KAIRO(aka Pulse)- Wow what a movie! See it now.

[chinton]

Hey you guys I just got done watching this and I was so impressed I immediately had to post about this. If you dont know what this movie is its a Japenes horror film/ social commentary on issolation/drama/apocalypse film. The reason why I add so many adjectives to this film is that I really dont know what to classify it as. The very basic outline follows a Japenese horror film. This time the internet instead of a video unleashes the world of the dead onto the world of the living.

I really cant go into much more becuase frankly it nearly impossible to describe. The movies essntially a metaphor, a very depressing one, on the effects of isloation and lonliness. Since it is highly metaphorical its also unclear, weird, aggresively ambigous, and deliberately paced. Yet despite this this is easily one of the more powerful "horror" film Ive seen in a long time. The few scare scene there are basically just consist of creepy people stnading in shadows but wow is it effective. Best of all though this film really works as a mood piece in which every scene all the way to the apocalyptic finale is overshadowed with a pall of grey color and dour mood. In effect this is a film that has a lasting impression that wont go away. Despite being deliberately paced its always compelling and its poignant treatment of a society where people are disconnected form one another ties the film together so well. I wont pretend to say that I understoof everything thats going on in the film (especially the red tape), but that is irrelevant becuase aside from some ill placed music it all works in the end.

Kairo is one of the best horror films Ive seen in years. Although considering its bizzare nature I can understand why epople would like it.

9.5/10

[Adam J. Hakari]

An admirable attempt at infusing Japanese horror with the themes you discussed, but for me, PULSE simultaneously creeped me out and bored me to tears. Some very spooky moments, but on the whole, the flick could have turned out a lot better had it explained what was going on a bit more, revealing just a smidge more of the why the situations in the story were happening. In the end, the flick just wasn't consistent enough to keep me that involved or creeped out.

(5/10)

[chinton]

I think its that I connected with the themes of the movie therefore I was able to look past some of the more unclear things.


Who else has seen this. I know there are some fans of this movie on this board.

[Lazy Boy]

7/10

I liked the fact that things weren't explained, and I think the fact that you never see people panicking in the gradually emptying streets made it all the more creepy. What's worse than being isolated from the rest of humanity? It could get quite lonely after a while, and this is a horror picture that reaches a level far beyond the "spooky ghost" cliched images that have overtaken J-horror and their American remakes. Speaking of which, I don't really look forward to the American version of Pulse -- they'll take what was good and amplify the sound to the nth degree, maybe a little teen romance, bad casting choices (I mean, Christina Milian? That's just pandering) etc. etc.

[Adam J. Hakari]

I'm actually looking forward to the remake, if only for the possibility that it might explain things for me a little bit more.

[Lazy Boy]

The Ring was an example of a good horror-mystery remake which provided a lot more answers in a compelling storyline which involved me with the characters. It improved upon the original.

I don't see that happening with the remake, which basically looks like "All subtlety be damned" as done by sub-level Chris Cunningham wannabe, which isn't a bad thing, but wrong for updating what I think Kiyoshi Kurosawa intended in the original.

[Psychocandy]

Originally posted by chinton
I think its that I connected with the themes of the movie therefore I was able to look past some of the more unclear things.


Who else has seen this. I know there are some fans of this movie on this board.

I've seen it. A while ago so my memory is a little bit hazy. I did like it though. A lot. It creeped me the hell out and I came really fucking close to just stopping the movie a couple of times (I was watching it alone, late at night, with all the lights out). Even though my memory is hazy there's one particular scene (i'm sure you know the one i'm talking about) that has become indelible. And I didn't find it to be slow. Not at all. It kept my attention 100% throughout.

[AngelDust06]

Originally posted by Adam J. Hakari
I'm actually looking forward to the remake, if only for the possibility that it might explain things for me a little bit more.

I agree I cant wait to see the remake as well..It looks fucking awsome.

[chinton]

Well of course things will be explained in the reamke although whether its actually connected to the original or not who knows. At the very least theyll create a new mythology so there will be nothing ambigous about the plot. And I love how you can clearly see how they Americanized. Since when are the ghosts white bodied demon like things with fangs. Also you must include lots and lots of boo scares like the demon ghosts inexplicably hiding inside dryers and washers.


I seem to remeber somebody else c alling this a masterpiece on this site.

[Psychocandy]

Originally posted by chinton
I seem to remeber somebody else c alling this a masterpiece on this site.

Could have been me. I've mentioned it numerous times on the horror forums. It's one of my favorite Asian fright flicks.

[chinton]

Ah I think it was you.

[Joshmo]

I thought this movie was a convoluted mess. Somewhere in there is a good creepy concept that was poorly executed. I look forward to the American version in hopes it straightens things out. The trailer is creepy as hell and the creatures/ghosts are much more effective looking than depicted in the original. I dont need spoon feeding but the original doesnt explain nothing in a satisfactory level.

Kairo(Pulse) 5/10

[dellamorte dellamore]

It's hard to call this Kiyoshi Kurosawa's masterpiece , simply because one of his other films , Cure , was so damn amazing also . When everyone else in Asia was simply playing on the long haired ghost theme made popular by Ringu , Kurosawa fashioned a highly effective , thought provoking , minimalist apocalypse tale that gets under your skin and stays there permanently .


Spoilers


The images in kairo are haunting , especially combined with the subtle cries for help from the spirit world . It's a genuinely depressing picture , not because it's boring or nihilistic , but because it strikes at the heart of isolation in modern day society , even with all the technology available for communication purposes , the general populace in the film were victims of loneliness and depression , their greatest fear wasn't otherworldly entities , but abandonment . The characters were drawn to the " afterlife " , in a desperate attempt to connect with something , someone , to ease the pain of their intense suffering in a cruel and spiritually empty society , that may not even notice if they are gone .



They sought refuge in an electronic world that promised fulfillment , moral support , companionship , maybe even enlightment , but what they found was even more horrific than the physical world they chose to avoid . When they discovered the nirvana they sought was simply a trap to collect wayward souls , it was too late , they became part that world , and aquired the knowledge of what true fear , isolation , and loneliness was like .


When someone died in the film , they would leave an imprint of their soul in the form of black dust , a manifestation of the nothingness that was the life they led , they were already " dead " before that point , it was only a matter of the digital grim reaper coming to collect them . They weren't murdered , they commited spiritual suicide , their lifeforce draining out of them as each moment passes them by .


I think the main character , the young woman who survives , represented hope , the human spirit , she was a shining light in all the madness , filled with optimism , compassion , and spiritual stability . She was safe from all the madness , because she dint seek fulfillment from outside distractions , she was fulfilled from within , but despite her efforts , she could not " save " anyone else , it's still an individual responsability .



I liked how the world was taken over by " spirits " from another realm , they utilized the electronic medium to enter this world , mainly the internet . The images of the trapped , lost souls on those creepy webcam images are some of the most unsettling , distrurbing images i ever experienced in any film . They were experiencing death , maybe even hell if you could call it that , it's shocking in the most simplistic of ways , especially for someone who has ever used a webcam , those scenes will have a resonance that's hard to describe , it's chilling beyond words .



Their was a fascination with those images for the people in the film that witnessed them , much like the spectre of our own mortality as human beings is constantly with us . What else is there , where do we go when we die , is their any meaning to our lives , that's what this film asks , and for the majority of the people in the film , the answers they received , as a result of their curiosity , were too depressing to reconcile .

[chinton]

I need to see Cure

[ColdOne]

Originally posted by Psychocandy
Could have been me. I've mentioned it numerous times on the horror forums.

Where do you find the time to mention it "numerous times"? Aren't you too busy for that? You're too busy to send me my damn movies, that's for sure.

[KcMsterpce]

I give it a 4/10

Failing to make an explanation for things rarely makes a movie 'deep, and thought provoking'.

I didn't find it all that suspenseful, and there's not enough to the story to warrant a two hour run time. It was way too long.

Once again, this is a movie in which a simple concept that could easily be explained is made out to be more than what it needs to be. I was very disappointed with it.

[someguy]

I find the movie kind of like a Lynch film, it seems non-linear and confusing but there is a meaning to it all. The plot is explained in the movie, it takes a bit of time to pick up on it though. The first half hour or so was terrifying, Kurosawa knows how to make mature horror. No boo scares, no flashy visuals, just the murky look and the images to scare.

I noticed after watching this on a DVD that you need to watch the movie with a good sound system, it's really integral to the movie.