Movies
The Eye 3 (V)
Considering the stupidity of most of the other techniques described in the film, I guess we should be thankful that the pair decided to just give us one final project as a summation of their ideas rather than 8 more uneven films in this series.”
OK, lets just clear up any confusion right off the bat. THE EYE 3 has a lot of names—alternatively known as THE EYE: INFINITY and THE EYE 10, it’s been around for a few years. Technically, it’s the third entry in The Pang Brother’s saga of ghosts and those that can see them. The 10 that the film’s original title refers to are the methods in which one can view a ghost. And those methods are what make up the rice paper thin plot that the Pang’s are trying to pass off on their audience.
The previous two EYE films had little in common tonally. The first film in the series was a supernatural thriller about a woman whose cornea transplant leaves her haunted by the spirit world. The second film was a drama about a pregnant woman who—upon deciding to commit suicide—can suddenly see the dead. THE EYE 3 references both of these methods as “ways to see the dead”. So, what THE EYE 3 is, is an explanation and visualization of the remaining other 8 methods. Methods, which range from the obvious: “Use a Ouija Board”, to the absurd: “Bend over and look between your legs”. And if that last method causes you to seriously consider the nature of this film, and then you’re half way to understanding the intentions of THE EYE 3, even if you ultimately don’t find them entertaining.
In reality The Pang Brothers set up their vision of a third EYE film right from the opening credit sequence. The film begins with a Buddhist Séance in which a possessed girl is levitated before the terrified monks. Suddenly her snakelike tongue shoots out of her mouth and smacks the monks in the head. The film then flash cuts to a group of teenagers snapping pictures on a road trip to Thailand. The title cards and music are a poppy-disco beat with a heavy 70’s retro vibe that feels like it could have been jacked from any Pam Grier/Jack Hill collaboration. It’s in less than 5 minutes that we understand that The Pang Brothers are not going to provide us with much horror in this horror movie.
One of the vacationing friends discovers the book about the 10 Ways to Encounter Ghosts and the group decides to take it upon themselves to test each method (at least the practical ones, since cornea transplants and pregnancy are more difficult to achieve). They set up each event—Ouija Board, Hide and Seek, Offer Food—in the hopes to see the unrestful spirits walking the earth, and for the most part they’re successful, until one of the group—Kofei—disappears. Now, the friends can’t seem to turn off the ghost sightings as they’re haunted by the likes of opening umbrellas and phantom basketballs.
The ridiculousness of THE EYE 3 makes the film feel more like a live action Manga than a standard entry in the Asian Horror lexicon. More akin to films like the 2002 Korean movie SEX IS ZERO than titles like RINGU or JU-ON. It’s jarring in the same sense that you might imagine if Eli Roth decided to turn over the reigns on a third HOSTEL film to the Wayans Brothers. What I mean there is that THE EYE 3 has potty humor and goofy expressions and that basketball attack sequence I mentioned before. It’s just ludicrous. And the insanity is blazing headstrong toward a climax that is beyond comprehension as two of the friends enter the spirit world to save Kofei only to discover just what bodily functions repel spirits best.
It’d be easy to totally write off THE EYE 3 as a colossal failure in changing the nature of the series. But, moments of the film work, even if it’s only the visual splendor of the filmmaking on display. The film also feels hurried, as if The Pang Brothers wanted to cram as much information as possible into 86 minutes. I also found it interesting that they simply wrote the first two films off as just 2 of the 10 Ways to Encounter Ghosts. Considering the stupidity of most of the other techniques described in the film, I guess we should be thankful that the pair decided to just give us one final project as a summation of their ideas rather than 8 more uneven films in this series.
In this day and age, the word “troll” is often used to describe various online nuisances. Yet as abundant and irksome as the modern troll can be, they aren’t usually as fearsome as their mythological counterparts. I’m not talking about the small and gentler versions that have become more common to see in media. No, there are much bigger and scarier trolls out there—and André Øvredal’s movie Troll Hunter is one of the best places to find them.
It doesn’t take long for Troll Hunter (or Trolljegeren) to dump the Blair Witch Project-esque setup and aim for something a lot fresher. The trajectory of the story is augmented by Otto Jespersen’s character Hans, the titular Troll Hunter. The second he comes barreling out of the deep, dark woods and shouts “troll” at the camera, this movie takes a turn into what feels like uncharted territory. Not only subject-wise, but also conceptually.
For fantastical and made-up subject matter in cinema, found footage is a fast way to add a guise of believability. After all, what we accept to be the most crucial aspect of documentaries—the truth—rubs off on pseudo-documentaries, despite our understanding of the pretense involved. That is what Øvredal delivered with Troll Hunter: a movie so convincing that some viewers wondered if trolls really do exist. So, had this been straightforwardly made, it likely wouldn’t have been as effective. Conventional narratives would be more inclined to treat something like trolls as flat out unreal, and never try to convince the audience to think otherwise.
Hans petrifies the three-headed Tusseladd troll.
The viewers, like the characters trailing Hans, are quickly thrown into the deeper end of that extraordinary story. They have to process all this new information while staying on the go. So, although there is no significant amount of meandering, narratively or physically, there is still a good amount of atmosphere, not to mention tension building. It’s never anything frightful, but then again, Troll Hunter isn’t your standard offering of horror; it’s more on the low end of the dark fantasy spectrum. We aren’t ever spirited away to a faraway world—we stay in rather familiar surroundings, as well as dip into those less so. The outcome is a movie where you’re constantly more in awe than in terror.
As fantasy fiction might do, Troll Hunter prefers not to deal with incredulity. There is no time to waste on doubt, as interviewer Thomas (Glenn Erland Tosterud), soundperson Johanna (Johanna Mørck), and cameraman Kalle (Tomas Alf Larsen) all follow Hans around, recording whatever this character is willing to reveal about his bizarre job. Of course, the Troll Hunter himself is not an open book; in that respect, the diegetic documentary fails to fully capture and unpack the more interesting of its two subjects. Yes, all those giant, monstrous trolls are indeed incredible, but understandably, your mind wanders to their pursuer. What kind of person signs up for this gig and then chooses to stick with it for so long?
Reviews have called out Troll Hunter for its lack of character development. In regard to Thomas and his fellow documentarians, that criticism is valid, but bear in mind, they aren’t the focus of the story, either. Meanwhile, Hans is a well-crafted character. At least better than first realized. Before he was introduced, Hans had already grown tired of the troll grind. Fed up with that low compensation for his services, resentful of the bureaucracy, and wanting to expose his employer on a large scale, Hans’ discontent is glaring.
Then there are those finer details about the Troll Hunter, such as that indifference to both the natural splendor of his everyday surroundings and the affections of an obviously smitten colleague, that also suggest some level of despondency. So it is fair to say this movie doesn’t feature any sizable growth for its characters; however, the namesake isn’t underwritten. No doubt, putting a real-life character like Otto Jespersen in that role is partly why Hans is so fascinating—maybe even relatable.
Otto Jespersen as Hans the Troll Hunter.
There is always a small risk whenever using the term “mockumentary” to describe a found-footage movie, as the word could imply humor where there is none. In the case of Troll Hunter, the term’s usage is appropriate. Some folks have claimed the English-dubbed version has the more comedic tone, however, the Norwegian cut isn’t exactly humorless. Apart from the trolls’ absurd appearances, this is a movie where the characters nearly choke on the monsters’ farts, and Christians are like walking targets. Hans’ complete apathy towards everything is another cause of laughter. Overall, the comedy is intentionally dry and inconsistent. Unfunny, though? Absolutely not.
In a movie where endemic creatures are maltreated, as well as disavowed from living freely and peacefully, it’s hard not to notice the ecological message buried beneath the story. In addition to that is the unmistakable political satire. There is this whole business about intrusive and unsightly power lines—like trolls, they’re big blemishes on the land—that leads to what is perhaps the movie’s funniest moment. The scene in question is that one where certain electric lines, the ones secretly being used to keep the trolls at bay, go in a loop and don’t actually send power to any residents. Yet the monitors of said lines don’t find this at all weird. So it stands to reason that Øvredal was having a go at those who accept the government’s doings without question.
Looking past the fact that trolls aren’t actually real, this movie is an enlightening source of information. And not just for international audiences; Norwegians, too, get schooled about their homeland’s own mythology. It’s also evident from everything on screen that Øvredal and his crew were enthusiastic about the topic. The creature designs are the most indicative of that zeal; those imaginative yet myth-accurate manifestations are equally amusing and grotesque. One second you’re laughing at their phallic noses, the next you’re white-knuckling during a hairy sequence. Most surprisingly is how well the trolls’ visual effects hold up after fifteen years. It’s not all spotless, but on the whole, they remain impressive.
Vouching for a mockumentary about trolls isn’t easy, but those who do come around and give it a shot will more than likely be grateful for the recommendation. For Troll Hunter is a real find in that vast and varied genre we call “found footage“.
A bridge troll reaches up for food and finds Hans decked out in armor.
You must be logged in to post a comment.