Tropical Night (2017)

Story: It is about the journey of four very different characters, each with their own unique baggage:

Kim Min Ki: The soft-spoken younger brother who was mourning the loss of his elder brother, goes to Thailand to seek answers from the brother's boyfriend. Angry at first at Jae Hee, whom he thought neglected his brother upon his death, and maybe the reason for it, comes to accept him in the end. I find his character a little bit wishy-washy, to the point of being a pushover. We could see this when Jae Hee, not even knowing who he was, bumps into Min Ki on the street and just starts randomly kissing him and he did not even push the stranger away.

Kim Min Hoon: The older brother who committed suicide because he was being bullied in the military. Instead of talking to his friends and family about his troubles, decide to close himself off, leaving the people around him asking questions, wondering what else they could have done.

Lee Tae Kyung: Jae Hee's stepbrother who is ill and in love with Jae Hee. Fakes fainting at one point which is not cool. I find him sometimes being hypocritical, blaming Jae Hee for being insensitive and when Jae Hee pays him attention, Tae Kyung pushes him away. What does this guy really want?

Park Jae Hee: He is like the "prince" of the harem with three people who were or could be in love with him. He gets the short end of the stick as he is made out to be the "bad" guy. He's being accused for being heartless, yet he's always the one who waits for his Min Hoon to show up for their dates, always the one to take care of Tae Kyung, and even concedes to Min Ki despite not saying sorry for his loss.

Acting: Pretty good for relatively new actors.

Music: Suited to the film

Rewatch Value: Good enough to watch it again.

Take-away: A story about seizing the moment, and not letting go of the chance to fall in love again, while letting go of the past.

P.S. The only thing that bugged me about the movie is the likelihood of Min Ki hooking up with his dead brother's boyfriend. Min Ki could end up being a replacement for Min Hoon or not, but it is hella weird.

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Solid movie with heavy themes

I just finished watching this. I must admit in the beginning, I was very confused who was who, what timeline was being shown, and why the characters did certain things. Some of it cleared up, and some of it still puzzles me. Why was there a kiss scene in the beginning? I still can't understand it.

That being said, after the first twenty minutes or so things started to fall into place and it became clear what everyone's relations to other people were. I'd recommend anyone trying to watch this film half an hour before deciding if this movie is for them.

If you're looking for something upbeat or lighthearted, this isn't for you. The movie was heavy. It talked about dealing with the emotions one has after a loved one takes their own life. It talked about those who were dealing with depression and stress, and losing the battle. It talked about life and death and grief and trying to let go and move on. Bonding and anger between those who share trauma.

The actors did great. It seems like they are newbie actors, but they portrayed their feelings amazingly. The soundtrack wasn't outstanding, but it lent feeling to the moment, which is enough for me.

The production quality could have been better, and sometimes the sound was a little echo-y. It was a little distracting. There was also a scene where it looked like the characters were sitting in a certain way and suddenly switched sides (that was really distracting and took me out of the moment), but I eventually concluded we were supposed to be looking at them through a mirror. But those are all minor things when considering the film as a whole.

I hope more people watch this movie, and am shocked that only 23 people have rated it on this website. It can be viewed on GagaOOLala. If I hadn't had the app, I don't think I would have ever watched it since no one is talking about it.

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A bit underrated good Korean BL drama

What I like most:
The two main leads are hot! Yoo Dong Kyun and Park Hyun Soo, acting as Kim Min Ki (whose brother, Kim Min Hoon, killed himself in the military) and Park Jae Hee (who was Kim Min Hoon's boyfriend) respectively, are good looking. They made me enjoy the movie a lot even though the story is a bit depressing and slow and the story-line is confusing.

I appreciated the story revealing the difficult process in which the two main leads had to go through the loss of their loved one. They had to cope not only with sorrow and despair, but also with anger.

What I don't:
I did not enjoy the story even if it honestly touched on the issue of suicide taking a painful toll on those left behind. In less than two hours, you have to go through two suicides. Why are so many Korean BL dramas agonizing, gloomy and tragic? Are they realistic?

The story-line is also confusing and I had difficulty following it. For example, the movie began with the kissing of the two main leads in Bangkok. Was the scene in the chronological order of the story? If so, why did Jae Hee chase Min Ki and kiss him? Or was it actually indicating the two finally reuniting after Kim Min Ki fled Pattaya and Park Jae Hee looked for him all the way to Bangkok? Bangkok is no small city. How did Jae Hee find Min Ki?

Then, the movie actually ended with the scene of the two reuniting on the beach of Pattaya. Did Jae Hee convince Min Ki to come back to Pattaya with him? But were they aware that Lee Tae Kyung, Jae Hee's brother-in-law with whom Tae Kyung lived in Pattaya, killed himself in part to make way for the two to be together (but also to undertake a sort of euthanasia as Tae Kyung was terminally ill)?

I wish the story-line could have been developed a bit so that the evolving relationship between Mink Ki and Jae Hee would become more convincing and realistic.

With these shortcomings, I still enjoyed the movie. I will probably re-watch it. It's a pity that the movie is a bit underrated or even unnoticed.

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This could have been a really good movie. It was ok, but the timeline was a bit confusing. The scene in the beginning really confused me, and doesn’t even tie into the story. If anyone watches this, and could explain it to me, I would really appreciate it. It was a very serious movie about suicide, and what family and friends go through when someone decides to take their own life. I don’t want to give the story away, but one suicide was not even discussed during the end of the movie. I felt it made the movie feel un- finished. I wish it was a bit longer so these loose ends could have been explained. Still, it was worth the watch. I did shed a few tears. I even watched the beginning scene again thinking I missed something important, but nada…

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Depressing and messy

I am honestly trying to grasp what I actually watched, I do not really know what I was expecting and am not really sure what I got as the story seems a bit oddly cut and left a whole lot of blanks for the viewers to fill in on their own and they go back and fourth in time have and have a lot of quiet thought. Honestly rather they are deep in conversation or completely silent... though the issues are relatable I find it hard to connect to the story, the acting is inconsistent, sometimes it is mind-blowing other times I am not sure if it is the dialog, the sound or the action but it feels forced in a way and comes of very unnatural.

The whole movie loses depression and darkness as it should considering it's subject, there're some good and interesting lines about who to blame in the event of a sueside others about dealing with an inevitable death near by... Unfortunately these were cut short and could have been done better, but they do get points for actually showing this and attempting to approach this not so very happy subject.

All in all an ok watch, not very entertaining and kind of lacking but it has something in it that still makes it worth a watch, I just can not really put my finger on what it is, maybe you will? O r I may just have to watch it again to understand it. However it was not very entertaining so I probably won't (actually I did re-watch a few scenes just to check if I missed something, I didn't)

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Was a bittersweet movie

First off, I like the collaboration between South Korea and Thailand. Being an avid fan of both countries, it was very refreshing to see a collaboration between the two countries.
The story was quite sad to be honest, which I find is a very common theme with South Korean BL dramas. You have Min Hoon who commits suicide by drowning in the ocean because he was so severely bullied in the army. Which my guess is because they knew he was gay. Then you have Tae Kyung who ultimately does the same thing in the end, so that Min Ki and Jae Hee can be together in the end, I find very sad. I also find it a bit well can I say off putting that Jae Hee and Min Ki are dating each other when they both know that Min Hoon was Min Ki’s older brother and Jae Hee’s ex-boyfriend. I don’t know, it is a little uncomfortable for me that the younger brother Min Ki is dating his dead older brother’s ex-boyfriend. It doesn’t really sit well with me. All the while, Tae Kyung, Jae Hee’s half brother, is dying from a rare disease. Overall, it was a good movie and I don’t regret watching it. I just feel really sad that Tae Kyung and Min Hoon sacrificed so much for their brothers. I hope for their sake, that Min Ki and Jae Hee make the best out of their relationship.

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The picture is really very complex and thanks to the previous review I was able to endure. I believe that maybe this is one of the reasons why the film is rated so low even on world servers (I don't mean low). At the same time, it is exactly like that. Gradually, everything begins to fit together, four young Korean actors play a dramatic part and a very high-quality experience of life, death, love and destruction and most importantly ... HOPE unfolds.
I didn't want to give, I definitely recommend it, because some individuals may not understand this complexity, see the example of the reviews here.


Snímek je opravdu hodně složitý a díky předchozí recenzi jsem vydržel. Domnívám se, že možná to je jeden z důvodů, proč i na světových serverech je film tak málo hodnocen (nemyslím tím nízko). Přitom je to přesně tak. Postupně začíná do sebe všechno zapadat, čtyři mladí korejští herci rozehrají dramatickou partii a vyloupne se hodně kvalitní prožitek života, smrti, lásky i zmaru a hlavně ... NADĚJE.
Nechtěl jsem dát určitě doporučuji, neboť někteří jedinci tuto složitost, viz příklad zdejších recenzí, nemusí pobrat.

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Feelings for the deceased brother's partner or between stepsiblings: a challenge to the norm

For some time now, Korean cinema and television have been committed to showing characters from the LGBTIQ+ community. The works of the filmmakers demonstrate the evolution of an audiovisual panorama interested in expanding its sense of inclusive diversity.
This is the reason why among the films of this Asian nation that reflect the various aspects of seduction and attraction, couples and commitment between characters of this human group, that is, lesbians, gays, transgenders, bisexual, intersex, queer and more, titles such as 'Yeoldaeya' ('열대야'), also known in English as 'Tropical Story' or 'Tropical Night', appear.
Mixing drama and gay romance, this 2017 Korean-Thai collaboration from director, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor Kim Hun revolves around Kim Min-ki (Khan), a young Korean man who travels to the city Pattaya, Thailand, to find Park Jae-Hee (Park Hyun Soo), the lover of Kim Min-hoon (Choi Hong Joon), his older brother. Interested in finding out why Min-hoon committed suicide after escaping military service, he will try to contact his boyfriend. Min-ki suspects that his death is due to Jae-Hee's indifference. Therefore, look for him to express his regret.
Will Jae-hee be indirectly to blame for the tragedy? Did Min-hoon think about how much damage he would cause to those who love him? Is his death related to the harassment to which homosexuals are subjected within the Korean army by their superiors? Doesn't Article 92 of the South Korean Military Penal Code consider sexual relations between members of the same sex to be "sexual harassment", punishable by a maximum of one year in prison? Isn't the illegality of homosexuality and discrimination towards LGBTIQ+ people in Korea due, among other factors, to the fact that the country's army maintains a conscription system? Doesn't the military have a strong influence on the way Korean men's gender identity is configured?
Isn't it true that conservative South Korean society encourages homosexuals to feel ashamed of themselves? Don't you want homosexuals to blame themselves for not being able to satisfy society's criteria of heteronormality? Is it the purpose of the film to accuse South Korean society as a whole for the suicide that Min-hoon is forced to commit? So is it a suicide or a crime? Wouldn't society itself be to blame for the tragedy? Although this would be a good song, 'Tropical Night' opts for romance, perhaps to avoid finding other reasons for censorship and rejection in that homophobic society.
However, the film does not hide in presenting social themes that are extremely strong, such as homosexuality, the possible romantic relationship between step-siblings or between the ex-boyfriend of a deceased person and his brother, suicide, guilt, how taking steps forward in the face of problems and limits, and the fragile thread that sometimes exists between friendship and love. Generating controversy and having the ability to educate and offer a different point of view is an essential objective of 'Tropic Night'. Could Kim Hun have set out to prove that life is not simply black and white, and sometimes addition and subtraction can yield different results than expected?
The fundamental message it transmits is love, despite the situations of each character. The film teaches us how the transformative force of love can overcome and overcome every obstacle that comes our way.
Without being guilty, Jae-hee reflects the complexity of human emotions, especially the weight of guilt and the internal struggle that it generates in those who carry it. Meanwhile, Min-ki carries the pain of not having understood his brother in time and not having been by his side in his most bitter moments. Then it will hurt him to have recriminated someone who was always faithful and loving to Min-hoon.
Initially, Jae-hee appears uncomfortable with Min-Gi's presence in her house. He does not agree to give him an apology for his insistent demand to express "I'm sorry", because he does not consider himself the cause of Min-hoon's suicide, in addition to accusing him of being selfish for not valuing his life and not taking into account the suffering that the decision committing suicide would cause the people who love him.
However, Lee Tae Kyung (Lee Geun Joo), Jae-hee's stepbrother and who suffers from a fatal illness, with his jokes and laughter, will be the catalyst for the rapprochement of both boys. What first emerges as a rivalry will soon give way to friendship and from this to love. The meeting of Jae-hee and Min-ki will cause strange feelings to arise for each other. As Min-ki slowly stops blaming Jae-hee, a strong connection begins to develop between the two. Will it be morally correct to establish a loving bond between the ex-boyfriend of a person who committed suicide and his brother?
For his part, Tae Kyung struggles with the duality between the bonds of brotherhood that bind him to Jae-hee and the romantic feelings he also has for his stepbrother. If, on the one hand, the relationship between Jae-hee and Min-ki can generate a lot of controversy, especially when we base ourselves on patterns that consider a brother's partner untouchable, and especially when he has died, the fact that A young man is secretly in love with the son of his mother's husband, even if they are not related by blood.
Facing the possibility of developing feelings for a brother's partner or between step-siblings, as occurs between the three protagonists, challenges the norm, and can make the viewer who is not used to consuming strong and delicate themes in television productions feel uncomfortable. cinematographic. However, this is a challenge that can be real.
The plot seeks to explore how to deal with complex emotions and the difficult decision between preserving the friendship that could unite Jae-hee and her late boyfriend's brother, or following the path of love. Although some may consider this situation embarrassing, I believe that addressing these taboo topics is essential to enrich the narrative and provoke reflection in the audience.
Tae Kyung, knowing that he has little time left to live, prefers to hide from Jae-hee the feelings that he has kept silent for years. “I want you to remember me as a brother,” he will confess to Min-gi, who did understand the secret early on, and will encourage him to follow the dictates of his heart. “You two make a great couple,” he admits. "Do not go. “Stay a few more days,” he will instruct him, so that he can comfort Jae-hee when he is gone, in addition to giving them time for both of them to open up to love. Dying, he will seek the same fate as Kim-hoon.
The viewer must be alert to how the situation develops to understand the characters' decisions and attitudes. Only in this way will you come to recognize that despite circumstances and limits, friendship and love sometimes intertwine, generating dilemmas that are difficult to resolve.
With this film, Kim Hun challenges taboos and breaks norms to successfully guide how the characters face these complex situations. The three protagonists do not stagnate, they evolve and face twists, generating emotions and interest, giving rise to discussions among the audience.
Winner of the 'Pink Money Award' (Audience Award) at the 2017 Seoul Pride Film Festival (SPFF), 'Tropical Night' features Jeon Il-hwan as music director and Lee Sang-woo as executive producer, producer and costume designer.

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