THAI FILM ‘Brother of the Year’ does not have a lot of the powerful punches one may look for in a good film, but it has plenty of comedy and, yes, little, achy pinches that’d make one’s heart bleed.

That should be enough to make you watch the film, if its being the highest-grossing film in Thailand isn’t enough.

For this writer, the bloody heart was made obvious by the swollen eyes after the two-hour movie experience. We found ourselves sobbing while tears ran down our faces unstoppably.

ElysPlanet.PH joined the cast and the members of the press during its red-carpet premiere at SM Megamall on August 16, around two months before its Philippine release, slated for October 10.

Comedic in many parts, this kind of superior Thai filmmaking, mixed with drama, works well for Filipino moviegoers as well. This was proven many times before as we have a bunch of Thai films that captured our hearts already, and we have loved a handful of Thai actors as well, the most famous of which is Mario Maurer, who even had a Filipino movie, ‘Suddenly It’s Magic,’ with Erich Gonzales in 2012.

Last year, we were offered the much-loved film ‘Bad Genius,’ produced by ‘Gross Domestic Happiness.’ This same producer offered ‘Brother of the Year.’

Sunny Suwanmethanont perfectly portrayed ‘Brother of the Year’ with his charisma oozing in the film as it is in person (we met him at Marco Polo Hotel on August 16 during the press conference for this film). When asked during the said press con which between drama and comedy he finds more comfortable doing, Sunny humbly explained that he doesn’t have an exact preference, as he does both comfortably as an actor who embodies his character. True to his words, Sunny fully owned his role. He could easily shift from being a naughty brother to a mellow-dramatic one, and he does it naturally.

His pretty sister, played by Urassaya ‘Aya’ Sperbund (who has a strong resemblance to the Philippines’ Liza Soberano), is not merely a pretty face, but you’d love her every screen appearance whether with her brother (Sunny) or the gorgeous Thai-American actor (Nichkhun Horvejkul), her romantic partner here. Nichkhun is popular in Asia for his being part of the South Korean boyband 2PM.

Nichkhun, playing the Japanese boyfriend of Aya, is not purely gorgeousness either. He delivers well, and we believe he is one big reason why this film is a hit — without discounting, of course, how great the film is.

Director Vithaya Thongyuyong did well engaging the audience in a subtle manner while keeping his lead actors looking their prettiest in almost all the scenes. No doubt it has become Thailand’s highest-grossing film to date, ranking #1 at the Thai box office and across Asia.

More than the drama and conflict, the film succeeded in tackling the sensitive, often taken-for-granted relationship between siblings. What’s more lovable about ‘Brother of the Year’ is that the film does it silently and flawlessly, without too much exaggeration. Its truthful presentation of such a conflict unique to siblings plus its powerful cast are enough reasons to schedule your next movie time with ‘Brother of the Year.’

Final Verdict: 9/10. A must-watch film, but make sure to bring a lot of tissues with you.