Handle me with Care

B+

Directed by Kongdej Jaturunrutasamee

Kongdej Jaturunrutasamee's "Handle me with Care" is the story of a boy named Kwan who had the poor fortune of beeing born with three arms. Although his extra limb can come in useful in some cases, such as for sorting letters or playing volleyball, Kwan ultimaterly tires of his third arm due to the incessant and negative attention it brings to him from the townspeople. Feeling that it is finally time for him to part with his surplus appendage, Kwan takes off for Bangkok to undergo a potentially deadly procedure that will free him, once and for all, from his cumbersome burden. On his way to beautiful Bangkok (yeah right!) he comes accross the beautiful Na who he saves from an attempted roadside rape. Na feels Kwan's pain because she too is the recipient of unwelcome stares and leering due to her ample bosom. This part of the plot flummoxed me for two reaons, however, firstly because having large breasts is not nearly in the same league as having a third arm and secondly because Na's cans, although undeniably pleasing, were not disproportionately large. Did this make me sound like a perv? Hopefully not because it's a major plot point and I was just trying to uh...clarify some inconsistencies...

Anyways, back to the film. "Handle me with Care" could have easily turned into a film such as the recently released "Penelope" where we all learn that what is on the inside counts and were beautiful no matter what, blah, blah, blah. Although the morale of "Handle me with Care" indeed is that almost everyone has something about their appearance they don't like and that feelings of physical inadequacy are quasi-universla, Jaturunrutasamee does a good job of nuancing this ultimately valuable life lesson with a healthy dose of sympathy and understanding for Kwan's predicament. Kwan never has an "Ah-ha!' moment where he learns that his third arm is a part of who is and those around him must learn to accept him for who he is. Rather, Jaturunrutasamee takes a much more realistic approach towards Kwan's predicament by reminding us that Kwan will never be normal as long as he has three arms but then by suggesting that maybe being normal isn't all it's cracked up to be anyways. Jaturunrutasamee's handling of what is at first ludicrious subject matter is so restrained that "Handle me with Care" turns into a sort of quiet meditation on identity and self worth that succeeds in truly conveyong the emotional state of both Kwan and Na as they struggle with their own feelings of inadequacy, revealing emotional depth that is almost completely foreign to romantic comedies.

Highly recommended for date night.