"The Effect" (a mini series of 3 episodes) is one of the four movies that made my stomach twist and this isn't something that can easily happen to me. It was one of the very few occasions where I had the wrong impression about what I was going to watch. Instead of one more school BL romance, it turned out to be a psychological drama with outstanding acting that left me numb and made me realize once more how often BL actors are underestimated.
PLOT
A university student in his first year, Shin, cannot help but admire Keng who is a very popular and attractive senior. Despite his shyness, Shin attracts Keng's attention and they start having a friendly contact. However, Keng's friends cannot understand the nature of their relationship and their jealousy leads to a cyber bullying that gets out of hand. Shin is unable to handle the nasty situation and asks Keng to stay away from him in order to avoid being the center of gossiping. Nevertheless, he does not imagine that Keng is not the well-balanced person he thought. Having unbearable pressure from his parents and unable to accept rejection, he interprets Shin's behaviour as betrayal. What we witness from this point until the end, is a disastrous rollercoaster which proves that false rumors can have tragic effects on innocent lives.
After finishing the series, I put a great effort to overcome my numbness and my astonishment for this unexpected miracle! James Prapatthorn Chakkcuchan who played Shin, deserves to be highly appraised since his acting portrayed the pain and tragedy of his character in the most perfect way! I regard this drama as one of the best thai BL productions. I think that it's a pitty for this series not to have been given the attention it deserves!