Sum yuen

As much as I enjoy most of the Pang brothers movies, and as much fan as I am of Shu Qi, then this movie sort of left me with an odd taste in my mouth.

Now, don't get me wrong, it is not entirely a bad movie. There were interesting parts to the story, just as there were some questionable parts. The movie was good at building up suspense and keep the audience in the dark, with only hints and pieces of information as to what was going on.

The things that I didn't like in the movie was the whole concept with plants having a sort of sentient mind and being able to communicate with people. It was just too far out there. And also, once you are let in on what is going on in the forest, and see what is causing the phenomena, I just shook my head in disbelieve, as the movie took a severe blow to the worse with that revelation.

But the story itself seems a bit out there as well, especially if this was supposed to take place in a forest in Thailand. Then why were there so many people from Hong Kong milling about there? Wouldn't a remote forest in Thailand be way out of their jurisdiction? Shu Qi and Ekin Cheng did good enough jobs with their given roles, although they were fighting an uphill battle with the script and storyline of this movie.

I had been looking forward to this movie for quite some time, but never actually got around to buying it before 2013. And now having seen it, I am not overly impressed, but glad that I found it at a bargain price on the Amazon marketplace.

The hypnotically beautiful Shu Qi (the main reason I was drawn to this film) plays police detective Ha, who is assigned to a case of rape-and-murder that occurred in a local forest. A lot of people have committed suicide in the same forest lately (some traveling a long distance for that purpose), and the place is considered by many to be haunted. Detective Ha asks for the help of a botanist (Ekin Cheng), who has developed a device that can receive "messages" from plants and trees, drawing him away from his girlfriend (Rain Li), a successful TV reporter who regularly interviews people who have had "near death experiences" in the same forest. The script tries to combine two different main story lines (one involving Shu Qi's investigation and Ekin Cheng's efforts to use the trees as "witnesses", the other involving the suicides and disappearances in the forest and what is causing them), and ultimately comes across a bit muddled. The film has some striking images and riveting scenes, but the resolution is not fully satisfying. Shu Qi's and Ekin Cheng's characters don't have much depth: all we really learn about them is that they are consumed by their jobs and determined to do them right. Rain Li not only gives Shu Qi some serious competition in the looks department, but also creates what is easily the most human and sympathetic character in the film. (**1/2)

In a mysterious forest in Thailand, many suicidal youths disappear and rescue teams can not find the way out even with compass. The ambitious reporter May (Rain Li) is making sensationalist journalism exploring the deaths in the forest. Her boyfriend and botanist Shun Shu-hoi (Ekin Cheng) is developing a means of communication with plants. Meanwhile, Detective C. C. Ha (Qi Shu) is investigating the rape and death of a woman and the main suspect is Patrick Wong (Tsun-wai Chou). Detective Ha contacts Shu- hoi requesting his support trying to communicate with the trees around the area where the woman was murdered. They resolve the case and Shu-hoi becomes famous; when May vanishes in the forest, Shu-hoi and Detective Ha seek her out.

"Sum Yuen" is a deceptive and boring movie of Danny Pang. The terrible and laughable story is so ridiculous and absurd that does not deserve any comment. My advice: do not spend your time and money watching this awful flick. My vote is two.

Title (Brazil): "Natureza do Mal" ("Nature of the Evil")

It's no secret that the Pang Bothers aren't big on script talent, but good lord, this was embarrassing.

A rape/murder takes place in a forest that is infamous as a mecca for suicide. A botanist is researching the ability of plants to communicate with people. His girlfriend is a tabloid TV reporter sensationalizing the ghostly aspects of the forest. A detective, investigating the rape/murder case, believes that plants can act as witnesses so she gets the botanist to bring his equipment to the forest and sets up a re-enactment of the crime where the plants will act as lie detectors.

I'm not kidding.

I'm not necessarily against inadequate stories but the hilarity of this one seemed to infiltrate everything else to the point that it became impossible to take it seriously. The actors didn't seem dedicated to their characters, nothing appeared genuine here. I love the Pangs and think they often make engrossing films, even despite the stories, but this one was just too in-your-face dumb.

...and I don't mean nuclear!! This movie is proof that the Chinese are not the greatest filmmakers by a long shot. A slow convoluted plot--something about trees that have consciousness, are witness to a rape and murder. Man, I didn't know whether to laugh or just curse out RedBox once again for duping me. Doesn't anyone at RedBox actually watch the movies first? What I wound up doing, was conducting my own experiment-- by peeing on a bush, while making abusive comments. Nothing happened for a day or two, then suddenly I got a horrific rash on my johnson. Do plants actually react to trauma? Not sure if the rash was coincidental or not. You be the judge. This movie deserves to be buried in a forest, where it will never be found.