Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalIMDb TIFF Portrait StudioHispanic Heritage MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Three... Extremes

Original title: Sam gang 2
  • 2004
  • R
  • 2h 5m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
22K
YOUR RATING
Three... Extremes (2004)
An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.
Play trailer1:29
1 Video
29 Photos
Body HorrorDark ComedyHorror

An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.

  • Directors
    • Fruit Chan
    • Park Chan-wook
    • Takashi Miike
  • Writers
    • Pik-Wah Lee
    • Park Chan-wook
    • Bun Saikou
  • Stars
    • Bai Ling
    • Lee Byung-hun
    • Kyôko Hasegawa
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    22K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Fruit Chan
      • Park Chan-wook
      • Takashi Miike
    • Writers
      • Pik-Wah Lee
      • Park Chan-wook
      • Bun Saikou
    • Stars
      • Bai Ling
      • Lee Byung-hun
      • Kyôko Hasegawa
    • 99User reviews
    • 125Critic reviews
    • 66Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 5 wins & 14 nominations total

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:29
    Official Trailer

    Photos28

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 24
    View Poster

    Top cast37

    Edit
    Bai Ling
    Bai Ling
    • Mei (segment "Dumplings")
    Lee Byung-hun
    Lee Byung-hun
    • Director (segment "Cut")
    • (as Lee Byung Hun)
    Kyôko Hasegawa
    Kyôko Hasegawa
    • Kyoko (segment "Box")
    • (as Kyoko Hasegawa)
    Po-Lin Lau
    • Li's Maid (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Pauline Lau)
    Tony Ka Fai Leung
    Tony Ka Fai Leung
    • Lee (segment "Dumplings")
    Meme Tian
    Meme Tian
    • Connie (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Meme)
    Miriam Yeung
    Miriam Yeung
    • Ching (segment "Dumplings")
    Sum-Yeung Wong
    • Old Hair Dresser (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Wong Sum-Yeung)
    Kam-Mui Fung
    • Vomiting Woman (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Fung Kam-Mui)
    Wai-Man Wu
    • Mei's Nurse Friend (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Wu Wai-Man)
    Chak-Man Ho
    • Wang (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Ho Chak-Man)
    Miki Yeung
    Miki Yeung
    • Kate (segment "Dumplings")
    So-Foon Wong
    • Kate's Mother (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Wong So-Fun)
    Ho Fung Chuk
    • High Society Woman 1 (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Ho Fung-Chuk)
    Wai-Ling Chan
    • High Society Woman 2 (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Chan Wai-Ling)
    Agnes Pang
    • High Society Woman 3 (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Pang Hoi-Kwan)
    Suk-Hing Leung
    • High Society Woman 4 (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Yeung Suk-Hing)
    Mary Lai-Hing Yeung
    • High Society Woman 5 (segment "Dumplings")
    • (as Mary Yeung)
    • Directors
      • Fruit Chan
      • Park Chan-wook
      • Takashi Miike
    • Writers
      • Pik-Wah Lee
      • Park Chan-wook
      • Bun Saikou
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews99

    6.921.5K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    7andrew_hawkins

    Disturbing and Intense Trio of Horror

    This compilation movie of three horror stories is dark and disturbing. The first story concerns a woman's greed for beauty and the bizarre path she takes to get it. The second story centers on a director who gets held captive by a film extra with an agenda. This leads to torture and a strange game of cat and mouse. The final story regards a writer with a twisted past. This part is surreal and at times awkward in storytelling and direction. I enjoyed this film as a fan of the horror genre. The elements of surrealism and paranormal activity were effective in each story. While the movie did have a relatively slow pace, the intensity of each stories climax made for a fulfilling watch. Recommended for fans of Tales from the Darkside, Tales from the Crypt, The Twilight Zone and admirers of Takashi Miike and Chan-wook Park.
    8bonnie91

    Some uncomfortable moments with this one

    This movie is incredibly cruel and unrelenting. It plays as a single feature divided into three sections: "Dumplings", directed by Fruit Chan of Hong Kong, "Cut" directed by Park Chan-Wook of Korea and "Box" directed by Miike Takashi of Japan. Each section is like a dissertation in horror, although "Dumplings" could also be classified as an exploitation film.

    All of them are beautifully produced and directed, and I especially found "Box" to be quite lavish in sets, costumes and atmosphere. They each show a lot about the culture of the respective countries they were made in and also provide new takes on the terrifying and the appalling. They are each original in their own right, although "Cut" could be compared to the "Saw" or Hannibal Lecter franchises in that there's a psycho who's trying to get a message across by way of murder and mayhem.

    I don't want to give details on the plots of any of them because I think that viewers need to experience them for themselves with no preconceptions going in, but what I can say is that "Dumplings" has the most plot and is probably the one with the highest "squeam" factor, "Cut" covers a rather familiar premise but with lots of fun moments (you'll see) and "Box" is more of an artistic endeavour with not much of a plot, but for some reason I was enthralled and couldn't look away; it's the one I liked the most.

    A solid 8 out of 10 for the efforts of these genius Asian directors.
    9t-fukuhara

    A disturbingly good movie!!

    This is an excellent blend of three horror films that characterize the ideal representation of Asian cinema. Each story is presented with ordinary people displaying qualities of evil and depravity. These directors use powerful cinematic storytelling elements in exploring their genres. This is not an ordinary horror film with a ghost or a slasher/killer with a knife but a combination of people who are capable of psychotic behavior. While all of the films are not perfect and contain some mildly dull aspects, watching all three will leave you intrigued with the art and approach of the horror genre utilized in various countries Asia. If you can hold your stomach through the first film "Dumplings", you will certainly enjoy one of these stories and won't be disappointed. A disturbingly good movie!!
    8lewiskendell

    Three unique visions of horror.

    Three...Extremes is an anthology of three horror films by three respected Asian directors. 

    "Dumplings" - Directed by Fruit Chan

    In Dumplings, an actress who has entered middle age and begun to lose the attention of her husband to an affair with a younger woman visits Aunt Mei, an old woman who still has the looks of her youth. Aunt Mei has a secret recipe that makes anyone look years younger, but such an unnatural benefit comes from a truly abominable source. I found Dumplings to be absolutely stomach-churning. A horror movie that doesn't even attempt to scare you, but actually tries (and succeeds, in my case) to horrifying you. Not for the squeamish. Even the sound effects eventually became almost more than I could bear. Disturbing and entertaining. - 8/10

    "Cut" - Directed by Chan-wook Park

    A talented director and his wife are taken captive by a murderous, utterly insane movie extra. Cut is darkly comedic, utterly absurd, and far more meta than the other movies in this collection. It took me a while to figure out whether I liked it or not, but by the end of the segment, I was won over. Like Dumplings, Cut isn't frightening in the conventional sense. Instead, it's flat-out zany (in a good way). - 7/10

    "Box" - Directed by Takashi Miike

    The most haunting of the three segments. Box is about a jealousy-fueled tragic accident involving two young sisters. The surviving sibling suffers from suffocating (literally) dreams and disturbing visions of her deceased sibling, even years later as an adult. Box is probably the creepiest of the three, and it has a psycho-sexual aspect to it that makes the whole thing even more unsettling. Definitely more of an atmospheric, "mood" movie than the other two. - 8/10

    I liked all three segments, as well as the movie as a whole. I found Dumplings to be the most effective/entertaining, but I recommend the entire anthology. The three short films are not only memorable and very different from one another, but they're also fairly unique among the other horror movies that I've seen. 

    Overall - 8/10
    9mowskviz

    Wow

    Wow, just went to go see these three shorts last night, which are about 45 mins a piece. I agree that "Cut" was one of the most enjoyable horror experiences I have had since High Tension. Takeshi Miike is probably the biggest name in the Asian horror biz, but I have to say that I miss the style of his earlier work, like Audition and Happiness of the Katakuri's. "Box" was very strange but it leaves little explanation for what has actually occurred, and I wish it delved a little deeper. And oh my! Mr. Fruit Chan, I have never heard of you before last night. "Dumplings" was by far one of the most deranged things I have ever watched. And the sound that was used in this short was was of the most intense, stomach curdling noises that are still sticking with me today. This was a very fun watch, and I am glad I got to see it before it left the theater. My recommendation....don't eat a big meal before you start!!!

    More like this

    Three
    6.1
    Three
    Dumplings
    6.7
    Dumplings
    Thirst
    7.1
    Thirst
    Night Fishing
    6.4
    Night Fishing
    I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK
    6.9
    I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK
    Joint Security Area
    7.7
    Joint Security Area
    Lady Vengeance
    7.5
    Lady Vengeance
    Life Is But a Dream
    6.2
    Life Is But a Dream
    Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
    7.5
    Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
    Gozu
    6.9
    Gozu
    Trio
    4.9
    Trio
    Bitter Sweet Seoul
    6.3
    Bitter Sweet Seoul

    Related interests

    Jeff Goldblum in The Fly (1986)
    Body Horror
    Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Sian Clifford in Fleabag (2016)
    Dark Comedy
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The three films are Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
    • Goofs
      (at around 1h 17 mins) In the segment "Cut," towards the end of the film there is a panning shot looking in through a window. The reflection of one or more persons standing on the outside portion (the side the camera is on) can be seen.
    • Quotes

      Mei: You're rich but I'm free.

    • Alternate versions
      Lions Gate's U.S. version changes the order of the segments. In the original Asian release, the order was "Box"/"Dumplings"/"Cut." The American release has been changed to "Dumplings"/"Cut"/"Box."
    • Connections
      Edited into Dumplings (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      From the Art of Fuga
      Johann Christian Bach (as J.C.Bach)

      Performed by Ariya

      [segment "Cut"]

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ18

    • How long is Three... Extremes?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 20, 2004 (South Korea)
    • Countries of origin
      • Hong Kong
      • Japan
      • South Korea
    • Official site
      • Lions Gate Films (United States)
    • Languages
      • Cantonese
      • Japanese
      • Korean
      • Mandarin
      • English
      • Malay
    • Also known as
      • 3 Extremes
    • Production companies
      • Applause Pictures
      • CJ Entertainment
      • Kadokawa Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $77,532
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $36,414
      • Oct 30, 2005
    • Gross worldwide
      • $516,930
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 2h 5m(125 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.