Dumplings

Not so much a horror as horrific. With youthful properties gained from apparently eating dumplings containing special stuff, I won't give away the twist that happens in the films opening sequence, this is a visceral ride through this sordid Hong Kong tale. With cinematography by Christopher Doyle who did last life in the universe and 2046, it looks amazing, the crazy colours and dazzling visuals are offset by disturbing ideas and gross out scenes. What follows is a story of the length people will go to in pursuit of vanity. Well acted, well paced and always unnerving you are never sure where the film is going to go from the start to the madness of the final chop ending. Fans of the twisted and people used to the bizarreness of Asian extreme films will really be swept along in the story and all the disgusting close-ups that add to the horror. Adding also is the crispy clear sound that has such attention to detail that the slightest noise even one as banal as a clock suddenly takes on an eerie feel. Overall a brilliantly played out film but one for those with a strong stomach.

Sometimes you see a movie where (factual content and (emotional)effect are strongly in opposition to each other. For example, in 'Pulp Fiction' the content includes a lot of random and 'accidental' violence, even against totally innocent people, but the way it is portrayed prevents you from taking it seriously. It is like the violence in a cartoon such as 'Tom and Jerry'. It provokes laughter rather than disgust.

Dumplings is such a movie. It portrays a young (sort of) woman: 'aunt' Mei, who earns her living making dumplings that rejuvenate the eater, effectively giving him or her eternal youth, as long as they are regularly eaten. Now the catch is in the 'special ingredient'. I won't reveal what this secret ingredient is (although it becomes clear very early in the movie) but it is one of the sickest ingredients that I have ever seen, read about or heard of. The unique feature of this movie is that it is able to utilize this horrible element without becoming a movie that is either simply disgusting (like 'Braindead') or slapstick (such as 'Ichi the Killer'). On the contrary, it is actually a quite funny story about the interaction between Mei and her clients and about their increasing dependence on her dumplings.

But what makes the movie really worth it ( to me, at least) is social commentary that it includes. The real issue is not the 'special ingredient' of the dumplings, but the fact that people are so desperate for 'youth' that they're willing to do everything for it. In a society totally focused on the external norms (like wealth, beauty, and appearance) it is no surprise that the internal norms (like law, morals and compassion), atrophy and get discarded like a snake discards his old skin. This externalization of norms, however, is not criticized or punished, but rather advocated (by the film, not necessarily by its maker) as natural and acceptable, indeed inevitable. It is this highly subversive and thought-provoking element of the film that makes it truly worthwhile.

Not exactly a horror film, but definitely not for the squeamish. Dumplings follows the tale of a Hong Kong dumpling maker and a TV actress who feels past her prime (her husband is having an affair with a younger woman). Dumpling maker Aunt Mei has a secret formula that can restore youth and extend life. The audience is gradually let in on the secret ingredient and the details grow more and more gruesomely explicit as Aunt Mei maintains her cheerfully glamorous housewife demeanour. When you know this is a really sick movie, the director piles it on thicker and thicker, casually filtering in lurid details amid a beautiful montage. OK, you've been warned. The description above should tell you whether you want to stay away or make a beeline for the next showing.

The exquisite cinematography (and much of the resulting elegant and sophisticated look of the film) can be attributed to Christopher Doyle, whose work includes such visually stunning gems as 2046, Infernal Affairs, The Quiet American, and In the Mood for Love. Dumplings might be in poor taste, but it is served up with delicacy and finesse, and with much of its 'horror' deriving from the believability of the basic plot.

As you come out of the cinema, other members of the audience may look at you as if you are the most depraved person in the world for sitting through 90 minutes of such stuff, so just remember they did too . . .

Now this is my least favorite segment in "Three Extremes", but seeing how the it's a lot longer than the short segment made me enjoy it a lot more. Now some horror movies are better left with some of the mystery surrounding it and is better left with leaving some stuff out. I personally think that wasn't the case for this film, although I thought some of the stuff in this extended version would have been better if left out, majority of the stuff is a real plus. A lot of the dialogue is interesting that was left out in "Three Extremes", and makes you think about women and there struggle to look young. The film also deals with the one child policy in China and questions how far would someone people go in order to look young. The cinematography was good and it's a well acted, well paced film with a pretty good horror plot. I wasn't so sure about the extended version, but glad it came about. It's a engrossing and disturbing yet interesting while having other elements that will keep most horror fans pleased.

7.6/10

Some people enjoy a more diverse diet than others but diversity has its lines in the sand too and, while it's not uncommon (although still rare) to consume a new-born's afterbirth (apparently), in order to get to that position in the first instance there are those who might explore less palatable hors d'oeuvres - as we find in this disturbing exhibit.