Critical mass

Gossip Gun targets the latest movies

By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos by Varuth Hirunyatheb
and courtesy of Gossip Gun

Among several Thai film critics, Karun Chittararak (Gun), or Gossip Gun, is known among viewers for his well-informed and easy to understand comments. Gun is honest but doesn’t use harsh language to express his opinions.

The 29-year-old has been commenting on films on the radio station, 94 EFM, for five years. Now he’s co-hosting the TV show, Movie Seat, on GMM25. Gun has more than 80,000 followers on his Twitter account @GossipGun and almost 60,000 followers on his Facebook page.

Gun has loved movies since he was in primary school, when his uncle’s huge movie collection made him a film buff. As a student, Gun liked to recommend movies on the school web board and radio station. He thinks of his opinion sharing as a hobby because he is now a manager of entertainment news production at GMM 25.

Student Weekly met up with Gun who told us about the role of a film critic and gave advice for young movie buffs who want to be like him.

Student Weekly: What is the role of a film critic?

Gun: We share comments with filmmakers and viewers and are a tiny part of the film industry. An opinion from a film critic doesn’t have any influence on a movie and can’t change it. I prefer to call myself a film mentor because I recommend movies to viewers. Even the worst movie still has its own audience while a movie which many critics say is marvellous may not be enjoyed by everybody.

Student Weekly: What are the qualifications of a good film critic?

Gun: They must see a lot of movies and study every aspect, including how to make a movie. A critic should have knowledge of each movie and understand the business of each genre, so you can rank a movie compared to others of the same type. You must know the director and actors as well as their previous work.

Student Weekly: What is most difficult about being a film critic?

Gun: Though we can understand the film industry, we can’t understand all viewers. Opinions about a film also relate to taste. When viewers have different opinions from critics, we have to maintain our standards and be ourselves. We can’t change our opinion. We must be honest about how we feel and respect other opinions. I personally think if a movie can raise issues and people discuss it, then that movie is successful.

Student Weekly: Is it true that watching movies can improve your English?

Gun: Yes, I can now watch some English language movies without subtitles, except movies that features technical terms such as Inception and Interstellar. For students who want to improve their English, they should start by turning on English subtitles so they learn what a character says. Before my university entrance exam, I read many English subtitles and then became a student at Thammasat University’s Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Student Weekly: What do you enjoy most about working as a film critic?

Gun: I’m impressed when young people send me messages or tweet that they would like to be like me and ask for advice on what they should do. I didn’t expect people to look up to me. I had no idea that my hobby would have this much influence on people.

Student Weekly: How is Movie Seat different from other film shows?

Gun: We target the new generation so the content must be fun, modern and easy to watch. We film in different locations and put our movie seats in an environment which is similar to our recommended movie. For example, when we talked about Frozen our seats were covered in snow.

Student Weekly: How should an aspiring film critic start?

Gun: Like other careers, if you want to do something, you have to obsess about it. Every movie has its own main idea, just like every book. After watching a movie you should figure out the main idea. Then, you should search for more information about the director, scriptwriter and actors. You may find out why the director made this kind of movie.

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