Cello

I wouldn't go so far as to say that this movie was scary, but it was sure as heck bizarre!!!

So basically this movie is about a woman (a former cellist) with a mysterious past, involving a car accident, and all of a sudden strange and terrifying things begin to happen to her much beloved family. She has a husband who seems to love her very much, a sister-in-law that lives with them until she is married to her fiancé, a mentally impaired older daughter, and another younger daughter. She also teaches as a part time instructor and one day is threatened by a young student who received a poor grade in her class. No spoilers, so to find out more you have to watch the movie.

This movie had TONS of twists and turns, just when you think you've figured it out something new pops up and it throws you entirely off guard. Especially about the main character's past... you have been warned.

One thing I love about these types of movies is the beautiful cinematography, it's just absolutely gorgeous even in such a twisted and creepy movie such as this one. Everything just seems to flow so elegantly, something rarely achieved in American movies. I definitely recommend this movie for someone who enjoys a good creep fest, but don't recommend it to someone who is really squeamish towards blood.

The cellist and teacher Mi-Ju Hong (Hyeon-a Seong) is invited by her colleague and friend Sun-Ae (Na-woon Kim) to assume the position of professor in her renowned institution, and gives an invitation to the concert of Hae-Young Kim, the little sister of her former school best friend Tae-Yeon Kim (Da-an Park) who died in a car accident. Before leaving the building, she is threatened by a former student that failed in her test. While driving home, she escapes from an accident on the road and once at home, she has a surprise birthday party with her husband and prosecutor Jun-Ki (Ho-bin Jeong), her daughters the slow Yoon-Jin and the young Yoon-Hye Song, and her sister-in-law Kyung Ran (Jin Woo), whose fiancée is in Manhattan in a MBA course. On the next morning, her husband hires the dumb housekeeper Ji-Sook, a very weird woman. While shopping with Yoon-Jin, the girl is fascinated in a cello and Mi-Ju buys the instrument. After the mysterious death of her dog Sunny, creepy events happen with Mi-Ju, jeopardizing her family, while she insistently listens to her husband voice saying "open your eyes".

"Cello" is another magnificent Korean horror movie. The original plot is very well constructed like pieces of a puzzle, with a scary and ambiguous twist that gives the sensation of deja vu. The film is supported by an excellent screenplay, wonderful and classy soundtrack, awesome direction and performances and a perfect use of special effects. The actress Hyeon-a Seong is extremely beautiful and elegant and fits perfectly to her character. Unfortunately this movie is underrated in IMDb and based on the 218 votes, quite unknown. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

"Cello" is one of the best Korean horror movies I have seen! It sure is very creepy! And it certainly has enough scary scenes to keep you satisfied! The brilliance of this movie is that you don't exactly know when something is going to happen! In most horror movies you can anticipate and predict a scene! Although some scenes seem similar to other Asian horror movies and you think you know what is going to happen the scene goes into another direction! And then out of nowhere something happens! It takes a while to fully comprehend the plot! But once you do you will be surprised even more! Twist after twist and it never seems to end! "Cello" won't be for everyone,since the pace is quite slow and there aren't that many scares compared to other similar horror movies! Personally I didn't mind much because overall the movie is very entertaining and it's conclusion very rewarding!

I liked this movie. I'm not sure why they called it Cello, because it's the characters in the movie that really make it scary and not the instrument. But, it is directed by Lee Woo-Chul, a music director, and he really does use the music effectively to create this creepy ominous vibe. He also makes the movie look good too (there's a lot of cool imagery) and it comes off almost looking somewhat like a longer version of a scary music video. Maybe that's what they decided to name it after an instrument. Anyway, it's about this woman, who is a really great cellist, and she just wants a peaceful life after surviving a car crash that killed her best friend. So she decides to give up a professional career in music in favor of teaching college students and her daughter how to play. Well, once her life appears to regain a sense of normalcy, of course you know that that's just the quiet before the storm. Suddenly, one of her students attacks her, her sister in-law develops a wacky obsession with her fiancée, and the new housekeeper – lets' just say the woman will scare the crap out of you! Plus, her daughter develops some serious issues, including a nasty biting habit. There are plenty of scary women in this movie and they had me jumping several times. That's why I reiterate it's the characters that you have to watch out for. Before I saw it I thought it was about this haunted instrument or something. The acting is good, and the music really does add to the jump factor. Basically, it's a really fun movie to watch late at night…with the sound up loud. I recommend it!

Despite the lukewarm reviews on Amazon and IMDb, I still decided to give "Cello" a chance. Why? Well, because it is a Korean horror movie, and I do enjoy Asian movies quite a lot. And I am glad enough that I did pick up this movie from Amazon.

The story in "Cello" is fairly straight forward for a horror movie, but it was refreshing not to have the stereotypical Asian ghosts lurk at every dark corner here in this movie - there is nothing particularly scary about an Asian girl in a white dress with long, black hair covering the face.

But back to the story at hand, Mi-Ju has survived a car crash, but she is haunted by her past. And things around her are starting to become strange and threatening as her past is catching up with her. With her secret hidden from her family, she has no one to turn to, and slowly, an encroaching darkness is creeping up on her family.

For an Asian horror movie, then "Cello" was rather unusual. That being said, I am not saying it is bad. It was a nice change of pace in the Asian horror genre to have a movie take this approach. But for a horror movie, then "Cello" was surprisingly devoid of scares and spooky moments. The movie isn't boring, but it trots along at a fairly level pace - a pace that some might find slow and dull. But it serves the story well, as it builds up suspense and it does reveal the storyline, one slice at a time.

The acting in the movie was quite good, not amongst the best I have seen in Asian horror movies, but it was good and served the movie well. People did good jobs with their given characters.

"Cello" is a good addition to any DVD collection that contains Asian horror movies. And if you are looking for an Asian horror movie that is not centered around the stereotypical Asian ghost, then "Cello" is a good choice.