13: Game of Death [DVD]

If you are a fan of horror and you have never seen any horror flics from the orient, then I would definitely recommend that you do as they seem to have a particular talent for it in the east.13: Game of Death hales from Thailand but it easily compares to Japanese sadistic horror (that's a complement by the way).

I must admit I am not really a fan of this particular genre, but we all know the drill sadistic horror means that the lead character is going to be doing disgusting, degrading and immoral things. In this film the instrument for getting the main character to do these things is a game show, of sorts, that requires the contestant to complete 13 tasks to win an awful lot of money.

Several aspects of this film were really weak, such as the whole back story of the game and the relationships that the main character has with the supporting characters.

What is good though is the narrative, it has a good pace and I didn't really feel bored at any point, although at some points, I did look away from the screen, but not because of boredom. There are certain comic aspects that work really well and played with an almost slapstick vibe but still seem to work within context of the film. I also like that this film isn't over gory, but instead relies on the "Jaws affect" to create the gore in your mind, and we all know that that is much more affective than showing the audience what is happening.

13: Game of Death is great at the gross out but I feel a weak back story and character development really let it down, but thankfully the thrill of the narrative brings it back up again. One word of warning, without giving to much away, don't watch this film if you don't want to finish it with a WTF? Feeling because, by the end, I sure as hell didn't know what was going on. Defiantly worth a look if you are a fan of the sadistic horror genre, if your not, this one might be a little too hardcore for you.

This little known Thai film is an absolute must buy. Forget all the same old Japanese horror sagas, this one delivers all round. From the interesting concept, to the no holds barred effects, excellent acting, and superb ending. I challenge you not to feel for the main character, as the tasks set for him get ever more repulsive and impossible to achieve. One of a kind really, though others have tried the theme, this one brings it off in spades. If you have seen 'Series 7- the Contenders', or the Michael Douglas film 'The Game', don't be put off. This takes the idea of 'what would I do for money' and runs off the screen with it. I was recommended this film by a friend and I do the same to you all in Amazon land.

This is one of those films that I missed when it came out, so was rather pleased to have seen it recently. It stars Krissada Sukosol Clapp as Puchit, a salesman who has had a bad three months. His car is repossessed, one of his co-workers nicks one of his clients and his mum keeps on borrowing money, thinking he is a high flyer - oh and his successful girl friend has dumped him too. Then his boss fires him. Just when he thinks it is all hopeless, he gets a call on his mobile. He is offered 10,000 baht to swat the fly that is annoying him.

On completion of that `task' he checks and sure enough the money has gone into his account. They then explain task two, and the rules. There will be thirteen different tasks, each time the amount he earns will increase, until he gets to the final thirteenth one. On completion of that he will get 100million baht. The rules are he has to complete all of the tasks, follow their every instruction and on no accounts is he to allow anyone to find out about the `game' - any breach and it is game over.

As you have guessed the tasks become increasingly nasty and abhorrent. A couple of things to point out, his mobile has a ring tone like a police siren, which acts to ramp up the tension every time it rings; he is also a `half breed' as his abusive father is an American. This means he has often suffered racial abuse and that comes into play too. Parts of this film are truly sickening, but there are some rare comic lighter moments, and you do need them. The acting is great, the music is excellent and the story will have you gripped. There are a couple of plot holes that annoyed me slightly, but to say what they are would be a plot spoiler. There are also one or two too many coincidences, but that aside this is a really great film.

The rights have been bought in America by The Weinstein Company, an offshoot of Miramax, so a remake is planned. As ever I think you should see the original first, there are some cultural clashes that might mean you do not quite get why one `task' is worse than another, but quite frankly as they progress past number 5, they are all pretty bad. If you are a world cinema fan this is one you should definitely see, if you are on the squeamish side though, might be best to avoid, I thoroughly enjoyed it - well most of it anyway.