6) Dorm (Thailand)
This movie is somewhat different than the other horror films in the list. It's not really a horror movie if you want to be specific but more of a drama. Dorm, of Dek hor as it is known in Thailand, tells a story about a young boy who was forced to enter a boarding school by his father after he accidentally found out about his father's dirty little secret. At the school, being an outcast and still upset about being forced to study there, he met a ghost of a young boy, and after initially frighten by him, they eventually became fast friends.
I like the story, which was kind of sad and nostalgic as I think about it now, and the chemistry between the main two young actors. I also like the fact that it's different than the other horror movies that I've seen. It did have a few scare but the main attraction of the story was definitely the relationship and bonding of the two friends. The movie was also critically acclaimed and had received many awards.
This movie is somewhat different than the other horror films in the list. It's not really a horror movie if you want to be specific but more of a drama. Dorm, of Dek hor as it is known in Thailand, tells a story about a young boy who was forced to enter a boarding school by his father after he accidentally found out about his father's dirty little secret. At the school, being an outcast and still upset about being forced to study there, he met a ghost of a young boy, and after initially frighten by him, they eventually became fast friends.
I like the story, which was kind of sad and nostalgic as I think about it now, and the chemistry between the main two young actors. I also like the fact that it's different than the other horror movies that I've seen. It did have a few scare but the main attraction of the story was definitely the relationship and bonding of the two friends. The movie was also critically acclaimed and had received many awards.
7) Pocong 2 (Indonesia)
Pocong, if you are not very familiar with the Asian (or to be more specific Malay) culture, is a type of ghost where the soul of the restless spirit appear in its form of when it was buried, which is wrapped in white cloth with only his / her face that are exposed. While many movies especially from Malaysia and Indonesia featured pocong, Pocong 2 is especially special for me because of the neat story-telling and likeable casts. Plus, pocong scares me a lot, so it's little wonder why this movie makes it into the list. And also why I purposely left out the spooky poster of the movie.
Pocong, if you are not very familiar with the Asian (or to be more specific Malay) culture, is a type of ghost where the soul of the restless spirit appear in its form of when it was buried, which is wrapped in white cloth with only his / her face that are exposed. While many movies especially from Malaysia and Indonesia featured pocong, Pocong 2 is especially special for me because of the neat story-telling and likeable casts. Plus, pocong scares me a lot, so it's little wonder why this movie makes it into the list. And also why I purposely left out the spooky poster of the movie.
8) Phone (South Korea)
If I remembered correctly, this is the first Korean horror movie that I watched. This 2002 movie is about a young journalist who was investigating the disappearance of a teenage girl while at the same time been haunted by an unrest soul. It's an interesting film although there was nothing much about the movie that set it apart from other horror films from Asia. I like the actress that played the main protagonist, Ha Ji-won, and I also love the final scene when the ghost finally revealed herself. The scene was rather unique. Phone is a meaningful movie for me because it is one of the movie that open my eyes to the horror genre of Asian cinemas.
If I remembered correctly, this is the first Korean horror movie that I watched. This 2002 movie is about a young journalist who was investigating the disappearance of a teenage girl while at the same time been haunted by an unrest soul. It's an interesting film although there was nothing much about the movie that set it apart from other horror films from Asia. I like the actress that played the main protagonist, Ha Ji-won, and I also love the final scene when the ghost finally revealed herself. The scene was rather unique. Phone is a meaningful movie for me because it is one of the movie that open my eyes to the horror genre of Asian cinemas.
9) Dark Water (Japan)
Another movie that open my eyes to the horror movies of Asian cinemas was the fantastic Dark Water. This 2002 Japanese drama-horror film was about a struggling wife in the process to divorce her husband, and her daughter who live in an old apartment building that was haunted by a spirit of a little girl. It was constantly raining in the movie and it set the right tone and atmosphere as the theme and plot of the movie deals with abandonment and longing for love. It had one famous scene that another movie in this list tried to copy, and quite a sad ending. Personally, this is one of the best movie that I've watched, horror or not.
10) Re-cycle (Hong Kong / Thailand)
This 2006 horror film by the Pang Brothers and starred Angelica Lee Sin-Jie is rather unique in which it deals less with ghosts and more with 'unwanted' things. Re-cycle tells a story of a young novelist and her journey through an alternate universe in which all 'unwanted' things reside; abandon buildings, aborted fetuses, old Ferris wheel and even characters on paper that were thrown away. It has a cool concept and a great actress as its main cast. The Pang Brothers and Angelica Lee had teamed up before for the horror movie, The Eye, which became a huge success.
So there you have it, some of my favourite horror Asian movies. To be honest, there are still a lot of good movies out there that I didn't list out, which probably were left out of the list because I haven't watch them yet. So if you think I missed some of your favourite, please leave a comment and let me and the rest of the world know. Thank you for reading!
If you missed part 1, please click here to read the post.
Images source from Wikipedia.
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