‘Fruit Gathering’ Review: Delicate Debut Explores Forbidden Love and Socioeconomic Realities in Myanmar
Aung Phyoe’s ‘Fruit Gathering’ is a poignant and affecting drama that delves into the complexities of same-sex relationships in Myanmar, where same-sex sexual activity remains illegal. The film, which premiered at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the main competition, is a promising debut from the young director, who has built a reputation for his short films, including the 2019 Locarno competition entry ‘Cobalt Blue.’
The story revolves around San Kyi (Nandar Myat Aung), a young woman who works in a textile factory in Yangon, the commercial center of Myanmar. San Kyi is a meager earner, hunched over a sewing machine for long hours, and her life is marked by the absence of love and affection. Her rigid and unsentimental mother (Thida Soe Khant) sees only urban labor and a profitably arranged marriage in her future, crushing San Kyi’s dreams of returning to her rural home village up north.
When Theint (Nandar Myint Lwin) joins the factory, San Kyi’s life changes dramatically. Theint is a free-spirited and rebellious woman who sees the world in a different light. The two women form a fast and firm bond, and San Kyi idealizes Theint as a symbol of her own desires and aspirations. However, Theint is a flawed and erratic figure, quick to borrow money from San Kyi and slow to return it. The tension between the women builds into confrontational melodrama, complete with heated and hasty outbursts and physical violence.
Despite its tentative moments, ‘Fruit Gathering’ is a poignantly old-fashioned work that reminds us of the ongoing battles for queer visibility in many parts of the world. The film’s director, Aung Phyoe, has built a reputation for his sensitive and nuanced portrayal of complex relationships, and ‘Fruit Gathering’ is no exception. With its vivid and unusual particulars of the Myanmar milieu, the film distinguishes itself from other comparable screen stories of gay repression and self-realization.
The film’s cinematography is stunning, with DP Thaiddhi capturing the dreamy and summery light of the Myanmar landscape. The image of San Kyi looking quizzically into the mirror where Theint is brushing her hair is a powerful symbol of their intense and merged identities. The film’s score is minimal, but the subtle and increasing pastel matchiness of Akari Diraki’s beautifully tailored costumes adds to the emotional impact of the scenes.
‘Fruit Gathering’ is a film that will leave you breathless and yearning for more. It’s a delicate and affecting drama that explores the complexities of same-sex relationships in Myanmar, where love is forbidden in the most literal and systemic sense. The stakes are consistently high in a story about love that is felt in brief and ecstatic moments of release.
