The Suicide Manual (Japanese) 2003, Poster, Synopsis / Plot and Trailer
August 13, 2008 / 1814
AKA: Jisatsu manyuaru
Year: 2003
Directed: Osamu Fukutani
Genre: Horror
Runtime: 1h 25min
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Subtitles: English
Cast: Nozomi Andô, Kei Horie, Ayaka Maeda, Maki Meguro, Kenji Mizuhashi, Chisato Morishita,
IMDB: Jisatsu manyuaru
After the group suicide of four people, journalists Yuu and Rie investigate the reasons behind an endless cycle of suicides, blamed on an infamous Suicide Manual, hidden in a tag-less DVD disk. Said manual is shot in an infomercial fashion, with examples of the best methods to kill yourself and demonstrations by real people. When investigating further, Yuu and Rie find out that in Buddhist beliefs, when a person kills himself, he or she is sent to a certain hell, from which they induce other people to commit suicide. But is this what is really happening?
The Suicide Manual Trailer
AKA: Jisatsu manyuaru
Year: 2003
Directed: Osamu Fukutani
Genre: Horror Read more …
The Devil’s Chair (V), Poster, Synopsis, Movies Reviev and Trailer
August 10, 2008 / 3086
With a pocketful of drugs, Nick West (Andrew Howard) takes out his girlfriend Sammy (Polly Brown), for a shag and a good time. When they explore an abandoned asylum, the discovery of a bizarre device - a cross between an electric chair and sadistic fetish machine - transforms drugged-out bliss into agony and despair.
MOVIE REVIEW
“Mason and Boyes have truly proven they are forces to reckon with as THE DEVIL’S CHAIR is more a work of art than an actual film. The pic shows these two are the real deal and have really given something special to fans of the genre. Don’t expect a bloodbath - instead prepare yourself for something different, unique and mind-bending… something that will become part of you when you leave the theater.”
By: Mr. Disgusting
Back in April of 2006 I boldly stated in my review of BROKEN that Adam Mason and Simon Boyes “could become a force to reckon with in the future.” The future is here as their second feature film, THE DEVIL’S CHAIR, is set to have it’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of the Midnight Madness section. So the question remains, are they a force to reckon with? Directed by Adam Mason, CHAIR is an extraordinary piece of work combining classic elements of your favorite ‘80s fantasy and horror films.
Co-written by Adam Mason and Simon Boyes, with a pocketful of drugs, Nick West (Andrew Howard) takes out his girlfriend Sammy (Polly Brown), for a shag and a good time. When they explore an abandoned asylum, the discovery of a bizarre device - a cross between an electric chair and sadistic fetish machine - transforms drugged-out bliss into agony and despair. After Sammy is brutally assaulted and murdered by unseen forces, Nick becomes the number-one suspect and is institutionalized. After four years he is released and joins Dr. Willard (David Gant) to confront his demons where the supposed murders occurred. Things don’t go as planned… or do they?
THE DEVIL’S CHAIR is both Mason and Boyes love letter to Clive Barker’s HELLRAISER. The homage could easily be called a “reverse-HELLRAISER” as instead of demons coming out of a mattress, people are pulled into a chair where the demons await. The screenplay is written in a unique manner as it’s a blend between fantasy and horror using the lead (Andrew Howard) as a narrator throughout the entire film. Even though most of the film appears to be lined in reality, it’s obvious that we are in fact watching a fantasy, which of course means no rules apply. Without any solid rules, the duo bends the genre just enough to create something very unique and original.
Just like the duo did with BROKEN, CHAIR displays strong production value giving a low budget indie film the look and feel of a major motion picture. The DP work and cinematography are outstanding, along with the sound design and score (both of which are a rarity in an indie pic). The location and set design added a lot to the experience as the scope of the film felt immense for such small space used.
The tone of the film is extremely unnerving and quite creepy. The way some sequences are shot will make your skin crawl. In some sequences the film is also bloody and violent as all hell. What’s so impressive in these scenes are how impactful they are without even showing some of the actual gore – sometimes what you imagine is much worse. Most impressive were the character designs and special FX work. The demons were straight out of an H.P. Lovecraft novel and just enough of them were shown to give you the heebie-jeebies.
One of the few faults in the film was the use of the full narration, which in a weird way worked. Even though it did work for the film, it almost felt like a cop out at times using it to cancel out any objections I had with the film, such as the over-acting of Dr. Willard (David Gant). Calling the acting in your own film over-the-top and hammy before the viewer can do so is like calling yourself fat before someone else can – it destroys the value in it. Doing so makes it quite difficult to review the film because any objections I might have had, are implicated as purposely done for effect. Thankfully the film is tremendous and the good heavily outweighs the bad, thus making this argument almost null.
The Mother of Tears (Third Mother) (V), Poster, Synopsis, Movies Reviev
August 9, 2008 / 922
The film centers on a young American art student, Sarah, who “unwittingly opens an ancient urn that unleashes the demonic power of the world’s most powerful witch. As a scourge of suicides plague the city and witches from all over the world converge on Rome to pay homage, Sarah must use all her own psychic powers to stop the ‘Mother of Tears’ before her evil conquers the world.
MOVIE REVIEW
““The Mother Of Tears” is a very satisfying finale to the “Three Mothers” trilogy. Sure, it’s no “Suspiria” and frankly, nothing ever will be. If you can get over that fact, you will find yourself entertained by Argento’s delightfully deranged and energetic epic. It’s got brutal violence! Nudity! Lesbian sexuality! Lots of lesbians! Yes, it’s politically-incorrect. What more do you want in an Argento movie?! ”
By: MIke Pereira
In the year in which the “threequel” has ruled the cinemas, the one that horror fans have been desperately waiting for has finally arrived. Dario Argento’s venture into the occult began with masterpiece, “Suspiria” (1977), later to be followed by the flawed but still captivating, “Inferno” (1980). Oh yes, after a massive 27-yearlong wait, Argento has finally completed his “Three Mothers” trilogy with “Mother Of Tears: The Third Mother”. The real frightening question is if it would deliver on everyone’s extremely high expectations. Well…
This final chapter focuses on art student, Sarah Mandy (Asia Argento) who unwittingly releases the demonic power of the most powerful witch (Mother Of Tears to all you non-Argento aficionados). Before you know it, violence, mass suicides and chaos erupts all over Rome, not to mention, psychopathic witches. Like the old story goes, the protagonist must use her untapped psychic powers to stop the “Mother Of Tears” reign of evil before it’s too late.
The screenplay written by Argento himself and Jase Anderson and Adam Gierasch (writers of Tobe Hopper’s underrated, Toolbox Murders) has all of the elements a good final act should contain. The epic storyline moves along in a brisk pace with satisfying tie-ins to the previous films. The exposition is of course, quite silly but is given a conviction with just the right amount of wink at the audience without making the viewer cringe in his or her seat.
Goblin’s Claudio Simonetti has cooked up another killer score. His creepy and intense music goes perfectly hand-in-hand with Argento’s powerful imagery. It goes back to the feel of Goblin’s score in “Suspiria” without ever completely referencing to it. The epic chorus chants create an immediate, punchy effect. Plus, the “oh-so-cool” end credits metal tune perfectly caps the film.
They Wait (V) in September 16, 2008 ; Poster, Synopsis, Movies Reviev, Trailer
August 8, 2008 / 1988
A young mother and her six-year-old son come face to face with the mysteries of two murders and a great crime against the Chinese community into which they have recently arrived from Shangh.
MOVIE REVIEW
“Basically what you get in THEY WAIT is nothing more than a poor man’s version of THE GRUDGE… [it's] a dubious film as it pretends to be something it isn’t… or maybe it’s more that it attempts to be something it wishes it could be. If you’re one of those people that live in a routine world, maybe you’re into routine horror? If so, THEY WAIT will be everything you imagine it would be. Bland.”
By: Mr. Disgusting
There’s nothing worse than seeing a name in the opening credits that instantly tells you the quality of the film you’re about to watch, with THEY WAIT that name was the infamous Uwe Boll. This would mark Dr. Boll’s first film as an executive producer allowing someone else to direct the film, which still gave me a little hope. Furthermore, director Ernie Barbarash really impressed me with CUBE: ZERO leaving me to believe there could be something special hiding in THEY WAIT. I was wrong.
In the film a young mother (Jaime King) and her six-year-old son come face to face with the mysteries of two murders and a great crime against the Chinese community into which they have recently arrived from Shanghai.
Visible Secret II (Chinese) 2002, Synopsis / Plot, Poster and Trailer
August 7, 2008 / 650
The bliss of newlyweds Jack (Eason Chan Yik-shun) and Ching (Jo Kuk Tso-lam) is dashed when the former is critically injured one evening by a hit-and-run driver. He surprises his doctors by making a swift recovery and is soon discharged from the hospital. However, Jack now finds himself plagued with an inexplicable side effect, experiencing horrific visions of a female suicide victim every time he sneezes. This and other strange occurrences leave him wondering if the apartment he and Ching recently moved into is haunted.
On top of this, Ching is now behaving quite strangely, sitting immobile like a zombie and writing the character for “dead” hundreds of times on a piece of paper. Things quickly go from bad to much worse, as the girl begins displaying pronounced signs of possession. Unsure of what to do, Jack and old friend September (Cherrie Ying Choi-yi) follow Ching one day and discover that there is a great deal about her past that she has never revealed, including an old boyfriend who committed suicide.
Also Known As:
Cantonese: Yau ling yan gaan II: Gwai mei yan gaan
Mandarin: You ling ren jian II: Gui wei ren gian
English: Spirits Among Humans II: Ghost Flavour Among Humans
Year: 2002
Directed: Abe Kwong Man-Wai
Genre: Horror | Mystery
