Film
Coalesce (film)
Coalesce is a 2020 drama by Jessé Miceli about three young men chasing different dreams in present-day Phnom Penh.[1][2] It was Miceli's first feature film, and it premiered in the ACID section at Cannes in 2020.[3]
Synopsis
Songsa is an introverted teenager whose family sends him to the capital to sell clothes from a tuk-tuk.[4] Thy, just turned 20, is drawn into the city's nightlife and dreams of joining a biker crew and buying a motorcycle he cannot afford.[4][3] Phearum, a 24-year-old taxi driver, goes into debt to buy his taxi and hopes to sell cars to Chinese investors arriving in Cambodia.[4][3] Their stories unfold separately and meet near the end.[3]
The city around them is changing fast, with a construction boom, rising land prices, new hotels and skyscrapers.[3] Tuk-tuks give way to luxury taxis, and motorbikes stand for freedom.[3] The Open Reel calls it a coming-of-age drama with LGBTQIA+ themes.[2]
Production and credits
Miceli studied cinema at Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before writing and directing the film.[2] He produced it with Gaelle Jones.[3] Horoma Films produced it in Cambodia, with Perspective Films as the French co-producer.[5][6] Run Sokheng was the cinematographer, Clement Selitzki edited the film, and Nikki Nikki composed the music.[3] Eang Phearum, Sek Songsa and Rom Rithy play the three leads, with Vann Lek as Lek; most of the cast are non-professional actors.[4][6][7] The film is in Khmer and English, runs 82 minutes and was shot in Cambodia.[8][4] It is also known as Les affluents.[8]
Release and reception
After Cannes, the film was selected for the Busan International Film Festival's Window on Asian Cinema and shown at the Asian Pacific Screen Awards in Brisbane.[5] In November 2020, The Open Reel acquired its international sales rights.[5] The film screened in the Asian Pop-Up Cinema online program in March 2021.[9] As an official selection of the 2021 Cambodia Town Film Festival, it screened at the Art Theatre Long Beach on September 25, 2021.[4] It was released in France on February 16, 2022.[8]
In Screen International, Allan Hunter called it a promising first feature with sharp observations about modern Cambodia.[6] Jennie Kermode of Eye for Film rated it four out of five and praised the depth of its characters and Eang Phearum's performance.[6]
References
- ↑ Long Beach Post, 9th annual Cambodia Town Film Festival (September 24, 2021)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Open Reel, Coalesce - International Sales (2025-06-05)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Screen International, 'Coalesce': ACID 2020 Review (June 23, 2020)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Cambodia Town Film Festival, CTFF 2021 Official Selection: Coalesce (archived)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Variety, The Open Reel Acquires Cannes 2020 ACID Title 'Coalesce' (November 13, 2020)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Rotten Tomatoes, Coalesce - Rotten Tomatoes (2021-12-10)
- ↑ Windows on Worlds, Cambodia
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 IMDb, Coalesce (2020) (2022-02-16)
- ↑ Windows on Worlds, Asian Pop-Up Cinema Returns for Season 12! (March 5, 2021)