Memento Mori

This film was quite disappointing really. Not much happens in it, and it certainly wasn't very scary at all. The freakiest thing in the film will be the fact that the diary was very densely written in, and it reflects a very obsessive personality of the writer. At the beginning, the intrigue of the diary barely keeps you on your toes, and as the film dragged on, you just start losing any other interest in it.

Acting was pretty OK, but by no means amazing. I guess the film does reflect on the compulsiveness of the characters within it - this is the only interesting bit I think.

If you wanted to see a film scarier than this, and leave you with something to think about, I suggest 'A tale of two sisters' instead.

"Memento Mori" is a well acted mix of ghost thriller and lesbian drama - a strange union, but a very succesfull one. The young leads deliver strong performances and make the subtle relationships believable. As another user already stated, there are some similarities (especially atmosphere-wise) to "The Virgin Suicides" and although I liked VS better, "Memento Mori" remains a strong movie.

Did it have any flaws? Yes it did. It got a little weird towards the end and I thought that the ghost-story part of the whole thing turned out rather silly. That said, "Memento Mori" remains a strong movie with a great atmosphere of sadness and foreboding.

8/10

Rating: 6 of 10 stars Genre: Horror, Drama. Scare Factor: 3 of 10 Acting: 5 of 10 Story: 5 of 10 Nation of origin: South Korea Viewed on: Tartan Asian Extreme DVD Video Format: Widescreen Audio Format: 5.1 DTS

"Memento Mori" is the second of movie in the "Whispering Corridors" trilogy. I wasn't all that crazy about "Whispering Corridors" but I thought I would give this a shot (as I'm sure I will give the third in the series (named "Whishing Stairs") a try once I can get a hold of it. "Memento Mori" really had little if anything to do with "Whispering Corridors" and could be watched by itself. "Memento Mori" like many Asian movies time warps back and forth throughout the course of the movie making it, like most Asian movies, more confusing than need be. It however doesn't spin and twist so much you can't follow it.

If you simply accept the fact that "Memento Mori" isn't a movie with any horror value I think you will find it somewhat enjoyable. Despite some extremely slow spots I never really felt unattached to what was happening which is a positive change from "Whispering Corridors". The story itself was nothing special however and wasn't one that I was really curious about what was going to happen next.

I have seen Memento Mori twice at the Melbourne International Film Festival and I think it's a very good film. My first impression of it was that it's quite like Virgin Suicides meets Carrie. And i maintain that it weaves between the romance and horror genres very effectively. I have not seen the original Yeogo Goedam but i assume it was more of a straight horror.

Because of it's genre crossing, Memento Mori adds to the horror theme of Shi-eun's return a sadness and tenderness that coagulates very strangely, but effectively with the terror-filled images of Shi-eun's body on the ground, and her haunting of the school. I really like the love story, but i see it as a horror film about adolescent love.

I had the privilege to speak to one of the directors, Kyu-Dong Min at the festival, and he said the film was supposed to tap into the horror of being an adolescent. Which i think he and his co-director do very well. the school-girl scenes are all extremely realistic. Some parts are humorous but humour is placed so tightly in the middle of horror that things shift so quickly.

the production design must be commended. I particularly love the piano design at the end of the film. With the diary, however, (i know, it's really good), but Kyu-Dong Min actually mentioned that they researched heaps of teenage girls' diaries and many were much more elaborate than the one they made for the film. just a sneak.

The cinematography too, should gain praise. Most parts are shot with stark whites, blacks and deep greens and it's really effective in bringing out the emptiness of the school in the lives of Shi-eun and Hyo-shin. But it is also the photography of the two girls on the roof during sunset really got me. when you first see it, it's a love scene - they walk left and right, playing with socks and all. And when you see it at the end of the film, it becomes a nostalgic scene.

Lastly, i must praise the acting of all three leads. Kim Min Sun is really likeable as Min-ah. Lee Young-Jin showed great control as the living dead girl and Park Yeh-jin arguably holds the whole film's acting performances together, both in terms of performance and narrative.

I really like Memento Mori. So far, it's in my top 3 films of the year. It's not exceptional. It's not one of those films with fantastically rapturous visual imagery, complex structure, or profound philosophical narrative. In fact, i don't know why i like the film as much as i do - apart from what i've just mentioned above. but i do. if i could see it again, i would. 9 out of 10.

Yeogo Goedam II starts out as an interesting story about adolescent love and turns into a nonsensical "horror" film. I felt mislead by the first part of the film. The way Hyo-shin and Shi-eun's relationship is revealed to Min-ah through their diary gave me the sense that this film would be far better than it turned out to be (the diary is pretty cool). Instead the film has a lot of amusing school moments that are fun but distract from the plot, and adds a few subplots that are not only confusing but boring. I don't know how this can be defined as a horror movie when nothing really horrible happens outside of one tragic event. Even the supposedly scary moments at the end of the film do nothing but stall the ending of the film.

I would not consider this film a waste of time - there are many great moments in it,but they lead nowhere.

out of 10 I give it a 5 - an even split - >

the Drama part of the film was great - the Horror part of the film was terrible