Peek-a-Boo, I do not see you!
Am I the only one who thinks it's rather funny that a movie which's original title sounds a lot like the hide-and-seek term "peekaboo" receives an international title like "The Unseeable"?
Anyway... I haven't seen many horror movies from Thailand, but one that I have seen also just happens to be one of the most astounding, intense, and unforgettable supernatural stories I ever beheld. I'm referring to "Nang Nak", released in 1999, and when I read the writer of that brilliant film is also the same person who directed "The Unseeable", my hopes and expectations were increasing immediately.
"The Unseeable" is similar to "Nang Nak", except a lot less compelling. Both films are probably based on Thai folklore legends and deal with the non-acceptance of the loss of a loved one. They are also both slow-paced and atmospheric, with marvelous usage of the landscape, scenery, and locations. The issue with "The Unseeable" is that it's too slow and uninteresting for too long. Three quarters of the film exist of shots of the lead girl, pregnant at first and then holding a baby, strolls around the endless corridors or garden of the ominous mansion where she stays. Nothing remotely scary or mysterious happens during the first hour, and this nearly kills the film entirely.
The final act is downright sublime, though. Suddenly, there comes a revelation regarding the whereabouts of the lead girl's missing husband, and although this revelation was quite predictable, it kickstarts a non-stop series of other gruesome, disturbing, and genuinely horrific revelations. The last 15-20 minutes is literally shock after shock, and fright after fright. Regrettably, the viewer is half asleep already.
Anyway... I haven't seen many horror movies from Thailand, but one that I have seen also just happens to be one of the most astounding, intense, and unforgettable supernatural stories I ever beheld. I'm referring to "Nang Nak", released in 1999, and when I read the writer of that brilliant film is also the same person who directed "The Unseeable", my hopes and expectations were increasing immediately.
"The Unseeable" is similar to "Nang Nak", except a lot less compelling. Both films are probably based on Thai folklore legends and deal with the non-acceptance of the loss of a loved one. They are also both slow-paced and atmospheric, with marvelous usage of the landscape, scenery, and locations. The issue with "The Unseeable" is that it's too slow and uninteresting for too long. Three quarters of the film exist of shots of the lead girl, pregnant at first and then holding a baby, strolls around the endless corridors or garden of the ominous mansion where she stays. Nothing remotely scary or mysterious happens during the first hour, and this nearly kills the film entirely.
The final act is downright sublime, though. Suddenly, there comes a revelation regarding the whereabouts of the lead girl's missing husband, and although this revelation was quite predictable, it kickstarts a non-stop series of other gruesome, disturbing, and genuinely horrific revelations. The last 15-20 minutes is literally shock after shock, and fright after fright. Regrettably, the viewer is half asleep already.
- Coventry
- Nov 24, 2022