“RedLife” is a slow-burn drama about people living in a red-light district. The story revolves around Aoi and the youngsters Som, Ter, Mild, and Peach. The film depicts the complications a sex worker mother goes through to give her daughter a better life. Som is the daughter of an abandoned father and a sex worker mother desiring a simple and fulfilling life. Ter is the insecure boyfriend of a sex worker, Mild. The story brings to light the complicated relationships of people living complex lives.
This article contains spoilers.
RedLife (2023) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
The film begins with Aoi waking Som up in the middle of the night. They walk in the red-light district of Bangkok. They find a room to stay, and the owner informs Aoi she needs to pay her rent at the end of the month. She also asks Aoi to keep an eye on Som as they are living in a building full of hookers and men walking in and out throughout the day.
A group of boys loot a man, but one (Ter) gets caught as he is hesitant to hurt this unarmed man. Mild comes to bail Ter out, calling him her cousin. She seduces the police and makes sure Ter gets out of prison. Meanwhile, Som is facing issues at school as her fees are not paid. The teacher warns her that she won’t be allowed to continue next semester if she fails to pay the fees. Ter visits his friends, whom he robs with, to ask for his share of money.
The others trigger him by asking him not to leave Mild as it would get easier for them because she can sleep with the police to bail all of them out. Ter gets riled up listening to this. Aoi is sweet talking with her old client, and he offers her to move in with him. Som comes back home to realize her mother is having sex with someone, and she walks out. She comes back much later in the day, and her mother feeds her with good food.
Som asks her mother if she has any money to pay for the school’s six-semester fees. Aoi says she will pay the school in the coming week, but Som is unsure of her mother’s promise. Meanwhile, Ter, in anger, confronts Mild if she had slept with the police to bail him out. She admits to it but also reminds him that she is a hooker and she does the job for a living. Ter gets insecure and asks her if she will leave him for a rich man. Mild, in turn, asks him if he is capable of feeding her.
Ter gets a hooker, and it turns out to be Aoi. She asks him for complete payment upfront. He tells her he doesn’t doesn’t have the money. Aoi asks him to leave so she can take a nap. Ter tries to ask Aoi how sleeping with strangers feels, but Aoi is already fast asleep. That night, Ter apologizes to Mild, and they sort out the issue. The following day, Mild drags him to a marriage registration office, and they get married. It is Mild’s way of saying she will never dump him.
In school, Som sees a girl’s wrist cut in the washroom. She helps the girl. In the next scene, we see the girl is a part of the cheerleading group. The group has come to Som’s class to look for cheerleaders. Som does not volunteer, but upon the girl’s (Peach) insistence, the group calls her to the meeting the next day. Som has befriended a man in the building who talks to her about his love for his boyfriend.
Ter has promised to Mild not to rob people. He gets a job as a loader, but he is asked not to return after the first day. Mild takes Ter to meet her father, who is in prison. He asks Ter to look after Mild as he has raised her well. Mild gets angry and reminds him that he had used her to hide cocaine. Her father angers Ter by calling him a freeloader. Ter does not feel good after this and is lost in thought.
Som and Peach become friends. Peach takes Som out with her friends, and they also go clubbing. On their way, Som sees her mother waiting for clients but ignores her because Peach is with her. Som had lied to Peach about her mother’s profession and where she lives. At home, Aoi forces her daughter to eat, but she refuses. They get into an argument, and Som asks her mother why she has sent her to school when she can’t pay her fees.
Som and Peach start to become good friends. Aoi reaches out to her rich client, who has asked her to live with him multiple times, and asks for money. He agrees to help, but she needs to stay with him and look after the house. Som can stay with them as well. Ter is losing his mind and sees a man whom he beats up and loots the money. He tells the other boys the loot is his. Ter has started to rob people again.
With the money he has robbed, Ter buys a ring for Mild. Aoi gives money for Som’s school fees, and she is elated. Som visit Peach and they go swimming. Som tells Peach the truth about her life. Peach says that she has an older sister, and they were close as kids. She is in Korea, but her mother does not allow her to live with her. She is saving money to go to Korea and asks Som if she will join her. Som agrees.
Mild is at work and trying to deal with one of her old clients when Ter approaches her. He asks to meet her briefly, but Mild dismisses him. They both get into the client’s car, and Ter tells him he is Mild’s husband and gives Mild a ring. Mild realizes he has started to rob people after seeing the ring. They get into an argument. Mild asks her client to drive them to a motel. In anger, Mild takes the ring and asks him to get lost as she needs to make money.
One thing leads to another, and Som and Peach sleep together. Ter is infuriated and steals the client’s car and drives it into a water body. Som is upset as Peach is missing, but it does not alarm anybody. It appears Peach does the disappearance act often. Ter comes back home from prison to find Mild with his friend Khiang. He has no place else and asks to live with them. Ter is infuriated with them, but Mild reminds him that he left her.
Som knows where Peach lives, visits her room, and waits for her. At night, Ter is awake and can hear Mild giving Khiang a hand job, and he is heartbroken. Som tells Mild that Khiang does not love her, but Mild tells him it’s not easy to let things go. Aoi gets a call from the school saying the fees have not been paid. She confronts Som, who says she spent the money to buy tickets to Korea, and her friend is taking her. Aoi tries to put some sense into her and says she is a moron.
Som is upset and says awful things to her mother. She tells her she wishes she didn’t have to live with her because living with her means she will be like her. She tries to talk to Peach’s friends, but they aren’t of any help. Moreover, she realizes that the elder sibling Peach is talking about is a Korean pop star. Ter sees an opportunity as an older man who is rich is living alone, and he can loot his house. It turns out this older man is Aoi’s client.
Ter makes a deal with Khiang. He asks him to take all the loot but leave Mild. Khiang agrees. They break into the house. Som is looking for the man she has befriended (Uncle Guk), but she is informed that Guk has killed himself because his boyfriend had died in a hospital after being beaten up by a mob. Aoi has come to live with the older man, leaving Som to fend for herself.
RedLife (2023) Movie Ending Explained:
Can Relationships Flourish in the Depths of a Red Light District?
Som is working in a cafรฉ to earn her way in life. She bumps into Peach’s old friends. Peach also visits the cafรฉ and tells Som she is moving to Korea and that what she shared with her is special. Som knows it’s a lie but begs her to stay back. Peach just hugs her and leaves. Som is devastated and tries to call her mother, but she does not pick up. Aoi is on the top floor of the house and notices Ter and Khiang hiding. Ter tries to shut her up, but Khiang, in panic, stabs Aoi to death.
He finds a way and escapes, but the older man shoots Khiang. Ter sees Khiang’s dead body on the road and throws up. In fear, he rushes home and seeks comfort with Mild. He is disappointed as Mild says she believes in Khiang in a sleepy state. Som is upset as her mother does not receive her call. She harms herself, but her colleagues come to her rescue. In a dream, Som dreams about embracing her mother one last time.
The film tackles the life and difficulties of people living in red-light districts. The struggle to live an ordinary life and to love like everyone else is a big ordeal. The film also brings to light the partners of sex workers and the insecurities that they feel even if they don’t want to. Som and her mother’s complicated relationship also brings to light the mother’s struggle to ensure her daughter does not have to lead a difficult life. On the other hand, Som, who sees kids her age living better, is unable to manage her emotions. Nevertheless, the film was unnecessarily slow, depicting different ways to establish the same point. The film could have been more concise and tight, and the message would have had a better impact.
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