Romantic ride

Ice melts Mario's heat

By Tatat Bunnag
Photographs by Varuth Hirunyatheb
and courtesy of Sahamongkol Film International

Fans of 23-year-old superstar Mario Maurer will be surprised to see him transform his usual gentleman image to become a womanising motorcycle gang member in the new Sahamongkol romantic comedy, Rak Sud Teen, due to hit cinemas on March 1.

Directed by Paripan Watcharanon, Rak Sud Teen is about Aek (Mario), a member of a biker gang who also happens to be a good-looking ladies' man. Aek's gang sells jeans at night market and flirts with every girl that comes their way. Aek doesn't plan to fall in love with anybody, but everything changes when he meets the beautiful Mintra, played by 18-year-old Amena Gul (Ice).

Student Weekly recently caught up with Mario and Ice at a press conference to hear all about the making of Rak Sud Teen.

Student Weekly: Can you tell us about your characters in Rak Sud Teen?

Mario: Aek is a playboy who runs a jeans stall at the night market under Put Bridge. Every night, he and his buddies go out to try and pick up beautiful women as a hobby. But when he meets Mintra, he tries to change and become a better person to win her heart.

Ice: I play Mintra, a young intern with a unique personality. She meets Aek one night when she's shopping at the night market.

Student Weekly: How long did Rak Sud Teen take to film?

Ice: We started filming around October last year. We shot mostly in Bangkok, as well as some scenes in Pattaya.

Mario: We actually shot the movie in a few weeks, which was pretty fast. But there was flooding in Bangkok at the time, so that caused some difficulties.

Student Weekly: Mario, did you enjoy playing a playboy for a change?

Mario: It was fun and challenging. I'd never played a character like that before. Aek is pretty rough and not very polite. [Laughs.] But it wasn't hard for me to prepare for the role, because I have friends that are like Aek in real life. I just studied the way that acted whenever I went out with them.

Student Weekly: Ice, what do you think of your first acting experience?

Ice: I'd done modelling work before, but acting was much harder than I expected. It requires lots of skill and focus. I also had to do a lot of research to prepare for my character.

Student Weekly: Were you already a fan of Mario's previous movies?

Ice: Yes. I've seen a few of his films. My favourites are First Love and The Outrage.

Student Weekly: Do you guys think a playboy could really change and have a serious relationship?

Mario: It's possible. I think somebody like that would stop fooling around if they met somebody that they really cared about, even if they still secretly think about other girls.

Ice: It might be really hard for somebody like that to change. I personally wouldn't date somebody if I knew they were a playboy.

Student Weekly: What do you remember most about the filming of Rak Sud Teen?

Mario: I like the fact that I got to ride a motorbike. It was cool riding with a motorcycle gang, because it's not something I'd do in real life. Riding a motorbike is pretty dangerous these days, especially in Bangkok.

Ice: I'm new to the movie business, but I was really impressed with my first experience making a film. I was glad to be in a good movie and working with great actors. Everybody in the team was really nice to me the whole time we were filming.