Maha samut lae susaan

Laila goes to southern Thailand to say hi to her aunt who she hasn't seen for a long time and has never visited before. As travel partners she's brought her brother and his friend along. A city-dweller, Laila isn't fully aware of the extent of the armed conflicts that have taken place there in Pattani. The road to her aunt includes a boat trip to the island that was long a paradise, but the military has now come to search for rebels and there are soldiers everywhere. What her aunt wanted to tell her about was a dream about a land of milk and honey where all faiths can live together - which now seems utopian. The Island Funeral was filmed with striking beauty and balances, as so often in Thai film, in a state between dream and reality. (Göteborg Film Festival)