A surprisingly excellent production from Thailand. This movie tells the story of a loser/loner who just got fired, had his car repossessed, is in credit card debt, and has an overbearing mother who needs money and suddenly gets a call inviting him to play in a game that could make him rich. The game consists of 13 challenges, the completion of each entails a money transfer into his bank. If he completes the final challenge he would get a very large sum of money. But he has to complete all challenges and not try to find out who is behind the game.
The challenges range from mild to disgusting to violent. While initially the movie doesn't seem to fit into the "Dimensions Extreme" line because for a good while it lacks gore, nudity, violence that are required for a good horror movie, this one is a little more psychological and a lot more story-based. Also at some point you start wondering what the point of all this is and then the movies gives a hint, a glimpse into out character's childhood that will be important for the end of the movie. Speaking of the end, it has a couple of surprise twists and explanations. The man's childhood and family will be key and are related to the final challenge. In addition there is some sort of revealing of who's behind all this that isn't entirely satisfying, but the point here is to get the audience to imagine...what if...and what our price would be, if it is true that we all have a price and also how far we would go for money.
The movie succeeds in creating a very likable character that you root for. There's an obligatory female who falls for him and tries to help him, rescue him. And you will also dislike the cruel villains in the shadows. The movie, however, is not a noir film despite the hopelessness of the situations. In fact, there's a good dose of humor here and there in terms of how other characters react to what is going on and how our friend deals with the crazy things he's asked to do. This movie looks very good. Unlike American movies that rely too much on artificial colored lighting and effects like grainy looks or discolored film or disco-type lights, this one looks bright, crisp, and naturally lit. It also sounds good and has good subtitles. Recommended as a different type of horror/ psychological thriller that is effective and funny and makes you think.
