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This
is a movie that has warnings on it and has been quoted as one
of the most violent and disturbing films that Korea has produced.
Nice. Of course to most people who watch horror/serial killer
movies this is a blessing rather than a curse. In this case the
subject matter rather than the actual horror is the reason this
has a warning on it. The entire film is based around a serial
killer who obsesses particularly with women who have had, or are
going to have, abortions. There is that buzz word, the fact that
it is about abortions makes for a disturbing and yet interesting
look at Freudian-esque serial killings.
Detective Kim was the investigator and victim of serial killer
Shin Hyun. Her detective lover killed himself after the trauma
of investigating Shin’s serial killings. Now, without warning,
identical killings are happening and another detective, Kang Tae
Hyun, is brought in to work with detective Kim in order to find
the new killer and to find out if they're working in conjunction
with Shin Hyun. The detectives become more and more involved and
the murders become more violent, disturbing and bold. The film
is a slow burn and unravels some very well played twists and character
interactions.
The film is in essence a fairly average serial killer movie but
excels in its writing and acting. Like all good serial killer
films it focuses on the killer's character and not the violence
and horror of their actions. Shin Hyun is deep and entrancing
as the imprisoned serial killer and his motivations, as they are
revealed, are truly emotionally disturbing. Seung-woo Cho plays
the killer remarkably, and as you know these movies rely upon
their killer being convincing. Shin plays against the detectives
coyly and you are always trying to find out what is behind his
words. Equally the detectives played by Jung-ah Yum and Jin-hee
Ji are intense, in their own ways detective Kim has a silent and
deep hatred that boils throughout the film and detective Kang
is constantly exploding and is the more voracious of the two characters.
The writing is also exceptional, the constant guessing game that
is played throughout the film is intricate and complicated, but
not so much as to be ridiculous. The only part about this film
I dislike is its basic lack of style, for all of the great writing
and acting its visual style is lacking. The overall look is very
basic, and suited to a standard drama which in many ways this
film is, but it felt like it needed a bit more of everything.
I also want to mention the special effects. The film is particularly
gruesome in places and in serial killer movies if the effects
aren’t realistic then the emotional impact is lost. In this
the effects are spot on, and in a story about abortions I think
you can tell how the realism in this gets grisly and the effects
unnerve you, helping create the atmosphere that helps thread the
film together.
All in all this is a great movie, and it's nice to see a serial
killer movie that isn’t all about the spectacle of violent
acts. The characters are played by accomplished actors and the
story/script feels smooth and coherent. This is a movie well worth
checking out, but the nature of the subject might be a bit much
if you’re a pro-lifer. If however you’ve got an open
mind and you like complex horror/drama movies this should be high
on you’re list.
-
Dr. Octopene
Extras
As with most
Korean DVD releases the menu’s look fantastic, it has a
trailer and a few other extra’s that unfortunately unsubtitled |
