Vinyan (2008)

They were on sale.
The old ones might be too small now.
- Paul, hi.
- Hi, Paul.
- Come in, friends, come in.
- How are you doing?
- Wow!
- I'm sorry, friends,
- I will have to introduce you...
- What've you been doing?
...to some of our donors.
- My God, you look beautiful.
- Of course.
- We want that money, we want that money.
Andreas, may I introduce you
to Jeanne and Paul Bellmer?
- Hi, nice to meet you.
- Hello.
Paul is a volunteer
on the orphanage project.
Volunteer? You look a bit too old
to be an idealist, Paul.
- No. He's the architect, Andreas.
- Charming.
The architect.
What brings you two to Phuket?
We came for a Christmas holiday and...
We just decided to stay.
- You work for Matty?
- Yeah, that's right.
Fresh meat.
Don't mind me,
I'm straight out of the jungle.
I work up on the Andaman coast,
I've forgotten small talk.
- Kimberly Park.
- Paul Bellmer.
Very nice to meet you, Paul Bellmer.
Maybe they'll say, "Why don't you sleep?"
I have to go back.
You can't stay awake like that.
It's late, late, late, late.
Try to close your eyes.
Do you want me to sing a song?
No, you don't want me to sing a song?
Close your eyes now.
Okay, close.
He couldn't sleep.
So that's what we've been doing
with your donations.
- Good, huh?
- Thank you, thank you.
What follows is what we want you guys
to spend your money on next.
This is footage of Kim's stuff from Burma.
It's raw material, it's very hard.
Getting the aid there is an emergency, okay?
This is South Tanintharyi division.
There are a lot of Moken and Salone natives
in the islands there.
Sea gypsies.
How did you manage to get into Burma?
I thought the border was totally closed.
I had to get in with the help of the Triad.
I took one of Thaksin Gao's boats.
He's been bringing girls from the region
to his bars for so long,
he knows everyone, including the military.
Believe me,
it's the only safe way into Burma.
Now, back to the village.
Up to this point,
they've been completely left on their own.
They have received no medication,
no food, no shelters.
- Nothing.
- Stop. Stop the tape.
Could you give me the remote, please?
Darling. Excuse me.
Darling? What are you doing?
- Jeanne?
- Paul.
- Yeah, darling.
- It's Joshua.
Look.
It's him.
It's my son.
I knew it.
You know as well as I do
there is no way Josh is on that DVD.
She seems pretty sure about it.
Maybe you should take her
and see a doctor.
Do you mind if I take this?
- You take care of her, Paul.
- Yeah.
Come on, darling.
It was him.
I don't know.
Yes, Paul, everything.
The way he moved, his hair, you know.
He was even wearing that
- red Manchester United top, you know.
- Come on,
there's a lot of fucking Manchester United
tops in the world, darling.
- You heard the stories, right?
- Yeah.
That Swedish boy that was taken
- from the hospital in broad daylight.
- Oh, Christ, but this is...
- But we know that there's a...
- They're rumors, darling.
- Yeah, but listen to me.
- You can't...
Okay, we know that there's a trade
in white children, right?
- Yeah.
- Right.
No, we don't know that
there's a trade in white children.
- But we... We guess there's one.
- No! I'm just...
- Kim said it.
- I'm not sure!
- What about if Josh was taken from...
- I'm not sure!
I am sure.
All right, okay.
I know it was him and I know he's alive.
Well, I'm not so sure, darling.
Then maybe I know him better than you do.
- No, you can't say that.
- Yes, I can.
- You can't fucking say that to me, darling!
- Yes, I can.
We're both really tired.
Okay, it's been six months, and maybe
it's time we started to adjust to something.
To what?
We need help,
we need to look after ourselves.
And not just physically.
- Yeah, but what are you...
- Mentally, too.
Yeah, okay. What are you saying?
Are you saying I'm mad
because I want to find out where my son is?
No, I'm not saying you're mad,
but maybe you need to talk to someone.
- Stop. Stop the cab.
- What are you doing?
Stop the cab.
Thaksin Gao?
Thaksin Gao? You know? No?
I don't want anything.
Hello. Welcome.
Bye-bye.
Hello. Hello.
Hello, madam. Hello.
Hello.
- Thaksin Gao?
- Thaksin Gao.
His name is...
What? In black?
- Yeah, black.
- The man in black?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, thank you.
Thaksin Gao?
- Bacara, Bacara.
- Bacara?
Bacara. That's what you said?
Bacara. You don't know? You don't know?
Bacara. You know Bacara? It's a bar?
Thaksin Gao?
Thaksin Gao?
There?
- There?
- Yeah.
Thaksin Gao. Do you know?
Do you know Thaksin Gao?
Thaksin Gao? You know him?
What the fuck do you think you're doing?
You cannot do this.
Leave me alone, Paul.
You cannot do this, Jeanne.
I've been going fucking crazy
looking for you. You cannot do this.
I saw him.
He's alive, I know it.
You want to find Thaksin Gao?
Yeah.
Come.
This way.
You like? You like?
Get off!
Jesus.
Okay, okay.
Looking for Thaksin Gao?
Thaksin Gao?
Yeah, we're looking for him. Yeah.
Thaksin Gao.
We're trying to get to Burma.
Someone told us that Thaksin Gao
could help us get there. Is that right?
We lost our son in the tsunami
and we think he might have been kidnapped
and taken to the north.
Look, is Thaksin Gao here?
If he's not, where is he?
What's your name, dude?
What's my name?
Bellmer, Paul Bellmer. Why?
Bellmer, Paul Bellmer.
Don't worry about Thaksin Gao.
If you want to find your son, I fix it.
You'll fix it?
Really good price.
- Yeah, how much?
- One and a half million.
Do we even have that sort of money?
It's not really about that.
Do you trust him?
- Not really.
- No?
If there's even the slightest chance
that Josh is alive,
we've got to take it, haven't we?
How can we not?
We just got to be careful.
What?
Your eyes, Paul.
Sometimes you look just like him.
Jesus. Come on.
Mama.
It's all there.
I trust you, dude.
So what's the plan?
To Ranong first, then what?
What?
To Ranong first, then what? The boat?
Don't worry, Bellmer Paul,
everything is good.
You pay me to fix your problem.
I fix your problem.
Just sit back and watch Boomsong.
Passport.
- What for?
- Custom.
Fucking customs.
Hey.
Hey, excuse me. Is there a problem?
Who's that guy?
Five thousand more.
- What do you mean?
- For them.
No. I paid you upfront.
It covers all expenses.
No. That's my expen', this your expen'.
Listen, mate, I didn't come up river
on a fucking banana boat.
Do not fuck with me.
You want to go to Burma?
Yeah, we want to go, yeah.
Or you wanna sit here one week,
wait for your visa?
All right.
What? Sorry, mate?
He didn't say anything,
he didn't say anything.
You have to be cool like Thai people.
- Are you okay?
- Yeah, I'm cool.
That's boat, your boat.
You're not having second thoughts,
are you?
No.
It's Mat. Hello.
No. No, that's an engine. We're on a boat.
Somewhere on the Andaman Sea.
Yeah, I know, Mat, but what if it is?
Yeah, I know, but what if it is him?
No, I'm not going to take that risk. No.
Look, we'll be about three days at the most.
Look, I'll give you a call
when we get back, all right?
Yeah, I've got to go.
Yeah, don't worry. Bye.
- I didn't hear anything.
- It's fine, it's all fine.
- Bellmer Paul.
- Yeah.
- What's going on?
- Tingtong lady.
Come, we find my contact.
Come on, Jeanne.
Bye, bye. Bye, bye.
Bye, bye, bye, bye.
Mr. And Mrs. Bellmer?
Welcome to Koh Phayam.
I am Thaksin Gao.
Don't worry about him, he deserves it.
Follow me.
Kim?
- How did you know we were here?
- Matty called.
You're very lucky Kim is your friend,
Mr. Bellmer.
- We've got a picture.
- It's about six months old,
but it's the most recent one we've got.
So he'll be a little bigger now.
So, he dressed himself before he left
and he was wearing a...
- Red Manchester United top.
- Yeah, blue swimming...
- Blue shorts.
- Yeah, blue shorts, long ones
because I didn't want him
to get sunburned, and sandals.
Yeah, he's got a scar on his left.
He hurt his left leg quite bad.
He still walks with a little bit of a limp.
- You can keep the photo.
- Yeah.
I have some business in the Mergui Island,
near the village where you saw him.
You will come with me.
Hey, Sonchai.
Tomorrow we'll look for your son.
Sonchai is my best captain.
Sometimes... Sometimes I feel like...
Like he's here in the room with me.
Would you like to join me?
Yeah, all right.
You look like you need a drink.
Well, I wasn't really expecting
to be here, that's all.
Yeah, I guess not. Come on in.
Paul?
Paul?
Wait!
Hey!
- Did you take those?
- Yes.
That...
Video of those kids in the village,
did you do that?
Do you think it's possible it could be him?
I honestly don't know.
When I was in Rwanda, a colleague and I
had to clear a mass grave.
There was this woman there, she was
screaming and yelling and pointing.
We tried to get her to go away,
but she wouldn't budge.
We pulled body after body out of there.
Mothers, fathers, children.
Then finally, at the bottom of the hole,
under this heap of dead meat,
there was a child, baby boy.
He was in a bad way but he was alive.
Her son.
So do you think it's possible
that Josh could have been traded?
People up in the islands are poor.
When things get really rough, they make do
with the only capital they have.
When someone dies a bad death,
the spirit becomes confused.
It does not know where to go or what to do.
The spirit becomes angry,
it becomes vinyan.
What do the fire lamps do?
Light is to help guide the vinyan home,
to the house of the dead
so vinyan can rest.
Each light is for one spirit.
There's so many.
You can light one.
Joshua's not dead.
Not for Joshua. For me.
Light one for me.
- I'd better go.
- Really?
- I left Jeanne alone. I'd better go.
- You did, didn't you?
Jeanne?
Hey, excuse me.
Have you seen a white woman?
Hey, seen a white woman?
Okay.
Good, now no problem for you.
This is where the Salone
and Moken sea gypsies live.
Very close to where we think your son is.
We'll go there first.
The boy is in the village.
You have to pay before you go there.
Pay?
No. We've already paid. We've paid Mr. Gao.
Mr. Khun has worked very hard.
- For fuck's sake!
- All right. Paul, Paul, Paul.
Pay him, please.
Twenty thousand baht.
White boy, good boy.
We hope so, yeah.
Twenty thousand?
Follow that man.
White boy. Good boy.
Mummy.
Mummy.
- Me Joshua.
- It's not him.
- Me Joshua.
- No, no! It's not him, it's not him.
Jeanne!
- Give me my money.
- What's wrong?
That boy was not good?
Yeah, you could say that.
Not fucking good. No.
You didn't like him?
You fucking lied to me!
You paid for him,
why didn't you take him?
That? I paid for that thing in there?
- He is a child.
- He's not my child.
- What did he say?
- He said, what's the difference?
There are villages further down the coast.
I have reports of more children.
There are other white children.
It will not cost much. We will find him.
Matty? Can you hear me?
Can you hear... Shit!
We're in Burma now.
No reception except with satellite.
What are you doing?
Jeanne, what is this?
Look.
That tape, I watched it.
I can't really see anything
that suggests that it could be Josh.
I'm sorry.
To me it looks like it could be any kid.
It could even be a little fucking monster
like they just tried to sell us.
He's not a monster, Paul.
They're stealing from us.
They saw us coming
and they are taking us for a ride,
it's as simple as that.
We agreed, Paul.
You said that even if there was
the slightest chance
that Josh was alive,
we would go and we would find him.
I think we have to face facts.
And I don't think there is the slightest
chance that Josh is alive, darling.
The wave took him,
and he drowned six months ago.
Josh is dead.
- No.
- Yes, he is.
No, he's here.
No, he's not here! He's not here!
Can't you see that?
Mr. Gao.
I want you to take us home, please.
- There are two villages to the east.
- No! No! I don't want to go anywhere else!
Just take us home.
To keep searching.
Tell him we're lost.
Tell him anything.
You're making the right choice.
No problem.
Wait there.
- What? Where you going?
- Wait there.
Jeanne! Jeanne.
Jeanne. The money is gone.
The fucking money's gone.
No. I gave him the money.
What do you mean
you gave him the money?
- I gave it to Gao.
- Why? Why did you that?
But don't worry. It's just because
he's going to search for three more days.
No, darling, we can't. What do you mean
you've given him the money?
Don't worry, it's okay.
We don't know who these people are!
We're in the middle of fucking nowhere!
You can't just give him the fucking money!
I want my money back.
It's mine now.
Give me my fucking money.
Sonchai.
We'll spend the night here. There's shelter.
We're lost, aren't we?
We're lost, aren't we?
Do you play poker?
You knew there were no
white children here.
You knew what those sea gypsies
were doing.
You fixed it, you fixed all of it.
Have some drink.
You think we were just going to buy
some fucking child?
Any child?
Mr. Bellmer, I did what you
asked me to do.
Your wife thinks your son
is in one of these villages.
So I took you to a place
where they said there was a white child.
Yeah, but that wasn't my son!
I lost my wife of 30 years in the tsunami.
And do you know
what happened to Sonchai?
Four kids and his wife,
all dead in his house.
I didn't know that.
Mr. Bellmer, I can find your child,
I cannot cure your pain.
Your wife paid me to continue the search.
If you can't control your wife,
that is not my concern.
Hey, where you going?
- Out.
- Out?
Go home, Josh.
Go home!
Go home, Josh! Go home!
Go home!
Fuck! Go home!
Go home!
Sonchai!
Sonchai!
Sonchai!
It's gone.
Oh, my God. My drawings.
Josh's stuff.
What are you doing?
Come back!
- You'll never make it!
- No! No!
Gao!
You bastard! Where are you going?
Joshua! Joshua!
Joshua! Joshua!
I want Joshua.
Can you help us?
Get off me! Get off!
Come on, darling, I'm sorry.
Come on. Come on, darling.
- I love you.
- I love you, too, darling.
- I love you.
- I love you, too, darling.
I love you.
Daddy.
Daddy.
Hey.
You let him go.
You let him go.
Jeanne!
Jeanne!
Jeanne?
Help! Help, please. Please help me!
What you doing, you bitch?
Help, help, help!
Please help me, help me.
Help me, help!
Paul, help me. Help me, please.
Help me, please.
You got to help me, please.
Pass me the gun first.
And I'll help you out.
Please.
You fucking thieving, fucking bastard.
- What are you doing?
- Shut up.
- It's her fault.
- Shut up!
She stole your money.
She told me to continue the search.
Please help me.
- Help, help, help, help.
- Shut up!
You don't know this place!
You don't know...
Shut up!
Just give me your fucking hand!
No!
Help me, please!
Help!
Help me!
Help!
Joshua.
Joshua. Is that you?
It's not him.
Joshua.
It's Mummy.
Joshua.
- No! Don't go! Come back!
- It's not him, Jeanne.
Jeanne!
Jeanne!
You let him go.