Compared to the many films that are aimed at Western audiences, this film leaves behind a distinct taste of Korean history. Because of this, in particular, it will be a little difficult for a non-Korean (or Korean) to watch The Call of the Grave – there are a lot of “insiders” of the country, both historical and ritual, which we, strangers, will not understand. However, with all this, it is the immersion in the raw Korean culture, the most not refined and not for the West, as it sometimes happens with dramas, that makes this film stand out.
Asians are very good at not making scary stories, but those that are creepy. They do not need screamers and template moves: the whole essence of Asian horror films is that they skillfully juggle their traditional mystical images, minimize the manifestation of the paranormal in an open shot and always leave interest, the desire to understand what it was. But at the same time, their mysticism is part of everyone’s everyday life, a piece of history, a stone of pavement. There are never out of nowhere monsters, they are all somehow blood connected with the living and the earth.
Here it is perfectly shown how mysticism saturated the whole life of a Korean. How they are attached to their traditions, signs, way of life. And how can the desire to escape from their home country affect them? Therefore, in contrast to a wealthy family who went to live in the United States, we are shown two Korean shamans, a geomant and a funeral director. All four are very bright representatives of Korean culture: they are connected with family, land, spirits of their country. They need to figure out where the curse came from and why an old relative of this family is buried on a mountain near the border of North Korea. Behind an unusual, indisputable, but understandable case suddenly hides a much deeper secret, rooted in ancient territorial conflicts between Korea and Japan. And it is the knowledge of their country's past that helps them with this mystery.
I don’t know about the others, but for me it’s a very powerful movie with a clear message – know the history of your family and your land. Honor traditions and ancestors. Even if you are away from your home country, do not cut off contact with it completely. This is not a typical horror movie that took the viewer for a couple of hours, gave out adrenaline and stress, and the next day forgotten. This picture digs much deeper - you never know what really hides under the first layer.
8 out of 10
is one of the most unusual films seen in recent times.
Very cool, well-made and unusual film.
Pros:
- Excellent acting.
- Live characters with their own history, they quickly imbued with sympathy
- Beautiful and unusual rituals
- Everything is mixed in Korean and Buddhist folklore. It is, of course, very different from the European, learn a lot about the magical practices of a completely different culture.
- Multi-layered story. It seems that the trigger of all mystical events is clear from the very beginning, but then new and new details of the puzzle appear, the picture finds a second bottom.
- Horror based on events from Korean history! It's funny, I've never seen this approach to horror before. If I did, it was something much more primitive, like the zombie Nazis.
Beautiful shooting, a clear narrative line divided into chapters.
Cons (in my opinion, minor):
- Not too scary. But this is a common thing, to be honest, did not meet horror, where you can directly pee in fear (if you are not 5). With the creation of a tense atmosphere, the film quite copes, in some places you shudder. I think that's enough.
- It can be difficult to understand if you are not familiar with the history and culture of Korea. At some points I was confused and didn’t quite understand causality. But in the final everything became clear. +, maybe, if the brain strains, this is not bad. I immediately wanted to google something, study something. Unexpected and cool effect from a seemingly entertaining film.
I will recommend it to all my friends. Maybe I’m too kind, but I thought for horror everything was just perfect.
Bonus: For some reason I was always very confused by the phrase “evil Japanese spirit” and the fact that he loves fish. Maybe he should have thrown sushi, and he would have been kinder.
10 out of 10
A family of wealthy Koreans is haunted by a family curse. To get rid of it, specialists in geomancy and spirits remove the coffin of the great-grandfather from the grave and plan to hold a cremation, but the grandfather’s spirit is released and begins to destroy his family.
The genre of the film is horror and I don’t know where to be afraid. It's a scary atmosphere, but just to be scared? I was laughing at times, but I was more bored. However, the eerie atmosphere takes its toll and viewing, despite the boredom, turns into enjoying natural landscapes and eerie grave aesthetics. The authenticity of the attributes of Korean culture is also slightly affected. But quite a few differences in everyday life with the Koreans I noticed not so much that it became a key point in composing the atmosphere of the film.
I was very entertained by the lore of this film with necromancy, Japanese samurai spirit and other oddities with reference to conflicting relations between South Korea and Japan. If this film was made by Europeans, then ordinary French people with Jewish roots would be followed by a revived Hitler. If it was made in Hollywood, an evil Russian would run after World War II veterans. And if it was made in Russia, the victim would be patriots, and the maniac would be a major gay. In general, the conflict is very beaten and strange. From the outside, it may sound interesting, but in fact it is the dumbest thing you could think of. In addition, the story itself is very stupid and meaningless. As far as I understand, this is the convention of the genre.
A small plus are also quite cute main characters with tolerable characters.
If you go to the movies for such films, it is only in pleasant company, otherwise it will be boring.
Asian countries are rightfully considered masters in creating horror, so it is not surprising that the new Korean film “Discovered Grave” (as its name sounds in the original) has become one of the most successful in their homeland. However, contrary to the declared Russian distributor genre, the term "horror" is not quite appropriate here. Of course, in the “Call of the Grave” quite unpleasant scenes, the gloomy expectation of something bad and its embodiment, but in its style, this film is still a mystical thriller, since there is more intriguing in it than frightening.
The construction of the main conflict around the excavation of the grave, and even very ancient, implies that the theme of the film cannot but be a certain relationship between a person and the past, and a person is considered a picture in close and inseparable connection with his family and his history, but not in itself. In such a context, it would be permissible to assume that the capital curse could not be born just like that, therefore, the escape from it could hypothetically be only the payment of once arisen moral debt. But “The Call of the Grave” is not inclined to tell the legend in all details, it does not contain a word about the victims or their descendants, it also does not evaluate the moral character of the damned. Moreover, the desired deliverance is assumed solely by carrying out a certain ritual, and not by reflective and meaningful actions. Thus, the curse in this film is nothing more than a curious fintiflushka, which does not carry much meaning and is necessary only to attract attention.
The image of the curse in The Call of the Grave can be compared to an unpleasant, but not fatal, chronic disease, to get rid of which would be good and even possible, but not necessarily. Normally, the approved model of behavior is to solve the whole problem, to bring the matter to the final point, but the Call of the Grave conveys a slightly different morality. Taking into account the consequences of the actions of the main characters, as well as the fact of the quite prosperous life of a number of cursed representatives of the family before the main events, the tape demonstrates that perhaps the central issue - not life and death at all - was not worth solving at all. Nothing is more permanent than temporary, works – do not touch, do not get in – will kill: all this constitutes the main and very unusual idea of this picture, in which only the proposal to compare the probable benefits and possible risks is truly valuable, which is realizable even in such a mystical business, if you believe several episodes of the film with all sorts of bad forebodings.
Nevertheless, in a sense, the theme of the past in the film is touched upon, or rather, the theme of memories of the past. People are so arranged that unpleasant experiences, events, traumatic accidents they tend to force out of memory, turn the page, start with a clean slate. There is nothing wrong with this, because it is a mechanism of self-preservation, survival, protection of one’s own psyche. However, it is impossible to completely forget the bad: people are somewhat similar to trained animals, every unwanted action of which is punished, and they cease to commit them. The dark pages of history, both of individuals and of entire nations, serve the same educational role, and memories are needed so that they never recur. The events of this film, in large part, acquired such a tragic character due to the reluctance of one of the heroines to remember; the last minutes of the film demonstrate the same pattern of behavior, which, in turn, shows both human nature and that people in a global sense do not change, therefore, will make the same mistakes again and again.
"The Call of the Grave" is distinguished by a rather inventive plot, gradually making the viewer more and more new mysteries, closely related to the culture and history of Korea. Although they are quite interesting, it is difficult to get rid of the feeling of some misunderstanding of the context, which somewhat greases the overall impression. In addition, despite the fact that the film tries to tell where everything came from, when it was born, what power it has, its answers are very superficial, because they do not contain the key and most expected elements: why evil appeared, why it is here, why to make such efforts. Without clarification of these issues, the rest is only a shell of inner emptiness, which leaves a feeling of some dissatisfaction with the picture. This is quite disappointing, since the film is well designed from a stylistic and sound point of view, its purely artistic components are quite capable of thickening the atmosphere to the required level, and its characters are smart enough not to annoy with their actions in most episodes.
I can’t say for sure if I liked the film. On the one hand, it intrigues every minute, competently twists the spiral of history, does not allow pauses and sags. But on the other hand, it doesn’t completely spin it. In addition, the ideas he broadcast are rather ambiguous, causing contradictory feelings. The "Call of the Grave" itself gives the impression of a certain superficiality, despite all its many components. Finally, of course, it was not worth renaming the film (yes, it is a stone in the garden of our distributor) – it is definitely “The Excavated Grave”, not its “Call”.
Two shamans call for the help of a specialist in grave feng shui (geomant) to protect a baby from a wealthy family from hereditary curse. Now they need to dig the grave of the ancestor of this baby. Big mistake!
The law of paired cases - at the box office at the same time there are two Asian horror films with the word "grave" in the title, where the action revolves around burials. But if the Indonesian 'Astral. The night in the grave is frightening with religious beliefs, while the South Korean “Curse of the Grave Call” digs deeper, so to speak. Have you heard of geomants? This is my first time. No, the idea that it is difficult to get a “good plot” in a cemetery is understandable in Russia, but what is a “good plot”? It turns out there's a whole feng shui science. Rest the body in the wrong direction or in the wrong place - and trouble will not turn.
I've already read reviews about how important South Korean history is to the film's plot, that literally everything in this movie - from the figure of a demon from the grave to the numbers on cars - refers to history books. Here I am powerless - my knowledge here is enough only that the border of South and North Korea passes along the 38th parallel, and that the Japanese and Koreans historically have not shared much. It’s like watching The Elusive Avengers and wondering who the reds and whites are. So I just watched this movie as an amazing example of being realistic about ritual. I don’t know how it is in life, but in the world of the film, absolutely everyone sincerely believes in the effectiveness of shamanistic rituals, is ready to pay for work crazy money and look at exhumation and dancing with tambourines with serious stone faces. It’s as if Ghostbusters were a production drama without a smile.
The Koreans are very serious. A baby crying is the angry spirit of a great-grandfather. It is necessary to excavate the grave of the grandfather - it is difficult, here is the estimate as for a corporate event, you need five mole rats with the necessary signs of the zodiac, a national costume, five pig carcasses and only for small things. And no one will think of saying, ‘What kind of blizzard are you carrying?’
But in contrast to the seriousness and severity of the rules - almost our domestic "maybe" when after a bunch of warnings not to open the coffin - the coffin still open (and what if there is a treasure?), after "in the rain do not burn the corpse" - burn: in general, sloppiness is in any country and in any profession. Even if you are a Korean specialist in feng shui.
P.S. I admit, I didn't recognize Choi Min-Sik, the one from Oldboy and I Saw the Devil. Maybe it's the shaved mustache. Or just getting old. Good uncle. Colorful. And for once, his character is kind.
Russian distributors do not feed bread - let me add to some horror movie word from the popular franchise. So breed several pieces a month, the next “spell-paranormal phenomena-astrals” and other rolling evil spirits. And what did not like the original "Unearthed Grave", to which it was possible to choose a synonym, the mind does not understand.
Meanwhile, the Korean box office super hit (collections of $97 million with a budget of 10.5 and the title of the highest-grossing Korean horror in the home box office - broke the record "Train to Busan") turned out to be the strongest mystical thriller with a perfectly completed plot, and horror lovers literally have nothing to fear - a film for the genre of light, not terrible at all and does without cheap Western scarecrows, but the aura and creepy catch up - be healthy! For the direction and script in the answer, the genre specialist Jang Jae-hyun, behind whom “Matchmaker” and “Black Priests”, and it feels that the director knows his business.
The tape from the very beginning without unnecessary sentiment takes into circulation, the director skillfully escalates the tension and creates a proper gloomy and slightly pressing mood of the presence of inevitable evil. The pace of the film is excellent and there is no time to get bored here - everything is in balance, and a tense thriller and strong drama, and the plot here presents more than one surprise - so, after the first hour there is an interesting reversal and the basic, it would seem, branch goes into another, invisibly associated with the main story and heroes. Plus in the picture there are many references and interesting subtexts concerning Korean society (life and death, graves and feng shui, shamans), cultural, religious and historical nuances, and, perhaps, "from the cold" much may seem incomprehensible.
Separately, I will note the hardcore cameraman Lee Mo Ge and the cool work with light and shadows - especially pay attention to the reflections in various mirrors and glass in gloomy scenes - there you can see a lot of interesting things.
The cast here is carved in gold, from mastodon Choi Min Sik and Yoo Hae Jin to the younger generation Kim Guo Eun and Lee Do Hyun – all damn convincing and good individually and perfectly complement the overall ensemble.
In general, it turned out spectacular and tense mystical thriller with a twisted plot, many pitfalls and a chic cast. Strong and cool!
Two funeral home shamans excavated an old grave to retrieve the remains of their great-grandfather and cremate him. But exhumation leads to horrific consequences, awakening demonic evil.
Dark occult Korean horror, filled with supernatural elements. The picture develops slowly, offering a thoughtful immersion in the atmosphere, giving you a sense of the aesthetics of late autumn, emphasized by eerie landscapes.
Initially, the film is based on local superstitions and folklore, but as the plot develops, the film explores step by step the territory between science and myth, between the spiritual and the material. And the closer the story is to the finale, the more hectic and disturbing the spectacle becomes, shrouding the characters in infernal impenetrable chaos.
As a result, it is an exciting and rich horror film about the occult, told through the prism of folklore with references to Korean culture.
8 out of 10
Atypical for Russian rental horror film from Korea with a unique cultural code of the country. As usual, Asian horror films are a new look at the usual horrors and a breath of fresh air in the period of similar paintings.
The main characters travel to the United States to help the family remove the family curse, but everything turns out to be more complicated than they thought at first glance.
The film perfectly reveals the mythological thinking of Koreans of different ages - everyone believes in signs and signs of fate (for example, that you can not cremate a person during the rain - then the soul will not be able to rest in the afterlife).
It is interesting to show the rituals that the characters perform in the course of the plot (and, apparently, most of the rituals are the ordinary funeral routine of Koreans, because all witnesses of the rituals calmly react to it, as if they had already done it a hundred times).
The main characters are four exiles who work together and sometimes do not mind doing a favor for a good check. Two shamans – a girl and a guy – perform rituals together, a feng shui expert helps them from the height of their experience, and the owner of the funeral home – accompanies the heroes and solves business issues.
Among the advantages: excellent camera work, beautiful graphics, juicy visual.
Of the possible disadvantages: the rather acutely felt politicization of the film (the conflict between Japan and Korea runs through the plot with a red thread), a little wisdom with a plot twist.
Ideally, you’ll know the backstory of Korea and Asia in general, but even without it, the film leaves a positive impression. Funny, disturbing and interesting, despite the great timekeeping
Expectations were high. Still, the main South Korean hit, surpassed in fees “Train to Busan”. Here you really crave something mind-blowing, but at the same time quite universal, when the film is understandable not only to the local audience. And what a surprise, when you realize that the "Curse of the "Call of the Grave" on a spectacular scale and not close to comparable with the aforementioned painting by Yong Sang-ho, although more expensive in cost. Moreover, the film is made in a different style and is actually intended for a different target audience. But nevertheless, the tape was waiting for an even more loud success. What is the secret of luck?
To a large extent, it is not in all-encompassing, speaking about the world public, but in a clear focus on the Korean nation, freed from the colonial rule of Japan in 1945. The so-called “Independence Day” is no less important for Korea than for the United States. Therefore, any work of art, even indirectly affecting this event, automatically attracts the attention of Koreans. Especially when the ode to freedom is wrapped in a genre shell.
At the international level, the Call of the Grave does not carry any historical parallels. In the official trailer, we observe a mystical devil and mentally prepare ourselves for the next evil ghosts, deeply offended by the “living” and carrying out terrible revenge. Formally, the movie is really about this, but with a second bottom, which for the Western audience can only be a background, and for the Koreans is fundamentally important. About the significant semantic roots we will say later, but for now we will consider the “Call of the Grave” in the optics of horror.
The creators frighten the audience very slowly, telling a long story about the restless spirit, terrorizing their relatives. Moreover, the cursed family quickly learns the recipe for salvation, from great specialists in taming the devil. We need to dig a coffin with the remains of an evil ancestor and cremate it. And as it turns out, it's easy to say, but hard to do. For the process of exhumation must be accompanied by a shamanic ritual, and the coffin itself must not be opened. Naturally, everything will go wrong, and to such an extent that formally a simple story will receive a complex development with additional semantic layers, and eventually will result in immersion in the national and cultural context.
Is it possible to watch The Call of the Grave simply as an atmospheric horror story, without periodically turning to Yandex or Google in search of explanations of the nuances of Asian mythology and history? Yes, you can. At the level of superficial perception, it is quite obvious where there is good and where there is evil. Plus in the picture there are quite sharp moments of varying degrees of creepiness, which work properly as genre attributes. The plot itself, subject to a normal attitude to a slow pace, is quite fascinating. And the heroes are not soulless mannequins, it is interesting to watch them. But if you’re not a connoisseur of Korea, specifically its period of confrontation with Japan, as well as Korean mystical practices, you will inevitably miss a lot of artistic details. This is the case when soon after viewing you will climb into the network to find reviews of those who are aware of this topic much more than you. And if you really like the movie, you might revisit it from a position of increased erudition. If you do not imbue with the sighted spectacle, then for you “The Call of the Grave” will remain a one-time strong horror film with bizarre rituals and a specific atmosphere.
Asians once again prove that they know a lot about chilling horror. The “Curse of the Grave” was released in South Korea in early 2024 and collected a record-breaking cash register. And then went to conquer the world and became the most successful Korean film of the year.
The Curse of the Grave Call begins with two pairs of unusual specialists. Two young men perform rites and communicate with spirits. And two adult men work with burials and select the ideal land plots.
Young shamans go to their clients in America, where a wealthy Korean family has a very sick baby. Very quickly, experts determine that the firstborn in this family die because of an ancient curse and they need to excavate the grave of his grandfather, calling his descendants to his grave.
So we go to Korea with the heroes. Four specialists take up a profitable business and go to a strange burial - the grandfather was buried on the top of the mountain, there is no name on his tombstone, and relatives insist that the coffin cannot be opened.
Since the “Curse of the Grave Call” is a horror, you can easily predict that events will not develop at all as the heroes planned and the evil spirit of the deceased will break free.
But this film is not as simple as the first half of the story seems. Having dealt with the family curse and overcome the spirit of his grandfather, our heroes will stumble upon even more terrible and dangerous forces.
Residents of South Korea massively went to watch this horror in cinemas not only for the thrill and spectacular picture. The Curse of the Grave Call has a massive historical military context. The sinister events of this story will be involved in the events of the Japanese invasion of Korea, and the history of the division of Korea into South and North.
Moreover, this horror about otherworldly forces will eventually turn out to be an incredibly bright pacifist message.
The heroes of the “Curse of the Grave” literally dig out old wars and conflicts with their warriors, fixated on conquering enemies. And then bury the past, proclaiming the value of today's world.
So if you're familiar with the history of Korea's political and military clashes with its neighbors, you'll see historical references and a vivid metaphor in this tape. And if you don't, it's okay. The Curse of the Grave Call is a fascinating multi-layered horror film anyway.
