This week in lecture we watched the documentary film by Dennis O’Rourke, The Good Woman of Bangkok. When we first began watching the film, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I am not one for watching films where you have to read the subtitles on the bottom the screen. My first instinct was that I was not going to like the film; however, this film captured my attention in a way I had not anticipated.
The good Woman of Bangkok was a documentary about a Thai woman named Aoi who, after being left by her husband while in the midst of being pregnant, has to turn to prostitution in order to survive and pay off the debt that her father’s death left the family. It was definitely an eye opening film. I am of course aware that things like this happen on an everyday basis all around the world, but to actually see it on film and not just in a fictional movie really gave me a new perspective.
When I first watched the film I did not realize that O’Rourke was an actual customer of Aoi’s until I read Williams article. This made me look at things a little bit different. This is also what we discussed a lot during tutorial. Was it ethical for him to actually put himself into the film and be an active participant? At first I was just completely disgusted in learning this about O’Rourke, but after hearing his thoughts in tutorial my thoughts did sway a little bit; “But with a documentary, a good documentary, you can get that transcendental moment where you go, ‘this is real. I know this to be true.’ And it’s not because there are a whole lot of facts assembled before you and presented to you on screen, but it’s when you’re watching something and you have a kind of recognition, a self-recognition. I always aim for those moments. That’s something I was lucky to discover early on, and it’s I always look for.”
I understand he wanted to get the real experience and the best way to do that is to actually be a customer of Aoi so you can have a full understanding of what goes on. Actually being there and experiencing this also gives the viewer a chance to in a way experience it as well. As I watched the film, I felt like I was right there with them, getting a first hand experience with her interviews. However, I think that there are ways to do this without actually having her be his prostitute.
I liked the quote in William’s article where it said, “Perhaps the best way to characterize the ethics of O’Rourke’s relation to his subject would be to say that, like the Brecht play to which his title alludes, this relation acknowledges that there can be no morally pure position, not truly good person.” O’Rourke tried to defend himself and what he was doing by saying he was trying to help Aoi get out of prostitution by persuading her if she did this documentary that he would buy her a rice farm. I would completely agree that what O’Rourke was doing for Aoi was a good thing. However, we find out in the article that this is actually a form or manipulation because O’Rourke had already bought the rice farm for Aoi before the film began.
As I said before, I found this film very intriguing. The way Aoi was scared for life all because of this lifestyle is unbelievably sad. Not only does she call herself a bad person, but her thoughts on life are altered forever. She hates every man that she knows and believes them all to be liars. She doesn’t think anyone will ever love her because everyone in town knows who she is and what she does. She doesn’t even believe love can exist in this world. It just amazes me to look at what people are willing to do, and what they have to do in order to keep food on the table for themselves and their families.
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