Reviews
[Review] Netflix Series “Ju-On: Origins” Gives Refreshing and Grisly New Start to Franchise
The popular Japanese horror franchise created by Takashi Shimizu made ghosts Kayako and Toshio household names among horror fans. As the franchise grew, splintering off into a parallel series launched from an American remake, Ju-On became increasingly convoluted with its mythology and timeline. Not that it mattered much; audiences showed up to get the pants scared off of them by the cursed house and its ghostly inhabitants. Stateside, though, the Asian horror craze that emerged in the early aughts had long waned, and The Grudge franchise seemed to have run out of new things to say. Netflix original series Ju-On: Origins takes the franchise in an exciting new direction, however, proving there’s still a lot of life and thrills left to be mined from this property.
Following the long-established custom, Origins follows multiple characters throughout multiple timelines, all connected by the iconic cursed house. All of which takes place in the years leading up to 1998, the starting point of the original franchise. Origins eschews the jump-scare ghost story we’ve grown accustomed to, though; it’s much more interested in creating a mystery heavily focused on its characters. Everything we thought we knew about the rules of this eerie world don’t exist yet, giving it a refreshing layer of unpredictability that it hasn’t had in a while.
Moreover, Origins is downright grim and bloody, offering the grisliest Ju-On story yet.
It can’t be understated just how surprisingly dark and bleak Origins fearlessly gets. The first episode features a child horrifically beaten by a predator, and episode two gets even more disturbing with a rape that plays a pivotal role in the narrative trajectory of the characters affected. As upsetting as those moments are, it’s only the tip of the iceberg – Origins delves into the ugliest aspects of humanity, at just about every turn.
With so many characters to juggle over the six-episode season, with episodes averaging 30-minutes, the complex web of mystery is densely packed and meticulously paced. Meaning it can be challenging to keep track of all the characters and various plot threads. Some characters pop up and fade into the background quickly, only to reappear again many episodes later when they were on the verge of being forgotten. Origins isn’t interested in giving away its answers easily, if at all. This series keeps drawing you in further and further, raising more questions along the way, and by season’s end, it’s clear that this is only the beginning. In other words, those looking for tidy narratives with concise arcs will likely find themselves frustrated with what amounts to a heady, engaging introduction to an ongoing story.
While Origins offers plenty of spooky supernatural elements, the biggest surprise is the amount of violence in store. The more intricate the plotting becomes, the more violent. Origins gets gruesome, and the blood flows free. More than ever before. Making it even more impressive is that it comes from the brilliant mind of special makeup effects artist Screaming Mad George (Society, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master). Count on him and his team to bring some seriously deranged imagery to this world.
As legendary as the Ju-On franchise has become, it needed a shakeup. Origins more than delivers. Though set in the past, this Netflix original modernizes the franchise in a welcome way, bringing grit and complexity in surprising ways. It is, perhaps, too complicated for its own good at times, packing in far too many characters and plot without offering an easy foothold for viewers. Luckily, those characters are fascinatingly, deeply flawed. It may not be at all easy to see where this is going, but it’s so engrossing it’s hard to care. Above all, it’s found a way to tone down the jump scares and incorporate a different style of horror: unnerving violence. Ju-On: Origins’ inaugural season reinvigorates the franchise in a thrilling, unexpected way and leaves you eagerly anticipating season two.
Ju-On: Origins premieres exclusively on Netflix July 3, 2020.
As the endless debate over whether Die Hard classifies as a Christmas movie wages on, ever so tiresomely, director Jaume Collet-Serra declares his stance with Carry-On, a new Netflix holiday thriller that bears a lot in common with the sequel Die Hard 2. Taron Egerton channels John McClane as a TSA Agent forced to go rogue when unexpectedly pulled into a terrorist plot at a crowded airport on Christmas Eve. While much simpler and more intimate in scale than Die Hard 2, Collet-Serra’s talents for taut suspense, tight plotting, and propulsive pacing ensure Carry-On delivers on big holiday thrills and energetic fun.
Egerton’s Ethan Kopek is a bit more law-abiding than his ’80s action-hero counterpart. Ethan is in good spirits when rushing to clock into his Christmas Eve shift at LAX, even as his newly pregnant girlfriend, Nora (Sofia Carson), points out his wasted potential in not pursuing the career that’d make him happiest: becoming a cop. While Ethan isn’t quite ready yet to attempt that career path again after a previous rejection, he is ready to step up his responsibilities at work in preparation for the new baby’s arrival.
That winds up putting him on a collision path with Traveler (Jason Bateman), a mysterious villain who blackmails the young TSA Agent into letting a carry-on bag slip through security unfettered. But Ethan isn’t quite as compliant as desired, escalating tensions into a lethal cat-and-mouse game.
Carry-On. (L-R) Jason Bateman as Traveler and Taron Egerton as Ethan Kopek in Carry-On. Cr. Netflix © 2024.
Collet-Serra and screenwriter TJ Fixman, the scribe behind many Ratchet & Clank video games, spend as little time as possible introducing the key players and their motivations so Carry-On can cut straight to the thrills. It’s the type of quick setup that establishes the clear delineation between hero and villain in broad, quick strokes. Traveler, borrowing a page from westerns, dons a black cap and makes chilling demands with an apathetic calm. At the opposite end is a dutiful employee who high-fives and greets every co-worker and colleague en route to his position. The type whose altruistic motivations and career ambitions act as a neon sign designating Ethan as the de facto hero, as well as early lines of dialogue that forecast the hero arc’s tidy conclusion. This plotting efficiency may let the action take charge early, but it does diminish some of the stakes.
Luckily, it’s a small issue thanks to Egerton’s easy affability and charisma and the nonstop obstacles thwarting both men’s easy paths forward. While it may never come into question whether Ethan will prevail over his insidious foe, the journey getting there is where Carry-On‘s magic lies. Repurposing the virtually abandoned terminal New Orleans Louis Armstrong International (MSY) into a spitting image of LAX, Carry-On finds no shortage of ways to mine exciting action sequences or tension from every corner of the airport. But it’s the calculated chess match between two clever adversaries that ensures Collet-Serra’s latest gets the adrenaline pumping early, with very few moments to catch your breath over its two-hour runtime. It’s also in the way the script folds in new wrenches via supporting characters like Danielle Deadwyler‘s tenacious detective and Theo Rossi‘s gleefully sadistic accomplice to the Traveler. Deadwyler and Rossi both test their action mettle with separate yet inventive action sequences that greatly contribute to the overarching intensity of Ethan’s plight.
Carry-On. Danielle Deadwyler as Elena Cole in Carry-On. Cr. Netflix © 2024.
It all builds to a satisfying finale, one that once again calls back to the Die Hard series in terms of memorable showdowns with the villain. Carry-On is the type of action thriller that operates on a strict and clear moral spectrum; there’s no grey area for either Ethan or the Traveler, no matter how hard the movie occasionally tries to sand down Ethan’s moral purity. That’s okay, though, when featuring a talented director dedicated to delivering a sustained adrenaline rush and a committed cast. It’s also fitting for the holiday theming; it’s an easy, breezy, and highly entertaining thriller that captures the Christmas spirit through propulsive action and violence.
Carry-On releases on Netflix on December 13, 2024.
‘Jurassic World Rebirth’ Returns to the Vibe of the Original ‘Jurassic Park’
‘Return of the Living Dead’ – Two Exclusive Images from Franchise’s Return Tease Christmas Theme
Friday, December 13 – Here’s All the New Horror Released Today
‘Return of the Living Dead’ – Tarman Returns in Teaser Trailer for Christmas Horror Sequel
You must be logged in to post a comment.