A Little Thing Called Love Review

Alternative Title: First Love

Year: 2010

Language: Thai

Genre: romantic-comedy, school

Image Credit: Amazon

Synopsis:

Nam (Pimchanok Luevisadpaibul) has been crushing on the most popular guy in school named P'Shone (Mario Maurer). The problem is, her plain looks and average intelligence make her virtually invisible. Nonetheless, the strong-willed girl is determined to win her first love's affection. With the help of her friends, Nam works hard by joining clubs and changing her appearance. Sadly, no matter how hard she tries, the only thing she seems to get is nothing more than friendship.

Cheerfulnuts' Review:  

This Thai movie totally melts my heart! A Little Thing Called Love is about an ugly-duckling who develops a crush on a campus heartthrob. The movie depicts the phase that we all have been through. It gave me so many flashbacks from my own life LOL.

The movie starts during Nam's most awkward stage  - adolescence. She has been secretly in love with her senior P'Shone, a handsome, athletic, and kind-hearted guy whom she thinks is out of her league. Well, it isn't entirely a secret because her friends know about it. Because of their plain looks, Nam and her friends make up a group that is considered unpopular in her school. 

It's a typical story about first love and crushes. But as an adult, it still makes me go awww. Several Nam-Shone scenes would remind us of our own sweet moments with our object of affection. It's not hard to visualize our own crushes in Shone's character. I love how the movie captures those sweet moments. The slow-mo effects are spot-on! They're done right when it matters.

Despite being teased about her looks, the love-struck girl is determined to get noticed by her crush. Her very good friends are of course with her. They bought a book called "Nine Recipes of Love" that promises to win a guy's heart. Throughout the movie, they will reveal each recipe or advice which Nam will obediently follow. I pity those girls for wasting their money on a useless book, because none of the recipes worked. I think it should be called "Nine Recipes to Disaster" instead LOL.

It's quite funny, but not to the point where you'll hurt your stomach from laughing (at least that is how I felt when I watched it). Most of my laughter came from Teacher Inn (Sudarat Budtporm). The teacher is Nam's adult version in the movie. Like Nam, she is also lacking in the looks department and is crushing on a co-teacher. However, she is more forward and is not afraid to make advances toward her crush. She plays a key role in putting Nam and Shone closer together even if she does it unintentionally. I love the scene where she is directing her drama class students while eating something that looks like a huge cracker. I don't know why, but it made me laugh!

There are several scenes that made my heart beat faster because of its pure sweetness. I believe most of us can relate to the movie, because seriously, who hasn't have a crush? I especially love the Snow White scene where Nam nearly falls off the stage and Shone catches her. Awww... I couldn't stop swooning! The world seems to have stopped at that moment.

I was wrong when I thought that the entire film would show an ugly Nam with a makeover in the end. After playing as Snow White in a drama play, Nam somehow retains her beautiful looks throughout the second half of the movie. Guys in her school start to notice her, but none of the attention makes her happy because they're not from Shone. Yeah, after all those time, she's still head over heels with Shone. It seems that nothing she does will ever get his attention. Still, even the tiniest things that Shone does for her (like carrying her bag when she twists her ankle) makes her dance inside.

The acting isn't award-winning, but it's quite good. I didn't expect I'd get teary-eyed in some scenes. Or maybe I tend to tear up easily, I don't know. The movie shows a span of over a decade period. I find it really amusing that both Nam and Shone's growing up look so convincing. Shone looks like a real teenager when he was actually in his 20's during the time of the filming.

SPOILER ALERT: I just LOVE the revelation near the end of the movie! I have guessed that Shone likes Nam, but how his feelings is revealed is just perfect. That one final touch makes the total picture a lot more beautiful. I have replayed that part twice because that's how much I love it! The ending itself is not as great though but still okay.

Do I recommend this movie? Of course! If you're not into love stories, it's still fun to watch because of the comedy. As a movie that caters to young people, don't expect a very deep story. Having said that, I appreciate the movie's awesomeness without sacrificing its wholesomeness (hey it rhymes!). It's a feel good movie that can be enjoyed by both teenagers and adults alike. It's about love minus lust and sex and rude teenagers. I'll tell you that I've never been so satisfied with the ending (or rather, the near ending) of a movie as much as I have with this one! One thought that sticks with me after watching - it's so nice to be in love, especially with a good guy.

Cheerfulnuts' Verdict:

10 out of 10 stars