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Reviews
Kanaria (2004)
New gold standard in Japanese dramatic film?
"I heard this is a masterpiece..." Speaking for myself, to call this film anything less should be a crime.
Wow - even in some of my all time favorite movies I am able to say "well I think it would have been better if this or that had been a bit different..." but not with "Canary." Not only is it a technically solid effort with an equally bedrock cast, the story's treatment of how Japan is dealing with fallout from the late 90's proliferation of 'New Religion' and the Aum Shinrikyo attacks specifically is second to none! Fascinating, gripping, emotional and a delight to watch unfold, "Canary" may well herald the dawn of a new gold standard in Japanese dramatic film.
Redeu-ai (2004)
Pretty good, solid genre pic! Nice one!
Compared to the dearth of truly awful 'horror' movies we have been subjected to as of late - Tokyo Psycho, Yogen (Premonition) and Cursed among others, 'Redeye' is a masterpiece! Yet I have read a number of less than complimentary off-site reviews that have left me wondering what it is people find so wrong about Redeye...
I mean really, was it the 90% cognitive storyline that turned people off? Or the above-par cinematography which kept the same 3 major train car sets from getting utterly boring that did it? Perhaps the fairly inventive and fresh take on an admittedly familiar 'haunting' scenario was too much for some?
*Minor chance of a true spoiler alert* With only one glaring glitch towards the final sequence that finds our protagonist suddenly aware of a certain paternal pact that had not been hinted at previously, the writing is fairly tight.
And while I would not really consider Redeye a 'horror' picture per se, it's an entertaining and well made ghost-story obviously tailored to appeal to the masses - not just gore-hound fear-junkies like myself.
Again speaking only for myself, Redeye kept my attention and provided enough 'almost creepy' moments to get my stamp of approval. *Especially* when held up against much of the recent wave of releases in the same genre from Korea and Asia in general.
My bottom line - if you enjoy the more Westernized horror films from Asia like 'Chakushin ari', 'The Nightmare Game' or 'Otogiriso' you will get a kick out of Redeye. Just don't expect it to make your skin crawl.
Yogen (2004)
'Premonition' - The movie I thought 'White Noise' was going to be
When I first heard about the J-Horror Theater collection the premise sounded awesome and was eager to view whichever installment came my way first. I still have high hopes for other titles in the series mind you, but upon completion of Volume 2: "Yogen" (Premonition), my enthusiasm has been shaken.
Not that the basic premise of "Yogen" is all that bad or the movie suffered from awful production value - its just the base narrative is so fractured the stronger points are suffocated. And I love fractured narratives; Ju-On: The Grudge, Memento and similar flicks thrill me like nothing else can. Like these movies did, "Yogen" too takes drastic left turns to introduce key facets of the plot, but lacks even eventual explanation of newly introduced elements.
Remember, this is just the opinion of an uneducated geek here, so if I am way off base feel free to call me on it.
Sometimes it amazes me just how far off base expectations can turn out to be though: "Yogen" turned out to be the type of scare-free feel-good failure I assumed 'White Noise' was going to be. I bring this up as the two story lines are very similar, so if you have any reservations about "Yogen" I recommend skipping it and checking out the far superior Michael Keaton flick if you haven't already.
Thanks for listening!
Dead Birds (2004)
Great Example Of What Modern Horror Can and Should Be!
Seem to be a fair amount of people out there with less than complimentary opinions of this movie... Speaking frankly as an avid fan of the genre, 'Dead Birds' scared the living sh** out of me!
Director Alex Turner has made a near perfect example of what modern horror can and should be, but he didn't do it alone. The chilling original screenplay by admitted Ring fan Simon Barrett is well paced and stylishly captured by Steve Yedlin's camera work. I look forward to seeing more from Yedlin who adds layers of visual trickery to Dead Birds by making the most effective use of shadow I have seen in years. When combined with convincing performances from the cast all this makes for a great film sure to creep you out.
Then there is the 5 seconds of Dead Bird footage I personally feel should be remembered right alongside Janet's shower scene... but I don't want to spoil it for you. Suffice to say if it fails to freak you right the F out, check your pulse - you might already be dead!
If anyone else enjoys Dead Birds half as much as I did, let others know and lets get this movie the attention it deserves!
Nang Nak (1999)
Great place to start if new to Thai ghost stories!
An awesome introduction to the world of Thai ghost stories, much more so than Bangkok Haunted or Lhorn which are both mildly entertaining but nearly devoid of any true cultural significance (save Lhorn's tale of the 'paup') - not to mention their shared lack of scares.
"Nang Nak" or Miss Nak translated to English, is a brilliantly filmed atmospheric tale of love that goes well beyond this mortal world. I personally was entranced by the film, and even though it's not terrifying, there are enough chills to be had if one gives themselves over to the story. Filmed many times before, but never with the grace and power brought by director Nonzee Nimbutr, Nang Nak tells a famous Thai cautionary tale set in the 1860's of young husband Mak who is called away to war leaving newly pregnant wife Nak alone in their remote river bank village.
While fighting Mak is seriously wounded and suffers a menacing recovery lasting many months as Monks in Bangkok nurse him back to health. Returning home he joyously reunites with devoted wife Nak and their newborn son, beginning life anew as a father. But things may not quite be what they seem.
Shown to viewers using artfully done jump-cut flashbacks and disquieting imagery of Nak in labor, it becomes clear while giving birth something went horribly wrong. The mystery takes a dark turn as husband Mak begins to hear very disturbing things from close friends regarding his bride, who has become shunned and hated since Mak left to fight in the war. Ever the model husband, Mak refuses to believe or even discuss the possibility Nak is to blame for the fear holding an entire village in its grip. Is it possible even the village elders have succumbed to mass hysteria...or is there a very real reason everyone is terrified of the beautiful Miss Nak? In my opinion Nang Nak scores very high marks across the board for Cinematography, Story, Cast and even in the Chills department. Those few detracting elements I can argue are trifling at best - most focus on my want for the existing (and fully capable) scares to have been jumped up a notch or minor stylistic arguments that are best left unsaid.
Janghwa, Hongryeon (2003)
Pretty to look at, decent 'thinker', yes - Horror? No
Having skimmed the IMDb comment subject lines and the user vote tally, we decided to pick this one up fully expecting and above average flick, if not a truly amazing, scary film. I should clarify that my wife and I, after having our heads turned six ways from Sunday by Shimizu Takashi's masterful Ju-On series, have been on a 'J-Movie/Asian Horror' kick for the past few months, taking in at least 4-6 a week minimum. Both of us like to think we qualify as Well Read Film Geeks - especially in the 'mind-bending psycho-thriller' genre, from which have indeed seen a few Korean entries including 'Phone', 'Memento Mori', 'Bunshinsaba' and 'Ring Virus' among others.
Speaking for myself only and with all due respect to everyone else, especially Ji-woon Kim et al, 'Tale of Two Sisters' merely added to my suspicion that I am missing some vital facet that prevents Korean horror from creeping me out for more than a fleeting moment. But don't get the wrong idea here, 'Two Sisters' is a wonderfully crafted film that had some top notch acting and great camera-work, only thing it lacked was a single good scare in my opinion. Very similar to 'Phone' and 'Bunshinsaba' that both worked on some levels but not others, I had the basic 'Two Sisters' endgame figured out as soon as Su-Mi took Su-yeon's hand in the garden before running down to the dock. (And no, the subtitles were not confusing or out of sync, just to address that possibility.)
The obvious comparisons of 'Two Sisters' to 'Memento', 'Identity' and 'The Sixth Sense' aside, my main questions regarding story may in fact be more culturally based than anything. I may be off base here, but in most of the Korean films I've seen there appears to be a shared storyline device that is never spoken aloud or explained almost as if it's assumed to be common knowledge and universally frightening. To make matters worse, I cannot fully explain what this factor might be, just that it *feels* like subtext used to make viewers uneasy. Not to be crass or offensive, I believe this subtext may have something to do with sexuality but that polite Korean culture would frown upon a brazen 'Gozu' style display of the taboo.
It may well be that my personal lack of understanding takes away from the power of films like 'Two Sisters.' I mean from all accounts, this flick should have made my skin crawl like 'Ju-On: The Grudge' did, but it didn't. Confused me a little but that was intended and for that I give the screen writers due credit, wowed me with some creative shots of the afore mentioned top-notch cast, but does anyone happen to agree with my taboo subtext theory, or have a similar 'am I missing something' view of the Korean films they've seen? Is anyone else familiar with the folk tale 'Two Sisters' is based upon?
Hmmm
over analysis of unknown problems is never good. At the end of the day, I have no problem recommending 'Two Sisters' to others as it is a pretty decent flick, if not the best Korean film I have seen to date. However, should they ask if it's scary, I will flatly state I don't consider it a horror movie. More of a 'thinker' that for me had but one truly jolting moment; towards the final sequence we enter a new version of the 'closet' bedroom where Su-yeon had suffered abuse (if not death) at the hands of 'mom' (who may or may not be) the person entering this new, artic-cold version of the room when
"Oh Hell! What was that behind the curtains?! Oh man, that got me!
maybe they saved up the good stuff for last
oh, or not
am I missing something ya think? Yeah, you're right, kinda like 'The Eye' without the neato effects ending. Oh well. I mean c'mon, at least it wasn't 'Ring Virus' right?"
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Final notes of someone up too late:
(A) I mentioned The Gudge up there and wanted to be clear that you knew I was talking about Shimizu's original Ju-On version(s). Although it was a decent Western style loud noise jumper, I personally do not consider BuffyGrudge a part of the Ju-On cycle. (But Verbinski's 'Ring' scared the poop outta me - Hideo's 'Ringu' not so much, weird huh!)
(B) If you made it this far you must think I am some piece of work - pontificating about some movie I didn't even think was all that great. You'd be partially right, I didn't think it was all that great but don't think it was all that bad either. I mean it could have been a lot worse. I mean you can't honestly tell me you weren't convinced that YOU had been given the cursed video and were going to die a slow, convoluted, needlessly boring death after 30 minutes of 'Ring Virus.'
A death as long and pointless as this thing you have just read which will now summon a crawly-girl with long messy hair wearing a slinky nightgown to come eat your cat and free you of your schizo doppelganger using her enchanted cell-phone.
Toshio! I choose YOU!
a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah-ah-ah-agh-agh-AGH-AGH-AGH-AGH-AGH!