6ixtynin9 The Series Review: Bizarre Series Makes You Question Your Life

6ixtynin9 The Series Review: An adaptation of the 1999 movie of the same name, this Thai crime-dark comedy series (เรื่องตลก 69 เดอะซีรีส์ / Rueang Talok 69 the Series) is written and directed by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang and stars Mai-Davika Hoorne, Amornaek Micheli, Apivich Rintapoln, Foei-Patara Eksangkul, Man-Trisanu Soranun, Mine-Thanaporn Rattanasasiwimon, and others. The series has 6 episodes, each with a runtime of around 45-60 minutes.

6ixtynin9 The Series Plot

After Toom suddenly loses her job in the middle of a pandemic, she is left distraught and wonders what to do next. However, thanks to a fated misunderstanding, she has a box dropped off at her doorstep that she discovers is full of cash. Unable to stop the temptation of an easy out, she decides to do whatever is necessary to keep the cash with her and get rid of anyone who comes in her path.

6ixtynin9 The Series Review

Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s 1999 movie is a much-loved piece of media that has won accolades from many quarters. The director returns with the same story, just with a longer runtime, in order to tell the story much more descriptively than a feature-length venture can ever provide.

Keeping the movie aside, the series starts off on the journey that we already know and from its first episode, you are hooked to the sequence of events that unfold in front of you. There are some bizarre moments that happen alongside Toom’s unfortunate life unfolding that are rather funny and a very odd contrast to the crime thriller that takes place alongside it. The circumstances surrounding Toom’s initial firing from her job are rather strange and will leave you thinking about the massive lawsuit at the company’s hands.

Either way, with the longer runtime, the series explores in-depth moments of Toom’s life collapsing thanks to the money that she got in secret, and I must say that watching the episodes pass, it would’ve made sense for a shorter runtime. Thanks to these long moments of basically nothing but exploring inane storylines, it dilutes the tight pacing of the crime-thriller part of the series, and you forget where you were with that storyline. And sure, it adds colour to the world pretty well, but it makes you wonder why you are seeing long moments of dialogue or the gratuitous sex scenes that are just there for the fun of it.

I think I was really offended about the sex scenes – why do we need to see the policeman and his girlfriend’s extended sex scene or Tud with his girlfriend talking about god knows what with her exposed? The policeman’s scene was the most confusing because we anyway were expected to get to know that information along with Toom, so why did we see him in different positions with the girlfriend and then some more? It just feels like a cheap way to get some tongues rolling for no reason, more so because the guy doesn’t even stay on-screen for more than 5 minutes after that!

Apart from that, 6ixtynin9 The Series has quite a few deaths, a hefty number more than the original. But are they more gory? I mean, there is some blood after people are stabbed and shot, but it’s quite tame considering the things that we usually see in crime thrillers these days. The comedy elements are peppered in quite well, which makes watching the series quite entertaining. Plus, we also delve deep into the different characters. But why do we need this series when the movie itself does such a great job of bringing these different elements forth in a compact package?

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Honestly, it feels a bit forced, and the series drones on a bit after a while as well. The absurdity continues to be funny until it goes a little overboard, honestly, and then goes completely off the rails after a while. Why the series decided to take an absolutely absurd twist towards the end is beyond my comprehension. Maybe it wanted to be funny, but it ended up being just silly in the long run. You want to see what Toom will do next but constantly watch these absurd side quests that take place without rhyme or reason.

I think 6ixtynin9 The Series gets Toom’s frustration and desperation quite right. You feel bad for her and her predicament and the state of the country, thanks to the pandemic. Mai-Davika Hoorne gets the face and the general disdain of her being right, and you sympathise with her. But, apart from that, the series overdoes everything and makes it more of a jokey show than a dark comedy. Towards the fag end of the 4th episode, it goes as far as to become supernatural for some reason. The rest of the cast is also great, and ignoring the insanity, they do a great job.

6ixtynin9 The Series Review: Final Thoughts

6ixtynin9 The Series goes off the rails with the storyline thanks to its extended runtime. It loses the tension of the original storyline and brings forth a slew of things that are either unnecessary or totally absurd. In a bid to be funny, it gives up making sense which is a shame, considering the movie was such a tight and well-paced watch.

6ixtynin9: The Series is streaming on Netflix.

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