Dorm opens a new page of horror that can’t be accounted for in any history of the genre. The film offers a thin layer of familiar spooks, but rather than be filled with chilly atmosphere it is, instead, it is a delicate, heartwarming moment in time about the friendship of two boys in different worlds. A grade-7 boy, Chatree (Charlie Trairat), is sent to a boarding school by his father who wants to train him with more discipline, and for him to spend less time in front of the television. Sadly and angrily, Chatree accuses his father of wanting to get rid of him because he knows his father’s secret adultery. Like many boys at boarding school, Chatree begins his new life with ghost tales, being bullied by friends, and the thrilling sound of dogs howling. In his encounter with loneliness, Chatree meets a new friend, Vichien, without noticing that Vichien never talks to others except him. Until one night, he abruptly finds out Vichien’s true idenity. The two boys still continue to develop their friendship. Chatree notices that every evening Vichien keeps going back, jumping down and struggling helplessly into the deserted, empty swimming pool. Who is Vichien and what happens to him? Something that only friendship can heal.
Director Songyos Sugmakanan crafted his second work with meticulous care in all aspects – heartbreaking plots, nice cinematography and excellent performances. The storyline is well interconnected between the relationship of two friends in different worlds, a father and son conflict, and a devoted teacher who carries her guilt. Nice low-key lighting is transcended throughout the film to explore the lives of all characters with their own memory and past. Most important is the excellent performance of lead actor and actress. From his role as a kid with his childhood first love in My Girl, Charlie Trairat has developed himself into a young boy who can take on any dramatic role. In the meantime, veteran actress Jintara Sukaphatana still proves her acting ability as an eccentric teacher who punishes herself for causing her student’s death. (Remember her, a young Vietnamese girl on whom Robin Williams has a crush in Good Morning Vietnam).
Dorm is a heartwarming horror that brings to all of us those memories we once had in childhood. It is a nice ride to our own forgotten moment in time.