viewers in to the female leads mindset. It is complex very artistic and beautifully filmed. I would say this is a high quality movie, it is not very entertain, not very touching either for that matter but the emotions are there the acting is spot on and I do feel al lot of emptyness and pain after watching this,
Though I could relate to the need to cut people and things out of ones life, since I too have cut people out of my life and though I do live in Sweden, I feel that I am not heartless enough for the minimalist lifestyle, though I do like to have free space I would like to introduce the concept of storage rooms, they rock, and keep you from having to deal with things.
So if you are in the mood for some painful de-cluttering this is definitely a one of a kind movie worth watching!
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This review may contain spoilers
Such a clever and heartfelt movie!
This is such a heartfelt and clever movie. I love the metaphor of clearing one’s house as a way to let Jean realize the different ways she can “move on”. She went on to realize that some past relationships can be mended but some are too hard to hold onto. It ends on a bittersweet note showing that she can’t reconcile with everyone but at least now the audience knows, and hopefully she does too, that she has a heart. The movie is a great way to teach us the complexity of moving on from the past, good ways to do it and bad ways to do it. It also is good at showing the complexity of moving on from the past and why it doesn’t always result in happy endings. I don’t know if she grew to be more vulnerable with the people she cared about, because she ended up of throwing everything out in the end and concealing her true feelings about her ex to her friend, but it seems like she still cares cause she cried in the end, so I can only hope that she is better now.Was this review helpful to you?
Jin is your opposite of hoarder: she wants to throw every single item she does not curretly use, away. Which is quite a liberating process, I have to admit. Though, you will really know for sure there is zero chance you could ever discover "things in the attic" that would unexpectedly become monetary valuable with time, forgotten fun, or weirdly useful. Jin is decided to leave the past behind, get more space for light and fresh air.
She even has a piano she wants to throw away (though she could just paint it white, then it would become invisible anyways). She is unstoppable, getting rid of things - often of sentimental, or "sentimental" value - mercillesly. She doesn't even donate or sell the things. She says: "If I throw it, it's gone TODAY." When her raiding the house stuff into black waste bags looks almost sociopatic, she halts herself and starts going through the things again. She can still make someone else happy with some of the stuff. Someone specific, with specific stuff. Gifting/returning specific item to the specific person then ironically revives the past she's decided to leave behind:) When facing again a certain person is too hard, she decides to mail the stuff.
Like the ex-boyfriend:) Who rejected the package:) She leaves the stuff on his doorstep. Ringing the bell first, though. He calls after her, so she like unwittingly turns her back, to face him. And he's Sunny Suwanmethanont!:) She then gives him items no longer of much benefit to him, and says some words of explanation for her past behavior, for which it could be said the same. I got the feeling that THIS was precisely the past she SHOULD mindlessly throw in the trash. First, he says nothing, which I thought a befitting response. But then he reacts in a way that only happens in movies:) How will she react when HE returns HER stuff? How will she feel watching him mirroring her actions?
Turns out, the old things - though being just worn, lifeless objects - can be quite emotional... Nevertheless, in this movie, though it has generous runtime, nothing much happens, and we're just left with Jin in the empty house, with empty heart and empty ending.
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Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit does a masterful job at making the little moments count. The camera work, the work with the cinematography to make everything seem so congested and full, the choices of pauses and frames that we focus on. In a true to cinema formation, the art of the mise-en-scene matches the acting on screen.
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