Posts by Gerald Jackson48

I have to admit, I liked it way more when I first saw it. Now that I’ve given it a second look, I can't shake the feeling that some of those scenes get so overly dramatic they practically turn into a daytime soap opera on ABC.

Patrick Martin said:Sign your name to what? The movie gives you exactly what you're looking for—it's all right there.

Spoiler alert!
Look at the ending. We get this shot where the statue is just sitting there, totally motionless in the Shaman's car while he’s tossing that trunk full of paintings into the back. And then, immediately after, we cut to the father, also standing perfectly still, hovering over his slaughtered family, trying to soothe himself by muttering under his breath: "It's okay... everything's fine... my little one... Daddy's a cop... Daddy will figure it out... Daddy will..."

It's a suggestion that both faith and organized religion are often completely useless, yet somehow essential for society to keep spinning. Because evil is always lurking, just waiting for someone to trip up or get hooked.

Korean filmmakers used to really make me chew on certain ideas or situations that popped up on screen. Even when they were playing it safe, they knew how to take a shock scene and turn it into something genuinely innovative. But hey...

This one didn't really get my gears turning. Once you strip away the local superstitions and the director's obvious attempts to make the audience feel uneasy, you're left with a pretty standard good versus evil story filled with cardboard characters serving the director's agenda.

It reminds me of a musician who has all the technical skill in the world but hits a creative wall. Instead of writing one killer melody that hits you right in the feels, they just bury the song in extra layers, hoping something sticks.

Anyway, it didn't win me over. That doesn't mean it won't work for someone else, but I'll be looking for my next movie fix somewhere else.

I’ve gotta say, I walked away feeling pretty disappointed. Maybe my standards for Korean films have just gotten way too high lately. To me, this movie felt like it was chasing mystery just for the sake of having one. It lacked that deep, core purpose. It didn't feel like there was an actual original idea or a profound thought driving the plot—something we could actually grasp or experience. Usually, that kind of depth is exactly what makes their work so incredible, but it just wasn't there this time.

Style over substance.

Look, I’ve always had a soft spot for Nicolas Winding Refn lately, but this one just didn't click for me. It feels like his shallowest story yet, and honestly, other directors have handled this kind of plot much better.

The artsy crowd will probably love it. And sure, some of the scenes are a total knockout visually and sonically, but at the end of the day, it's just a glorified, overextended style exercise.

darkbadger46 said:Unless it was banned or something. I watched a ton of Kingov adaptations during that stretch of my life.

I don't think it was banned. Back then, I mostly watched newer movies on VHS from local video rental shops. I was a member at three different places. One had it listed in their catalog, but they didn't actually have it on the shelf—maybe the tape got ruined or something. The other shop just never bothered to restock it.

I remember seeing the ads for this movie when I was just a kid. I wanted to see it so bad, but I never actually got the chance back then.

Now that I’ve finally sat down to watch it—probably after something like 25 years or more—I gotta say, it’s definitely not even in my top 5 King adaptations. It feels naive, it's poorly shot, and the acting is just off. Sure, they managed a few creepy, effective scenes here and there, but that's about it.

+Spoiler+
There are these houses out in the middle of nowhere where truck drivers constantly refuse to drive at a normal speed (?), and somehow these guys always end up getting distracted, leaving a little kid to just wander aimlessly toward and around that road. Then you have the kid picking violets right on the pavement and chasing birds... That part totally lost me.

Shinigami are real. For real.

Give us Moana, not Vajan! 🙏 🙂

When I first saw the thread title, I honestly thought we were going to dive into the life and career of Moana Pozza back during the '90 World Cup. But, turns out that's not what this is about at all.