9-9-81

My fascination with horror and Asian culture eventually brought me to sit down to watch the 2012 Thai horror movie "9-9-81". Now, it should be noted that I didn't know that this was actually an anthology, and had I known, then I might have been hesitant about watch it.

However, writer and director Rapeepimol Chaiyasena definitely managed to put together a collection of short stories in a very great manner. I liked how each segment was in itself a short stand-alone story essentially, but they were all interwoven and connected. And I have to take my hat off for the writer here, because it was done brilliantly.

Now, not all of the stories were equally entertaining or disturbing, as it usually goes with anthologies. But the whole picture that the stories painted when paired together was enjoyable. And the interwoven storylines definitely makes it well worth taking the time to sit down and watch "9-9-81", even if you are not keen on Thai horror movies.

The acting performances in the segments were good. I wasn't familiar with anyone on the cast list, given the fact that I am by no means up to speed with the Thai cinema, as I just casually watch a Thai movie every now and again. But they had a good ensemble of actors and actresses, and they brought the characters and storylines to life nicely on the screen.

"9-9-81" is not an in-your-face type of horror movie with an abundance of scares and edge of the seat moments. So if you enjoy that style, then "9-9-81" is not a movie for you. However, if you want a stylish horror anthology with atmosphere, well-written small stories that connect to one another, then by all means sit down to watch "9-9-81".

I was genuinely entertained by this anthology, and it is something I can warmly recommend if you enjoy Asian horror.

My rating of "9-9-81" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Personally, I thought it was gonna be great because the stereotype is that Thai horror films usually don't fail to impress. This one did unfortunately.

While the story arcs from different points of view were interesting, it failed to build any suspense and it leaves the audience in the air about it's direction. The visuals and premise were great to work with unfortunately the plot was not richly illustrated.

It also feels like it's ripping off another film made in Thailand like The Shutter. I could tell the writers really tried with this film to make it look multi-layered but it just disappoints in the end.

Overall, yes it was a let-down. But if you'd like to give it a shot, go ahead I guess... a decent movie date night maybe? :S

For this to be a low budget film it was pretty good. You have low budget issues such as, mediocre acting, scenes that should've had better settings and the plot could've used some work. I want to give credit where credit is due and even with my few complaints I still liked what they were trying to accomplish. The make-up effects were not cheesy and even though they needing a bit of polishing up, the actors were trying their hardest to make this a decent movie and I could tell that. It is creepy rather than scary but the atmosphere was really adding to the effect. This is not a top movie but it is a really good B-movie nonetheless. I would encourage people to give it a chance. It is a film that has some effort put into it.