Chain: Rensa jusatsu (2006) User Reviews

A Chain Of Cursed Murders

[a_baron · 2/10 · 20 May 2014]

Is this a ghost story, a psychological thriller, neither or both? Certainly it is weird, and a tad unpleasant, unless you have a thing about seeing attractive young girls murdered senselessly by an ectoplasmic villain. Films of this nature are not unique to the Japanese cinema, but they certainly make a habit of grotesque for grotesque sake in the Land of the Rising Sun.

There is plenty of blood herein, and a plot of sorts, but it remains to be seen if it resolves to anything. The acting is also somewhat unrealistic, and one would have expected to have seen at least one policeman with such a high body count. In lieu of that there was a woman who appeared to be a psychiatric nurse; certainly the director needs one.

Slightly off the beaten path

[Roddenhyzer · 6/10 · 6 March 2011]

I think I should mention right away that I am not a huge fan of contemporary Asian horror. Yes, the movies usually do excel at creating very strong, haunting atmosphere, but from what I've seen so far, they are also extremely keen on blunt plot recycling. From my (admittedly limited) experience with this semi-genre, it feels like every other flick revolves around some kind of curse involving either a young woman, a child, or both, seeking revenge from beyond the grave, and this has simply gotten very, very old for me. It's reached a point where they all just blend together with their nearly identical themes, story lines, and even imagery and pacing.

Well, along comes "Chain" with its highly conventional premise that lead me to expect nothing but yet another Japanese curse movie. The first 20 minutes or so even reinforce this impression, as we see several school girls die gruesome deaths after having received (and neglected to forward) a threatening chain mail. As things move on, however, the movie deviates more and more from purebred horror to somewhat bizarre, darkly humorous satire. The girls' teacher turns out to be a crooked sex fiend, all characters have comically fetishistic obsessions with their cell phones, the death scenes become increasingly over-the-top, and the final conclusion is a complete farce and a death blow to all expectations. None of this helps making this supposed horror movie any *scarier*, of course, but it certainly does make it a very welcome, refreshing change of pace. I was genuinely having fun at times.

Now, on to the critique. The dialogue is abysmally stupid for the most part. I cannot tell whether this was mere incompetence, or a deliberate attempt by the writer to encapsulate the shallowness and naiveté of the school girl protagonists, but in either case, it's rather annoying and makes it very difficult for me to care about any of the characters. Again, this detaching effect may have very well been intentional, but it doesn't make for pleasant viewing regardless. I also thought that the movie's low production values, while not a hindrance for the most part, resulted in quite a few very cheap-looking shots and sequences.

In closing, I would recommend this one to both, fans of Asian horror and those who've grown a bit weary of its conventions, provided that they can handle a humorous slant. This is a hesitant recommendation, however, because even with its refreshingly funny overtones, the movie is still flawed in many regards, and those who are in for serious scares may perceive it as a bait&switch.