Last seen ASIAN movie

[ChronoGrl]

Battle Royale

Holy shit this was awesome. The action, the great individual characters and all the different stories really make this a fun exciting watch. I can't believe it's taken me this long to see it.

Great movie - I have the book sitting beside my bed waiting for a vacation so I can spend some time with it.

[The Villain]

Great movie - I have the book sitting beside my bed waiting for a vacation so I can spend some time with it.

I'm definitely gonna have to get that.

[kyl3thund3r]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588170/

I Saw The Devil - absolutely brutal revenge flick. amazing story, gore and action. highly recommend it.

"Kyung-chul (Choi Min-sik) is a dangerous psychopath who kills for pleasure. He has committed infernal serial murders in diabolic ways that one cannot even imagine and his victims range from young women to even children. The police have chased him for a long time, but were unable to catch him. One day, Joo-yeon, daughter of a retired police chief becomes his prey and is found dead in a horrific state. Her fiance Soo-hyun (Lee Byung-hun), a top secret agent, decides to track down the murderer himself. He promises himself that he will do everything in his power to take bloody vengeance against the killer, even if it means that he must become a monster himself to get this monstrous and inhumane killer."

[The Villain]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588170/

I Saw The Devil - absolutely brutal revenge flick. amazing story, gore and action. highly recommend it.

"Kyung-chul (Choi Min-sik) is a dangerous psychopath who kills for pleasure. He has committed infernal serial murders in diabolic ways that one cannot even imagine and his victims range from young women to even children. The police have chased him for a long time, but were unable to catch him. One day, Joo-yeon, daughter of a retired police chief becomes his prey and is found dead in a horrific state. Her fiance Soo-hyun (Lee Byung-hun), a top secret agent, decides to track down the murderer himself. He promises himself that he will do everything in his power to take bloody vengeance against the killer, even if it means that he must become a monster himself to get this monstrous and inhumane killer."

I love that movie. One of the best Asian movie's i've ever seen.

[leezuki]

ip man 2

i love the first one, the 2nd one is good but not as good as the first.

[The Villain]

Aftershock

This is a very touching and emotional movie but i wished they hadn't skipped over two moments i was waiting for practically the whole movie. It would have been much more emotional and dramatic if they had decided to show them. Still this is a very good movie. The Earthquake scene in the beginning and the disaster scene near the end are done very well and are very complimentary to each other.

[zwoti]

shaolin
confucius
battle of wits

[Fearonsarms]

The Black House (Kuroi Ie)-Despite it's misleading title this is not supernatural J-Horror- It's a very slow burner though but is rewarding if you persevere with it. It's about the lengths people will go to obtain huge insurance company payouts. Also it throws in a bit of psychological philosophy for good measure.

[roshiq]

Aftershock

This is a very touching and emotional movie but i wished they hadn't skipped over two moments i was waiting for practically the whole movie. It would have been much more emotional and dramatic if they had decided to show them. Still this is a very good movie. The Earthquake scene in the beginning and the disaster scene near the end are done very well and are very complimentary to each other.

Yeah...it was pretty emotionally moving story, a brilliant film from China.

[The Villain]

Yeah...it was pretty emotionally moving story, a brilliant film from China.

It really was. Such a sad movie.

[leezuki]

flowers of flesh and blood, was ok.

[Nashi]

Ju-on and Ringu :)

[roshiq]

Tomie (http://asianmediawiki.com/Tomie) (1999)

At the beginning it seems like it's got an interesting creepy story but at the end it just turned out another average J-horror flick.

>>: C

Tomie: Another Face (http://asianmediawiki.com/Tomie:_Another_Face) (1999)

3 part Tomie-anthology. First 2 are pretty weak entries filled with poor acting from some amateur young cast members. 3rd one wasn't better either. Overall, pretty disappointing.

>>: C-

[tuleven]

recently watched a series of movies called Deathnote and just bought Helldriver.

Deathnote was nifty, but i got wasted when i watched them so they kinda blurred together. i'm pretty sure there were three movies, and they all kept my interest through the marathon. i think it was a supernatural mystery. i don't want to go more in-depth with a review because i'm sure what all was clutch to the story and don't wanna ruin it for anyone, but i would suggest it if yer into foreign films.

Helldriver was... action/gore... live-action anime. i'm in love with this type of movie right now. i'd like to know what that genre is called, if anyone knows what i'm talking about; also taking any suggestions! (have seen machine girl, tokyo gore police, hard revenge milly/bloody battle, vampire girl versus frankenstein girl. coming in the mail will be Vampire Effect and Attack Girls' Swim Team versus the Undead.)

[Robert W]

The Sleepy Eyes of Death: Sword of Villainy

[Fearonsarms]

Strange Circus-I'm not really sure about this one. It is worth seeing but it does drag at times-I guess the final third makes up for it.

[Fearonsarms]

Premonition/Yogen (2004) Nothing like the mention of "Akashic Records" to get my attention. So had to see this. It concerns a "newspaper of terror" which shows those who can see it headlines of impending death. It's plot has been done before but I was impressed by its appropriate minimal score mainly using sound effects. However I expected more atmosphere given its subject matter which was serverely lacking compared to other japanese horrors. Worth watching but there's better japanese horrors out there.

[ImmortalSlasher]

To Sir, with Love / Bloody Reunion (in the US). A Korean horror movie. It's not that good. The funniest sequence is when a cop goes into a room with a bat. I never knew bats were standard police equipment...Just a strange movie with bad camera moves in the opening and a twist that most won't believe.

[Ogreman]

GANTZ :) a lot of action and blood, good one!

[Fearonsarms]

Uzumaki/Vortex-I found this film to sound more exciting than it actuslly was-you could never call it gripping or thrilling. However you can tell a lot of work went into it to create the bizarre effects and they were worth sticking around for. But the film doesn't really go anywhere and gives the impression of being made up as they went along plus its only with intense observation that you notice the subtleties of it most would probably be missed. Approach with caution.

[The Grudge]

One Missed Call, can't quite remember the Japanese name, but it was a while back.

[roshiq]

The Intruder (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Intruder_%282010_film%29) (2010)

An apartment complex overrun by vicious killer cobras (mostly done by CGI). A very average trashy flick with a bunch of stupid & annoying characters.

>>: C-

[PainIsBeauty]

Chakusin Ari (One Missed Call), good one! I got chills, and I never get "chills":cool:

[roshiq]

Ghastly (http://asianmediawiki.com/Ghastly) (2011)

An evil child horror flick from Korea. Very average.

>>: C+

[stoobsmacdoobs]

Haven't watched much Japanese stuff but a mate told me about this film japanese film 'grotesque' being banned. Too disgusting.. Looked it up... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grotesque_(2009_film)
Has anyone seen it? The sick kid inside of me wants to grab some popcorn and get stuck in.

[zwoti]

true legend
helldriver

[Angra]

Haven't watched much Japanese stuff but a mate told me about this film japanese film 'grotesque' being banned. Too disgusting.. Looked it up... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grotesque_(2009_film)
Has anyone seen it? The sick kid inside of me wants to grab some popcorn and get stuck in.

If it's sick and disguting i'm sure Roshiq probably has.

[roshiq]

If it's sick and disguting i'm sure Roshiq probably has.

Damn! No, I haven't seen it yet! Totally forgot about "Grotesque". Anyway, thanks for the reminder...hope to check it out soon.

[roshiq]

Guilty of Romance (http://asianmediawiki.com/Guilty_of_Romance) (2011)

A sad erotic drama-thriller from Sion Sono....the director of Cold Fish, Strange Circus & Suicide Club. Disappointed.

>>: B-

[roshiq]

The Happiness of the Katakuris (2001)

Weird & funny but not as good as the original 1998 South Korean film The Quiet Family (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0188503/).

>>: B

Human Pork Chop (http://www.horrorexpress.com/moviereview/human-pork-chop) (2001)

The film begins with the gruesome discovery of the bones and body parts of a missing woman. The police arrest the top suspects and drag them in for questioning. After a little bullying and persuasion, we are gradually told in flashback how the poor victim met her awful fate. The girl in question was a drug-addicted prostitute who foolishly stole some money from a vicious pimp. When discovered, she is kidnapped, imprisoned, humiliated, degraded, tortured, and finally killed.

A low budget torture flick from Hong Kong. Not bad but there's some disgustingly disturbing elements like forcing the victim to eat shit in the toilet!

>>: C+

[Fearonsarms]

The Happiness of the Katakuris (2001)

Weird & funny but not as good as the original 1998 South Korean film The Quiet Family (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0188503/).

>>: B

I had no idea there was an original will deffo check that out cheers :)

Art Of The Devil 2-truly outstanding film in every way, extremely gory but surprising too. The ending may not add up to close scrutiny but I can overcome that being the feast to the senses this is. Highly recommended and far superior to the patchy first film.

[zwoti]

omen
zatoichi: the blind swordsman

[newb]

true legend
helldriver

How's Helldriver

have it in my netflix queue

[roshiq]

PTU: Police Tactical Unit (http://asianmediawiki.com/PTU) (2003)

A slow burn but quite interesting cop-thriller from Hong Kong.

>>: B

Dark Forest [4 Horror Tales] (2006)

A low budget K-Horror that just needed only 15 to 20 minutes or less to tell the damn boring story. But they dragged it too long (more than 90 minutes!) & made it a pretty painful experience, even for a viewer like me.

>>: D

[ChronoGrl]

Chungking Express (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109424/) (1994)

Not horror, but a very well-made character drama. I thought that the first 1/2 dragged a little bit, but I absolutely fell in love with the second half. And then I cried in the end (even though I suppose it was supposed to be a "hopeful" ending) - Not sure what happened, but it just left me feeling a little empty and lonely; could have been my mood, but I felt a little let down. I think the younger me would have liked it more.

3.5/5.

[The Villain]

Sector 7

This was just terrible. I didn't even bother finishing it

[zwoti]

How's Helldriver

have it in my netflix queue

you might want to leave there for awhile, nothing special.


yamada

[Elvis_Christ]

Chungking Express (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109424/) (1994)


Wong Kar Wai is great. I've fallen behind with his stuff. Watched a lot of it in the late 90s early 2000s. Fallen Angels blew me away when I saw it on the big screen.

[Fearonsarms]

Necromancer (2005) Terrible, woeful, limpid bore-fest that I simply couldn't finish. Dull as dishwater and about as exciting as a blocked toilet

[ChronoGrl]

Wong Kar Wai is great. I've fallen behind with his stuff. Watched a lot of it in the late 90s early 2000s. Fallen Angels blew me away when I saw it on the big screen.

Oh, wow, I just put it together that this is the guy who did In The Mood for Love and 2046.

I'm going to be honest - It was quite a while ago that I tried to watch In The Mood for Love and it really bored me to tears at the time; couldn't finish it.

I've heard that 2046 is incredible though, but I've held off since I wasn't a huge fan of ITMfL.

Just added Fallen Angels to my Netflix queue - Thanks for the heads up!

[Elvis_Christ]

Just added Fallen Angels to my Netflix queue - Thanks for the heads up!

Cool hope you dig it! One of my favourite films of the 90s.

[fortunato]

Cool hope you dig it! One of my favourite films of the 90s.

Same here! I'm a huge Kar-Wai fan, too.
I'd also check out Happy Together, Chungking Express, and you should definitely give In the Mood for Love another shot.

[roshiq]

Bangkok Haunted (2001)

>>: C

[ImmortalSlasher]

Dream Home.

This movie reminded me of Antichrist. Both try to be realistic horror films as opposed to the masked killer type. The kills in Dream Home are crazy. So are the things that one shouldn't do in a horror movie. Namely alcohol/drugs and sex. But the movie tries for both realism and horror and I think that is where it fails. Because the horror portion is strong and the realistic portion although well acted is kind of hard to believe that the main character would snap and go to the lengths that she does.

[zwoti]

13: game of death

[Fearonsarms]

Bangkok Haunted (2001)

>>: C

I hated that as well shame as it was so promising.

[leezuki]

ghost in a shell, very good :)

[j2040]

I haven't watched a good japanese horor in forever, i'm going to hunt down a bunch of these titles and have a horror fest!

[roshiq]

Segunda Mano aka Second Hand (2011)

Filipino Horror flick. The plot was decent for a typical Asian horror film but the acting & the scrip made it kinda Soap Opera sort of drama.

>>: C

Spider Forest (2004)

Haven't seen it before. A pretty good psychological horror-thriller from Korea.

>>: A-

[The Villain]

The Butcher, The Chef, and The Swordsman

I thought this was going to be more action based but it's just stupid and corny. I didnt even bother finishing it.

[zwoti]

the front line
missing
x-cross
hard revenge milly
hard revenge milly: bloody battle
1911: revolution

[leezuki]

going to watch cold fish tonight, anbody watched it yet?

[kyl3thund3r]

Meat Grinder. Little boring in parts, but the gore is cranked up. Made it worth it.

http://www.denofgeek.com/siteimage/scale/800/600/145043.png

[Angra]

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Kasper_76/Theraid.jpg

"The Raid: Redemption" 7-8/10


The best Indonesian action movie i've ever seen!!! :D

[roshiq]

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Kasper_76/Theraid.jpg

"The Raid: Redemption" 7-8/10


The best Indonesian action movie i've ever seen!!! :D

Does it have any dance numbers?:)

[Angra]

Does it have any dance numbers?:)


Only 6. :D

[Fearonsarms]

Matango (1963)Mushroom based horror concerning shipwrecked surivors on a remote pacific island. More time is spent with the characters bitching and backstabbing each other than the desired mushroom action. But when the mushroom action comes it is glorious and worth the wait though if you don't like dated special effects you may want to avoid it. Enjoyable trippy fun.

[tuleven]

I Saw the Devil 5/5
Tales From the Dead 4/5

[TheCabin]

Asian or Asian horror? I am not sure which one you are referring to?

[letoatreides3508]

Just finished watching it on my Ipad actually.

I was wondering if you guys could recommend some solid j-horror/asian horror films to me. I've seen the ju-on films and Reincarnation, along with Ringu. But if there's any good ones you can suggest, feel free to let me know.


http://cinemacthulu.blogspot.com

[Angra]

Just finished watching it on my Ipad actually.

I was wondering if you guys could recommend some solid j-horror/asian horror films to me. I've seen the ju-on films and Reincarnation, along with Ringu. But if there's any good ones you can suggest, feel free to let me know.


http://cinemacthulu.blogspot.com

But of course.

Shutter
Kairo
One missed call
Tale of two sisters
Old lady in white

[Stylez]

Just finished watching it on my Ipad actually.

I was wondering if you guys could recommend some solid j-horror/asian horror films to me. I've seen the ju-on films and Reincarnation, along with Ringu. But if there's any good ones you can suggest, feel free to let me know.


http://cinemacthulu.blogspot.com

What kind of Asian horror are you looking for? There are psychological ones such as 13 Beloved, I Saw the Devil and Confessions. If you're looking for one that features ghosts and supernatural beings there's Body 19, Rule#1, Ladda Land. If you're not sure, try some shorts like 4bia/Phobia 1 and 2 or the experimental shorts from Japan. Hope this helps :)

[neverending]

Man, I watched one flipped out movie tonight-

Dream Home.

A gory slasher, satire on the housing shortage in Hong Kong.

Recommended.

[newb]

Man, I watched one flipped out movie tonight-

Dream Home.

A gory slasher, satire on the housing shortage in Hong Kong.

Recommended.

have it in my netflix queue

[FreddyMyers]

ditto........

[ImmortalSlasher]

I like the horror portions of Dream Home. I wasn't too fond of the more realistic parts. I find it crazy that someone would go to extremes over a square apartment in any building. I'm a nature person.

[neverending]

It's a satire....

[ChronoGrl]

Man, I watched one flipped out movie tonight-

Dream Home.

A gory slasher, satire on the housing shortage in Hong Kong.

Recommended.

Roshiq loved that one too - I thought it was pretty good; one of the rare movies that have made me film as of late. Definitely recommended.

...

Save the Green Planet! (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0354668/) (2003)

I was pretty disappointed in this one, particularly considering how incredibly AWESOME the trailer is.

3NLbDgyMusk


Had a lot of stuff that was absolutely great about it, but I found it a bit long, drab, and mediocre. Disappointed.

[zwoti]

invitation only
kamui: lone ninja
war of the arrows

and at the cinema last night,
the raid

[DrwYng]

I like how it keeps you guessing throughout the film. Great cinematography - which is something I say about Asian horror films.

[The Villain]

Tomie
Weird, slow and the ending made no sense at all

[crawlspace1972]

Dream Home.
Decent gore. Fun story.

[hammerfan]

Reincarnation

[Fearonsarms]

Reincarnation

Cracking film love it :)

The Red Shoes (2005) Besides the fact that the shoes were actually pink and not red I actually really enjoyed this japanese supernatural horror. It's a challenging film in its delivery but very rewarding.Highly recommended.

[Power Ring]

Original Godzilla

[So High]

I watch ALOT of asian movies. I know I know you couldn't tell. Anyways. Last one I saw was Nightfall. Typical police drama mystery piece. When I mean by typical is it was predictable as to where I figured it out before it was over. I don't know sometimes I prefer that as opposed to the twists that make no sense to when the movie ends there was no mystery into you figuring it out cuz the story twist and turns just to do so. Brief description would go something like this. Ole dude goes to prison. For murder of this girl. Does a quarter. He gets out and kills her dad and he's taunting the head dectective thats on the case. And yeah I can't give away the twists and turns you got to watch it.

[Angra]

"Blackhouse" (1999) 7/10

Original but predictable horror/thriller with an overly long climatic ending.

[Fearonsarms]

"Blackhouse" (1999) 7/10

Original but predictable horror/thriller with an overly long climatic ending.

I agree I thought it could have been shorter-not a bad film by no means but too predictable even though it was delivered in quite an inventive way.

[Shinuyan]

Honestly, Ringu (again) like 5 min. ago

[roshiq]

The Boxer's Omen (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085951/) (1983)

Kind of funny but pretty weird flick, not bad.

>>: B

[roshiq]

The Road (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2063008/) (2011)

This Filipino horror had the potential as it offers a good story with fine camera works but needed a better script & cast. Also the twist at the end was quite unnecessary & silly.

>>: B-

[_____V_____]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/515TCkmQSDL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

Thanks, Angra.

* * * ½

[Angra]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/515TCkmQSDL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

Thanks, Angra.

* * * ½


YAY!! :D

You're welcome.

[roshiq]

Seytan (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072148/) (1974)

Turkish Exorcist!! Daring effort!

>>: C

[brainsickhorror.com]

13 Assassins
9/10

Takashi Miike's samurai epic.
The last 60 minutes is non stop hack 'n' slash!

[Angra]

13 Assassins
9/10

Takashi Miike's samurai epic.
The last 60 minutes is non stop hack 'n' slash! sounds boring. Makes me think of Versus.

[brainsickhorror.com]

sounds boring. Makes me think of Versus.

nah it's nothing like Versus. 13 Assassins is set in feudal Japan and actually has a great story; although i didn't mind Versus, pretty good on a low-budget

[ChronoGrl]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/515TCkmQSDL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

Thanks, Angra.

* * * ½

Really? Couldn't get into it - Maybe I'll try it again.

...

Mutant Girl Squad (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1590796/) (2010)

I had actually been looking forward to this one for a while but I have to say that I'm a bit disappointed. I feel like it's just another weird Japanese schlock movie - Just seems to be weird and bloody for the sake of being weird and bloody... Which I get is the point, but I didn't enjoy it like I enjoyed, say, Tokyo Gore Police, Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky, and Meatball Machine.

I lump it with Machine Girl and Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl - If you like those, you'll like these but I ultimately found it meh.

[Dara]

Macabre,It was hugely gory and the story was a bit weak in areas but I really didnt mind, as it was a non stop full on horror fest.

[roshiq]

D@bbe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D@bbe) (2006)

This is the Turkish take on 2001 J-Horror classic Kairo (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0286751/). But it isn't a straight remake. Turks took the idea & incorporated some portion of Doomsday theory (from Islamic belief) with it. And surprisingly they have made a better film than the American remake (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0454919/) of Kairo. Thought at times it was kind of silly in the acting & visual effects area but overall, I found it decently creepy. Worth a watch.

>>: B

[Fearonsarms]

Ju-On The Grudge 2 (2003) re-watched this to refresh myself with the story and loved it even more this time around. Looking forward to seeing the more recent Ju-On's asap

[ChronoGrl]

Ju-On The Grudge 2 (2003) re-watched this to refresh myself with the story and loved it even more this time around. Looking forward to seeing the more recent Ju-On's asap

I need to give that one another try... I really liked both Ju-On and the remake (probably because Shimizu did both of them), but I really had a hard time getting into Ju-On 2.

[Raincoat Killer]

Dark Water.

[Fearonsarms]

I need to give that one another try... I really liked both Ju-On and the remake (probably because Shimizu did both of them), but I really had a hard time getting into Ju-On 2.

Fair enough-maybe you would prefer Ju-On Old lady In White (2009)? which I've just seen-I absolutely adored it as much as I did Ju-on The Grudge 2 (which I enjoyed LOADS more on the second viewing as I also had a hard time with it the first time I watched it). It is shorter though, only an hour and wow they don't half cram a lot into that hour-not a second is wasted and it goes further into the sinister supernatural territory hinted at in Ju-on 2 plus it stands well by itself so you don't need to have seen all the other ones besides the original Ju-On-The Grudge which is referenced in one scene. Also it looks beyond 'the girl ghost with long black hair extensions' ripped off from Ringu that made the original movie less fresh and inventive as it could have been. This completely makes up for that and gives you a new ghost (amongst other things) to be scared of.

I still need to see Ju-On The Curse 1 and 2 and Ju-On The Gril In Black and excited about them :)

[ChronoGrl]

Well I'm sold! I'll add it to my Netflix queue. :)

[roshiq]

Sector 7 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1934381/) (2011)

Not sure whether its for the English dubbed version or not, but it seems the screenplay was poorly done with a pretty average plot structure like an Asylum or sy-fy channel monster flick. At the end, for its good production value, a faceless weird looking creature & that hot chick on the lead; it passed the 'entertaining' mark for me.

>>: B-

[roshiq]

The Raid: Redemption (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1899353/) (2011)

Nice action flick from Indonesia.

>>: B+

[roshiq]

Tomie: Replay (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279474/) (2000)

As usually slow burn but better than earlier installment, at least there are some typical Asian creepy moments.

>>: B-

[Angra]

Tomie: Replay (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279474/) (2000)

As usually slow burn but better than earlier installment, at least there are some typical Asian creepy moments.

>>: B-

Faaaaaaaaaaart!!

The franchise sucks dunkey balls. Period.

Should've stopped after the first horribly dull sequal.

[Fearonsarms]

I tried watching "Thirst" (2009) for a second time, managed an hour and ten minutes this time but still couldn't watch it all the way through. Apallingly unwatchable.

[roshiq]

The Incite Mill: 7-Day Death Game (http://asianwiki.com/The_Incite_Mill_-_7_Day_Death_Game_-) (2010)

Somewhat inspired by Agatha Christie's timeless classic mystery And Then There Were None, this is a time passing, decent thriller from Hideo Nakata. Worth a watch.

>>: B

[ImmortalSlasher]

Ringu.

It was on TV a few nights ago. One day I'm going to have a double feature and decide if I prefer the original or the remake.

[Angra]

"I Saw the Devil" 9/10

Finally!!

I can only agree with the rest of the people in here. This is the way to make an action/thriller. non stop action and very brutal. Lovely.

My only small "complain" is that the story could've been craftet a little better.

[roshiq]

Epitaph (http://asianwiki.com/Epitaph) (2007)

This Korean horror flick comes with a mere anthology structure where it tells three separate stories that interweave with each other through it's basic period piece setting & characters. At time some multiple flashbacks make the movie a little convoluted, but eventually it manage to pull it off. There are some fine creepy set pieces, but all the stories relies more on emotionally moving contents about love & lose than the shock value. Liked the psychologically twisted last part of the film mostly. For its good production value, some beautiful cinematography & 3 decent ghost stories, it's definitely worth a watch.

>>: B+

[roshiq]

Death Bell (2008) & Death Bell 2 (2010)

Like many other past decade's Asian horror flicks, I could hardly recall anything about 2008's Death Bell. So gave it a watch again before checking out the sequel. Different story & characters but the same format. Decent time wasters.

>>: B

[ChronoGrl]

I tried watching "Thirst" (2009) for a second time, managed an hour and ten minutes this time but still couldn't watch it all the way through. Apallingly unwatchable.

hahahahahaha - I love Chan-Wook Park. I honestly do. And I was so ridiculously excited when I heard about this project... But I found the movie... soooo... boooooring...

[Fearonsarms]

hahahahahaha - I love Chan-Wook Park. I honestly do. And I was so ridiculously excited when I heard about this project... But I found the movie... soooo... boooooring...

I still hadn't the patience to get through all of it needless to say that was the last chance I'm giving it. I don't hate Chan-Wook Park overall-just this movie which is best avoided completely.

Red Room (1999)
Basically this is about what people will do to win money but its intentionally absurd, satirical, pornographic, campy and sick. It includes some genuinely creative uses for household tools such as a hairdryer and a lightbulb. It's lack of seriousness makes the more twisted scenes easier to digest so you find yourself laughing rather than feeling disturbed. I'm sure some people will find it to be nothing more than cheap trash as it's not for everyone. However for entertainment value you can do a lot worse

[Tor_Hershman]

Since most of it is in Japan, with Japanese acTORs, it'll be
"The Revenge Of Dr. X."

[Dead&Bloated]

The last Asian movie I watched was about a mud type monster that raped and killed women. It was quite strange. I don't remember the title.

[Fearonsarms]

Art Of The Devil 3 which was pretty good. If you liked Art of The Devil 2 you will love this as it follows on nicely from that film.There's the expected graphic torture and it certainly makes you wince and shrink back at it-in a good way. The story was reasonable and the supernatural angles were very well crafted. A solid sequel.

[AtomicPanda]

White: The Melody of the Curse. (2011) 8/10

[Angra]

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Kasper_76/thekick.jpg

[Angra]

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Kasper_76/thekick.jpg

"The Kick" 7/10

A Korean family moves to Thailand to open a Taekwondo gym. Here they run into a gang of thugs who has stolen a rare knife... and the party begins.


Has all the signs of a Prachya Pinkaew flick. Awsome choreography, insane stunt-kicks, something getting stolen, and Petchtai Wongkamlao. Only 1 important thing was missing. Tony Jaa. The only person who can make this kind of movie look convincing with his speed and power.
That being said, the young korean fellow in the lead role was VERY, very talented.

Can't really find a lot of negative things to say about The Kick other than the lack of Tony Jaa. The pacing was good, the story was simple (as expected), lots of talented martial artists including the girl from Chocolate, and it had its funny moments. But..

I found it quite odd that Pinkaew had chosen to make a movie with Korean and Thai actors speaking korean and thai. Not that i know any of the languages, but it didn't sound like they had i single word in common.

Also a lot of the gang members ran around with their faces hidden behind scarves so the audience wouldn't notice how few actors/stuntmen Pinkaew was using in this flick. Looked freakin weird.


Oh yea, and the few (thank god) added dancing sequences was incredibly gay.

[DP McCoy]

The Raid - Bone crunching action that moves along at a frantic pace,some inventive moves elevate the film above your average beat 'em up. 8/10

[ChronoGrl]

Re-watched Chan-wook Park's segment "Cut" from Three... Extremes (2004).

The shock value certainly didn't resonate with me as much as it had the first time I had seen it (which, admittedly, was years ago). Was nice to see my Korean boyfriend, Byung-hun Lee, though, and it made me want to watch I Saw the Devil again.

I think the direction is great as well as the set - I think I probably had just built it up in my memory. Not as rewatchable as, say Oldboy, which now I want to rewatch again too.

[hammerfan]

Reincarnation

I really should get more Asian horror movies....

[roshiq]

Gandu (http://www.artsploitationfilms.com/gandu-details/) (2010)

As far I've seen Bengali films, I think this is the 1st ever attempt by a Bengali filmmaker to enroll the 'Bangla cinema' into the exploitation genre of movies that has passed its golden era in European, American & Asian (Japanese) film-circle between late 60s to 70s. The abusive & raw nature in dialogs or character attributes with the backdrop of a gritty lifestyle or dark realism as well as use of explicit sex & violence to manipulate/force or more precisely exploit the viewers to 'taste & feel' the vicious & darkest corner of life...are some basic features in any exploitation movie. And on that ground, GANDU succeeds moderately, IMO. The problem is GANDU is a little exploitation drama that comes with an art house treatment all over. As they have dared to break some boundaries for Bengali cinema, particularly regarding sex and the form & mood of dialogs, lyrics & characters, I think it'd be better to work with a little bit of more drama and a complete story. The film begins with all the frustration, anger & helplessness of poor 'talented' Gandu and it even ends with those same things. Meantime, the viewers become part of Gandu's acid trip which results those delusions of winning a lottery ticket, getting offer from a band and even that 'colorful' explicit sex scene. The cast delivered overall a pretty convincing as well as daring performances, quite worth to check out. Even the characters were interesting & had some great potential to offer something truly memorable but the film suffers for its inconsistent, vague & repetitive storyline; probably due to its excessive art-film approach. The masturbation, sex scenes & the songs added some shock value, which is new & 'exciting' for a Bangla movie & I guess most of the viewers will remember GANDU for those elements only, not for the characters or a story. Too much close up shots & fragmented scenes kinda ruined the mood of watching a sensible movie. I was expecting to join with Gandu & his Bruce Lee fan-friend Ricksha (my favorite character in the movie) in a 'real life' feel crazy ride (not a acid trip) that might go either way...a rise or more downfalls for Gandu. But neither happened & left me frustrated for a 'story'; not a portrayal of a lost youth who is desperately trying to find & prove himself in surroundings that's filled with financial & sexual deprivation in almost every corner of a 'colorless' world.

>>: B

[Angra]

You spelled Gandhi wrong.

[roshiq]

You spelled Gandhi wrong.

LOL! Nope, I spelled it right! Gandu is a hindi or Indian-Bengali word for Asshole or loser!:D

[tachii]

Finally watched Battle Royale

[jaimin26783]

The Ring Virus (1999) is very good korean horror movies. Ring movie fans would like this movie. ring virus is more brutal and other movies in this series.

[leezuki]

the road. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2063008/

was ok, reminded me a little bit like dead end. 6/10

[neverending]

Coldfish.

Brutal, gory crime film.

[Ghoulie Joe]

Three...Extremes. Loved it.

[Fearonsarms]

A Tale Of Two Sisters for the second time-loved it loads more as I noticed a lot I didn't pick up on the first viewing and I'm sure I'll unscramble more layers on a third viewing at some point in the future.

[Gekkakou]

"Versus"

... OMMFG, it is so badass!

[42ndego]

Battle Royale

[Gekkakou]

Golgo Fucking 13. Anyone else a fan of Golgo 13?

[badlydrawngirl]

Girl Hell. Weird, but I kinda liked it.... Although I couldn't find a version with subtitles that would download, so I watched the entire thing not knowing what they were saying..

[Fearonsarms]

Girl Hell. Weird, but I kinda liked it.... Although I couldn't find a version with subtitles that would download, so I watched the entire thing not knowing what they were saying..

Wow I couldn't do that-I've tried but it annoys me too much. I can manage watching the odd scene here and there like with the full uncut version of Phenomena (Integral Version) I have which has some bits in Italian but not too much I couldn't watch an entire movie like that tho.

[taintedparadise]

The Host, anyone who doesn't know it's about A monster emerges from a River and starts attacking people. Got a 7 on imdb :)

[jaimin26783]

I have seen "Zatoichi : The Blind swords man 2003" Its decent movie of Zatoichi series. It's fun to watch swords fight with some comedy and suspense.

[Gekkakou]

Ninja Scroll

I love it, and can't wait for the second one

[Fearonsarms]

Ok I enjoyed A Tale A Two Sisters so much for the second time I watched it again for a third time lol :)

[Suicide Sadie]

Last Asian Horror I have seen is "Bedevilled" (2010).

[nightmare_of _death]

Although I haven't read the manga I watched Uzumaki. I didn't fully understand it and that may of been because I haven't read the manga. I was hyped up about the movie I've read its super scary and what not. To me it wasn't all that scary. To me it was real cheesy but maybe it was meant to be that way.
I've been finding more Asian horror through the library systems I can rent from anywhere in ohio even if its not in any branch I'm in through interloans I love it cause my library has a poor selection. Ok ill stop rambling now

[nightmare_of _death]

Three...Extremes this one is going to need another viewing. I understood "Dumplings" but "cut" and "box" were a little different. I was tired by the time "box" came on so I think that's why I didn't get it but "cut" I really didn't understand. I still have the full version of "dumplings" to watch as I watch the shorter version of it.

[Fearonsarms]

Three...Extremes this one is going to need another viewing. I understood "Dumplings" but "cut" and "box" were a little different. I was tired by the time "box" came on so I think that's why I didn't get it but "cut" I really didn't understand. I still have the full version of "dumplings" to watch as I watch the shorter version of it.

I would agree that "Cut" was my least fave of the three as well but yeah watch Box a second time-I think you will appreciate more on a second viewing.

[Angra]

"The Chaser" 8/10

If it hadn't been for the totally incompetent police department this movie would've been 30 minutes shorter. For shame.

That being said, The Chaser is one suspenseful crime story with some memorable brutal scenes. Reminded me in many ways of "I Saw The Devil".

[Gekkakou]

Persona 4: The Movie

[Despare]

Persona 4: The Movie

Have you played the game? Does it stack up well?

[WittyBitty]

A Tale of Two Sisters. Bleargh.

[Gekkakou]

Have you played the game? Does it stack up well?

Very well, actually. I've been a fan of the Megami Tensei series as a whole

[Fearonsarms]

Black Magic (1975) Been years since I saw this Shaw Brothers occult horror. Wasn't as insane as I remembered it watching this time around but still quite fun and reliably panicky.

[Akane]

Hansel and Gretel, a Korean movie, for me. I already wrote a review about it (http://kowasou.squiddy.net/2012/12/25/hansel-and-gretel-review/), but in a nutshell, I really enjoyed it! I thought they did a really good job with the fairy tale atmosphere.

[Angra]

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Kasper_76/Merantau_zps480df12d.gif

"Merantau" 6-7/10

Very similar to Ong-Bak but without any awsome jump kicks. So all in all..... meh.

Did have a few insane stunts tho. My favorite being the jump and fall from a tall building. The way it was filmed was super cool.

[hammerfan]

Muoi

Didn't care for it, I didn't think it was scary at all. I thought it was pretty boring.

[Fearonsarms]

Carved The Slit Mouthed Woman-Harrowing and unsettling Japanese supernatural horror. Low budget but comes with a bleak, sepia-esque toned cinematography that greatly enhances the brutality of the violence. Subtle performances are also the key here-they are never over-dramaticized, the characters are quite natural (or naturally unnatural when needed), refreshingly flawed and measured. Kudos for not shying away from the true horrors of the subject matter where many gloss and sugar-coat it.

[metternich1815]

The last seen Asian (actually from Asia, not a remake) movie was A Tale of Two Sisters (which I watched yesterday). The film was a great psychological thriller with a very interesting plot and really good acting. Additionally, its use of suspense was brilliant. There were several scenes that were quite scary. The scariest scene being the dining room scene after they invited some relative over for dinner.

[roshiq]

301, 302 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112257/) (1995)

A slow burn drama-thriller from South Korea that centers around only 2 characters with their sad but interesting back stories. Not great but a decent watch overall.

>>: B

[Giganticface]

The last seen Asian (actually from Asia, not a remake) movie was A Tale of Two Sisters (which I watched yesterday). The film was a great psychological thriller with a very interesting plot and really good acting. Additionally, its use of suspense was brilliant. There were several scenes that were quite scary. The scariest scene being the dining room scene after they invited some relative over for dinner.

I liked that movie a lot too, and agree that the dinner scene was probably more unsettling than the violent scenes.


Carved The Slit Mouthed Woman-Harrowing and unsettling Japanese supernatural horror. Low budget but comes with a bleak, sepia-esque toned cinematography that greatly enhances the brutality of the violence. Subtle performances are also the key here-they are never over-dramaticized, the characters are quite natural (or naturally unnatural when needed), refreshingly flawed and measured. Kudos for not shying away from the true horrors of the subject matter where many gloss and sugar-coat it.

I've had this in my Netflix streaming queue for a while now, so it's good to hear someone recommend it. I guess it's time to watch it. :)

[Giganticface]

My last seen was Bedevilled, which I enjoyed for the discomfort it induced, but was left feeling a little dissatisfied at the end -- I think because I didn't like either of the two main characters much, and didn't care which one won, and didn't feel much when one of them did.

Before that I watched Kairo (Pulse), which had potential, but maybe to me that aesthetic is getting a little played out. It didn't scare me much, but probably would have liked it a lot more had it been a half hour shorter.

I'm currently in the middle of two Asian movies: Battle Royale, and Terrifying Girl's High School Lynch Law Classroom -- both of which I'm enjoying for the most part. I'll probably post in the "Last Seen Movie" thread when I'm done, probably after tonight.

[roshiq]

407 Dark Flight (http://asianwiki.com/407_Dark_Flight) (2012)

Silly haunted flight flick but not too bad, kinda funny at times.

>>: C

[JasonLuck]

The Eye (2002)

Such an original and interesting story to this movie - really explores the extent of inhumanity that humanity is capable off, despite whether it is visible to us or not, it is nonetheless there.

[roshiq]

Death Tube (http://horrornews.net/5684/film-review-death-tube-aka-satsujin-douga-site-2010/) (2010)

A Japanese Death Game-Survival flick where a group of individuals wake up & find themselves trapped in small rooms & forced to solve puzzles in order to proceed closer to freedom. And the entire thing is showing & sharing with the world by real time footage on a youtube-like video hosting site named Death Tube. But unlike inventive traps (SAW) or mathematical puzzles (Cube), the games that the trapped bunch have to solve are just silly kids' games like hopscotch, hot potato, Rubik's cube, etc. The host or the villain is not some Jigsaw-esque madman or even a creepy puppet, but a few guys in yellow bear costumes who dance around like low-rent team mascots while the victims play out their high stakes games. The instructions come from an animated version of the bear who cheerfully explains the rules.

This film was fun to watch at times but there's no mystery to solve or interesting twists; just another movie about watching a group of people playing weird games in order to survive. And that would be fine if it was 75-80 minutes long, but it was just a hair under 2 hours. Bit oddly, there's also no IMDB page for this movie, even though it's been out for nearly two years and released on DVD through a legitimate Asian Movie distributor.

Anyway, overall nothing new, just an average time waster.

>>: C+

[Giganticface]

Blind Beast (1969). I wrote a blurb about it in this post (http://horror.com/forum/showpost.php?p=945486&postcount=39059) in the Last Seen Movie thread. Overall, not bad.

[roshiq]

Don't Click (http://asianwiki.com/Don%27t_Click) (2012)

Typical Asian horror flick but fairly entertaining. Recommended to my good friend, Angra.:)

>>: B

[Angra]

Don't Click (http://asianwiki.com/Don%27t_Click) (2012)

Typical Asian horror flick but fairly entertaining. Recommended to my good friend, Angra.:)

>>: B


Hm... i'll take it. :cool:

[roshiq]

Modus Anomali (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2182019/) (2012)

A man claws his way out of a shallow grave and finds himself in the middle of a jungle. He can't remember anything, not even his name but uncovers evidence of a stunningly brutal murder and all sorts of grisly little clues start to pop up.

This is a nice little brutal thriller from Indonesia that at times reminded me of the Spanish sci-fi thriller Timecrimes or even to some extent, of Memento! For some trend in recent years, I guess Indonesia is trying hard to put their name convincingly on global genre-map and as an Indo-flick I must say it's clearly an impressive effort but not above few flaws. They shot the film in English language and though the actor on the lead did his best but the cast overall somewhat failed to deliver a satisfying job. There was a big 'twist' at the 3rd or final act but that truth behind the mystery didn't surprised me much.

>>: B

[roshiq]

Marronnier (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWOIBGGGz9U) (2004)

Marino is an average young Japanese girl. She likes hanging out with her friends and doting over her Marronnier doll. The doll, however, has been created by an evil genius that kidnaps women, uses a machine to turn them into wax and sculpts the wax into dolls in the deceased's likeness. But it doesn't end there. The mad doll-maker's assistant, Numai, is even freakier. He stalks Marino, kidnaps her (and her friends), fails to seduce her, gets rebuffed, laughs like a maniac, AND tries to melt them into wax!
But that's before his other doll 'creations' come to life for revenge!

Somewhat like a J-horror manga, this low budget flick offers quite a weird & interesting story, worth a watch for any ardent J-Horror fan.

>>: B

[The Horror fan]

"Jigoku Kôshien" /Battlefield Baseball (2003)

I don't what to make of this movie, it as got to be one of the most strangest, weediest horror comedy movie I have ever seen.

The plot to this Battlefield Baseball is a tough game--it doesn't end until all the members on the opposing team are dead. In this game the Gedo High team is composed of blue-faced zombies, and their opponents on the Seido High team know they don't have a chance at beating them

This movie like no other zombies, I have seen, the first part of the movie is with about the headmaster who is coaching baseball team, They going face the same Zombie team who killed his players in the last time,

which we see before the titles.
We do get see one gory death on scenes but all we see is the aftermath of the dead body parts torn off all over the place, he hated the fact it's same team again.

He one of funniest people in the movie, he had me laughing a number of times

also a New kids as come to the school who seem to be really good at baseball but he stopped playing and then he explains though song , yes a song!, how his dad died, in a very funny song!

As this movies goes on, it's gets weird and wearied and never stops at all until very last scene of the movie.

There some really funny moment in this movie, that I could not stop laughing and great jokes as well, worked really well. and I loved the ending of the movie, thought really classic ending and very funny!

The most bizarre, Horror, Comedy and I never seen anything liked this before!
I give this 9 out of 10

[Strailo]

Let's see here. Just watched Coma, which is a 5 part made for TV mini series (can be found on Youtube people) with 5 different directors (one who has been around the block, 4 new and semi new ones) directing the 5 parts. Each part focus's on a different character and the end ties it all together. Rather interesting movie thing.

I've also watched 3 Extremes. I think I found this one the most...disturbing considering some of the story subjects but still good. Found the ending of "Dumplings" really disturbing and screwing with my writing. I did not need my character to suddenly decide that she didn't want the baby...and got rid of it rather messily.

Note to all writers: Don't watch a movie that will screw with your sense a little bit and then write. After no sleep for 24 hours. Your writing comes out twisted.

Anyways, I'm going back to hunting down the movie I've been looking for since sometime in 2012.

[Angra]

"The Pot" 2/10

One word. YAWN!!

[Frankenstein]

Gwoemul / The Host (2006) A solid 7+

[xX_StarChild_Xx]

The last one I saw was A Tale of Two Sisters. Really great atmospheric ghost story. I give it an 8.5 out of 10.

[The Horror fan]

The Echo (2004)

This is as been I on watch list for time and so as the remake even thought the plot sound so-what different.

First 20 minutes of the movie, It the look of it was bit too much like Dark Water (Which I only saw yesterday) but as carried on, it was nothing like Dark Water at all.

The story is a little predicable here and there but how they filmed this movie was great. they really manage to really creepy you out.

There not many Jumps scenes in this movie for one second and move on this
movie dose not want to scare you, it want to creep the hell out of you.

Some of those well really well shot and I was really creepy out in some scenes
the hair and the back of neck start stand up.

I really enjoyed how the story and movie came to a end,

Few thing could have been better, I could had better lead actor as Some of the acting wasn't great but it was more then watch-able.

I don't why but I do feel that some of subtitled didn't fit in right with some
of the scene.

This was one the best ghost stories I seen in a long time 8 out of 10

[Ghoulie Joe]

Black Rat. It's an odd little slasher movie with Western-style cliched characters like the tough guy, the nerdy guy, the mean girl, etc.

[neverending]

I just watched a film called Kyofu, which was crazy- it mixed experimental brain surgery, found footage, ghosts, suicide, and a cosmic creeping terror creating one bizarre movie. Only the Japanese could do this. I recommend it.

[neverending]

Battle Royale.

This is a good movie.

[neverending]

Infection.

8/10

[newb]

Infection.

8/10

pretty sure this is on netflix instant


will have to check it out

[AlexSivier]

I just watched "Kuchisake-onna" (slit-mouthed woman) 1 & 2
The first one was pretty good, but the sequel (well, actually prequel) was surprisingly fantastic.

[Rob27]

Has anyone seen "Battle Royale"? A chilling but beautiful Japanese horror film. The 1st foreign horror film I had seen and it's stuck with me...definitely recommend! :)

[ImmortalSlasher]

Has anyone seen "Battle Royale"? A chilling but beautiful Japanese horror film. The 1st foreign horror film I had seen and it's stuck with me...definitely recommend! :)

Is Battle Royale really horror? It's on my list to watch and it's on Fear.net.

[neverending]

Yes, it really is.

[Rob27]

Is Battle Royale really horror? It's on my list to watch and it's on Fear.net.

I saw it a couple of years ago and definitely had the impression that it was horror. I remember some gore, but a good movie. Talking about it now is making me want to watch it again. Might do just that actually!

[Angra]

"Sadako 3D" 3/10

Yes, Ringu Sadako. Yes, it was crap.

[Banshee]

Probably Ju-on The Grudge (seen it a lot of times)

I learned only today that it isn't the first Ju-on movie - thanks Angra :)
I will have to hunt down the original two and the two shorts as well. I have been adding to my 'to see' list with movies from this thread, so thanks everyone!

[AlexSivier]

Just read Gyo (http://www.mangahere.com/manga/gyo/) manga and discovered there is an anime (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOQXERDD4U) version too.
It's really twisted.
I am a big fan of the artist's earlier work, particularly Uzumaki (http://www.mangahere.com/manga/uzumaki/) which also has a live action film (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0244870/).

[The Villain]

Carved: The Slit Mouthed Woman

This has a pretty cool ghost story but it would've been better if they had taken some time to build up the legend before jumping into the story. It's not really scary but it's creepy and kept my interest. The Slit Mouthed Woman is a really cool villain and i really liked the ending.

[Biff Wellington]

I just recently re-watched Meat Grinder. I believe it's a Thai film. Not one of the best Asian horrors that I've seen but it's still enjoyable.

[HorrorJ]

Carved - Based on the urban legend of the slit-mouth woman. The atmosphere was creepy and the acting was good, but some people might get a little disturbed by the subject of child abuse.

White - A Korean flick about a girl band who does a song remake and who share a white "signature" wig. Incidentally, the wig is cursed and each girl dies weird deaths. I recommend it, if you can get past all the singing and fan girls.

[cheebacheeba]

I saw "The Raid", first time.
Not bad. Nice fight scenes. The three-way fight shit on what Star Wars offered us in the same.
Storyline was...errrr...not bad, I guess? Very simplistic.
Clearly the new "Dredd" borrowed quite a bit from this movie.

I read that a sequel set "two hours after the events in part 1" is coming out sometime in the next year.


I don't suppose anyone has seen an Asian film I've been wondering about...I was fairly young so don't remember a lot, but the plot involved a guy looking for his "lost" girlfriend. Spends the film searching for her, and when he finds her towards the end she's (I think) some kind've junkie and/or prostitute, doesn't remember him, and stabs him?
No idea what it was, but I was entertained enough.

[hammerfan]

"White", the Korean horror film. It was ok. Not particularly scary. I give it 2 out of 5.

[HorrorJ]

Not really a movie, but on Youtube tonight I'm watching Tales of Terror from Japan. They're shorts (about 5:00 each). Creepy enough. Well done.

[Sicknero]

I finally got around to watching Thirst last night, really enjoyed it.

I know it's a bit slow and over-long for a lot of people but I didn't really find that, though I did stop it about halfway through to make dinner : )

Great story, lovely cinematography, decent characters and acting, quite a few laughs and several ewwwww moments, I found myself totally immersed in it.

[Haifisch]

Thirst is one of my favorite movies. I didn't think it was too long at all.
This morning, I watched a Japanese film called Versus. It was by the same guy who went on to direct The Midnight Meat Train and No One Lives.
It was a really fun action movie, kind of reminded me of Blade and Desperado. It was silly and over the top, and the plot progressively got weirder as it went along. It's not as bizarre as Tokyo Gore Police or Mutant Girls Squad, but I recommend if if you're a fan of Asian B movies.

[Wickergirl666]

A Tale of Two Sisters :eek:

[Bastion1023]

Just finally got around to watching Oldboy last week. Figured I needed to see the original before I even considered watching a remake. It was amazing. The cinematography was great and the acting was impeccable. I know most people have probably already seen it, but I can't praise it more highly. It will take some amazing reviews of the remake for me to want to go see that one as well.

[staceybethh]

3 Extremes

Never disappointed with those.

[hammerfan]

3 Extremes

Never disappointed with those.

My favorite is "Dumplings"

[staceybethh]

My favorite is "Dumplings"

Dumplings is great but I think I really liked "Cut" more out of the three.

[shadyJ]

Just finished watching 'Carved: The Slit-Mouthed Woman (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0891520/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_12)'. It was so-so. I grew restless of the predictability of the plot and the inanity and incompetence of the main characters somewhere in the middle of the movie, and I just let it play in the background while I browsed the web. On the plus side, the movie was willing to get brutal towards children, not a great thing in itself but refreshing as not many movies dare to go there. I also liked the visual aura and thematic milieu of urban legend, much like Nightmare on Elm Street or Candyman, but that aspect was side-lined somewhere in the middle of the movie. After that point it was just incompetent confrontations with a disfigured woman armed only with a gigantic pair of scissors (where do you get scissors that big?) Altogether it was a disappointing movie from the director of the great and original Noroi: The Curse (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0930083/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_14).

[Wednesday]

Hansel & Gretel (Henjel gwa Geuretel)

[shadyJ]

I watched a Japanese horror film called "The Locker" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475147/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) tonight. It was a standard Japanese cursed 'thing' kind of movie, in this case it was a small public storage locker like what you see in bus stations. It was just so routine and by-the-numbers that I could barely finish watching it. It didn't have any real flaws regarding the production itself, the movie looked nice enough, the acting was adequate, the direction and editing were competent is a bit slow. The story was just so unoriginal, and the writing so lazy, and the characters so flat, I can barely muster the energy or care to even write about it. Seriously, it was so dull that talking about it feels like a chore.

Cursed object? check
group of non-descript young being picked off one-by-one from the curse? check
creepy killer ghost girl with really long dark hair? check

This movie was a semi professional but witless cash-in on Ringu. On the plus side, it was mercifully short, clocking in just over an hour, and that, combined with how slow the movie moved, demonstrates just how little effort was put into the screenplay and how much the filmakers had to compensate for it.

The disc I received had locker part 2 on it as well, but I didn't bother with that one.

[bblgmpink]

Bedevilled - I LOVED that movie...I also enjoyed The Doll Master.

[shadyJ]

So I finally got around to watching this Indian movie called 13B (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1385824/?ref_=ttexrv_exrv_tt) which is streaming on Netflix, out of curiousity as I had never seen an Indian horror film. It wasn't all bad, but apart from the cultural differences, it wasn't exceptional for a horror film, although it did have a neat premise. The plot was a man and his family move into a new apartment, and, of course, this being a horror film, strange things happen. The oddest is that there is a soap opera that strongly resemble his family and his life which only his television receives, and it depicts events that occur in the near future. Outside of that there is nothing that isn't in any conventional horror film.

13b could have definitely used some tightening up. It kept on hammering plot points that any viewer with an IQ over 50 would have figured out without as much exposition. The movie would have been much better were it a half hour shorter. It was also over-directed, with much overuse of shaky cam and rapid cutting to different angles. The characters were cardboard cutouts and had the kind of depth and cheerful performances you would see in an early 90's sitcom. What's more, the lighting was a bit too idyllic, it was a bit too perfect and gave some moments a flat sitcom look. Another thing, I know its a cultural thing for picturesque musical interludes to be a standard inclusion in Indian movies, but that really spoils the mood for a horror film. In fact, it's quite bizarre, and probably the most notable thing about this film.

To sum it it, I think there is the heart of a good old fashioned ghost story buried in this production, but it isn't worth enduring the treatment which that story received. I would only recommend this if you were tremendously curious about what a Bollywood horror film is like.

[shadyJ]

Today I watched Hansel & Gretal (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1002567/?ref_=fn_al_tt_3), a Korean movie streaming in HD on Netflix which has very little to do with the title children' story. It's a very dark tale and barely qualifies as a horror movie, its far more along the lines of a dark fantasy. That isn't to say it's a children's movie, it's much too grim for kids. The story is a guy gets in a car wreck in a rural area and wonders off into a forest before passing out. He is found by a girl who takes him to a house with a family that seems just a bit too perfect. Things gradually become more surreal as he finds he is unable to leave no matter what he does. I felt it was a good movie, and I would recommend seeing it without any more knowledge of the plot, in case you are tempted to read the spoilers ahead.

SPOILERS AHEAD:









The story is strongly reminiscent of that segment from Twilight Zone The movie where that boy can generate anything he wants from his imagination. This is not a bad version of that tale, and explores that scenario to a much greater extant than the Twilight Zone did, as well it should with a two hour running time. Even though I had that angle figured out pretty early, I was still glued to the screen, and for some reason I found this film somewhat moving. The story had more depth than simply the terror of a hugely powerful but immature being.

END OF SPOILERS








The production is nicely mounted, the sets and camerawork looks great. The direction and editing were pitch perfect for the story. The screenplay could probably have used a little bit of tightening up, but I was still intrigued by the movie the whole way through. The movie didn't have a lot of visual effects, but what there was was very well done, on the level of any hollywood movie. The acting was good, especially the children actors, which is surprising given the neglect child performances are treated with by so many asian films I have seen. Most asian movies just don't seem to care about the children giving a convincing performance; the kids read their line and look cute, the director says cut, and that's a wrap. That would have been deadly for a movie like this where child characters were so heavily involved. And thank god the children didn't overdo it either, which would have been so easy to do in a Korean movie where performances tend to be on the melodramatic side. The more I think about it, the more impressive it is, the child performances were not too forced, not too sentimental, and well beyond a simple line read despite the actors very young age.

Altogether this movie greatly exceeded my expectations. Highly recommended if you are in the mood for a dark fairy tale along the lines of Pan's Labyrinth.

[shadyJ]

I finished watching Reincarnation (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0456630/?ref_=ttexrv_exrv_tt), from Takashi Shimizu, the guy who did Ju-on. Not bad really, but not scary at all. It takes an awful lot from The Shining. Really it is Shimizu's 'remix' of The Shining, but it was too over-directed, too polished, and too over-the-top to be scary. Creepy dolls, creepy girls with long hair, haunted hotel, creepy 8 mm footage, and pretty arbitrary ghost attacks, it is nothing no one hasn't seen before, with plenty of loose plot threads. Also the inevitable ending goes on and on. I grew bored in the middle and never really regained interest because of the predictability of the story. I guess it wouldn't be bad to someone new to the genre and isn't familiarized with all the cliches. It is all very professionally staged with fairly high production values, so it might be worth giving a chance if you really dig Japanese horror, I might be a bit too hard on it because I was hoping for something with a bit more subtlety.

[ChronoGrl]

Interested to read feedback on Hansel & Gretel; I've been sort of watching it on and off and, honestly, the stop-motion direction drives me batty.

Is anyone else bothered by that?

[shadyJ]

Was that intentional? It seemed to happen off and on, and I actually thought it might have been a problem with the streaming, so I didn't hold it against the movie. But yeah, it was kind of annoying.

[ChronoGrl]

I assumed it was intentional, but I've tried to Google it to see if that was the case with no luck. Drove me totally nuts!

[Tahrgat]

My latest watch was Zombie Ass: Toilet of the Dead. Ah, Netfix, I can always count on you to be fresh and relevant.

[newb]

My latest watch was Zombie Ass: Toilet of the Dead. Ah, Netfix, I can always count on you to be fresh and relevant.

started watching that one....guess i just wasn't in the mood

[Tahrgat]

started watching that one....guess i just wasn't in the mood
This was the last Asian film I watched, but I don't recommend that anybody watch this movie ever. Besides only being created too bring the director's disgusting fetishes to life it is also tedious to watch. Almost everything about this film drags on way too long and is incredibly awkward as it lingers.

[NightOfTheLiving_Sam]

I Saw The Devil was the last Asian horror movie that I've seen and I loved it! I'd definitely watch it again for sure!

[Tony Vilgotsky]

Tokyo Gore Police, which is claimed to be the craziest and goriest japsplotation horror movie. I tend to agree with those ones who claims so. But the last 30 minutes of this flick are just a comedy - and I'd rather watch something serious.

[Khaleesi]

I Saw The Devil was the last Asian horror movie that I've seen and I loved it! I'd definitely watch it again for sure!

Agreed! I was on the fence about Asian horror until I saw that one. Totally blew my mind, in a good way, of course. :)

My last Asian film was the J-horror Suicide Club. I saw it a couple of weeks ago and thoroughly enjoyed it, although I was somewhat flummoxed by the ending.

[ferretchucker]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/93/The-wedding-banquet-1993-poster.jpg/220px-The-wedding-banquet-1993-poster.jpg

Funny, touching, well acted and socially important. 9/10

[Khaleesi]

Pulse or Kairo (2001) I wasn't totally taken with this one and felt that the overall concept was too vague to make the plot cohesive.

[shadyJ]

I loved Pulse, in fact I think it may be one of the best modern horror movies. Sometimes ambiguity can work against a horror movies, sometimes it can work immensely in its favor, and for me Pulse very much did the later.

[Angra]

I loved Pulse, in fact I think it may be one of the best modern horror movies. Sometimes ambiguity can work against a horror movies, sometimes it can work immensely in its favor, and for me Pulse very much did the later.


Agreed.

I think it's one of the best asian horror movies out there, containing one of the creepiest scenes in horror history. The ghost in the hallway. A classic. ::cool::

[shadyJ]

Watched a Japanese anthology called Stories of Apparitions (http://www.amazon.com/Stories-Apparitions-Yoshikazu-Matsuyama-Nakamura/dp/B00B9DYA2G/), also streaming on Netflix. Not bad, really, it had its moments. Like all horror anthologies, it had its hits and misses. Each story centers around a photograph that has a ghost in it.

The first story was about three young hikers who find the dead body of a man who had hung himself, and down at his feet is a strange photo with the words 'help me' written on back. As they try to leave the mountain, strange things occur. The next story is about a bizarre class photograph centering around a young girl who brings a curse to those pictured with her. The third story concerns a christmas party with some young teens and a Polaroid camera which has a habit of capturing unseen subjects. Interesting idea, but this was the weakest of the bunch by far due to terrible execution. A great movie waiting to be made about a Polaroid camera would be an adaptation of the Stephen King story 'Sundog'. The fourth story concerns a man who is secretly obsessed with a woman and takes hidden pictures of her but finds some kind of entity in the pictures with her. The final story has a young woman receiving a unexplained picture in the mail of a family photo with some kind of apparition behind them. The acquisition of this strange picture brings with it a curse which compels her to find the picture's origin.

'Stories of Apparitions' is a fairly routine Japanese ghost movie. It does not have a big budget, it is shot on video, but it looks more polished and professional than most video filmed movies, so I didn't find that detracted from this movie. It goes for the quiet creepy thrills rather than a loud, hectic scream fest. Some segments fair better than others. It is not up there with classics like Ju-on or Ringu, but I have seen worse from this genre.

[Khaleesi]

I just watched Marebito (2004). I really enjoyed the cross-cultural references to subterranean myths/legends and the Lovecraftian elements. Definitely a "slower" film, but it still held my interest. I only wish the main character spent a little more time underground, even if what he witnessed was only a delusion.

[shadyJ]

I watched The Chaser (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1190539/?ref_=nv_sr_1), a good Korean serial killer movie streaming on Netflix. I might not quite classify it as horror, but it certainly is bloody and brutal enough. An unusual story based on a actual Korean serial killer who was caught in 2004, and who wasn't caught by the cops but by a pimp who was tracking down his disappearing girls. Like many other Korean movies the tone shifts from comic to horror to tragedy to social commentary and so on. Korean movies seem to be dramatically sprawling in a way nobody else's movies are. I used to think their movies were just unfocused, but now I think it might be because they are taking a broader view of characterization. It's growing on me because many of these movies are entertaining as hell. Anyway I can easily recommend The Chaser as a unique and entertaining serial killer movie, it breaks away from so many of the genre cliches and has some terrific performances in it. It has a well paced plot with an involving story, and it is easy to watch, so give it a chance. If you liked Memories of Murder and I Saw the Devil, you will like The Chaser.

[Khaleesi]

Just saw "Cold Fish" (2010). I rather enjoyed the overly-gregarious serial killer. Geez, that guy must drink a lot of coffee, haha. Also, the ending reminded me a little bit of "Falling Down" with Michael Douglas.

[shadyJ]

29 February (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0927575/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2), an passable 2006 Korean horror film streaming on netflix. The movie is about a toll booth attendant who is targeted by a ghost of a serial killer that died on that location in a leap year Feb 29 some years ago. Now every leap year that ghost comes back and kills some toll booth attendants. It's basically another 'curse' type horror film, but with a twist in the end. Relatively high production values and some good performances make this film watchable. The story and script is competent in structure and pacing but it's fairly routine. The direction and editing could have been toned down a notch, but it wasn't terrible. It's not a boring movie but not at all scary or horrific either. So ultimately, as with all these aspects of this movie, you could do worse for a Asian horror movie about a curse, but you could easily do better as well.

[The Horror fan]

The Second Sight (2013)

Jet is a man who has a paranormal ability since he was born. But it makes him a freak among his friends.

First 10 mintues of the movie were so funny, I could not stop laughing, I don't know if it was some of the effects, or the thing that meant to be scary but look so silly and bad at times it's was funny.

I don't think 3D effect helped at all in 2D, as the 3D scenes looked really bad in 2D.

The rest of the movie was very strange in odd way, it was not boring, it flowed really well.

I enjoyed the twist and turns in the movie, thought they were decent, ending was very odd.

The acting was decent from the whole, the ghost in this movie, was okay but didn't find them scary at all.

I have no idea what to rate this movie, effect were really bad in 2D but I kind had soft spot for the plot and enjoyed the twist in this movie.

As the movie made me laugh, well for all the wrong reason, I going to give it a

5 out of 10

[shadyJ]

The Guard Post (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1064953/?ref_=nv_sr_1), also known as 'GP506', streaming in HD on Netflix. As with many other Korean movies, this doesn't feel very focused. Horror, Drama, a whodunit mystery, a disease outbreak movie... All told, not a bad movie though. A military squad is sent to a guard post on the DMZ to investigate the murder of all the soldiers posted there save for one guy covered in blood and holding an axe. A dark and somewhat gory film, it is handsomely produced and acted and was clearly working with a decent budget. It was paced well for the mystery aspect, but I found many of the character's decisions frustratingly illogical. I suppose it could be rationalized that they weren't thinking straight by suffering from a behavior-altering viral infection. If you want to watch a movie about mounting paranoia by a group of men stationed in a remote outpost a la 'The Thing' this isn't a bad example of that genre.

[hammerfan]

"Reincarnation" for the umpteenth time.

[shadyJ]

I finished 'Snake Woman's Curse (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063170/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)' this morning, a pretty good 1968 Japanese 'Kaidan' movie like the ones I discussed here (http://www.horror.com/forum/showthread.php?t=63487). In a rural part of Japan during the early 1900's where the economy and culture is still much more feudal than modern, a family is gradually destroyed by a brutal landlord. His cruelty is repaid with a bizarre curse where he becomes haunted by visions of ghosts and snakes. This movie looked great, and was nicely produced and imaginatively directed. It was made by the same guy who did the classic Jigoku (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0154683/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_11), and was well acted with a fairly good screenplay which made it easy to watch. As with many other Kaidan films of that era, it was more darkly lyrical than scary, and it had some gorgeous visuals to match the poetic style of the story. It had a few grotesque images but wasn't nearly as grisly as Jigoku which was made eight years prior. If I have any complaint at all, it would be that some of the characters are frustratingly passive in the face of the landlord's cruelty, but that was likely how everyone was conditioned to behave in that culture at that period, so I can't really hold it against the story. All told, this is a very worthwhile film for those interested in classic ghost fables or just some very nice cinematography.

[Khaleesi]

The Isle (2000)
A Korean flick. I'm not sure if this one could even be technically classified as "horror", although there were some extremely disturbing elements in the film, including some very graphic violence involving fishing hooks. However, I really can't give a objective opinion about this movie, because there was a lot of unnecessary (and real, according to the production team) animal cruelty. I'm not a total PETA nut, but I am a huge animal lover, so I was turned off.

[shadyJ]

I watched Chawz (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1198396/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1), a Korean horror-comedy, a couple nights ago, streaming in HD on Netflix. Fun movie, it balances the horror and comedy nicely. The movie is about a killer boar which is driving away tourist business in a little Korean mountain town. It follows the Jaws plot pretty closely, in fact it really is just Jaws on land. The visual effects are pretty good, better than one would expect from a movie of this budget, maybe not as good as the huge Hollywood movies but way better than anything from Asylum for example. The production is nicely mounted and does not look like a low budget movie at all. All the actors were great. Humor isn't the easiest thing to get right but the timing and the characterization from the actors nailed it, and much of the humor isn't just derived from Jaws references. All told it was a breezy way to spend two hours, and a fun movie, so I can recommend it.

[shadyJ]

I sat down to watch the Thai horror film Shutter (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0440803/). A couple is haunted after a hit'n'run accident on a woman crossing the street. The man of the couple is a photographer and a bizarre smudge begins to show up in his negatives. Not a bad movie, it hummed along nicely with well set up scares and plot turns. Many of the scares are of the 'ju-on' and 'ringu' variety, but they are reasonably well done, so I can't complain too much. This film was heavily inspired by those Japanese horror films, but I think its better than most of the Japanese Ringu copycats. The film is nicely produced and not a visibly low budget film, good acting, cinematography, editing, etc. I understand this movie had an american remake, I haven't seen it, but I can't see how the original would be improved. Although it isn't a huge deal, I think Shutter is a very competent horror film and definitely worth a watch for fans of the genre.

[shadyJ]

I watched The Guard From Underground (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0230367/?ref_=ttexrv_exrv_tt), a movie by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who directed Pulse. Supposedly it is a slasher movie, but it certainly didn't have the feel of any conventional slasher movie. The plot is a young woman who is an art expert starts work at company at the same time as a very large guard. The guard is a murderer who grows to have an infatuation with the woman. This is not a whodunit so the fact of the guard's violent nature is revealed right away. Even though it took place almost entirely within a office building in confined office spaces, all the shots were medium distance and not many close-ups, which gave the movie an impersonal feel. Not only that, but none of the characters are given much background or history, another move which I think was deliberate. The result is a sense of detachment which I think is intended to create a sense of absurdity for the scenario of not just this film but all slasher movies.

The movie obviously had a constricted budget, but since the story is not an ambitious in scope, it wasn't that much of a hindrance. The music was pretty cheesy though, and didn't do much to elevate the tension. I don't mind synthesizers, but they really shouldn't be used in a score that tries to emulate real instruments when they don't do a very good job of recreating those sounds. Although there was some cruel acts of violence, the movie wasn't very bloody, so anyone looking for splatter would be better off with something else. The movie is strange, but it is purposed and intelligently made, so the oddity is not a result of incompetence but rather conscious decisions to disaffect the audience. I would say if you are looking for an offbeat, slightly mellow and somewhat surreal horror film, The Guard From Underground will foot that bill, but it is more cerebral and less visceral than most horror movies.

[ImmortalSlasher]

I sat down to watch the Thai horror film Shutter (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0440803/). A couple is haunted after a hit'n'run accident on a woman crossing the street. The man of the couple is a photographer and a bizarre smudge begins to show up in his negatives. Not a bad movie, it hummed along nicely with well set up scares and plot turns. Many of the scares are of the 'ju-on' and 'ringu' variety, but they are reasonably well done, so I can't complain too much. This film was heavily inspired by those Japanese horror films, but I think its better than most of the Japanese Ringu copycats. The film is nicely produced and not a visibly low budget film, good acting, cinematography, editing, etc. I understand this movie had an american remake, I haven't seen it, but I can't see how the original would be improved. Although it isn't a huge deal, I think Shutter is a very competent horror film and definitely worth a watch for fans of the genre.

I like this movie. I remember being surprised and shocked at the final twist. But do pass on the American remake. It's not worth the time. I think The Ring is the only Asian horror remake that is good.

[shadyJ]

I watched Cure (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0123948/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1), another movie from Kiyoshi Kurosawa, as with Kurosawa's other films, it is an atypical horror film. Random people commit murders with a signature 'X' carved into the throat of the victim which baffles a detective and a psychiatrist who is assisting him. The only thing linking these murders is a man who is suffering from amnesia and can barely even hold any short term memories which further frustrates the investigation. A very non-standard horror film which is only one ellipsis away from David Lynch. The scares are mainly a creepy atmosphere and there isn't many 'shocks' or gory scenes, as Kurosawa is seemingly concerned with something a bit more cerebral.

A theme I see developing in Kurosawa's oeuvre from the few films I have seen is murder or harm stemming from an incomprehensible motive. Since his movies concern malice from a source that refuses rationalization, his movies are a bit more abstract than normal horror. As with Kurosawa's other films, not much effort is made to develop a sympathetic protagonist or victims, and so there is a coldness about the film. The sense of dread doesn't come from suspense involving any of the characters on screen, it stems more from the ideas which the movie suggests and the manner in which those ideas are presented. It is a quiet film with no music that I can remember, no loud sound effects, and no screaming. The locations are all drab, grey muted places, the world as seen by Kurosawa is a depressing place. It reminds me of Michelangelo Antonioni's Red Desert in its tone and setting.

I liked Cure, but I have to warn anyone looking for traditional J-horror spookiness will probably be disappointed. This movie is much more interested in its own puzzle than scaring the audience, however that puzzle is creepy enough that there is no doubt it is very much a horror film.

[The Bloofer Lady]

This past Friday i watched "A Chain of Cursed Murders" 2006. A group of teenage girls receive a text message that if not passed on within 12(?) hours will cause a gruesome death. The text message is about a young school girl raped and murdered years previous and then..well, its gets a little convoluted but still an enjoyable hour and a half.

[shadyJ]

I finally had a chance to watch Mr Vampire (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089371/?ref_=nv_sr_1), a 1985 Hong Kong film I had long heard about but hadn't seen, and I decided to sit down for it even though I was not at all in the mood for what I knew was going to be a silly horror comedy. I must say it did not take long for this movie to win me over. Mr Vampire was a riot, it was nicely filmed, hilarious, and a ton of fun. I wasn't expecting to laugh as much as I did. The story is about some kind of funeral parlor run by a trained priest who uses magic to battle the undead of all kinds, but mostly vampires. These vampires are not like traditional western vampires very much, and the movie gives them a different kind of lore. The battles were amazing, not just in stunts and choreography but in wildly imaginative visuals. Many of the gags were actually quite funny. It was a very colorful and energetic film, as are so many 80's and 90's supernatural films from Hong Kong were. It is certainly one of the better horror comedies I have seen, and it has a lot more comedy than horror. It inspired a lot of sequels and imitators, none of which I have seen, but it's easy to see why this movie became so successful now that I have seen it. If you get a chance to see Mr Vampire, don't pass it up.

[Fearonsarms]

Kairo/Pulse (2001) This was my second time viewing it. Still creepy and haunting as I remembered also a little confusing but I did enjoy it's creepiness. Worth watching and pretty absorbing.

[shadyJ]

I saw Charisma (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0201517/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) tonight, what is ostensibly a horror film by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, the guy who did Pulse, Seance, and Cure, among others. While Charisma is marketed as a horror film, and was made by a guy known for horror, it isn't a horror film at all. There are a couple of unsettling scenes, but this movie is almost purely an allegory. A cop who makes a major screw up at his job is placed on leave and decides to just wonder into a random forest. There he meets different people who all seem to have a fixation on a particular and unique tree. Some people think it's dangerous to all the other plant life in the forest, but others think it's precious and takes precedence over all the other plants. And others just want to sell it for money. The cop gets involved in the entanglement, and in fact becomes the crux, so that he must ultimately decide the fate of the tree, and thus the entire forest. The symbolism is not very subtle here, the tree represents individualism. Those who want it destroyed represent the forces of conformity. This movie's message might resonate more in Japan in the late 90s when it was made, as Japan has historically been a far more conformist culture, so maybe it's an issue of greater concern there.

Apart from the metaphorical content, there were a few entertaining scenes and a few tense moments, but Charisma is not really concerned about that. It is probably the most abstruse movie from Kiyoshi Kurosawa I have seen so far, and that is saying something after watching Cure. The movie strolled by at a casual pace, and the story unfolded but not at a breakneck speed. It's an entirely non-standard story, so it had unpredictability on its side. There was no telling what was going to happen next since there is no other movie like it. Even though the story as a whole was rather enigmatic, it was easy to follow and not challenging as far as plot goes, so you might be left wondering about the meaning of a scene but you won't be left wondering what actually happened. Unlike many other high-minded movies, this one was fairly watchable and never really taxed my patience.

On the technical side, the movie was professionally produced, so it looks and feels polished and competently made, so no cheap shot-on-video ugliness, sloppy sound mixing, or amateur acting here. There are a few interesting visuals, but mostly it's a guy wondering around a forest while talking to someone, so it doesn't look artsy despite its very cerebral premise. As with Kurosawa's other films, the characters are mostly shot at a medium distance, so there isn't a sense of intimacy or affinity for any of them. None of the characters are over-flowing with personality, they are a bit detached from each other, and the drama isn't derived from their relationships like normal movies. This is about what you would expect when the characters are largely symbolic. Charisma is all about the intellect and is not an emotionally stirring movie.

Would I recommend this? If you were in the mood for a offbeat, high-browed stroll or were interested in seeing an allegorical debate about conformity versus individualism, Charisma is the movie for you. That probably isn't a mood that strikes many people very often, so I think Charisma is probably going to be a let down to most, especially horror fans who are looking for a more visceral experience.

[Angra]

"Bedevilled" 7-8/10

One of those all-men-are-scum movies.

Cruel, brutal, sad and depressing revenge flick, with one of the worst friends in movie history. Great character depictions. You really feel for the main character (Wonderfully played byYeong-hie Seo. Yes, her)and hate pretty much everybody else.
Would have prefered a slight change in the ending. If you've seen the movie you'll know. ;)

[roshiq]

Deranged (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2173024/) (2012)

http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p433/sanjidparvez/Deranged_zpsd1878556.jpg

A good pandemic thriller from Korea.

>>: B+

Confession of Murder (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2468774/?ref_=nv_sr_1) (2012)

http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p433/sanjidparvez/confession-of-murder_zpsa8cac87e.jpg

Though they have become the Master of this genre but this is just an entertaining, fast paced Serial Killer thriller from South Korea, not as great and as gritty & violent as their masterpieces like THE CHASER, I SAW THE DEVIL or NO MERCY. Here it comes with a bit of social commentary about today's cultural fascination towards this sort of crimes & the criminals and that just presented with well constructed humor & action. The story focused more on the mystery surrounding the identity of the killer, rather than his gruesome activities. Expected a better & far more tormented ending for the killer.

>>: B+

[Angra]

"13 Beloved/13: Game of Death" 8-9/10

Having just seen the american remake "13 Sins" and really liked it i had to give the original Thai version a watch. I was pleasantly surprised of how different the story was compared to the remake. Even most of the challenges were different. This one was slightly more comedy oriented and less brutal than the remake.

I recommend you watch both versions.

[roshiq]

"13 Beloved/13: Game of Death" 8-9/10

Having just seen the American remake "13 Sins" and really liked it i had to give the original Thai version a watch. I was pleasantly surprised of how different the story was compared to the remake. Even most of the challenges were different. This one was slightly more comedy oriented and less brutal than the remake.

I recommend you watch both versions.

Seen it. The eating shit challenge almost made me vomit, it was disgusting to watch! Overall, a decent thriller. Looking forward to check out the American remake.

[Angra]

Seen it. The eating shit challenge almost made me vomit, it was disgusting to watch! Overall, a decent thriller. Looking forward to check out the American remake.

Thankfully you didn't really see him eat any of it. And it actually looked like he loved the taste. Totally cleaned that plate with his tongue. Yummy. ::big grin::

[shadyJ]

I finally got around to watching Suicide Club (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0312843/?ref_=nv_sr_4), and how the hell did it take me this long to watch such a terrific movie? The movie starts out with a bang as 54 cheerful school girls all jump in front of a train off a platform while holding hands. Japan then goes on to experience a rash of suicide pact deaths which leaves the detectives baffled as to whether these are suicides or murders. The movie is very playful and is really half comedy, with some scenes of horror and shock. The main theme of the movie seems to be a lament over the shallowness of pop culture and how that inhibits self-reflection. The movie is not played with a straight face and gets gradually more nutty and surreal as it progresses. Suicide Club doesn't really fit into any conventional genre formula at all. It's a unique work, and it is unpredictable and original. There is nothing quite like it. It is a funny and clever movie and entertaining as hell, I really enjoyed it.

[The Bloofer Lady]

LADDA LAND 2011

A family of four move into a new home where all manner of strange things happen around them. Supposedly based on a true story. Not horribly scary, but not horrible either.

[The Bloofer Lady]

CULT 2013

A film crew documents the exorcism of a demon from the Kaneda home. The main "exorciser"(?) was kind of cool and looked like a character from a graphic novel, but sometimes came across as trying too hard. I had no problem with this movie.

[roshiq]

Lesson of the Evil (2012)

http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p433/sanjidparvez/LOTEvil_zps27e2c370.jpg

Not as good as his other popular films, this is just a decently made psycho-thriller by Takashi Mike...about a School massacre!

>>: B

[shadyJ]

I saw a 2002 Korean serial killer movie 'H (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0304120/?ref_=ttexrv_exrv_tt)'. It was alright. Nicely directed, produced, and acted, but it felt like an amalgamation of other popular serial killer movies, primarily Seven and Silence of the Lambs. It had a couple original ideas, but those ideas were placed in service of serial killer movie cliches. There are better South Korean Horror serial killer movies than this one, notably Chaser and Memories of Murder. Speaking of Memories of Murder, this movie has strong elements of that one as well. H did have some gory scenes at least. Outside of being fairly derivative, there isn't that much wrong with it, it is watchable. There just isn't much in the way of surprises, as I have seen this movie before within other movies.

[shadyJ]

I got around to watching A Tale of Two Sisters (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365376/?ref_=nv_sr_1), a 2003 Korean horror film which had caught my attention for being on so many Asian horror move 'best-of" lists. While it wasn't a bad movie, I wouldn't include it among my favorite Asian horror films. The problem is it is derivative of other films. It is about twin teenage girls who move back into their childhood home where their cruel stepmother (is there any other kind of stepmother?) now lives. After the move, strange things begin to happen in the house. This is a nicely mounted production and not a low budget affair, it is well acted, scripted, and filmed. The direction and editing and not rushed, and it is well paced and confidently shot. The camera angles and color compositions reflect a very sure hand from the director Kim Jee-woon. I will have to grant that A Tale of Two Sisters did have a couple of scary moments. However there is a fairly derivative element which diminished the movie for me which I will discuss below the spoilers alert...
SPOILERS BELOW...
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This movie had an 'imaginary' character too many. It almost becomes the movie which Charlie Kaufman's 'Adaptation' parodies with the concept of 'The Three'. Ultimately it ended up feeling arbitrary and only tried to pull the rug out from under the audience simply for the sake of a surprise. This movie reduces the narrative trick of undermining the audience assumption about the solidity of a character, a la The Sixth Sense or The Fight Club, to a kind of banality. In the end this movie felt like it was built out of components from other successful movies and thus lacked originality. A Tale of Two Sisters is so slickly made that I can see how it gets away with that and ends up on so many 'best-of' lists, but for me this re-tread aspect reduces the movie to simply being passable. Take the typical long-haired women ghosts of Japanese horror and combine them with Fight Club style alter egos, and you have a Tale of Two Sisters. It's well-made, yes, but it is still just an imitation of other movies, and it can not escape this sense of being a 'second-hand' story.

[roshiq]

Kuroyuri Danchi aka The Complex (2013)

http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p433/sanjidparvez/complex_zps84fbdee4.jpg

A Hideo Nakata J-horror. Though it was promoted as inspired by modern Swedish classic Let the Right One In but it actually offers quite a different story. The first half was good, the build-up was interesting but the end product is nothing new. Kinda sloppy at the end. Moreover, that kid-ghost wasn't much scary. But overall, a decent time-waster.

>>: B

[The Bloofer Lady]

THE QUIET FAMILY 1998

A horror-comedy about a dysfunctional family who pin all their hopes and dreams on a lodge they have recently purchased.

I was glad I happened upon it.

[roshiq]

THE QUIET FAMILY 1998

A horror-comedy about a dysfunctional family who pin all their hopes and dreams on a lodge they have recently purchased.

I was glad I happened upon it.

Not so much fan of Takashi Mike's version of this (The Happiness of the Katakuris) but yeah...loved this one. Cleverly plotted, a great thriller with awesome doze of humor.

[totem]

http://i1354.photobucket.com/albums/q700/coffeecusp/horror_com/GhostTrain_zps9438db39.jpg

It’s a low-budget, derivative imitator of much better creepy Japanese Horror films. Unless you’re an obsessive fan of all things Japanese, I’d give it a pass.

[NightOfTheLiving_Sam]

The last seen Asian movie I've seen was Battle Royale and I own both films on blue ray which they came together that way. I didn't get so much for the second one but I did like however how they brought a few characters from the first one: that's the only thing that I liked about it.

[Fearonsarms]

Ab-Normal Beauty (2004) I didn't think much of this, it had a good score and cinematography but I didn't enjoy it much-found it a bit boring and when the horror came it lacked the impact it should have had.

[FryeDwight]

ONIBABA (1963). Really creepy/atmospheric Japanese film about a mother/daughter-in-law trying to survive in a feudal Samurai war zone with a soldiers mask serving as a focal point. Some nudity and some spicy goings on as well::embarrassment::::big grin::. ****

[Monkey Astronaut]

Not necessarily horror but I recently watched The Vengeance Trilogy (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance) and there's quite a bit of gore throughout. Oldboy is probably the best film of the series while Sympathy for Lady Vengeance is probably the goriest. The ending to which is absolutely brutal.