Ta aka Grandfather is a Thai short film based on a supposedly true story. The film tells the story of a mother and her experiences with her daughter who can see ghosts and her father who could also see them when he was alive.

Prae struggles to sleep by herself telling her mom that she sees a ghost under her bed. The mom checks but doesn’t see anything. Prae is insistent and her mother lets her sleep with her. When the situation repeats, Nim tells her daughter that there is nothing to fear from ghosts and relates a story from her own childhood. Nim’s father was a shaman of sorts who people called upon when they needed him to expel ghosts. One night he took Nim with him when he was asked to exorcise a ghost who had possessed a young girl. The experience changed Nim’s view on spirits forever.

Ta was an entertaining short ghost story with a twist at the end. Some Thai ghost stories are quite scary, this one had a moment or two but ended up being more about Nim, her father, and her daughter and their role in the village. I enjoyed this short spooky familial film, mainly because it focused on the family and wasn't horrifying.

16 December 2024