The first surprise when I stumbled on "Bus Stop" was that it is a BL movie from Myanmar, which isn't really known for producing loads of BL content, and the second surprise was that the movie actually moved me.
The plot is simple, yet quite unique in the world of BL. Bo (Vita Min), a young, seemingly quite innocent man, falls in love with Okkar (Kaung Zan Hein), a sex worker, after finding his nude photos online. He orders Okkar to come to his place for one night, and Okkar almost leaves when he notices that Bo is just 18 years old. Bo persuades Okkar to stay, reminding him that he needs the money for his father's dialysis. The two young men go to a bar, where Okkar is being insulted by one of his previous clients. On the way back, Okkar falls for Bo, and they kiss passionately. Okkar tries to make it clear to Bo that he is a bad, a dirty person, but after Bo tells him that he feels warm in Okkar's presence, using a nearby bus stop as a metaphor, Okkar promises to "fix his mistakes". A month later Okkar returns to Bo's place, who has been waiting for him, and they have sex.
I said that the plot is unusual in the world of BL, and it is. There are no straight school boys who only fall for their one and only straight school mate, but there are two gay men, one of them even a sex worker which you will never find in the polished world of Thai BLs.
The actors are both very handsome, and they don't act like amateurs. Vita Min knows how to find the right compromise displaying innocence and naivety as well as determination, and Kaung Zan Hein reveals a soft and loving nature below his seemingly callous nature.
The cinematography of this short film is quite good, and the only flaw is the sound quality that is a little bumpy every now and then. The OST song is beautiful. Fun fact: I guess the German liquor producer Jägermeister sponsored the movie, and if it didn't the moviemakers should approach them and ask for their contribution – the product placement wasn't exactly discreet.
To sum up, this short film is a positive surprise, and it's definitely worth the half hour of watching. As it found almost a quarter million viewers on facebook and about 140,000 on youtube within just 3 days, it looks like it's a big success for the production company, so that we can hope to see more from them in the future.
Country: Myanmar (2023)
Duration: 30 mins.
Director: Kina
Cast: Vita Min, Kaung Zan Hein
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Reviews of Asian BL Series
Non-FictionThis is a collection of reviews of BL-series and movies from Thailand, South Korea, the Philippines, Myanmar, Singapore, Japan, Cambodia, and Vietnam, some of which I have already published on mydramalist.com. The series I am reviewing here are not...
