The Sperm attacks Philly

One of last year's overlooked gems, The Sperm (Asujaak) is playing at the Philadelphia International Film Festival, which is running until April 15. It is being presented in the Danger After Dark program by TLA Entertainment. Hmm, perhaps a U.S. DVD release might not be far away?

Directed by Taweewat Wantha, who previously did the wonderfully bat-shit crazy SARS Wars, The Sperm stars Leo Putt as a young slacker who has an unhealthy sexual obsession with a squeeky clean superstar (Pimpaporn Leenutapong, from Sayew). In jerking off, he spills his seed in to Bangkok's sewer system and suddenly all the women in the city are giving birth to unruly babies that look just like him. A mad scientist (the always hilarious Somlek Sakdikul -- where's he been lately?) and his catsuit-wearing daughter (Dollaros Dachapratumwan) observe the madness and try to offer a solution.

Here's what Philadelphia's City Paper has to say about The Sperm:

Raucous and scattershot to the point of exhaustion, Thai director Taweewat Wantha's sci-fi comedy plays like the Farrelly Brothers remaking David Cronenberg. It never actually settles down long enough to be funny, but the throw-everything-at-the-wall audacity rockets through a story that hinges on masturbation, Japanese porn, mad scientists, aliens, giant slackers and inflatable henchwomen. Beneath all that is a standard teen-comedy sweetness, only with its volume set to heavy metal intensity.

I thought The Sperm was raucously funny, and made some compelling observations about society, celebrity and Bangkok culture. With a bit more going on than meets the eye, and there's a lot of stuff meeting the eye, mind you, it's a wonderfully entertaining film. If you don't want to wait for the possible DVD release from TLA, The Sperm is available on English-subtitled VCD from Singapore through MovieXclusive.

More information:

• Review: The Sperm

(Via Philadelphia City Paper)