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A Useful Ghost

A Useful Ghost

2025

Director

Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke

Runtime

130 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

Synopsis

Worried about her husband being allergic to dust, Nat, a recently-dead woman, returns as a ghost possessing a vacuum cleaner to clean the house and protect her family from other vengeful ghosts in the house. To become a useful ghost, she needs to get rid of the useless ones.

Where to Watch

Diversity & Representation

Overall Score

7.8/10

Good


Category Breakdown

LGBTQ+ Representation

Excellent

The story centers on an academic ladyboy, providing intellectual and emotional depth. It explores romantic attraction through a non-cisnormative lens via the protagonist's connection to Krong.

Gender Representation

Good

Suman, an electronics factory heir, holds significant economic and systemic authority. The film subverts traditional masculine roles by focusing on unconventional interpersonal dynamics.

Racial & Ethnic Diversity

Excellent

This Thai production with European co-production elements offers a non-Western perspective. It uses Southeast Asian settings and urban renewal contexts to de-center the Anglo-Saxon gaze.

Religious & Cultural Diversity

Excellent

The narrative critiques capitalist expansion by framing vengeful spirits as victims of industrial negligence. It uses dark comedy to engage with political history and social unrest.

Disability Representation

Good

The character Tok introduces themes of physical vulnerability through congenital heart disease. This inclusion provides a critique of workplace safety and the human condition.

Strengths

  • Centering a queer protagonist with intellectual depth rather than caricature.
  • Providing a non-Western perspective on the supernatural genre.
  • Using dark comedy to critique capitalist expansion and industrial negligence.

Areas for Improvement

  • Disability themes are primarily used as plot drivers for supernatural conflict.
  • The focus on medical trauma could be expanded into deeper character studies.

AI Analysis

A Useful Ghost succeeds by weaving intersectional identities directly into its supernatural mechanics. Rather than treating queer or non-Western perspectives as side plots, the film uses them to drive the central tension and thematic depth. The film effectively utilizes the horror-comedy genre to critique systemic issues like industrial negligence and urban renewal. By framing ghosts as products of social and economic failures, the story moves beyond simple scares into meaningful social commentary. While the film excels in queer and cultural representation, the disability elements remain more closely tied to plot drivers than fully realized character studies. Overall, it is a sophisticated, internationalist work.

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