Vinyan

An American couple in Thailand discover possible evidence that their young son who died in a tsunami six months earlier is still alive and living in the jungles of Myanmar (Burma). They pay some dubious characters a lot of money to go up river into the forbidden country. Things go from bad to worse.

Many viewers denounce "Vinyan" (2008) because it's not a typical horror film, but that's precisely why it's worthwhile. It's original. It's equal parts haunting, beautiful, strange and creepy. The plot is thin, yet the story maintains your attention.

The acting is excellent all around and you buy these people as real. The five main characters being: Paul and Jeane Bellmer (Rufus Sewell and Emmanuelle Béart), a human trafficker named Thaksin Gao, the captain of the small boat named Sonchaï and the couple's liaison, Kim (Julie Dreyfus).

Memorable parts abound, such as Kim's subtle-but-clear seduction of Paul, the beautiful floating-lanterns at the beach ceremony and the awesome tree fortress.

The meaning of the film is ambiguous, but it provokes thought on several things: The nature of grief (letting go or not letting go), obsession, madness, tribal instincts, going feral and more.

As for the tribe of lost kids in the last act, are they 'vinyan' -- angry, confused spirits who suffered horrible deaths -- or are they simply a pack of kids gone wild in the jungle à la "Lord of the Flies"? I say the evidence points to the latter.

In any case, "Vinyan" has elements of films like "Apocalypse Now," "The Emerald Forest," "Fitzcaraldo" (or "Aguirre") and the aforementioned "Lord of the Flies."

The film runs 1 hour, 36 minutes, and was shot in Thailand.

GRADE: B+

"Vinyan" is the type of movie that just doesn't sit well with everyone or has a certain appeal to just anyone in the audience. I had expectations to this movie, because from what I read on the DVD cover, then I was intrigued.

And then I watched the movie, and that expectation dissipated like mist before the rising morning sun. This movie wasn't anything at all what I had expected it to be.

What works well enough in "Vinyan" is the atmosphere and the building up of suspense. However, it is not really given enough room to bloom into something great, because it is weighed down by the horrible slow pace the movie trots forward in. Plus, the characters in the movie were not really characters with dimensions and personalities that you cared about; they came off a shallow and lifeless drones that were just milling about at the whim of the director.

Visually, then there is a lot of great scenes, especially in the jungle, that are impressive.

However, entertainment-wise, then "Vinyan" fails to fully deliver, at least for my account. I suppose I wasn't in that particular target audience that would find such a movie enjoyable.

In Phuket Island, Thailand, the architect Paul Bellmer (Rufus Sewell) and his wife Jeanne (Emmanuelle Béart) lost their son Joshua in a tsunami six months ago. Jeanne is disturbed and has not accepted the loss of her beloved son. While watching some footages from Myanmar (former Burma), Jeanne is convinced that a boy wearing a Manchester United shirt in a poor village is Joshua, and Paul accepts to seek out their son in the sea gypsies camp. They hire the trafficker Thaksin Gao (Petch Osathanugrah) and they travel in the boat of master Sonchai (Amporn Pankratok) to search Joshua. After a series of weird incidents, Sonchai leaves the trio in an abandoned village. They have to walk through the jungle where they face a journey to hell.

"Vinyan" is a disturbing journey to insanity visibly inspired in "Apocalypse Now" and with the same style of "Antichrist". The slow paced plot is supported by a good screenplay, stylish cinematography that keeps the environment of a nightmare and another outstanding performance of Emmanuelle Béart. I agree that this type of movie is not for everyone, but those that like original psychological horror stories without gore, explosions and special effects, will certainly enjoy "Vinyan". My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Espíritos Condenados" ("Doomed Spirits")

I was in the video store and saw this movie, read the synopsis on the back and thought it'd be pretty good. Nope.

It had such great potential and such a great idea in terms of story, but for some reason the script just never delivered, and the last 30 minutes leaves you wondering: "why after all they went through, did this sh*t happen?" The acting wasn't terrible, and the way it was filmed wasn't bad either, though with this story they could have made things a little bleaker.

If you do want to watch it, make sure you get something else to watch too because you'll be left feeling baffled, unfulfilled and wanting to watch something that wasn't a waste of an hour and a half.

If you like Green Inferno, Death of Me any tropical messed up horror flicks this is good to watch well messed up. Point is if you lost your kid and it's been 6months don't go to the jungle thinking they are there.