Cello [DVD] [2005]

The cover of this DVD is very appealing but not so much the film. "Cello" is another entry into the Asian horror genre; the South Korean Cello tries to distance itself from the pack by focusing more on the story than predictable scares. Unfortunately,this only half-works. We are treated to a rich drama involving a former cellist-turned-music instructor, her family, her tragic past and her seemingly slipping sanity, but the scares are almost non-existent.

Mi-Ju is a part-time music professor with a tragic past. When she was younger, she was an up-and-coming cellist, until she was in a car accident with her rival/best friend, Tae-yeon. After Tae-yeon died, Mi-Ju gave up playing the cello and decided just to teach. One day, one of her students threatens her after receiving a bad grade and so begins Mi-Ju's problems. She is sent a mysterious cassette tape that contains a haunting cello duet that dredges up some painful memories of Tae-yeon and almost causes her to get into a car accident. She is distant from her loving family which includes her two daughters, husband and sister-in-law. Her older daughter is mentally disabled and mute, but falls in love with a cello she spies in a window. Mi-Ju buys it for her and begins to teach her how to play it. Meanwhile, a new maid moves into the house. She is creepy as hell and is also mute. It seems as though her family was killed in a car crash and she tried to commit suicide numerous times, once by swallowing acid. No more vocal cords there! Anyways, things start to get creepy slowly but surely...the family's golden lab, Sunny, begins barking all the time until one morning he is found dead. Mi-Ju starts seeing things, her daughter begins playing that haunting song on the cello, the sister-in-law goes crazy after her fiance breaks up with her and "accidents" befall the household

I found this different than most typical Asian horror films. The story is much more rich, with well-developed characters but it doesn't focus much on typical Ju-On or Ringu-type scares. The terror doesn't really begin until the last 20 minutes of the film, giving only glimpses of what or who is terrorizing Mi-Ju and her family. Like most Asian films, it does focus on building tension through the atmosphere. The atmosphere is nicely complemented by the gorgeous cinematography and the soundtrack (heavy on the use of the cello, of course). This is a slow film, but if you can live without the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am speed of most films today, I recommend Cello. Some claim the film is slow and redundant, but unlike most films where repetitiveness is a time-filler, the repeating themes throughout Cello actually stand for something; in this case, the nightmare that Mi-Ju relives over and over through the different tragedies she suffers. This theme also plays flawlessly into the twist ending.

Cello does have its flaws and I wouldn't be so quick to add it to my collection, but it is definitely worth your time if you appreciate this type of cinema.

Hong Mi-ju was a very promising cellist, until her friend and fellow cellist Kim Tae-yeon died in car accident. Mi-ju gave up the chance to be a professional cellist, to teach the cello to students instead. Mi-ju is confronted by an angry student who is upset that she was given a bad grade from Mi-ju, she says that "all the work i've done is for nothing" and vows to get her back for ruining her future. Upset by this encounter, Mi-ju almost gets into an accident on the way home after listening to a tape of a her and Tae-yeon playing the cello together.

Once she arrives at home she is eventually greeted to a rendition of happy birthday to you from her family, her husband Jun-ki, her sister in law Kyeong-ran, and her two young daughters, the elder autistic mute Yoon-jin and her youngest daughter Yoon-hye. The following day whilst walking back from a doctor's appointment, Yoon-jin spots a cello in a shop window and seems mesmerised by it. Once home Mi-ju is suprised to find a woman in her house, it's the new housekeeper Ji-sook who is also a mute and was also involved in a car accident years earlier. Suddenly the dog called Sunny is barking constantly, Mi-ju's family start to act strangely, she starts seeing ghostly figures in the house. People begin to die all around her, is the angry student taking her revenge too far, is the new housekeeper the cause of the bizarre events or could it be her old friend Tae-yeon's ghostly spirit?

It's interesting and reasonably creepy, but it's extremely slow. Not all that much happens in the first hour, the scares are very subtle and well acted. The last 5 minutes of the movie left a bad taste in my mouth, but the 20 minutes or so before that was excellent. The cello music throughout the film was haunting yet beautiful, but it's the only thing that stops certain drawn out scenes from being lackluster and flat. Cinematography is sublime as is the standard with asian horror movies, there's no nudity as usual because these films prefer to tell a story as opposed to exciting teenagers. There's a little bit of gore in the 20 minute period before the last 5 minutes, and some scenes and images that may upset some people. Anyone who can't stomach the sight of dead children or animals should be aware that both appear in this film, but it's not graphic and distasteful.

It's only mildly creepy and a little boring, but it's an interesting film with a good backstory that drew me in and I liked it more and more until the slightly disappionting ending. Woo-cheol Lee made his writing and directing debut with this movie, for a first timer I think he's done a very good job and I wouldnt hesitate to watch another movie of his if he decides to make another.

It isn't as good as The Ring, The Grudge, One Missed Call, Shutter, Pulse, Phone, A Tale Of Two Sisters, The Host or Dark Water, but if you're tired of watching "torture porn" or continueous remakes then this is a very good alternative. As with most Tartan Asia Extreme releases, The picture quality is very good, there's the mini booklet with film notes, trailer and a making of featurette.

The film was a waste of and hour and ahalf of my time.

Whilst the plot began well and made for an interesting film, it took and bizarre sinister turn that ended SO disappointingly. The end really was stupid and film producers should be banned from making films with such an ending that i wont put what it is just incase you do buy it. I recommend you avoid buying the film. I would not pay money for the film, im glad i only rented it.

If you changed the ending, lost the housekeeper and focused more on the obsessed student and made it a thriller around the obsession it could be a good film but the eerie parts of the film had me thinking what the hell is going on.