original
Chinese title: DU YUAN MEIYING [Poisonous Phantom]
director:
Chen Jing
starring: Li Pei-Xin · Han Jin-You · Zhao Jin-Zhi
The audacity
of director Chen Jing is astonishing. It's perplexing why he even attempted
to make an (admittedly unofficial) adaptation of Takashi Shimizu's legendary
horror film GRUDGE
(JU-ON) within the strict anti-supernatural climate of modern-day
Beijing [the Ministry of Civil Affairs won't allow the original or any
of its sequels to be seen inside the country's boundaries]. So, the result
is a psychological thriller with more emphasis on strained social relationships
than ghostly curses.
The story
deals with Liang Shuo, a young woman suffering from dementia. She is having
trouble sleeping and is on the brink of a breakdown. Shuo decides to visit
a friend named Lu Meng. They haven't seen each other for a long time but
Liang Shuo immediately notices that Meng also seems to be stressed and
is having trouble coping with reality. They renew their lesbian relationship
but soon everything is complicated by a young man who eventually causes
destruction and suicide.
A Chinese
film with Chinese and English subtitles; fullscreen,
(75 min.), DVD encoded for ALL REGION NTSC,
playable on any American machine. Extras include various trailers.
Adult
Material/Violence/Sexual Brutality:
For Mature Audiences
