Cadaver (2009)

It seems that I’ve seen plenty of disappointing horror movies set in a morgue. Two disappointing films that come to mind are Unrest and Pathology, both that were stiffer than a corpse. So imagine my trepidation when I set about watching South Korean flick Cadaver, another film set in a morgue. Luckily, Cadaver didn’t arrive DOA and actually contained a solid storyline and a spooky atmosphere!

The film follows a group of first-year medical students as they enter their first autopsy class. The group’s cadaver is a young woman who died under the operating knife and she has a long, carefully stitched-up scar running down her chest. As soon as the students cut into her they begin having horrific nightmares of the girl as well as a one-eyed doctor. One by one they each get locked in the autopsy room and don’t leave until they come out in a body bag, complete with a scar along their chests that matches their cadaver’s. As the survivors try to make sense out of their friends’ deaths, they start to investigate who the cadaver was in life and just what or who might be causing her unrest. Is the cadaver’s angry spirit back for revenge or is someone more tangible responsible for their deaths?

Cadaver is a surprisingly engaging film, despite it seemingly being derivative of other Asian horror stories. It wisely avoids all the stereotypical Asian scares (accept for the appearance of a long-haired ghost…but this appears only briefly) and instead focuses on what the med students are going through and how it affects them. It rises above the limitations of stereotypical Asian ghost stories by melding an intriguing story with stunning visuals and a dark atmosphere.

Director Derek Son creates a foreboding atmosphere from the moment the students step into the cold and clinical autopsy room. He utilizes lots of dark shadows, rainy nights and creaking doors to add to the general unease of both viewer and character. The nightmarish visions of the one-eyed doctor and the cadaver were especially creepy, but I found the scenes within the autopsy room, especially when the students met their deaths, most effective. Not only does Son create a dark mood, but the film is also beautifully shot. Whether a shot of someone running up a winding staircase or a shot of a heart suspended in a medical container, many of the scenes are just stunning.

My only real complaints are that the story gets a bit bogged down and that the characters aren’t all that developed in the first place. After the first heart-stopping kill, there is just not enough time spent on making any of the other kills as interesting. The story starts to get bogged down because there is too much of a gap between the first kill and when the students start investigating their cadaver’s past. During this time the focus is shifted to the characters and their reactions to everything happening, but since there was so little character development in the beginning we really don’t care. The characters themselves aren’t very interesting and seem like stereotypical teens you would find in an American horror movie. There’s the slut, the nerd, the fat slob, the good-lookin’ rich guy and the two characters in love. None of them are particularly interesting, so when the film starts exploring how they are feeling about the situation I don’t really care…I just want to find out what is causing them to die such grisly deaths!

Despite these complaints, Cadaver excels at creating an engaging and mysterious story that you want to unravel as much as the med students do! It really utilizes the setting of the morgue to add scares and tension, so much so that the morgue and autopsy room becomes like an ominous character itself! It is also one of the few “morgue” movies to impress me – it’s got a smart script, stunning visuals and some grisly moments. Cadaver is definitely alive and kicking…

Arang (2007)

Arang is a beautifully shot Korean chiller about a detective (Yooh Ah) and her new rookie partner (Dong Wook) who are investigating a series of strange deaths. The victims, all who happen to be childhood friends, die from a poisonous gas that seems to originate from inside their own bodies. The deaths seem unexplainable, especially since all the victims had a very scared look on their face when they died. The detectives soon uncover deep buried secrets having to do with a supposedly haunted salt mill on the coast and a girl who’s been missing for ten years.

I put off watching Arang, mainly because I thought it was the same tired Asian ghost movie that featured a long-haired woman. While it does feature a long-haired ghost woman, Arang still manages to be suspenseful and immensely engaging. This is the first Asian horror flick that in quite some time that didn’t have me rolling my eyeballs at it in exasperation. It actually kept me glued to the screen, scared me and managed to have a twist I didn’t see coming at the end.

Arang has similarities to other Asian horror movies, but the story takes a very different approach. Instead of focusing those threatened by a curse or a ghost, Arang’s focus is on the two detectives on the case. While the victims are dispatched one-by-one, the detectives start piecing together the puzzle of the deaths and become aware of the supposedly haunted salt mill. The movie plays more like a mystery or thriller with some truly terrifying scenes that feature the long-haired ghost.

Besides being genuinely creepy, Arang has some very elegant shots. This is director Ah Sang Hoon’s first feature film, and he and cinematographer Sir Laosson Dara certainly infuse the film with a classy feel, at the same time scaring the pants off of viewers! I was genuinely creeped out at the wedding photo scene (even though it was very similar to Shutter) and the desk scene. While these scenes both felt slightly familiar, they still made me jump outta my seat! The scenes of the Korean coast were breathtaking, and the salt mill was appropriately creepy.

The only place Arang failed me were some confusing scenes that seemed a little too convenient for my liking. For example, one of the victims has a dog that either died alongside him or died before he did (I never did catch which). The detectives randomly decide to dig it up, then slice open its belly to find an incriminating film. Hmmmm, how handy! Also, things are never quite clear towards the end (why was the man with the scar on his hand a target?) and don’t quite add up.

Beside these plot holes and weak points, the film was still entertaining. The mix of the detective story and ghost story worked quite well and I found myself wholeheartedly enjoying Arang, even when I had expected the same old Asian horror clichés. I even enjoyed myself when the film did stoop to the tired clichés, which is saying a lot.

You won’t find many new ideas within Arang, but its fresh perspective on the typical Asian ghost story will keep you intrigued, scared and perhaps even surprised at the twist at the end.

Available on Amazon!

R-Point (2004)

Low on gore but teeming with atmosphere, R-Point is set at the end of the Vietnam War. Everyone is excited to be going home, especially the Korean soldiers. Yet, after an eerie and ominous radio transmission from a long-lost (and presumed dead) platoon, a group of soldiers gets one last assignment. The assignment is to track down the platoon, or at least their radio equipment, and see what the devil is going on. Their destination is R-Point, an isolated and supposedly haunted island. Upon their arrival they find an abandoned mansion-sized building and hole up while they scout the area for survivors or an explanation to the strange radio transmissions. Strange things start happening, and the men start believing that all who enter R-Point will never leave again...

The premise for this film alone got me all tingly inside...and no, that wasn't my Spidey-sense talking. The film starts off swell enough, with a very creepy radio transmission and the group of soldiers entering R-Point only to discover one of their comrades is in fact a ghost of one of the men they are looking for. Phew...did I think I was in for a treat...buuuuut...as much as I loved the building paranoia of the soldiers and discoveries of new ghosts (these aren't your typical whispy, vaporous beings - they look like real, solid people) the film just kept getting more confusing and disjointed. For example, the majority of the soldiers weren't really given a back story, so it was hard to distinguish between them or even care about them. Also, the long-haired woman that appears towards the end...I was waiting for a big reveal as to who she might be, but I got nada.

On the other hand, my disorientation and confusing mirrored the soldiers' as they realized they were trapped inside R-Point. There were some positively creepy and frightening moments - my favorite was when someone discovers they are standing in the middle of a cemetery...I jumped in my seat! The ending was pretty brutal and shocking, as the number of soldiers dwindle down to nil.

For all its creepy moments though, R-Point needs a little more substance to hold it together. There was just too much that needed clarification. I'm not asking for my hand to be held, but some explanation would have helped the plot immensely. Still, I would recommend it to those who enjoy Asian horror films.

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The Red Shoes (2005)

The Red Shoes is a South Korean horror film based on the fairy tale of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen. A tale of possession, ghosts, greed, jealously and the descent into madness, I was impressed by this film.

Sun-jae (Hye-su Kim) finds her unloving husband cheating on her with another woman. Not only that, but the other woman is wearing a pair of heels from Sun-jae's large shoe collection. Disgusted, angry and heartbroken, Sun-jae flees with her daughter Tae-su (Yeon-ah Park) and her shoe collection to a dingy apartment. She is also having her new eye clinic remodeled, and begins a romantic relationship with the interior decorator. One day, Sun-jae finds a pair of pink pumps on the subway. She becomes obsessed and possessive of the shoes. Tae-su, her 5 year old who loves her ballet classes, also becomes fixated on the shoes, claiming them as her own. Soon, every woman who sets eyes on the shoes wants them. It becomes increasingly apparent that anyone who steals the shoes dies horribly, always with their legs cut off. Yet, the shoes always make their way back to Sun-jae and Tae-su. Sun-jae and the interior designer soon discover the grisly history behind the shoes. The originally were gifted to a beautiful ballerina, who was envied and eventually betrayed by her jealous rival. If the shoes are returned to the rightful owner, will the bloody deaths stop?

The Red Shoes (not named for the color of the shoes but for the carnage and blood they leave behind) is a great scary Korean film. Sure, there are echoes of other famous Asian flicks like Dark Water, Ringu, The Eye and even Ju-on, but this doesn't diminish the enjoyment of The Red Shoes.

It is a breathtaking film, filled with brilliant and colorful shots. The opening scene in the subway is scary, bloody and sets the pace for the rest of the film. The flashbacks to the life and murder of the prima ballerina are especially gorgeous, specifically the wedding scene between her rival and her lover. The kill/scary scenes are perfectly dingy and dark and the shots frame the horror beautifully. There are so many gorgeous and gruesome shots, I can't begin to cover them all!

My only complaint is the typical Asian ghost Sun-jae encounters in the subway. She was too typical for my tastes, and her appearance made me groan rather than jump. Some people also complain that the ending is confusing, but I had no problem understanding that Sun-jae was the double (or even reincarnation) of the ballerina's rival while Tae-su was the ballerina. Most frequent viewers of Asian horror that can comprehend these kinds of twists should have no problem figuring out the twist, though the general populace might be left scratching their heads.

A beautiful, well-paced, creepy and gruesome story, The Red Shoes definitely impressed me, especially since I wasn't expecting much. If you can put up with a little mimicry of other well-known Asian horror movies, The Red Shoes is definitely worth a watch.

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Cello (2005)

Another entry into the Asian horror genre, the South Korean Cello tries to distance itself from the pack by focusing more on the story than predictable scares. Unfortunately, this only half-works. We are treated to a rich drama involving a former cellist-turned-music instructor, her family, her tragic past and her seemingly slipping sanity, but the scares are almost non-existent.

Mi-Ju is a part-time music professor with a tragic past. When she was younger, she was an up-and-coming cellist, until she was in a car accident with her rival/best friend, Tae-yeon. After Tae-yeon died, Mi-Ju gave up playing the cello and decided just to teach. One day, one of her students threatens her after receiving a bad grade and so begin Mi-Ju's problems. She is sent a mysterious cassette tape that contains a haunting cello duet that dredges up some painful memories of Tae-yeon and almost causes her to get into a car accident. She is distant from her loving family which includes her two daughters, husband and sister-in-law. Her older daughter is mentally disabled and mute, but falls in love with a cello she spies in a window. Mi-Ju buys it for her and begins to teach her how to play it. Meanwhile, a new maid moves into the house. She is creepy as hell and is also mute. It seems as though her family was killed in a car crash and she tried to commit suicide numerous times, once by swallowing acid. No more vocal cords there! Anyways, things start to get creepy slowly but surely...the family's golden lab, Sunny, begins barking all the time until one morning he is found dead. Mi-Ju starts seeing things, her daughter begins playing that haunting song on the cello, the sister-in-law goes crazy after her fiance breaks up with her and "accidents" befall the household. Is Tae-yeon out for revenge or is Mi-Ju's guilt driving her crazy?

I found this different than most typical Asian horror films. The story is much more rich, with well-developed characters but it doesn't focus much on typical Ju-On or Ringu-type scares. The terror doesn't really begin until the last 20 minutes of the film, giving only glimpses of what or who is terrorizing Mi-Ju and her family. Like most Asian films, it does focus on building tension through the atmosphere. The atmosphere is nicely complemented by the gorgeous cinematography and the soundtrack (heavy on the use of the cello, of course). This is a slow film, but if you can live without the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am speed of most films today, I recommend Cello. Some claim the film is slow and redundant, but unlike most films where repetitiveness is a time-filler, the repeating themes throughout Cello actually stand for something; in this case, the nightmare that Mi-Ju relives over and over through the different tragedies she suffers. This theme also plays flawlessly into the twist ending.

Cello does have its flaws and I wouldn't be so quick to add it to my collection, but it is definitely worth your time if you appreciate this type of cinema.

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Whispering Corridors (1998)

Wow, I just realized that I had never reviewed this Korean film. I'm pretty sure I didn't like it, since I didn't take the time to even write a review, and I gave it two stars in Netflix. Hmmm...I'm not sure exactly what I didn't like about it, though.

Here's the Netflix synopsis:

This groundbreaking Korean film stars Kang-hie Choi as Se-yeon Choi, an intrepid teacher at an all-girls school whose prying ways are awarded with a murder-mystery she now must unravel. After a handful of students begin to turn up dead, administrators scramble to cover up the deaths and pass them off as suicides, a betrayal that spurs Se-yeon to action. But, like the proverbial cat, the curious educator may be marked for death.

It begins strongly enough with a teacher being murdered and strung up, suicide-style, for students to find. It seems the vengeful ghost of a student is killing off teachers and students, one by one. A teacher and student try to solve the mystery and stop the ghost. The movie drags a little in the middle, and though I don't exactly remember the ending, I must have hated it since the beginning and middle weren't all that bad.

I'm surprised they haven't done an American remake of this movie, since it's supposed to be one of the first horror movies that kicked off the Asian craze. This is a relief, because I'm usually not too fond of remakes, reworkings, reimagings, or whatever those crazy kids call it these days!

If you've got a rainy afternoon to kill, rent this movie to see where the Asian horror craze came from.

Check it out on Amazon!