Followed by its superior sequel, Three…Extremes, this anthology nevertheless highlights what happens when some of the Far East’s best talent gets to work with the horror genre.
Memories: Directed and Written by Kim Jee-woon
From Korea comes the story of a man (Jeong Bo-seok) haunted by the loss of his wife, of which event he seems to have no memory. Meanwhile, his wife (Kim Hye-su) is wondering the streets with no memory of her own. As each of them decline into a world fraying at the edges, they’re brought closer to the truth.
Memories is a smartly presented concept that hides a simple enough entry into the trilogy. In fact, this could well have germinated in Jee-woon’s mind as an idea he’d like to explore, which would explain his later feature, 2003’s A Tale of Two Sisters.
While the concept here is overly simple, Jee-woon shows how a single, drawn-out, shot can set the stage near-instantly. He uses his timing and pacing of the story to keep the edginess of a true horror piece sustained throughout (that edginess which means anything can happen – something inexplicably terrible – at any moment, while watching the most mundane action). There are hosts of full-length and utterly predictable films to prove that this is a rare skill. Besides this, Jeong Bo-seok and Kim Hye-su put in solid performances and this is nothing less than what one can expect from Jee-woon, as one of the leading Korean film-makers today (re: A Bittersweet Life 2005, The Good, the Bad, the Weird 2008).
The Wheel: Directed by Nonzee Nimibutr
From Thailand comes the story of an acting troupe who inherit a set of elaborate puppets after their former owner mysteriously burns to death. Gaan (Suwinit Panjamawat) insists the puppets are cursed, but Master Tong (Pongsanart Vinsiri) intends to use them.
Nonzee Nimibutr conceived the Three project, so it’s a pity that his segment is the weakest. A curious splicing of scenes toward the end might otherwise be regarded as an attempt to obfuscate the fact that this amounts to little more than a story of cursed people dying, without the saving grace of being particularly well directed. The Wheel is made up of erratic visuals and is based on a screenplay that belongs in a mediocre episode of Tales from the Crypt. The sets and cast are adequate, but this segment doesn’t really qualify given the standards of other directors who worked on Three and it’s sequel.
On a side note as to other credits, Nimibutr was attached as Producer to the original Bangkok Dangerous, which, despite sounding like a lesbian propaganda film, is actually a highly talented and recommended offering from the Pang brothers.
Going Home: Directed by Peter Ho-sun Chan
Lastly, from China, comes the story of police officer Wai (Eric Tsang), who has fallen on hard times and moved into a near-derelict building with his young son, who soon goes missing. Wai then discovers that his oddball neighbour, Yu (Leon Lai), is keeping a dead woman in his apartment. Chinese physician Yu explains that the woman is his beloved wife, Hai’er (Eugenia Yuan), who he has been tending for the past three years and that she will soon wake up.
Peter Chan (He ain’t Heavy, He’s my Father 1993, Perhaps Love 2005) puts together a strong and heartfelt story despite the running time. Putting aside a couple of obvious flaws (the son seems to have been told to “act scared” but is far too young and misguided to be anything other than lousy, and cars running over CG people only works in comedies – because it tends to look laughably bad). However, the adult cast are exceptionally good, with Leon Lai and Eugenia Yuan both winning awards for their parts (as did Christopher Doyle’s cinematography).
Chan brilliantly presents a very good script, whose concept walks a hair-fine line between the morbidly macabre and genuinely touching. There is a slight degree of open-endedness, confused mainly by the addition to the story of the spirit of Yu and Hai’er’s aborted child, but this is otherwise one of the more complete entries into the Three series.
Three Summary
The frequent problem with short films that come in at under, say, 45 minutes is that the result either moves along rapidly, throwing out information in fast-forward, or the information is minimal and obscure. In the former case, something like a complete story can be told, but is it really worth it when it’s hurried and hollow? In the latter, somewhat more feeling and atmosphere can be observed, while the conclusion is often downright sudden and unsatisfactory.
Well done then to Peter Chan, whose Going Home is neither hurried nor hollow, and to Kim Jee-woon, whose Memories uses that fractured obscurity and traditional horror elements so well. Nimibutr’s The Wheel had problems endemic to both and none of the strengths, but, as they say, two out of three ain't bad.
Overall, a more-than-worthy watch and purchase, with both original and sequel available to buy as a two-disc box-set.
- Released: 2002 by Applause Pictures, CJ Entertainment, Sahamongkol Film.
- Running Time: 122 mins approx
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