Tag Archives: horror

Last Saturday afternoon I went to the Dipson Theatre at the Eastern Hills Mall to see Michael Haneke’s 2007 version of Funny Games. Really the only thing I can say about this film is—you’ll either love it or hate it. Most of the people in the theatre probably hated it since they practically ran out of as soon as the credits rolled and the death metal song started back up. I thought it was amazing!

With most remakes I generally like to see the original so I can compare them and see how bad they fudge it up. The weird thing with Funny Games is the writer/director of the original 1997 German version also directed this newer version specifically for U.S. audiences. What is interesting to note is, Haneke shot the film scene for scene. So it ended up looking identical to the original minus the subtitles and with new actors of course.

After seeing both versions I think the newer Funny Games is far superior. The casting is better, the performances more intense, and the tension and dread just come off more believable in the hands of Michael Pitt, Naomi Watts, and Tim Roth.

The 1997 version does have a nice interview with Michael Haneke on the DVD that sheds some light on the motivations for the film. I thought he had some interesting ideas on how the viewer becomes an accomplice in violent films by witnessing the atrocities. He also talked about how he isn’t concerned with just telling a story and having it end simply because it should or has to. But is more interested in developing intelligent villains which tend to make for a better stories. A great concept I wish more screenplays and films followed, since I often find myself cheering on the bad guy.

After seeing Funny Games twice now I really want to go back and watch some of his other films. Years ago I saw The Piano Teacher and don’t really remember much about it, other than it being awkward and weird. Just the sorta film I tend to enjoy. He also wrote and directed Caché, which is a more conventional suspense/thriller about a couple who receive strange packages from a voyeur.

I sure do love me some Netflix…

Netflix has been on a role lately with the Korean films it’s suggested I watch. First it was Chan-wook Park’s three revenge flicks (Old Boy, Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, and Lady Vengeance) and now A Tale of Two Sisters.

Like most of the other Korean films I’ve seen, the story starts off really slow with most of the interesting and shocking events happening near the end. A Tale of Two Sisters really confused me right up until the end. The plot summary from Netflix leverage the horror and scary aspects of the film more than it should.

Terrified sisters try to exorcise their home of two dark forces — their evil stepmother and a vengeful entity — in this ghostly tale. Hospitalized after their mother’s death, young Su-mi (Im Su-jeong) and Su-yeon (Mun Geun-yeong) return home to find a nasty new stepmother (Yeom Jeong-ah). The girls suffer terrifying events, but their father doesn’t care, even though evil lurks around every corner. Can the girls free their home from its demons?

It wasn’t really a horror film per say, but if you ever played those Fatal Frame videogames you’ll probably like this.

Many of the scenes reminded me of the two sisters walking around the cursed village in Fatal Frame 2. There definitely were a few of those moments where you see something out of the corner of your eye and it freaks you out. The ghosts or whatever looked and acted like some of the creeps in films like The Ring and The Grude, but this film is far from being one of those bad remakes.