If there's one sub-genre of horror that I find completely underwhelming, it's the spooky Asian ghost story: the slow burn approach, creepy kids, long haired women and drab, colourless cinematography have a similar effect on my brain as a mild sedative. A Tale of Two Sisters has had much praise thrown its way, so I hoped that it might go some way to changing my opinion of supernatural Eastern cinema.
No dice!
In a nutshell, director Ji-woon Kim's film is about a girl, Su-mi, who is unable to come to terms with the tragic deaths of her mother and sister; she creates characters and events in her mind to help her cope with her loss, blurring the lines between what is real and what is fantasy, and confusing the hell out of me in the process.
Now, usually I don't mind films that screw with your mind, but in this instance, the approach taken by the director is so convoluted and the 'surprise' revelation (that Su-mi isn't dealing from a full pack) not all that surprising, that I felt rather cheated. I don't mind reading message boards to help me fully comprehend a film that I have watched, but when there are so many elements in this one movie that fail to make sense without in depth research, then I must question the director's ability to tell a decent story rather than my ability to understand it.
A Tale of Two Sisters isn't awfulthe acting is good, the cinematography lovely, and the music hauntingbut neither is it the paragon of excellence that many claim it to be.
No dice!
In a nutshell, director Ji-woon Kim's film is about a girl, Su-mi, who is unable to come to terms with the tragic deaths of her mother and sister; she creates characters and events in her mind to help her cope with her loss, blurring the lines between what is real and what is fantasy, and confusing the hell out of me in the process.
Now, usually I don't mind films that screw with your mind, but in this instance, the approach taken by the director is so convoluted and the 'surprise' revelation (that Su-mi isn't dealing from a full pack) not all that surprising, that I felt rather cheated. I don't mind reading message boards to help me fully comprehend a film that I have watched, but when there are so many elements in this one movie that fail to make sense without in depth research, then I must question the director's ability to tell a decent story rather than my ability to understand it.
A Tale of Two Sisters isn't awfulthe acting is good, the cinematography lovely, and the music hauntingbut neither is it the paragon of excellence that many claim it to be.