Three (2006) A short, confusing review
I have just watched Saam Gaang or Three (2002) exactly 34 minutes ago. After watching it, I have observed that asian films (at least that have their own identity) rely heavily on symbolism. Also, they tend to begin in the middle rather than the beginning, deviating from the 'formulaic' hollywood theme of presenting a logical premise, and building on it. This film has assumed that the audience can think for itself, and presented the base and let the viewer think. I like it.
Three is actually three short films in one. The first is Memories which was directed by Kim Ji-woon from South Korea. It is about a husband and wife who got separated. What is peculiar about this story is that they can't seem to remember how or when they separated. The man wakes up in his house and the wife wakes up in a street and as they find their way towards each other, they begin to recollect their story. This film was so good because it employed some of the best photography I have seen. The movement was quite natural and I liked the actors' performance. It also had that "psychological horror" feel that made you want to turn your brains inside out from confusion (what happened? who is she? what is she doing there??!).
Second of these short films is The Wheel which was directed by a certain Nonzee Nimibutr from Thailand. I did not like this film at all and I felt a great dissapointment because the first film Memories instilled on me a certain expectation that this segment did not fulfilled. Well, this is about a cursed puppet and it somehow killing it's owners. Seems to me like a typical formulaic hollywood movie but in the end, the scene with the tree somehow creeps me out. The ending doesn't give a clear ending... get it?
The last segment was Going Home which was directed by Peter Chan from HongKong and it was kinda weird. A cop, Wai, was detained by a Yu because he saw what the Yu was doing to his wife. Yu was immersing his dead wife in a herbal solution because he believed that it would ressurect her and this kinda freaked me out. He also talked to his wife everyday because he believed that her soul did not leave her body. This kinda summarized my experience in chinese herbal medicine when I was down with the arthritis but this is way too... extreme...Then after three days when the husband was expecting the ressurection of his wife, Wai's comrades storm the place and arrest Yu. In this begun my unrest because I saw that Hai'er (Yu's Wife) was showing signs of life (yu's not crazy after all!). After a commotion and sudden turn of events, Yu was run over by a very stupid driver and was killed. Later in the film, we see that Yu and Hai'er had the same illness, liver cancer, and Hai'er used the same process to revive Yu because Yu was supposed to be dead if not for the herbal medicine! Then I felt overwhelmed by their love as a family. But there were still a few loose ends. Somebody enlight me on the film.
I cursed all the way to Korea while watching this film. It had so many moments that were so confusing, that I became aware that I was a viewer. I wasn't merely a passive observer, I figured out the events that transpired! This film doesn't give you everything at the table, you had to find the juicy bits for you to better understand this film. Actually I don't consider this film a typical horror movie. It's a psychological horror. It dredges up some unique ideas that are not formulaic. Finally, thanks to RPN-9 asian films are gaining recognition in the RP. If only the indie film industry in the RP is going to be this good, then we will laugh all the way to Cannes, trampling Hollywood along the way.
Three is actually three short films in one. The first is Memories which was directed by Kim Ji-woon from South Korea. It is about a husband and wife who got separated. What is peculiar about this story is that they can't seem to remember how or when they separated. The man wakes up in his house and the wife wakes up in a street and as they find their way towards each other, they begin to recollect their story. This film was so good because it employed some of the best photography I have seen. The movement was quite natural and I liked the actors' performance. It also had that "psychological horror" feel that made you want to turn your brains inside out from confusion (what happened? who is she? what is she doing there??!).
Second of these short films is The Wheel which was directed by a certain Nonzee Nimibutr from Thailand. I did not like this film at all and I felt a great dissapointment because the first film Memories instilled on me a certain expectation that this segment did not fulfilled. Well, this is about a cursed puppet and it somehow killing it's owners. Seems to me like a typical formulaic hollywood movie but in the end, the scene with the tree somehow creeps me out. The ending doesn't give a clear ending... get it?
The last segment was Going Home which was directed by Peter Chan from HongKong and it was kinda weird. A cop, Wai, was detained by a Yu because he saw what the Yu was doing to his wife. Yu was immersing his dead wife in a herbal solution because he believed that it would ressurect her and this kinda freaked me out. He also talked to his wife everyday because he believed that her soul did not leave her body. This kinda summarized my experience in chinese herbal medicine when I was down with the arthritis but this is way too... extreme...Then after three days when the husband was expecting the ressurection of his wife, Wai's comrades storm the place and arrest Yu. In this begun my unrest because I saw that Hai'er (Yu's Wife) was showing signs of life (yu's not crazy after all!). After a commotion and sudden turn of events, Yu was run over by a very stupid driver and was killed. Later in the film, we see that Yu and Hai'er had the same illness, liver cancer, and Hai'er used the same process to revive Yu because Yu was supposed to be dead if not for the herbal medicine! Then I felt overwhelmed by their love as a family. But there were still a few loose ends. Somebody enlight me on the film.
I cursed all the way to Korea while watching this film. It had so many moments that were so confusing, that I became aware that I was a viewer. I wasn't merely a passive observer, I figured out the events that transpired! This film doesn't give you everything at the table, you had to find the juicy bits for you to better understand this film. Actually I don't consider this film a typical horror movie. It's a psychological horror. It dredges up some unique ideas that are not formulaic. Finally, thanks to RPN-9 asian films are gaining recognition in the RP. If only the indie film industry in the RP is going to be this good, then we will laugh all the way to Cannes, trampling Hollywood along the way.
posted by armisael at 11:06 PM
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