Ruin

Nineteen-year-old prostitute Sovanna tries to escape from her tyrannical pimp. Factory worker Phirun is sick of being used as a doormat by his boss and kills him in a fit of rage. The two outcasts flee Phnom Penh together, going deeper and deeper into the jungle, where a fragile love unfolds.
The harshness of Cambodian society, where ‘kill or be killed’ is the principal motto, deals the pair some very bad cards. Nevertheless, Sovanna and Phirun refuse to be defenceless victims, and are able to strike back, violently.
Ruin is an impressionist, rough-edged fairytale. As most of the film was made through improvisation around a minimal, constantly changing script, it does not have a traditional narrative structure. Every now and again, the traumas borne by the protagonists emerge through the enigmatic shrouds of mist, supported by an atmospheric soundtrack, while the horrific recent history of Cambodia lurks just beneath the surface.

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