The Silenced (2015)

I didn't quite know what to expect when I watched this film. I tried to find out about it without revealing keep key plot points and had the feeling it was something along horror baseline but nothing supernatural, so I decided to give it a go. It was on Netflix but it did not advise until I looked on here that it was in Japanese with English subtitles but I'm happy to give that a go as long as the film is good. Within 5–10 minutes of the film starting, I'd forgotten I was watching it with subtitles so please don't let that rubbish you from watching this film.The story line was good, the acting was good and it had me gripped right up until the last 20 minutes or so. At that point I realized where the story was going I was a little disappointed with the ending as I thought it was going to be something different. It felt a bit like they weren't quite sure where they were going with the story and it felt like a lot of things weren't cleared up which for me, is something I like in a film. I like a definite ending without the ambiguity that leaves you wondering what went on and leaves you scouring Google to work out what happened. So for me the ending of this film wasn't great.That being said everything up until the last 20 minutes was really good and very captivating, I really enjoyed structure, the scenery, the setting and backdrop of the film and the skill of the actors. It's just a shame that towards the end, all of the suspense and story they had built in the film seemed to be crammed into messy, unbelievable ending that crescendoed as quickly as it started.I would say it's worth a go but maybe go into this with an open mind about the ending because to me, it's not the sort of ending I would look for in a well structured horror film.

I only watched this movie because I thought it was going to be a horror movie. But it isn't at all. Now, I already saw a lot of good Korean movies but this one is not one of them. It's too slow and there is not much going on. I wouldn't call it mysterious neither. I know the language should not be a criteria but Korean is just not a pleasant language to listen to. Well at least not to me, so if the movie is not excellent than I just get bored. The actors are almost all teenage girls, all dressed the same, with the same long haircut. It doesn't make it easier to recognize each one at once certainly not if you have to read the subtitles. The story itself isn't great either with a predictable ending. Disappointed by this Korean movie.

Nothing really grabbed my attention from the trailers to make me want to watch this flick. However the poster for this film at least seemed promising so I decided to check it out. I will say, this movie is a big disappointment. Now the mystery is what kept me at least slightly interested because I wanted to know what was going on. After the revelation, I just wanted this movie to end as soon as possible. There is almost no suspense in this movie and the direction just got lamer and lamer. The beginning few minutes seemed like it would be a interesting set up with potential, but it started to go downhill from there. So the story is about a girl entering a boarding school during the Japanese occupation of Korea. So there was room for interesting or at least suspenseful and impactful stuff to happen. But it falters in that department. The development was just so poorly executed. And the editing and build-up is just weird and I don't mean that in a good way either. I was never a fan of Bo-yeong Park, she is probably a good girl. But she just doesn't stand out as an actress. I guess she sort of worked in this movie, because I guess the director wanted a girl that can play a super feeble and dislikable girl. You know those characters that doesn't really do anything wrong, but you dislike them anyways. Yeah, that sounds mean, but that is the character she plays in this. This movie is a waste of time and I regret sitting through this.3.5/10

The Silenced or it's Korean title translated Gyeongseong High School : The Disappearance of the Girls made me dive into the story right from the start. The story, i believe took place sometime during the Japan colonization in Korea. And the mysterious disappearance of the girls happened in this boarding school.Joo Ran (Park Bo Young) as the centre point in this whole story shoulders her own weight. I couldn't help but sympathize her for the treatment she received.A mysterious incident took place one by one and it makes me wonder what's the deal with this shady boarding school who only has a very few students and was built way too deep into the forest. It's easy to lay suspicion as to whom is the one behind the disappearance but the real question is why this has to happened.I'm just a little bit disappointing near the ends because i was expecting some historical reference to be the reason of the disappearance but surely the story take it's own twist. I've watched too many movies, I started developing an expectation on a certain pattern that a movie with this genre should have.Not really the ending that I want but it's worthwhile for anyone who loves mystery/thriller/crime movies. Happy watching.Sorry for this kinda crappy review. I haven't written in a while.