A brief review of The Red Shoes (2005 film)
I'll spare everyone the ranty entry I was going to make earlier (for the time being, anyway), and instead make a film-related one instead. XD
Yesterday, me and Euan watched our first Asian horror in a long time (I think the last one we watched together was Reincarnation/Rinne, which I think was last year) - the South Korean film The Red Shoes.
I'd been wanting to see the film for ages, after seeing a certain clip of it used in a Yurei-centric fanvid. And it didn't disappoint.
Although it wasn't really that scary of a film, at least to me, it certainly did have its moments - it was very suspenseful and tense in places, and there was the odd jump moment, as well as some disturbing imagery. However, it wasn't the sort of film that would leave me awake at night for hours on end.
Also, the big twist at the end of the film confused me just a little - okay, the twist is a simple enough concept, but there is one tiny detail about it that just bugs me ever so slightly. As it's one huge spoiler, I won't say anything about it outside of an spoiler cut.
The imagery in the film, although disturbing at times (as, of course, it was bound to be), was also very beautiful and quite stunning sometimes. I loved the contrast of the bright shoes (which are actually more of a pink-ish colour, rather than red, although I have heard - though I don't know how true it is or not - that the "red" in the title refers to blood, rather than the colour of the actual shoes themselves) with the duller, almost bleak colours of most of the rest of the movie.
The atmosphere in the film was wonderful, as well - as I usually find it to be in films such as this. The acting was great all around, as well, and most of the argument scenes were played with such ferocious intensity I found them to be quite difficult to watch at times.
Now for some of the more spoilery aspects of the film. Do not, I repeat, do NOT read if you don't want to be spoiled, especially for the twist ending. These thoughts of mine are kind of disjointed and rambly, so I apologise for that.
First off, the ending twist. I kind of saw part of it coming (ie. the fact that Sun-jae actually murdered her cheating husband, as opposed to divorcing him, as she claimed), but I wasn't really expecting for her to be the culprit behind the murders of everyone else.
Given her behaviour during these events (and also the parts where she completely flips out and tries to murder her daughter, Tae-soo), the fact that she cannot remember doing them, and the things said by the ghostly voice of Keiko at the end, it is obvious that she was either possessed by or at least influenced by the malevolent spirit of Oki, who was cursing all those who come into contact with her shoes by making them feel an uncontrollable desire to have the shoes, and to fight viciously over the ownership of them, before killing them horribly (including slicing off their legs) - re-enacting the fact that Keiko stole Oki's shoes while she was still alive, before she killed Oki and sliced off her legs with a spade in a fit of rage.
My question is: Why did Oki decide to possess/influence the Sun-jae? Was it because of their similar situations? (Ie. their significant others cheating on them.) Did Oki see a kindred spirit and thus latch onto her, feeding off of the Sun-jae's repressed fury?
Or is Sun-jae, in fact, the reincarnation of Oki?
Hmmm. I will have to rewatch it soon, I think. Maybe then the ending will make a little bit more sense to me.
That's all I can be bothered to say at the moment - I'm kind of busy.
However, as I am lacking in screencaps of this movie, have a macro instead. A macro that I made ages ago, of the "certain clip" that I mentioned above. Beware of blood/disturbing imagery and general Aimz lameness.
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Because Shrek references = win, okay?
Right, now I'm going downstairs to throw open the window and door to let some freaking air in (it's so fucking HOT right now) and to spend time with mah hubby.
Yesterday, me and Euan watched our first Asian horror in a long time (I think the last one we watched together was Reincarnation/Rinne, which I think was last year) - the South Korean film The Red Shoes.
I'd been wanting to see the film for ages, after seeing a certain clip of it used in a Yurei-centric fanvid. And it didn't disappoint.
Although it wasn't really that scary of a film, at least to me, it certainly did have its moments - it was very suspenseful and tense in places, and there was the odd jump moment, as well as some disturbing imagery. However, it wasn't the sort of film that would leave me awake at night for hours on end.
Also, the big twist at the end of the film confused me just a little - okay, the twist is a simple enough concept, but there is one tiny detail about it that just bugs me ever so slightly. As it's one huge spoiler, I won't say anything about it outside of an spoiler cut.
The imagery in the film, although disturbing at times (as, of course, it was bound to be), was also very beautiful and quite stunning sometimes. I loved the contrast of the bright shoes (which are actually more of a pink-ish colour, rather than red, although I have heard - though I don't know how true it is or not - that the "red" in the title refers to blood, rather than the colour of the actual shoes themselves) with the duller, almost bleak colours of most of the rest of the movie.
The atmosphere in the film was wonderful, as well - as I usually find it to be in films such as this. The acting was great all around, as well, and most of the argument scenes were played with such ferocious intensity I found them to be quite difficult to watch at times.
Now for some of the more spoilery aspects of the film. Do not, I repeat, do NOT read if you don't want to be spoiled, especially for the twist ending. These thoughts of mine are kind of disjointed and rambly, so I apologise for that.
First off, the ending twist. I kind of saw part of it coming (ie. the fact that Sun-jae actually murdered her cheating husband, as opposed to divorcing him, as she claimed), but I wasn't really expecting for her to be the culprit behind the murders of everyone else.
Given her behaviour during these events (and also the parts where she completely flips out and tries to murder her daughter, Tae-soo), the fact that she cannot remember doing them, and the things said by the ghostly voice of Keiko at the end, it is obvious that she was either possessed by or at least influenced by the malevolent spirit of Oki, who was cursing all those who come into contact with her shoes by making them feel an uncontrollable desire to have the shoes, and to fight viciously over the ownership of them, before killing them horribly (including slicing off their legs) - re-enacting the fact that Keiko stole Oki's shoes while she was still alive, before she killed Oki and sliced off her legs with a spade in a fit of rage.
My question is: Why did Oki decide to possess/influence the Sun-jae? Was it because of their similar situations? (Ie. their significant others cheating on them.) Did Oki see a kindred spirit and thus latch onto her, feeding off of the Sun-jae's repressed fury?
Or is Sun-jae, in fact, the reincarnation of Oki?
Hmmm. I will have to rewatch it soon, I think. Maybe then the ending will make a little bit more sense to me.
That's all I can be bothered to say at the moment - I'm kind of busy.
However, as I am lacking in screencaps of this movie, have a macro instead. A macro that I made ages ago, of the "certain clip" that I mentioned above. Beware of blood/disturbing imagery and general Aimz lameness.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Because Shrek references = win, okay?
Right, now I'm going downstairs to throw open the window and door to let some freaking air in (it's so fucking HOT right now) and to spend time with mah hubby.