Zu zhou

A dancer is murdered and suspicion falls on the lucky young woman who replaces her in the troupe the murdered woman worked in. Tensions rise as the young lovely replacement runs afoul of her new coworkers. Eventually she begins having bad dreams and becomes suspicious of her boy friend's sincerity. This is a very slow, tedious movie....too slow for a flick that's supposed to be a thriller. In Asia it's clear that the movie was marketed on the looks of its star, Yuan Tian. But even this young beauty can add little interest to this wanna-be creep show. There is little sex, despite the efforts of commercial interests to suggest it's hot, and even fewer scares. You might end up thinking the Curse of Lola was the fact that you watched it.

This movie is really slow without having enough momentum or weight to it. The premise isn't that original either. It's about the death of a girl in a play when the protagonist that has a traumatic past wanted the role that was given to the other girl but soon the other girl is found dead. Than the lover of those two girls gets mixed in and so on. And the killer is on the lose. But who is it? The thing is despite the ghostly aura when it comes to the cinematography this is a very slow moving movie which is fine but nothing got my attention and it just bored me. I was expecting a erotic thriller or a ghost story but that isn't the case for this movie and goes in a narrow direction. Although it does have hallucinations and nightmare like scenarios. The music and the dream like feel to this movie works though. If had more of the psychological or artistic elements that is incorporated into this flick well it would have been a upgrade. "Black Swan" did a better job. This isn't a bad film and it's watchable at least once since it picks up on the last few minutes but I personally wouldn't see this movie again. This is the first movie I seen with Tian Yuan and not only does she have a pretty face she puts on a good performance. It's a shame she hasn't gotten that many roles cause she is a likable actress to watch on screen.

6/10

Billed and seemingly marketed as a horror film or at least a thriller this story has a young woman taking over for the lead actress in a theater company when the lead actress dies. The woman is prone to nightmares and she is having weird visions while her boyfriend stands by her. A long 90 minutes this is a movie moves at a snails pace. Its all look and little else. Visually haunting the film still has me feeling eerie some hours after watching it even as I am totally at a loss to really know what the plot was. Obtuse is putting it mildly. Even the final sequence which seems to spell things out of place seems to me to play more like a WTF moment then the haunting image that precedes it. Creepy and haunting but not very good.

"Curse of Lola" is a thrilling tale about love, jealousy, and the end that either can drive a person! When I first saw it at Blockbuster, I was surprised it was at the "New Release" section-- usually they just stick Foreign films in a far off castaway corner. This movie is hardly an epic, but it has strong casting and developed characters. Tg is a great leading man in this movie. In the beginning, the plot is slow to build (it happens in a lot of movies, actually-- usually the better ones!) but after it has 'built' it is an mellow-paced movie. You (the audience) know more than most of the characters, but the film makers still hold the key-- they can come out and surprise you whenever they want. That's what makes this movie so great.

The movie builds its strength off the music (which is done beautifully) and the silences. This movie is blissfully quiet, and serene. Sound in a movie is extremely important, to build mood, to build the scene, and in "Curse of Lola" it sets the stage for the audience very well.

If you go into this movie expecting a horror flick, or be scared out of your seat, you will be disappointed. This movie is not face paced, it is steady + deep.

The script and special effects are really well done. The camera at times I thought could have done some different angles, but the vivid colors of the flashback scenes + the preceding music were really well put together.

OVERALL: 9 out of 10 for beautiful music, dancing, and a great cast!

Well, replying to your strange "experiment", I may also tell you that I saw this movie since it has already been released on VCD/DVD. Classic story, this movie is more of interest as another step "forward" in Chinese Cinema, since it has been directed by a young FEMININE newcomer amongst Chinese directors. Another co-production with Hong Kong (it is referenced as a HK-movie, even if the most part of the technical staff, scriptwriters, director and actors are all from Mainland and the movie even has been shot there), this movie takes brand new paths within the Chinese movies. If the subject is a classic one for the Occidental movies, it should be perceived as relatively new within Chinese movie industry and might be a leading form as for a whole bunch of similar products popping up there in the next months. At least, the typical Cinema of the "6th Generation" is eventually overdue for a new form of movies inspired from a worldwide cinema production. It is also a perfect example as of the more comprehensive Chinese Censorship, since murders and even an erotic scene are pictured within the movie - something which was still largely forbidden a few years ago. A whole new bunch of new film directors open the path to a whole new direction of the Chinese movies and with the precious help of the formidable Hong Kong know how you may bet on the "soon-to-come" birth of a very strong Cinema movement from Mainland China. Can't wait for it.