- Release year: 2024
- Directors: Wei Liang Chiang and You Qiao Yin.
- Producers: Lynn Chen, Yun-Ting Chu and Weijie Lai.
- Screenplay by: Wei Liang Chiang.
- Cinematography by: Michaël Capron.
- Production Design by: Liv Chih-wei Ye.
Synopsis: an illegal immigrant works as a caregiver for the elderly and disabled. His boss is an exploitive man who abuses immigrants, eventually forcing him to choose between survival or peace of mind.
Shotgun Commentary: the film’s main protagonist is grime. If you are OK with that, and love dramas about horrible human conditions, this is definitely your thing.
Review
Mongrel is a heartbreaking feature, beginning to end. The first thing you see pretty much sets up the mood for the whole thing. Recommendation from someone who has no qualms with eating while watching Hannibal (2013-2015): do not eat during this film, it is definitely NOT food-friendly.
Down low
In addition to the scatological bits from which the film doesn’t shy away at all, it also offers a very crude view of the inhuman conditions in which illegal immigrants live, from human trafficking to modern slavery, starvation and disease. This is what surrounds Oom (Wanlop Rungkumjad) every day when he is not at work, a luxury that only a minute part of the camp has, even if they don’t get paid for it. In order to survive, Oom obeys his boss and keeps his mouth shut. However, everyone has a limit and Oom is eventually forced to decide where his is.
This is not the film to watch to cheer up from the hardships of life. It’s the one you choose when you want to drown in them. There is no hope, happiness or positive outlook of any kind. Everything goes from bad to worse and, unlike most fiction, it doesn’t magically get any better. In a few words, it is a movie made for people who love drama and suffering.
Talent behind and in front of the cameras
The editing and cinematography accompany the bleakness of the story, submerging the character in the darkness and filth that cover his day-to-day. The storytelling of the first department offers additional data that the text refuses to divulge. In fact, in some instances, the editing supplies crucial information that even the images are keeping hidden. Both disciplines are carefully designed to provide the feature with an additional layer of value, the one that proves that the film has been calculated by talented people with a very concrete idea in mind.
This talent doesn’t apply only to the technical areas. None of it could have worked without Rungkumjad’s passionate performance. Oom has but a few lines to deliver. Most of the film is based on silent communication, meaning his acting is scrutinised twice as much. Fortunately, the close study of his performance only reveals his aptitude for acting. Oom goes on a very fierce journey, both physically and emotionally, and Rungkumjad translates flawlessly for the audience how these difficulties and new developments weight on Oom.
As for the rest of the cast, they all deliver heartbreaking, violent, and unnerving characters, depending on the needs of their role, offering some depth to Oom’s journey and shaping his character to make the final decision. Individually, they are not exactly relevant, but as supporting characters they are the final piece in a very well constructed puzzle of despair.
All in all, Mongrel is a painful reminder of the living conditions in which thousands of human beings find themselves merely due to their birth origin or the actions of criminals. It is a harsh look into a reality that audiences in comfortable positions tend to avoid. One that forces you to remember, even if just for a little bit, about how horrible humans can be to each other, how exploitative and cruel. A film that, hopefully, also inspires you to be kind even in bad situations, like Oom, to counteract some of the cruelty that plagues the world.
Advice to take from this movie:
- Never take a taxi without checking if they are legit.
- Kindness is the most powerful tool at your disposal.
- Bad decisions will eat your soul… Or your mental health, however you wanna see it.
What’s your take? Have you watched Mongrel? What is your main takeaway?
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