We all know that Korean's do absolutely amazing horror films. I could bore you all by listing a load, so I'll only mention Oldboy and I Saw The Devil as being two of the genres finest. But slasher films? I've never heard of a Korean slasher, but luckily for me I love Korean horror and I love slashers. Perfect match? Absolutely! Bloody Reunion managed to create a fantastic slasher that is way more than your bog-standard Friday the 13th. Instead of annoying kids, we get well-drawn out adult characters who we can care for and actually get to like. It's refreshing to see a slasher film with actual characters, instead of the usual cardboard cut outs, as seen in The Cabin in the Woods.
The film opens with intrigue, giving a very quick flash-back to the young teacher giving birth to a deformed child. It's quite sad, if not stereotypical, but don't worry because what unfolds is something that's quite unconventional for the slasher genre. There's a great, if not a little too long, 30 minute sequence with all the ex-pupils coming to see their sweet old teacher. It gives us opportunity to bond with the characters and also to unveil a little more depth to the back-story, as we find out that the teacher isn't quite as rosy as she appears. It just adds to the brilliant character development.
Things do get especially interesting once the killing starts! The whole jovial atmosphere changes as soon as it reaches night-time and you start to feel sympathy for everyone, especially Mrs. Park, and it's where the killer starts to make his move. The kills are brilliantly brutal with a little torture even added in for extra cringe! I found myself curling up into a ball in some parts. Bloody Reunion is certainly true to its name, and it is massively entertaining because of it. However, unlike most slasher films it's not all about the killing, there's a great deep story put in there as well, making the film even more gripping.
The film would be just fine as a detailed slasher film but then it goes one step further and unveils a huge twist that had me scratching my head. You could say that it's unnecessarily confusing and it does make the film seem like a bit of a waste of time, depending on how you look at it. Nevertheless, I did find it incredibly emotional and impactive, and it added yet another intricate web to the story and the characters so I'm unsure as to whether I liked it or not.
My only complaint would be, that I wish the slasher element ran for a little longer. I think the film needed a small dose of fun and I would've enjoyed more thrilling action. It also seemed a little repetitive at times with a character going to the beach and then being taken by the killer, but apart from that Bloody Reunion is a bloody good slasher film! It offers much more than your average American slasher (of course apart from The Cabin in the Woods) and is a film that I'm sure many few people in the horror community know about, which is a shame because Bloody Reunion is, in the words of SuBo, bloody fantastic!
The film opens with intrigue, giving a very quick flash-back to the young teacher giving birth to a deformed child. It's quite sad, if not stereotypical, but don't worry because what unfolds is something that's quite unconventional for the slasher genre. There's a great, if not a little too long, 30 minute sequence with all the ex-pupils coming to see their sweet old teacher. It gives us opportunity to bond with the characters and also to unveil a little more depth to the back-story, as we find out that the teacher isn't quite as rosy as she appears. It just adds to the brilliant character development.
Things do get especially interesting once the killing starts! The whole jovial atmosphere changes as soon as it reaches night-time and you start to feel sympathy for everyone, especially Mrs. Park, and it's where the killer starts to make his move. The kills are brilliantly brutal with a little torture even added in for extra cringe! I found myself curling up into a ball in some parts. Bloody Reunion is certainly true to its name, and it is massively entertaining because of it. However, unlike most slasher films it's not all about the killing, there's a great deep story put in there as well, making the film even more gripping.
The film would be just fine as a detailed slasher film but then it goes one step further and unveils a huge twist that had me scratching my head. You could say that it's unnecessarily confusing and it does make the film seem like a bit of a waste of time, depending on how you look at it. Nevertheless, I did find it incredibly emotional and impactive, and it added yet another intricate web to the story and the characters so I'm unsure as to whether I liked it or not.
My only complaint would be, that I wish the slasher element ran for a little longer. I think the film needed a small dose of fun and I would've enjoyed more thrilling action. It also seemed a little repetitive at times with a character going to the beach and then being taken by the killer, but apart from that Bloody Reunion is a bloody good slasher film! It offers much more than your average American slasher (of course apart from The Cabin in the Woods) and is a film that I'm sure many few people in the horror community know about, which is a shame because Bloody Reunion is, in the words of SuBo, bloody fantastic!