Epitaph

I enjoyed the film very much. True, the sequences seem very disjointed, but the common theme is that love settles the conflicts of people just before they die, thus they die in peace (at least in this movie). Eloquent visuals, and the music/ sound effects were expertly crafted- not once did I feel that the quiet, scary moments were out of place, and the rest of the music was serene and perfect for the pretty-but-haunting scenery. The tagline below the title is precisely the theme of the movie. It is beautiful, creepy, and classic, with some blood.Let's also keep in mind that the insurmountable number of plot twists seems to be a big thing with Korean horror films. "A Tale of Two Sisters", "Bloody Reunion", this movie, etc. - all of them contain several major twists, much more than American movies, and they may seem overwhelming and flatly delivered, however, this is not a bad thing, as patience pays off in the end. Good movie!

Yeh, yeh...I know what you are thinking. Asian horror has become redundant with long-haired vengeful ghosts that seek a break from their torment. While I would agree, the "Yurei" or long-haired pale-faced ghost is actually a significant part of Asian lore; much like vampires, werewolves and zombies and we, as Americans never get tired of those elements...so why should Asians? The Jung Brothers' horror drama "EPITAPH" (a.k.a. "The Last Breath") is a film that tries something different and puts this horror film in the middle of a period drama that takes place during Japan's occupation of Korea. The film is an episodic tale of three different short stories similar to "Three Extremes" but different since they are all linked together.February, 1942. Jung-Nam Park (Ku Jin) is a young Med student who is engaged to be married to a woman he had never met. He is also assigned to watch over the cadavers in the morgue that during this time, he falls in love with a frozen dead woman. A new patient also gets admitted who was the lone survivor of a fatal car accident. This young girl named Asoka (Joo-Yeon Ko) also becomes haunted by ghosts every night. Meanwhile, a young married couple, doctors In-Young (Bo-Kyeong Kim) and Dong-Won Kim (Tae-Soo Kim, Hypnotized) arrives from Japan and suddenly a rash of murders begin to happen...just what is this sinister hospital?The Jung brothers focus on a central theme; "Ghosts" and they attempt to challenge the thin lines between fragmented storytelling, arty style and a ostentatious narrative because of the way the stories are linked together by a common place, beautiful cinematography and bloody scenes embedded in its equation. The film does have the potential for a compelling storyline but for some reason, the direction fails to make a connection with its execution. The film is about the longing, sadness and loneliness of tormented souls and the sufferings of those left behind."Epitaph" is a haunting horror film and the style with which it is shot is just so enthralling; from the set designs (the morgue with wooden freezers), symbolisms are used (the use of dreams and hallucinations), the flower petals that gently eases into the wind and the manner with which the Jung bros. concentrate in enriching the visuals with touches of familiar objects that are seen in haunting locality. Once we see just how beautiful the film is, then the direction gives us a taste of gore and several freaky images. They do manage to capture the visceral images in delightful imagery; the audience will be drawn in, have their stomachs turn and then have them swim in the film's plotline. It was obvious that the direction took inspiration from "A Tale of Two Sisters".However, the problems with "Epitaph" isn't its style or even the performances. It is the manner the stories are laid out for the audience. There are a lot of characters in the film and the viewer has to pay the utmost attention in remembering each one. It is very similar to "Three Extremes" because of the three tales of horror; the story of Jung-Nam, the haunting of Asoka and the husband whose wife casts no shadow--but the cohesiveness of the story is just too episodic for its own good. It has ambition, but the way they were put together just proved too alienating even for me who is very used to mind-benders. Also, the tales themselves aren't really that original or inventive; it is alright even if it wasn't very compelling as long as it keeps the pace tight and precise. But the film's plot is just left to wallow in its familiar groundwork. There is also a twist near the end, but it lacked sufficient legwork that it seemed to be a mere attempt at a cheap shock than as an inherent part of the film's main premise.The elements and devices in the film are just very familiar. It touches on the aforementioned "A Tale of Two Sisters", a bit of "Uzumaki" and some of Takashi Miike's tone; heck, it even throws in a bit of "Psycho" into the mix. I guess the Jung Bros. focused too much in making the film very pretty that they may have missed the fact that the story needed to be more cohesive as to generate non-stop tension to accompany its beautiful visuals in the cinematic experience.Thankfully, the cast does turn out with several good performances, most notably by young Joo-Yeon Ko who plays Asoka, the girl haunted by ghosts and she proves to be the film's saving grace. It was very easy to sympathize with her, although her character was a little too twisted. Ko manages to bring out several dramatic performances that can certainly get the viewer involved in the story. The other characters were pretty low key besides Bo-Kyeong Kim who is just so charming and sometimes creepy as the loving wife who casts no shadow."Epitaph" is a fair attempt at another entry in the books of Korean horror. While the direction got a little too careless in its conclusions and the twists emerging as too cheap; as the film tries too hard to take a stab to surprise the audience in a story that isn`t much more than it should have been. Still, despite the clumsy storytelling, the film does manage to pull off some decent scares and some gruesome imagery. Sadly, because of the numerous familiar devices, the film was left with too much to put together and it faltered in this department. "Epitaph" is a beautiful movie with haunting imagery, strong photography and ambition; but it all feels a little hollow because of the way it overplayed its cards.Recommended timidly with caution, a RENTAL first would be advisable [3 Stars]

This was one of the most beautifully made horror movies I have seen in a long time. The movie is made up of three different stories that all happen in a four day period before the closing of a hospital. It could have been confusing, but wasn't. Each story has at least one scene from the others to pinpoint the moments they overlap. There were some good scary scenes as well as sad scenes, but all of them were filmed in an extremely visually appealing way. I enjoyed this very much and would recommend it to anyone who loves asian horror.

This is my favorite movie of all time, but the subtitles on the main menu do not work. The only way to get subtitles on this DVD is via my TV's remote control.

Brilliant film, with amazing cinematography. I loved this film - it kept me guessing the entire time, but it all came together at the end!! Highly recommended for fans of Korean horror!!

I enjoy Asian horror much more than American. They are better story tellers, and the horror is a bit more extreme. I really liked this convoluted film.

Gidam (Epitaph) (Beom-Sik Jeong, 2007)I will admit right out that part of my problem with Epitaph may, in fact, be my problem, rather than the movie's; as I often do when I am as ridiculously far behind in reviewing as I've been for the past year solid, I was writing reviews while the movie was playing, and thus I may not have been paying as close attention to it as it commanded. That said, I find in reading various reviews around the internet that I am far from the only person who found the film to be somewhat confusing   [...] [...] [...]. So I'm going to assume at least some of the burden of proof is on the movie itself.Plot: there are actually three different plots, all of which converge on a wartime hospital. In one, a young girl survives a car accident and finds herself haunted by the ghosts of her parents. A second details an intern's obsession with a beautiful woman who committed suicide, and the third concerns a husband-and-wife team investigating a serial killer who preys on soldiers. All of these stories, unrelated as they may be, do eventually collide (though not in the most convincing of ways).Despite the confusion aspect of the film, it's a very pretty thing, exquisitely-shot (though one wonders if maybe the cinematographer should have considered knocking things up a little given that the film is set in 1942 for the sake of archaism) and very nicely-acted. There is much to be said for that, especially since you can probably head for the internet and/or figure out most of the confusing bits to your satisfaction with a bit of reflection, so unless you're very easily frustrated that's not a reason not to watch this; it certainly could have been better than it is, but it's worth checking out. ***

An old, withered man looks back on his life and wonders if the four eventful days at Anseng hospital, back in 1942, are the main reason behind his lifetime of misfortune. The four days in question cover three individual stories about the storyteller and his colleagues. The first segment introduces the intern Young-Nam, and the corpse of a women found frozen in the snow. Captivated by the women's beauty, the intern starts sketching her portrait and gradually falls under her spell but the only way to save her lost soul will be to unite it with his living energy.The second story concerns an aphasiac child, named Asako, who's tormented with guilt for being the sole survivor of a car crash which killed her mother and step-father. The dream sequences in this section are very impressive; snow falls in the corridors as a snaggletooth old hag carrying a faceless, screaming infant straddled to her back, taunts the terrified Asako; and, her mother's blood soaked corpse follows Asako around the hospital speaking in tongue. Dr. Lee uses hypnotherapy to release the emotions trapped in Asako's subconsciousness believing it will end her nightmares... but can pure evil be cured with this type of treatment, and if so, at what cost?Then we enter the final phase of the old man's trip down Horror Avenue. The closing story is about two happily married neurosurgeon's operating on a wounded soldier who, dazed from his anaesthetic, picks up a scalpel and drives it into the neck of one; killing them instantly. Unable to cope with the grieve of losing his partner, Dong-Won Kim's mind splits and then goes on a secret killing spree that baffles the local authorities as much as himself; but, all is not as it seems.Full credit should be given to the Jung Brothers for dropping the Sadako type horror, which has become as synonymous with Asian audiences as the vampire has with western moviegoers, and opting for a more surreal, tripped out style that works perfectly in places but falls a bit short in other areas. The first time I watched this flick I wasn't very impressed with the pacing and found the whole experience a little erratic and wondered if the Jung Brothers had taken on a script that was too much for them to handle but, like with Kim Ji-Woon's A Tale Of Two Sisters, it gets better the more times you watch it. The unconventional style makes this one hard to enjoy, initially, but irresistible once you've sat through it on more than one occasion. If you're looking for something that can be watched more than once, then Epitaph is definitely one of those flicks.