Now I know how much a trishaw ride costs. Locals like us see them all the time but it never crosses our mind to take it unless we want want to take a wedding photo, shoot a video or bring other tourists around. This documentary (many docus tonight) seems to be a short statement against recent incidents of bullying of trishaw riders by tourists. It is made of interviews and a gritty and shocking video footage of a bullying incident. It was odd that Vignes has chosen to interview 2 younger trishaw riders when the bullying victims were 'ah pek' trishaw riders.
Because of the sensational and arresting content of the real-life video footage, it was for the rest of the film to slip away from my memory. It showed some young British make tourists taking a ride on trishaw dragged on by a unsuspecting wobbly 'Ah Pek'. It got me under my skin when the camera was focussed on the 'Ah Pek' struggling at a certain point and the tourists taunting him. The 'Ah Pek' seemed to be hobbling a little as if he was going to faint and the road seemed a little uphill. The scene bordered on surrealism because it was like a TV drama moment. If I took home only one thing from the film, it was those 10 seconds of taunting.
But footage aside, I felt the documentary could be structurally more defined. It seemed to be a showcase of the video with the remaning sections being completely sidelined. Also, it could move away from talking heads and show more of the on-the-job experience of the riders. Vignes is a fresh new filmmaker who is actively involved in the local broadcast scene as an editor and producer. This is his first documentary short film.
Because of the sensational and arresting content of the real-life video footage, it was for the rest of the film to slip away from my memory. It showed some young British make tourists taking a ride on trishaw dragged on by a unsuspecting wobbly 'Ah Pek'. It got me under my skin when the camera was focussed on the 'Ah Pek' struggling at a certain point and the tourists taunting him. The 'Ah Pek' seemed to be hobbling a little as if he was going to faint and the road seemed a little uphill. The scene bordered on surrealism because it was like a TV drama moment. If I took home only one thing from the film, it was those 10 seconds of taunting.
But footage aside, I felt the documentary could be structurally more defined. It seemed to be a showcase of the video with the remaning sections being completely sidelined. Also, it could move away from talking heads and show more of the on-the-job experience of the riders. Vignes is a fresh new filmmaker who is actively involved in the local broadcast scene as an editor and producer. This is his first documentary short film.