Right from the start The Wrath introduces us to the evil elements that are present at the household of Lee Gyeong-jin, a high-ranking official of Joseon Kingdom. A woman pregnant with a child of the third son of the house soon learns of the evil spirit that haunts the house.
The Wrath has a lot of atmosphere and remains pretty creepy for a while but I wouldn't call it exactly subtle. Supernatural events occur far too often and not all of them are as effective as one would expect. But like with most of these haunted house films it's the background story that matters. In hindsight it's one that could have been decent if not for the fact that it completely forsakes development character wise. The characters are either far too good or far too evil. There is no middle ground whatsoever. Besides one of the biggest flaws of haunted house stories is that it is required of you to suspend disbelief which I am very willing to do as long as the dread and suspense remains consistent. Unfortunately this is not the case. Once you figure out what is going on The Wrath becomes predictable as hell.
Apparently The Wrath is a remake of Yeogokseong a.k.a. Cry of a Woman (1986). I hope I will manage to get a hold of a copy somehow since it does look like it's far superior to this remake. The remake is far more concerned with being slick and stylish instead of actually wanting to scare you. It had potential to do so. But it's squandered by excess. When are some filmmakers going to learn that in horror films usually less is more.
Ultimately The Wrath is incredibly disappointing. It simply fails to deliver on what is promised. And that is to fill you with dread and fear. Not one that is worthy of your time!
No comments:
Post a Comment