Horror
Stories
(2012/Artsploitation DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: C Anthology: B+
Korean
directors bring a whole new level in the new feature-length anthology
omnibus film Horror
Stories
as a young girl is kidnapped by a psycho killer and is forced to tell
him scary stories to help him sleep, if not.... As the girl tells the
scariest stories she knows she hopes to find a way out... or else she
becomes the next story. This plays like four stories in one, four
different tales of horror, but each piece holds its own, with the
wrap-around story directed by Min Kyu-dong.
Don't
Answer the Door
(directed by Jung Bum-sik) is the tale of a brother and sister who
alone and then hunted by psycho. Endless
Flight:
a flight attendant must face a killer when he gets lose on the plane
(directed by Im Dae-woong). Secret
Recipe:
two step sisters faces off for marriage to a rich doctor who is
secretly a cannibal (directed by Hong Ji-yong). Ambulance on the
Death Zone: in a zombie infested world, a mother tries to save her
daughter who might be infected but no one believes her (directed by
Kim Gok and Kim Sun).
The
Korean director does a masterful job using the dark, shadows with
twists in the story, however the most scary parts are how ghosts or
undead suddenly appear that will leave you scared of the the dark and
biting your nails.
The
anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image is a little soft, but looks as
good as it can in this format because style choices are part of the
softness while the lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 mix slightly varies
between the shorts, but is not bad either, though this shows its
low-budget. Extras include a 12-page booklet inside the DVD case,
while the DVD adds Interviews and Trailers.
-
Ricky Chiang
