Reviews

A fairly decent sequel to the Tomie series

I really liked the previous theatrical Tomie movie. It actually was much better than I was expecting, so I really went into this not knowing what to expect. While I don't think its anywhere near as good as the original, it is still a solid movie in it's own right. It managed to keep some of that slower burning tension that the original head as the character of Tomie is being introduced.

Hosho Mai does a good job playing Tomie. She feels a bit different this time around and much colder and more sultry but in this movie it works. The film does a good job of maintaining a serious tone without resorting to body horror visual gags that I think the later series is known for and without saying much about the story it was a compelling mystery that had a satisfying ending.

Read More

Frightening chase, Wi Ha Joon amazing performance shook me

I truly enjoyed this action movie. It has a really simple but efficient concept, focusing on a frightening cat-and-mouse chase between a serial-killer and a deaf woman. With very few characters and plot points, the film manages to keep the viewer on its toes during the dark pursuit.

The scenario relies a lot on people making not so smart decisions as well as a lot of police incompetence which might make your blood boils...There are a lot of successful jump scares and action sequences are really well-done. As one of the character is deaf, the surrounding noises and sounds carry a particular importance on the story. It amps the viewer's anxiety as the filmmaking manage to make the watcher understand how it is to be in the shoes of the victim.

The casting was really good, especially Wi Ha Joon who delivers a shockingly horrifying performance. I only saw him in two other roles playing overall good characters so the shift here truly astonished me. Jin Ki Joo acting as his main counterpart was also very solid in her role.

I would recommend this to people looking for a thriller that will brought you all the feels in a very short time. It is very dark and efficient in providing thrills with some good jump scares and action sequences. It might require some suspension of disbelief given the reaction of some characters that might seem completely stupid. But, honestly that did not bother me because I found the story gripping enough to not care about the script flaws. I just went on a scary ride and enjoyed it for what it was.

Read More

Bit of a confused target audience but watchable.

I'm not really sure who this movie was aimed at. It's sort of looks like a horror movie (but its not really) and also sort of a school bullying and coming of age drama movie. I feel like it could appeal to a younger audience (of the age the cast are) but some beats and scenes are just a bit too dark to be appropriate.

The film is dominated by a cast of children and unfortunately most of them are not particularly good actors so you have to take it with a pinch of salt. I'm a big fan of Otsuka Nene who is rather young here playing the teacher and I don't think even she is doing that great in this movie and feels rather subdued.

The entire film just sort of plods along and never really hits any highs and the the ending feels a bit forced just to add some sort of tension and a way to have a conclusion. It's not bad per say but just feels a bit disjointed. I think it probably works best as a young adult creepy movie and perhaps that was the point but the elementary school setting seems a bit of an odd choice.

Read More

Timeless classic of the genre.

Brilliant slow burning suspense horror that builds up to a satisfying climax. It's not particularly scary in the jumpscare sense but the entire movie has this sense of urgency and dread. Reminds me more of a thriller with horror elements as the mystery unfolds against the ticking clock.

The choice to change the lead from the novel to female was probably a smart move and Matsushima Nanako is fantastic in the role. Her desperation and intense performance really propels the movie in a way I'm not sure would have worked without her.

The film locations and music all create a really atmospheric experience and there isn't much else to say that probably hasn't been said a hundred times. Great movie.

Read More

A splatter slasher with a bit more cinematic substance that I expected.

I remember seeing the trailer for this movie many years ago on a dvd for another movie I owned and I always thought it was one of those straight to video nasty types. (The movie is fairly well known for one scene in the opening.) I assumed it wasn't the sort of thing I wanted to watch, but what always stayed with me was the music in the trailer and years later after being on an 80s Japanese media kick, I came back to this movie. and I'm glad I did. It is a far more polished movie than I assumed from the trailer and has some real substance in production values. All that said, it is not for the squeamish either.

The premise involves the lead reporter investigating the source of a disturbing video tape in hopes of getting a good scoop for her failing TV show and she is one of the better leads in a horror movie I've seen. The lead actress was just fantastic. I loved her makeup and wardrobe and she just dominated the screen with charisma. I could watch her all day she just exudes this 80s coolness. I also liked that she was a strong lead and made very smart logical choices in the context of being in a horror story. (Rare for this era). In fairness the majority of the cast reacted with a realistic and natural responses too. I liked this sort of more grounded sensible writing,

The other real star of this movie though was production. The soundtrack was fantastic and if you like 1980s vibes this is a big one. The sense of sadness and dread in some parts and tension in others was really well captures. I don't think I've noticed or thought about a horror track this much since Halloween. The film also uses some really nice camera shots. I'm not a film student but even I was noticing "what an interesting shot this is." I particularly remember one long wide shot filmed on the rooftops, it really wasn't what I was expecting from this genre.

The movie is not perfect though and without saying too much, personally I think the story holds it back somewhat from being up there with some of the classic greats of the genre. In the end it was a bit silly and is probably better when it's not analyzed too much. It's by no means terrible though and if you can suspend your disbelief and just come along for the ride, its a very functional and satisfying horror movie. I had a good time and would watch again.

Read More

Terrible, pointless adaptation that is painfully acted.

A movie in 3 parts. I gather this was originally 3 short episodes spliced together to make a movie and it shows. There's very little coherence or point in the 3 stories being together as they don't come together at all. Just 3 seperate incidents involving the girl called Tomie. The first story set in high school has some of the worst acting I've in a long time. I actually stopped watching the movie after this story because it was dreadful and returned to it later just to say I finished it.

The actress playing Tomie gives a 2 note performance that is either high voiced cute and annoying or mocking snarly but still annoying with little variation. She reminds me of a cliche hostess faking it in some bad tv drama. I gather the actress was a gravure idol so can't really expect much given the presumed target audience of the movie. But I just didn't buy why any men would like her that much or find her appealing (other than looks?). Her dialogue was very silly and lacked any of the nuance or subtle persuasion and manipulation from the superior original movie. Essentially she is just a caricature and we watch the same premise play out three times. Tomie seduces a man very easily and bad stuff happens.

The move is hammy, camp and silly and mostly overacted. If you like that sort of thing it might appeal for a laugh, and her "seductive" dance in the 2nd story gave me some laughs, but it is very much a straight to video forgettable romp. It's not even gory enough to be entertaining in that way either. It's kinda just sterile and very very pedestrian. Do yourself a favor and watch the far better theatrical movie instead.

Read More

Subpar for a Ma Dong Seok film!

It's totally subpar -- storyline, action stunts, and acting. Nothing really to appreciate in this movie except Ma Dong Seok's charismatic presence, and even that can't make me rate this above 4 out of 10.

Story-wise, it seems like the creators ran out of ideas and just borrowed elements from different movies, put them together and hoped it would make sense. Not very creative at all!

Acting-wise, Ma Dong Seok doing his effortless action stunts coupled with his charisma is doing just what he is known to do and nothing more that seems to indicate a desire to elevate his craft. Other actors seemed to have that attitude as well -- just doing the work and nothing more -- just bland emotions and mediocre acting.

Action stunts are literally not believable. Supposedly trained soldiers can't even land a single bullet to people in the open. Crappy.

Read More

Slow burning, mood horror that surprised my expectations.

Much better I was expecting. I knew the premise and that it was a manga adaptation with many many sequels (of presumably diminishing returns in quality). I already had a bias that this was going to be a very silly horror with cheap thrills but actually I thought it was rather arty and slow in pace. Perhaps that may turn of some but for me it was a real mood movie. The soundtrack was really wonderful and unnerving and eerie with a sense of foreboding and melancholy as the film became progressively darker.

If you're looking for a scary or gory horror flick then you will be disappointed. I think that was where the series went in later installments. Instead this movie is a creepy, slow burning movie about manipulation, obsession, lust and control. I also think the choice to keep Tomie very downplayed and not on screen for a large part of the movie was really smart. It created alot of tension and mystery about the character and even when she is in shot she is often obscured from view. Kanno Miho is excellently cast as Tomie and after watching two other actresses play her since this movie, she has not been beaten. To be honest I'd say the movie is worth it alone for anyone who is a fan of her.

Recommend.

Read More

"또 다시 돌아갈래!"

🔸I instantly recognized that cold agony described incredibly well in the book "Human Acts" by Han Kang. In my opinion, you won't get nearly as much if you come watch this movie unprepared, not having learned at least what the Gwangju Uprising was and what the deepest scar it left on the Korean society. From the logline I expected a highly personal story of a man traumatized by the Uprising. (The main character is both mentally and physically traumatized here.) But, just as always in Korean cinema, I got the story deeply rooted in societal moods and national fate.

🔸️You simply cannot tackle the theme of that trauma if you're afraid to descend into the blood and shit it brought to the people. Lee Chang Dong isn't. Nobody is justifying Yeong Ho here. It's a very shallow perspective to express in the comments. The director just shows that his life could be different if he wasn't caught up in that massive tornado. There are hundreds and thousands of those like Yeong Ho. The Massacre and political repression destroyed the lives of those who seemed braver and stronger than him.

This is the type of movie that gets better on the rewatch when you know the context. Sure as hell I'm gonna rewatch it, and I intend to pay more attention to all the elements of this piercing ensemble.

Fantastic score. Amazing finding with the train. The actress Kim Yeo Jin from Vincenzo is so young here. I love it for her that her career is good.

Read More

"Life itself has its own life"

If you watched Everything Everywhere All at Once and thought it was overly simplified and spoon-fed its audience, Leonor Will Never Die might be the reality tripping, mind bending movie you want as long as you don’t mind a bare bones budget. Director Martika Ramirez broke the fourth wall and the 5th dimension.

Leonor worked in the movie industry until tragedy struck. Now ten years later, she and her son Rudy barely speak to each other and literally can’t keep the lights on in the house. She decides to dust off an old script and finish it hoping to help pay the bills. Before she can wrap the story up she’s hit in the head by a flying television and sent into a coma. She enters the world of her script and discovers the traumas she’s put her characters through.

The above paragraph sounds similar to other “entered a make-believe world” dramas and films we’ve all seen. Then Ramirez added a ghost that everyone could see, a pregnant man, and strange criss-crossings of realities. She even threw in a song and dance number. I’m not familiar with 1970’s-80’s Filipino action flicks but Leonor’s re-enacted film looked much like old Hong Kong films from the same time with the same chicka-bow-wow music.

I have no idea if Ramirez wrote this to speak about some deeper social commentary. Should we stop extolling violence to resolve problems, poor Ronwaldo was tortured by Leonora’s writing. Was the story a way for Leonor to work through her grief? I spent most of my time trying to figure out what was going on as the characters and story jumped from one reality to the next. At one point, when Leonora disappeared, the doctor told her son to not bother looking for her. She’d seen this kind of bizarre thing before when people needed to finish their stories. The doc looked at the distraught son as if to say, “Writers, am I right?” Martika Ramirez used comedy, violence, family, and supernatural occurrences to take a woman near the end of her life on a trip that could be described as a “dream within a dream*”--- especially if she’d had spicy food and cold medicine mixed with alcohol before bed.

24 August 2024

*Princess Bride quote and/or Edgar Allen Poe

Read More

Low budget with cheap jump scares.

Finally got to watching the much lauded Phobia for the first time, 15 years after its initial release.

When I think of Thai horror classics of the 2000s, I instantly think of Shutter, which still holds up till this day. Pee Chong Air was another I recently discovered, which was worthy of being talked about in the same breath as Shutter.

Phobia, I can't say the same for. With how popular this movie was, I was not expecting it to have this low of a budget.
Released in 2008, the shift into CG in horror films has already started, and Phobia definitely did not make use of it well.
The practical effects they used also looked cheap, save for the end of the second story.

With what looked like a moving JPEG, pink blood and skeletons that were made with freeware, I cannot recommend this movie to anyone, let alone call it one of the greatest Thai horror flicks.

As someone that appreciates and prefers practical effects in horror films, and rolls his eyes at cheap jump scares, this movie is not for me.

And it made 85 million baht according to Wiki. Higher ups involved had to be laughing to the bank.

Read More