Editorials
South Korean Anthology ‘Horror Stories’ Features Intruders, Serial Killers, Cannibals and Zombies [Horrors Elsewhere]
Horrors Elsewhere is a recurring column that spotlights a variety of movies from all around the globe, particularly those not from the United States. Fears may not always be universal, but one thing is for sure — a scream is understood, always and everywhere.
The basic premise of the 2012 South Korean anthology Horror Stories is a familiar one for fans of Tales from the Darkside: The Movie; the fate of a young captive rests in their ability to keep an abductor entertained as well as distracted. Although in this case, the detainer isn’t a suburban witch who knows the joys of cooking children. Rather, a nameless teenager (Kim Ji-won) is being held against her will by a serial killer (Yoo Yeon-seok) in his gloomy lair. To buy herself time until she figures a way out of her predicament, the schoolgirl tells several scary bedtime stories.
First up, “Don’t Answer the Door” is inspired by the protagonist’s time at an English-language institute. The two main characters, young siblings Sunny (Kim Hyun-soo) and Moon (No Kang-min), await their mother’s return one night after getting home from school. When they fail to lock the front door after a man drops off a package for their mother, the children flee for their lives once the threatening courier lets himself in.
Nothing is as it seems in Jung Bum-sik’s ‘stranger danger’ offering, seeing as the story’s events are ultimately indefinable. The boxes for a standard home-invasion narrative are all checked off; children are left home alone, a menacing intruder breaks in, and a place of comfort and safety becomes a den of terror. In its essence, this is a very loose adaptation of a Korean folktale aptly called The Sun and the Moon. As the inaugural segment progresses, though, audiences are thrown a few plot curveballs. “Don’t Answer the Door” takes on a new life and turns into something more complicated than its initial premise suggests.
Not quite satisfied with what he’s heard so far, the wraparound’s villain allows another story called “Endless Flight.” So-jung (Choi Yoon-young) is among the skeleton crew aboard a sparse flight with no passengers other than police and a serial killer named Park Do-hoo (Jin Tae-hyun). The prisoner is being transferred to Seoul for his trial, but the main character is nervous after learning the last victim was a flight attendant like herself. It doesn’t take long for Do-hoo to escape his restraints and start killing everyone one by one.
Im Dae-woong’s “Endless Flight” is the most straightforward of the bunch with a linear storyline lacking the leftfield decisions or intrusive dream sequences of its predecessor. It sounds like a slasher because that is inherently what it is, but without the whodunit aspect. What the second tale lacks in unpredictability it makes up for in pacing and tension; it’s not exactly bloodless, either.
The storyteller continues with her third yarn “Secret Recipe,” a modernization of the Korean fairytale Kongji and Patzzi. Mrs. Jang (Na Young-hee) is trying to marry off her daughter Bak-ji (Nam Bo-ra), but the suitor she’s eyeing is already courting her stepdaughter Gong-ji (Jung Eun-chae). The eligible bachelor, a wealthy and handsome cosmetic surgeon named Min (Bae Soo-bin), has no qualms with swapping brides. However, Bak-ji may feel differently about the engagement once she learns what exactly Min does to maintain his youthful looks.
This story’s basis is a regional variant of Cinderella from the Joseon era — and a grisly one at that. The gruesome update avoids the fantastical element regularly found in classic fairytales, yet it maintains the dark and bitter punchline at the end. Even though Hong Ji-young’s “Secret Recipe” is set in contemporary times, it does center on something viewed as antiquated in today’s society; Mrs. Jang is planning an arranged marriage for Bak-ji, even if it means double-crossing her stepdaughter Gong-ji and incidentally serving up her bio-daughter as a meal. As always in these kinds of allegories, dishonesty is met with divine retribution.
Up to now, the narrator hasn’t been able to soothe her aggressor to sleep or find a means of escape. Her last bid for survival is a story about people getting by in a brand new world where the living dead roam the streets in search of human flesh. “Ambulance on the Death Zone” is set in a post-apocalyptic city beset by a contagious disease, and carriers of said infection are turned into voracious “rats.” On one particular night, a military doctor (Jo Han-cheol) and a nurse (Kim Ye-won) are driving around in an ambulance, looking for those in need of medical aid. They offer refuge to a mother and daughter who were involved in a car accident, but upon seeing the suspicious wound on the unconscious girl, they test her to see if she’s been infected. The doctor, who doesn’t believe the negative test result and wants to remove the patients from the ambulance, then goes head to head with the opposing nurse. Finally, all hell breaks loose when the vehicle and its discordant passengers are pursued by a swarm of ravenous zombies.
The most exciting and gratifying story was saved for last. This closer is spiked with adrenaline and almost never slows down. Kim Gok and Kim Sun’s “Ambulance on the Death Zone” is a taut and zippy thriller bathed in suspense; characters run on raw emotion and instinct. It’s never too difficult figuring out where this one will land, but the ride getting there is the fun part.
The golden rule with anthology movies is to expect an inconsistent quality to the segments. On the contrary, this omnibus is thoroughly pleasing; every part, with the exception of the wraparound only because it’s more practical than interesting, is distinct. Everything builds up to the impressive “Ambulance on the Death Zone,” but even before that point, no tale is ever dull or throwaway. There is enough variety here to keep every viewer’s attention.
The delight of Horror Stories doesn’t end here; there are two sequels worth watching for more standalone thrills. These polished-looking anthologies yield a range of genres and themes in their stories, whether they evoke frights based on universal fears or nightmares of the Korean persuasion.
Editorials
‘Immaculate’ – A Companion Watch Guide to the Religious Horror Movie and Its Cinematic Influences
The religious horror movie Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney and directed by Michael Mohan, wears its horror influences on its sleeves. NEON’s new horror movie is now available on Digital and PVOD, making it easier to catch up with the buzzy title. If you’ve already seen Immaculate, this companion watch guide highlights horror movies to pair with it.
Sweeney stars in Immaculate as Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Cecilia’s warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside gets derailed soon enough when she discovers she’s become pregnant and realizes the convent harbors disturbing secrets.
From Will Bates’ gothic score to the filming locations and even shot compositions, Immaculate owes a lot to its cinematic influences. Mohan pulls from more than just religious horror, though. While Immaculate pays tribute to the classics, the horror movie surprises for the way it leans so heavily into Italian horror and New French Extremity. Let’s dig into many of the film’s most prominent horror influences with a companion watch guide.
Warning: Immaculate spoilers ahead.
Rosemary’s Baby
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The mother of all pregnancy horror movies introduces Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), an eager-to-please housewife who’s supportive of her husband, Guy, and thrilled he landed them a spot in the coveted Bramford apartment building. Guy proposes a romantic evening, which gives way to a hallucinogenic nightmare scenario that leaves Rosemary confused and pregnant. Rosemary’s suspicions and paranoia mount as she’s gaslit by everyone around her, all attempting to distract her from her deeply abnormal pregnancy. While Cecilia follows a similar emotional journey to Rosemary, from the confusion over her baby’s conception to being gaslit by those who claim to have her best interests in mind, Immaculate inverts the iconic final frame of Rosemary’s Baby to great effect.
The Exorcist
William Friedkin’s horror classic shook audiences to their core upon release in the ’70s, largely for its shocking imagery. A grim battle over faith is waged between demon Pazuzu and priests Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow). The battleground happens to be a 12-year-old, Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), whose possessed form commits blasphemy often, including violently masturbating with a crucifix. Yet Friedkin captures the horrifying events with stunning cinematography; the emotional complexity and shot composition lend elegance to a film that counterbalances the horror. That balance between transgressive imagery and artful form permeates Immaculate as well.
Suspiria
Jessica Harper stars as Suzy Bannion, an American newcomer at a prestigious dance academy in Germany who uncovers a supernatural conspiracy amid a series of grisly murders. It’s a dance academy so disciplined in its art form that its students and faculty live their full time, spending nearly every waking hour there, including built-in meals and scheduled bedtimes. Like Suzy Bannion, Cecilia is a novitiate committed to learning her chosen trade, so much so that she travels to a foreign country to continue her training. Also, like Suzy, Cecilia quickly realizes the pristine façade of her new setting belies sinister secrets that mean her harm.
What Have You Done to Solange?
This 1972 Italian horror film follows a college professor who gets embroiled in a bizarre series of murders when his mistress, a student, witnesses one taking place. The professor starts his own investigation to discover what happened to the young woman, Solange. Sex, murder, and religion course through this Giallo’s veins, which features I Spit on Your Grave’s Camille Keaton as Solange. Immaculate director Michael Mohan revealed to The Wrap that he emulated director Massimo Dallamano’s techniques, particularly in a key scene that sees Cecilia alone in a crowded room of male superiors, all interrogating her on her immaculate status.
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
In this Giallo, two sisters inherit their family’s castle that’s also cursed. When a dark-haired, red-robed woman begins killing people around them, the sisters begin to wonder if the castle’s mysterious curse has resurfaced. Director Emilio Miraglia infuses his Giallo with vibrant style, with the titular Red Queen instantly eye-catching in design. While the killer’s design and use of red no doubt played an influential role in some of Immaculate’s nightmare imagery, its biggest inspiration in Mohan’s film is its score. Immaculate pays tribute to The Red Queen Kills Seven Times through specific music cues.
The Vanishing
Rex’s life is irrevocably changed when the love of his life is abducted from a rest stop. Three years later, he begins receiving letters from his girlfriend’s abductor. Director George Sluizer infuses his simple premise with bone-chilling dread and psychological terror as the kidnapper toys with Red. It builds to a harrowing finale you won’t forget; and neither did Mohan, who cited The Vanishing as an influence on Immaculate. Likely for its surprise closing moments, but mostly for the way Sluizer filmed from inside a coffin.
The Other Hell
This nunsploitation film begins where Immaculate ends: in the catacombs of a convent that leads to an underground laboratory. The Other Hell sees a priest investigating the seemingly paranormal activity surrounding the convent as possessed nuns get violent toward others. But is this a case of the Devil or simply nuns run amok? Immaculate opts to ground its horrors in reality, where The Other Hell leans into the supernatural, but the surprise lab setting beneath the holy grounds evokes the same sense of blasphemous shock.
Inside
During Immaculate‘s freakout climax, Cecilia sets the underground lab on fire with Father Sal Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) locked inside. He manages to escape, though badly burned, and chases Cecilia through the catacombs. When Father Tedeschi catches Cecilia, he attempts to cut her baby out of her womb, and the stark imagery instantly calls Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s seminal French horror movie to mind. Like Tedeschi, Inside’s La Femme (Béatrice Dalle) will stop at nothing to get the baby, badly burned and all.
Burial Ground
At first glance, this Italian zombie movie bears little resemblance to Immaculate. The plot sees an eclectic group forced to band together against a wave of undead, offering no shortage of zombie gore and wild character quirks. What connects them is the setting; both employed the Villa Parisi as a filming location. The Villa Parisi happens to be a prominent filming spot for Italian horror; also pair the new horror movie with Mario Bava’s A Bay of Blood or Blood for Dracula for additional boundary-pushing horror titles shot at the Villa Parisi.
The Devils
The Devils was always intended to be incendiary. Horror, at its most depraved and sadistic, tends to make casual viewers uncomfortable. Ken Russell’s 1971 epic takes it to a whole new squeamish level with its nightmarish visuals steeped in some historical accuracy. There are the horror classics, like The Exorcist, and there are definitive transgressive horror cult classics. The Devils falls squarely in the latter, and Russell’s fearlessness in exploring taboos and wielding unholy imagery inspired Mohan’s approach to the escalating horror in Immaculate.
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