It moved cinemagoers to tears and became a viral sensation, but you’d never guess from the title. How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies, which arrived on Netflix today (Saturday, April 12), sounds like a cynical crime caper. But this is a film full of surprises.
By its own admission, it’s “inspired by true stories found in every family” and it clearly struck a chord around the world. The first feature from director Pat Boonnitipat was made for just $1 million, and this touching but thought-provoking story has since become the highest-grossing Thai film of all time, taking at least $73.8 million at the worldwide box office. Critics loved it just as much as the audiences, giving it a 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
And for those who enjoy a good tear-jerker, the film truly hits the spot. At its centre is the elderly matriarch Amah (78-year-old Usha Seamkhum, making her film acting debut) who has accepted her diagnosis of terminal cancer with a practical calm.
She also knows that her will could cause complications as all of her children will have designs on a possible life-changing inheritance. Sons Kiang is an uptight stockbroker and Soei is addicted to drink and gambling, while her daughter Sew is the only one who genuinely works hard.
Sew’s son, M (Putthipong Assaratanakul) is more laid-back, a twenty-something living at home with dreams of making his fortune from the internet, but it’s a plan that’s getting him nowhere fast.
Discovering that his attractive cousin Mui (Tontawan Tantivejakul) has been left a fortune by her grandfather after she nursed him during his final years, M decides to take her advice – spend so much time with Amah that he’ll stop noticing “the old person smell.”
His grandmother isn’t in the least bit surprised when he arrives on her doorstep every day, asking if there’s anything he can do to help. She sees exactly what he’s up to and is difficult to win over at the start, but she also realises he’s no worse than her sons and much better company. It all resurrects memories of caring for her own parents, only for them to leave all their money to her brother, who never lifted a finger.
It’s a family film for sure, but not of the cuddly, loveable variety. They’re a dysfunctional lot but, in a story inspired by his relationship with his own grandmother, screenwriter Thodsapon Thiptinnakorn taps into the troublesome mixed feelings we all have about our so-called nearest and dearest – loving them, often losing patience with them yet having to live with them whether we like it or not.
He’s also created a family of individuals rather than a blur in the background, people that we recognise and identify with. But it’s the growing understanding and genuine love between Amah and M that drives the film forward, propelled by two beautifully judged performances that have received praise around the world.
The emotional reaction from audiences says a lot for the accuracy of the family dynamics on screen, but what the makers could never have seen coming was the way their film became a viral sensation, especially in South East Asia.
TikTok videos showed people in floods of tears, others were full of reminders to spend time with their families or memories of their own grandparents who had died. Staff at a cinema in Manila were shown handing out tissues to moviegoers as they arrived to see the film.
And you’ll need a box of tissues by your side. But that won’t be any hardship because How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies is a priceless balance of realism, understanding and caring with a generous side order of humour. A family film in the best possible sense.
How To Make Millions Before Grandma Dies is released in Netflix in the US on 12 April. It is also available in the UK on Prime Video.