Ghost of Mae Nak

Ghost of Mae Nak
Film poster
Directed byMark Duffield
Written byMark Duffield
Produced bySiamrus Lauhasukkasame
Wachara Tantranont
Tom Waller
StarringPataratida Pacharawirapong
Siwat Chotchaicharin
Porntip Papanai
CinematographyMark Duffield
Ryan Godard
Edited byLaurent Gorse
Music bySteve Bentley-Klein
Distributed byBox Office Entertainment
Release date
  • September 15, 2005 (2005-09-15)
Running time
1h 41m
CountryThailand
LanguageThai

Ghost of Mae Nak (Thai: นาค รักแท้/วิญญาณ/ความตาย) is a 2005 Thai horror film thriller about a protecting ghost directed and written by British director Mark Duffield. The film stars Pataratida Pacharawirapong, Siwat Chotchaicharin and Porntip Papanai as the ghost.

Synopsis

Set in modern Bangkok, the life of groom Tid Mak is disturbed, by successive nightmares with a ghost woman, Mae Nak, an ancient Thai legend. He meets his beloved fiancée Nak to acquire an antique brooch and an old abandoned house in Phra Khanong through an unscrupulous real estate agent Angel and they decide to buy the property.

Siwat Chotchaicharin as Mak.

After their wedding, two small-time thieves break into the house and steal their gifts and other objects. Mak happens to see the criminals on the streets of Bangkok selling his goods. He chases the burglars and they run their van over Mak, who falls into a deep coma. The ghost Mae Nak protects the young couple against Angel and the burglars, but in return she holds the soul of Mak.

Nak finds the remains of Mae Nak in an ancient cemetery, and with some monks, they exorcise Mae Nak from Mak using the ancient brooch and release her spirit.

Cast

Background

Shrine to Mae Nak at Wat Mahabut on Sukhumvit Soi 77 in Suan Luang district, Bangkok.

The story of Mae Nak Phra Khanong is famous and a favorite among Thai people. There is a shrine dedicated to her at Wat Mahabut on Sukhumvit Soi 77 (On Nut) in Bangkok's Suan Luang (formerly Phra Khanong) district.

The tale has been depicted on film numerous times since the silent era, with one of the most famous being Mae Nak Pra Kanong in 1958. A 1999 version, Nang Nak, by Nonzee Nimibutr, gained worldwide acclaim as part of the "Thai New Wave" cinema movement. There also is an opera, Mae Naak, by Thai composer Somtow Sucharitkul.