First Love Revisited

The first time I heard about P’Nam and P’Shone was from my officemate who had a friend who watched Crazy Little Thing Called Love. I knew instantly that it was a RomCom based on the title, but I thought it was going to be a series because it was given to me in 10 parts. I was prepared to give it a chance because I saw that the male lead Mario Maurer was super cute and charming. However, while I was 5 or 10 minutes into the movie, I saw that the female lead P’Nam was the exact opposite of P’Shone. I asked myself if it would work, but still, I trudged on.

P'Nam trying to catch a glimpse of P'Shone

I thought, hmmm. … could this be one of those stories where the cute guy falls for the not so pretty girl who shows exemplary strength of character? Up to a point, it is. But the story deals more with the treacherous journey that one must take to find true love, in the perspective of a teenager.

Mario Maurer, who plays P'Shone

The movie is great in the sense that it is relatable to teens who will watch it. One: because of the cute male lead. Two: because they are going through the same things as the characters in the movie. I, for one, am already an adult — but while I was taking in the film, I too, was transported back to the time when I was a teener making a fool out of myself to get noticed by my crush. The movie is like the embodiment of a high school girl’s diary. Everybody, at one point of their lives did the things that P’Nam and her friends did. Everybody giggled, everybody squealed, everybody had that period in their lives where being silly did not matter. Everybody had that stern looking teacher who refuses to crack a smile. Everybody returns to high school where simple decisions seem like life and death dilemmas.

Returning to High School

Crazy Little Thing Called Love had a very simple plot — but it worked because they put a lot of thought in the chemistry between the lead actors. The characters they played were not perfect but they played it to perfection. The supporting cast also lent to overall fun and touching mood of the film. The script (I relied on the English subs) was not overly deep and heart wrenching but sounded awfully familiar from the echoes of the past. The plot was simple, but the direction was clear. It was a winning formula for producing a heart warming and touching story, and that the filmmakers did. I was wearing a big smile after I watched it, and based on the reactions of Facebook fans and other friends who have seen it, this flick is a smashing success even months after it was released in Thailand.

Going into the movie, I had very little expectation, but I could have set the bar higher and it would still have surpassed my taste. Too bad it only lasted for an hour or so… A sequel would be nice.