Chawu

So the title of this movie is...? The Korean title is "Chawu", but the DVD movie I got from Amazon is titled "Chaw", but the one shown on the cover on IMDb is titled "Chawz".

For a black comedy, then "Chaw" had surprisingly few laughs. There were some here and there, but they were far in between. But that is quite alright, because the movie is quite entertaining and doesn't necessarily rely on the comedy to carry it along.

The story is about a police officer from Seoul who end up in a small rural village, where life is supposed to be quiet and uneventful. But the small idyllic village is terrorized by a marauding boar of gargantuan proportions.

"Chaw" is fun and entertaining, as it has some interesting characters and good dialogue, plus the effects in the movie were actually quite good. Don't expect Hollywood blockbuster effects - but they get the job done, and they do so nicely.

"Chaw" is not groundbreaking in any way, and it is unlikely to make a lasting impression, but still, it is well worth a watch and does provide good entertainment. A good Korean movie in the likes of "Razorback". Hardly worthy of a place alongside "The Host" (the Korean monster movie, not the Meyer's pseudo-teenage Sci-Fi), but still fun enough.

I don't understand why funny, dumb, and unattractive always come as a package in movies. Pretty people can be funny ... and dumb too. But anyway ... this little film is an entertaining ride. It's got funny, dumb, and unattractive people in it along with a giant pig that likes to dine on human beings. It's not a horror movie at all, except in concept. It's a comedy and it is quintessentially Korean. It's cast very well and everyone in it is earnest in their portrayal of absurdities. The cops are macho bumbling idiots, and people, and the pig, fall down a lot. As with most every South Korean film the production values are great but don't go in expecting a lot of good monsterness. The film is more about the people and the community than it is about the boar. The creature alternates between a couple guys in a furry jumpsuit and medium grade CGI but it gets the job done and doesn't look cheap. Chaw doesn't take itself seriously and if you don't, you will enjoy it. It's funny and entertaining.

CHAW is a South Korean monster movie that attempts to ride the wave of popularity that followed the similarly-themed THE HOST; while it can't hope to hold a candle to that outstanding film, it proves to be an entertaining enough comic yarn that offers more genuine laughs than most. It occupies a specific niche of Asian movies whose quirkiness alone is enough to give them instant cult appeal.

The story is a simple enough effort about a giant wild boar terrorising a rural community. There's all the usual hypocrisy amongst the police officers and detectives responsible for the village's safety, along with an outsider hero through whose eyes we witness the proceedings. The plot isn't dissimilar to the Aussie flick RAZORBACK, with various oddballs joining together to beard the beast in its lair – although, of course, it doesn't go entirely to plan.

Monster flicks like this live or die on the strength of their titular menace, and Chaw himself is a good 'un; a very well animated (with a mix of animatronics and CGI, it seems to me) and truly gigantic creature who chews on his victims in a series of grisly death scenes. The action follows the usual template, building up to big attacks and the final search-and-destroy mission, and it's all handled with relative aplomb.

The film goes for the humorous note throughout and it works; there's enough meat on the bones of the story to make it an enjoyable outing, even for those who've watched a dozen similar films. The acting is typically strong from the Korean performers, and director Shin Jeong-won clearly knows what he's doing.

Okay so the plot is basically about a huge over-sized boar that is terrorizing and killing the people in the country size, and it has some Korean humor thrown in as well. This is one of those movies that should not be taken seriously and just accept the things that happen in order to enjoy it, the characters in this also act very awkward in certain situations that adds to the humor. As monster movies go this isn't a great movie, but the characters are developed for the most part with there own motives and the slapstick humor actually worked well in this. The special effects are not that good but passable for a B-movie. The character interaction and having more to do with the community than the actual monster itself was a nice change of pace, because for this movie it works without showing too much monster action. Sure there are plenty of better monster movies out there, but this is still worth a look.

6/10

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It was what I expected which is kind of a Jaws on land movie but what made it so much more is the black comedy through out the entire movie. I also enjoyed the crazy witch doctor lady and crazy mom quite a bit.

The giant boar was also excellent.