The Asian horror market began as a welcome relief to the majority of Hollywood horror films which seemed to simply be spinning their wheels. Nigh-invulnerable murderers with some sort of gimmick slashing their way through a horde of sex-crazed, idiot teens grew tired years ago. The success of films like "Ringu" and "Ju-On" brought the shot in the arm the genre needed. However, the market has been deluged with knockoff and remakes that pale in comparison. We could really use another shot in the arm right now.
"Shutter" is another addition to the genre, a huge hit in its native Thailand. I guess it goes without saying that somebody is going to be haunted by a pale faced girl with long black hair. I realize the character is ingrained into Asian superstition, but you don't see dozens of movies in the States featuring the Grim Reaper. "Shutter" definitely draws elements from its more well-known predecessors. The DVD box art even resembles the art from "The Ring." Perhaps, the best way to describe "Shutter" would be "Ringu" meets Antonioni's "Blow-Up" with a starting point right out of "I Know What You Did Last Summer."
"Shutter" finds Tun (Ananda Everingham), a professional photographer, and his wife, Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee), returning from a night of drinking with friends. On the road, they hit a woman crossing the street. Jane wants to check on her, but Tun insists that they drive off and forget the whole thing. Always a bad idea. The next day, Tun takes photos at a graduation only to discover a strange blur in almost all of the photographs. They're even present in the negatives.
Soon, Tun and Jane are haunted by strange visions of you-know-what. When Jane is locked inside Tun's development room, the ghoulish girl crawls out of an overflowing sink, a scene that calls back both "Ringu" and "Dark Water." Another scene shows her climbing down a ladder in a spider-like manner reminiscent of Kayako in "Ju-on." Investigating further, Jane learns that the girl was named Natre (Achita Sikamana) and she was Tun's girlfriend in their college days. The plot thickens when we discover Natre didn't take being dumped very well. Not to mention Tun's old college buddies have committed suicide one-by-one.
The story unfurls in a rather awkward and uninteresting manner. There are points when not much is happening, then we're suddenly given big chunks of exposition in the span of a few minutes. Tun and Jane's sleuthing consists of them talking with the editor of a tabloid specializing in photos that may have ghosts hidden in the background. He painfully spells out everything we need to know by explaining that the spirits are trying to contact the living, yadda, yadda, yadda. Even with so much exposition, the film still leaves a few questions unanswered.
While I'm never impressed by the writing, I usually find myself complimenting the visual style of these films. I can't do the same for "Shutter" whose style is pedestrian, at best. Nothing in the film really grabbed me or excited me one iota. A scene where Tun is creeped out by the glowing red light coming from behind a door should have been really cool to look at. Instead, it just seemed uninspiring.
The scenes where the audience is supposed to jump out in fright are all mundane and easily telegraphed. I knew nothing bad was going to happen to one of the characters because he or she was going to wake up with a sudden shock. The filmmakers also tend to overuse their score, one that relies far too much on the screeching string instruments made famous by "Psycho." Adding a loud strike of the violin doesn't make anything scarier.
"Shutter" is another addition to the genre, a huge hit in its native Thailand. I guess it goes without saying that somebody is going to be haunted by a pale faced girl with long black hair. I realize the character is ingrained into Asian superstition, but you don't see dozens of movies in the States featuring the Grim Reaper. "Shutter" definitely draws elements from its more well-known predecessors. The DVD box art even resembles the art from "The Ring." Perhaps, the best way to describe "Shutter" would be "Ringu" meets Antonioni's "Blow-Up" with a starting point right out of "I Know What You Did Last Summer."
"Shutter" finds Tun (Ananda Everingham), a professional photographer, and his wife, Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee), returning from a night of drinking with friends. On the road, they hit a woman crossing the street. Jane wants to check on her, but Tun insists that they drive off and forget the whole thing. Always a bad idea. The next day, Tun takes photos at a graduation only to discover a strange blur in almost all of the photographs. They're even present in the negatives.
Soon, Tun and Jane are haunted by strange visions of you-know-what. When Jane is locked inside Tun's development room, the ghoulish girl crawls out of an overflowing sink, a scene that calls back both "Ringu" and "Dark Water." Another scene shows her climbing down a ladder in a spider-like manner reminiscent of Kayako in "Ju-on." Investigating further, Jane learns that the girl was named Natre (Achita Sikamana) and she was Tun's girlfriend in their college days. The plot thickens when we discover Natre didn't take being dumped very well. Not to mention Tun's old college buddies have committed suicide one-by-one.
The story unfurls in a rather awkward and uninteresting manner. There are points when not much is happening, then we're suddenly given big chunks of exposition in the span of a few minutes. Tun and Jane's sleuthing consists of them talking with the editor of a tabloid specializing in photos that may have ghosts hidden in the background. He painfully spells out everything we need to know by explaining that the spirits are trying to contact the living, yadda, yadda, yadda. Even with so much exposition, the film still leaves a few questions unanswered.
While I'm never impressed by the writing, I usually find myself complimenting the visual style of these films. I can't do the same for "Shutter" whose style is pedestrian, at best. Nothing in the film really grabbed me or excited me one iota. A scene where Tun is creeped out by the glowing red light coming from behind a door should have been really cool to look at. Instead, it just seemed uninspiring.
The scenes where the audience is supposed to jump out in fright are all mundane and easily telegraphed. I knew nothing bad was going to happen to one of the characters because he or she was going to wake up with a sudden shock. The filmmakers also tend to overuse their score, one that relies far too much on the screeching string instruments made famous by "Psycho." Adding a loud strike of the violin doesn't make anything scarier.
The Asian horror market began as a welcome relief to the majority of Hollywood horror films which seemed to simply be spinning their wheels. Nigh-invulnerable murderers with some sort of gimmick slashing their way through a horde of sex-crazed, idiot teens grew tired years ago. The success of films like "Ringu" and "Ju-On" brought the shot in the arm the genre needed. However, the market has been deluged with knockoff and remakes that pale in comparison. We could really use another shot in the arm right now.
"Shutter" is another addition to the genre, a huge hit in its native Thailand. I guess it goes without saying that somebody is going to be haunted by a pale faced girl with long black hair. I realize the character is ingrained into Asian superstition, but you don't see dozens of movies in the States featuring the Grim Reaper. "Shutter" definitely draws elements from its more well-known predecessors. The DVD box art even resembles the art from "The Ring." Perhaps, the best way to describe "Shutter" would be "Ringu" meets Antonioni's "Blow-Up" with a starting point right out of "I Know What You Did Last Summer."
"Shutter" finds Tun (Ananda Everingham), a professional photographer, and his wife, Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee), returning from a night of drinking with friends. On the road, they hit a woman crossing the street. Jane wants to check on her, but Tun insists that they drive off and forget the whole thing. Always a bad idea. The next day, Tun takes photos at a graduation only to discover a strange blur in almost all of the photographs. They're even present in the negatives.
Soon, Tun and Jane are haunted by strange visions of you-know-what. When Jane is locked inside Tun's development room, the ghoulish girl crawls out of an overflowing sink, a scene that calls back both "Ringu" and "Dark Water." Another scene shows her climbing down a ladder in a spider-like manner reminiscent of Kayako in "Ju-on." Investigating further, Jane learns that the girl was named Natre (Achita Sikamana) and she was Tun's girlfriend in their college days. The plot thickens when we discover Natre didn't take being dumped very well. Not to mention Tun's old college buddies have committed suicide one-by-one.
The story unfurls in a rather awkward and uninteresting manner. There are points when not much is happening, then we're suddenly given big chunks of exposition in the span of a few minutes. Tun and Jane's sleuthing consists of them talking with the editor of a tabloid specializing in photos that may have ghosts hidden in the background. He painfully spells out everything we need to know by explaining that the spirits are trying to contact the living, yadda, yadda, yadda. Even with so much exposition, the film still leaves a few questions unanswered.
While I'm never impressed by the writing, I usually find myself complimenting the visual style of these films. I can't do the same for "Shutter" whose style is pedestrian, at best. Nothing in the film really grabbed me or excited me one iota. A scene where Tun is creeped out by the glowing red light coming from behind a door should have been really cool to look at. Instead, it just seemed uninspiring.
The scenes where the audience is supposed to jump out in fright are all mundane and easily telegraphed. I knew nothing bad was going to happen to one of the characters because he or she was going to wake up with a sudden shock. The filmmakers also tend to overuse their score, one that relies far too much on the screeching string instruments made famous by "Psycho." Adding a loud strike of the violin doesn't make anything scarier.
"Shutter" is another addition to the genre, a huge hit in its native Thailand. I guess it goes without saying that somebody is going to be haunted by a pale faced girl with long black hair. I realize the character is ingrained into Asian superstition, but you don't see dozens of movies in the States featuring the Grim Reaper. "Shutter" definitely draws elements from its more well-known predecessors. The DVD box art even resembles the art from "The Ring." Perhaps, the best way to describe "Shutter" would be "Ringu" meets Antonioni's "Blow-Up" with a starting point right out of "I Know What You Did Last Summer."
"Shutter" finds Tun (Ananda Everingham), a professional photographer, and his wife, Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee), returning from a night of drinking with friends. On the road, they hit a woman crossing the street. Jane wants to check on her, but Tun insists that they drive off and forget the whole thing. Always a bad idea. The next day, Tun takes photos at a graduation only to discover a strange blur in almost all of the photographs. They're even present in the negatives.
Soon, Tun and Jane are haunted by strange visions of you-know-what. When Jane is locked inside Tun's development room, the ghoulish girl crawls out of an overflowing sink, a scene that calls back both "Ringu" and "Dark Water." Another scene shows her climbing down a ladder in a spider-like manner reminiscent of Kayako in "Ju-on." Investigating further, Jane learns that the girl was named Natre (Achita Sikamana) and she was Tun's girlfriend in their college days. The plot thickens when we discover Natre didn't take being dumped very well. Not to mention Tun's old college buddies have committed suicide one-by-one.
The story unfurls in a rather awkward and uninteresting manner. There are points when not much is happening, then we're suddenly given big chunks of exposition in the span of a few minutes. Tun and Jane's sleuthing consists of them talking with the editor of a tabloid specializing in photos that may have ghosts hidden in the background. He painfully spells out everything we need to know by explaining that the spirits are trying to contact the living, yadda, yadda, yadda. Even with so much exposition, the film still leaves a few questions unanswered.
While I'm never impressed by the writing, I usually find myself complimenting the visual style of these films. I can't do the same for "Shutter" whose style is pedestrian, at best. Nothing in the film really grabbed me or excited me one iota. A scene where Tun is creeped out by the glowing red light coming from behind a door should have been really cool to look at. Instead, it just seemed uninspiring.
The scenes where the audience is supposed to jump out in fright are all mundane and easily telegraphed. I knew nothing bad was going to happen to one of the characters because he or she was going to wake up with a sudden shock. The filmmakers also tend to overuse their score, one that relies far too much on the screeching string instruments made famous by "Psycho." Adding a loud strike of the violin doesn't make anything scarier.
No comments:
Post a Comment