Laws of Attraction (2023)

A Very Entertaining Lakorn Style BL

“Laws of Attraction” is an interesting crime BL drama with all the hallmarks of a typical Thai Lakorn (soap opera). In true Lakorn fashion, certain actions, interactions, and events are over the top and meant to be. The show has an interesting plot that features everything from romance, gratuitous violence, terrible parents on one end, and incredibly supportive parents and guardians on the other; a villain who’s not really a villain, and a plethora of other ‘Lakorn tropes’ that make Laws of Attraction not only interesting and entertaining to watch but get you invested in it right from the start.

The Story:

That being said, it becomes clear from the beginning that the road to discovering the truth will be rough for Charn and Tinn as they seem to be polar opposites regarding their ethics, views, and what they believe in. In Episode 1, Charn is introduced to the viewer as a cunning and devious lawyer who has absolutely no scruples about using underhanded tactics like tampering with or fabricating evidence, manipulating people around him in order to further his own will and to get the results he wants for his own benefits. Still, at the same time, the show drops some hints that while Charn appears to be a deeply flawed individual, things are not always the way they appear.  On the other hand, Tinn is presented to the audience as a morally righteous man whose belief in the law and the good in people almost borders on naïveté at times, which makes him clash epically with Charn’s corrupted mind.

The story centers around Charn, a clever and cunning lawyer who usually only accepts high-paying and high-profile cases, consistently bringing him more power and renown. When a little girl named Tonkhao is killed in a car accident involving the son of a senator, the senator hires Charn to settle the matter with the family of the victim. Charn soon realizes that things are not what they seem and begins to look deeper into the matter and, as a result, is taken off the case. To exact revenge for his hurt pride and something for his own profit and advantage along the way, Charn switches sides and teams up with Tinn, Tonkhao’s uncle, and his grandmother, and together, they set out to find out the truth behind the accident and get justice for the little girl.

Despite holding opposite views, as the two men spend more time together and their work becomes more and more dangerous, they grow closer to each other, and what started as a hate and distrustful relationship from Tinn’s side and as a relationship of convenience as far as Charn is concerned gradually develops into something else. The show does a great job at portraying that relationship progress and the changes this starts bringing about in both characters in a very organic and natural way. As Charn spends more time with Tinn and develops feelings for him, he wants to fulfill Tinn’s expectations of him becoming a better person, but this character development never feels rushed. Instead, it is portrayed as a slow yet well-paced, gradual process. The show allows Charn to stumble, fall, and get up several times on his way to reverting to the person he once was before he allowed anger, bitterness, and trauma to change him into the man we met in the first episode. All of this while still maintaining, to a certain degree, that cunning side of him.

The same is true for Tinn, though his character development is subtler, which is due to the fact that he is presented as a righteous man who is good through and through. However, upon closer inspection, Tinn isn’t without flaws either. He is initially very judgemental of Charn and very quick to label him as a selfish, evil guy who cares about nothing but power and money, and he doesn’t bother to try and look a little deeper. It’s only when his grandmother reminds him that everyone deals with difficulties they encounter in their lives in different ways and that he doesn’t know what made Charn act and think the way he does that Tinn actually begins to try to look what’s hidden underneath Charn’s façade. I also appreciated the fact that, in the process of investigating the death of his niece, Tinn begins to understand that it is not always possible to play strictly by the rules, and sometimes, a situation might call for an action that would be considered as being slightly underhanded. However, he always sticks to his principles, and he is not afraid to give Charn one hell of a dressing down when he feels that he is being lied to or manipulated.

The show has solid scriptwriting, and for the most part, the plot is well-executed and well-paced. It had its fair share of plot holes, and, at times, the special effects were rough at times due to Laws of Attraction being a limited-budget production. However, it also had many strengths to counterbalance that, such as most of the characters are complex and multi-dimensional, which makes them appear more realistic and human, no matter how much you want to hate some of them. The show also does an amazing job of making Tonkhao very much a main character despite her early death. It never lets the viewer forget what started this whole investigation. We are constantly reminded of her. Not only do we see Tinn, Grandma grieving for her, talking about her and missing her, but we also see how Charn gradually becomes attached to this little girl and that way, the show has managed to keep Tonkhao in the forefront of the viewer’s mind until the very last episode.

The series also features a bunch of very interesting side characters. Charn’s friends Rose and Maya take really good care of him, are loving and supportive, but also ready to put Charn in his place when the situation calls for it. Tinn’s grandmother is a wonderful, wise, and understanding character. As the show progresses, she becomes something like a mother figure for Charn.
Then, there is the side couple Thaenthai and his bodyguard Methee, nicknamed “Thee,” who also draw the viewer in with their gradually developing romance. Unfortunately, since the show has only eight episodes, their story isn’t fleshed out as well and as detailed as it should have been.
Last but not least, there is Nawin, a mobster and Charn’s ex-lover, who is an awesome combination of ridiculous and ruthless. He is almost always over the top, but in a fun way that never becomes annoying or feels out of place.

The Cast:

Film Thanapat Kawila is Charn Sangsathienpong

Jam Rachata Hampanont is Tinn Koetkasin

Film’s portrayal of Charn was mind-blowingly good with just how crazy and unhinged of a character he is. He absolutely nailed the persona with his mannerisms and quirks throughout the entire series of events and plot twists. His smiles, in particular, are noteworthy as they tell the viewer so much about Charn’s complex personality. They range from cute, happy, and flirty when he is with Tinn to cunning and ruthless whenever he is up to something, while, at other times, they are purely evil, creepy, and manic to a “Joker” kind of level. Film also does an amazing job of portraying Charn’s transmogrification as he is confronted by his own demons and the ramifications of those changes to the man he is becoming.
On the other side, Jam also does an admirable job at playing Tinn, who is, in essence, a more idealistic version of Charn, the vision of the kind of man Charn could be had he not lost faith in justice and the ‘good’ in people. His character has an interesting duality in that he can be soft and gentle on the one hand but also fierce and sometimes ruthless on the other. It would also have been easy for Tinn to come across as preachy due to his morality and rigid sense of justice. Still, Jam portrayed the character with enough nuance that it never slid into that realm.

See Parattakorn Kaiyanan is Thaenthai

See is a rookie actor with only six roles to his credit, and considering his inexperience, he did a respectable job at playing Thaenthai. However, he sometimes struggled to make me truly believe his feelings. Thaenthai has a very emotional storyline; he has been through a lot already in his young life and never gets a break, but on several occasions, See didn’t really manage to portray that. His acting improves as the show progresses, and See has some good potential, which could easily be unleashed with more training and workshops, so I’m looking forward to seeing more from him.

Pearl Satjakorn Chalard is Thee

Pearl, who played Thee, was a very positive surprise, and I loved his portrayal of that character. From the beginning, it becomes obvious that Thee has strong feelings for Thaethai, and his world revolves around Thaenthai. Thee is the only one who sees Thaethai for who he really is, and his pain whenever Thai gets hurt and misjudged, the dilemma of being torn between love and duty is something the viewer can feel through the screen, not least because Pearl can express a lot of emotion just with his eyes. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment he was on screen, and he’s another performer with whom I want to see more.

Overall:

“Laws of Attraction” is a very entertaining, character-driven, Lakorn-style crime BL. While the situations the characters find themselves in play an important role in driving the plot forward, the involvement of these characters with their personalities and allegiances makes “Laws of Attraction” a series where it is impossible to predict the next movement of any character. The main story itself might be fairly predictable. Still, the way the characters interact with each other, in addition to the fact that the viewer can never predict what exactly they’re going to do next, keeps it interesting on all fronts.

There are some flaws as well, such as a few plot holes and backstories of the supporting characters that weren’t as well developed as they should have been. I attribute this mainly to the time constraints since the show has only eight episodes. I think the series would have benefitted from having 1 or 2 additional episodes to explore these stories a little more, especially when it comes to the side couple Thaenthai and Thee.

Both couples have great chemistry, with the main couple, in particular, being a joy to watch. Tinn and Charn are both very compelling characters in their own right but brought together; they are a perfect storm of comedy, emotional sincerity, angst, and pure fun. Their love story is really a slow burn and tension as their feelings for each other grow stronger and feel very real, especially since neither Tinn nor Charn ever misses an opportunity to be flirty or to say and do something romantic.

As “Laws of Attraction” is clearly done in a Lakorn style, it features some typical elements of that genre, such as overdramatic background music, some jarring editing, and over-the-top action scenes. Still, it manages to strike a really good balance between action and emotion, realism and romanticization.

If you are looking for a BL show that features steamy NC scenes and many kiss scenes, then “Laws of Attraction” might not be for you as it focuses more on the plot than the romance. However, if you’re looking for something different from all the standard university romance, something that is somewhat unique in style yet fascinating and wholly fun and that will draw you in and captivate you almost immediately. In that case, I wholeheartedly recommend this show. You’ll probably have just as much fun watching it as I had.

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars. [See our Review Guide]