Bunshinsaba: Ouija Board (2004)

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

Arriving at a new boarding school, a schoolgirl becomes fed up with the bullying inflicted upon her by a group of classmates and plays with a spirit board hoping for revenge only to unleash the ravenous spirit of a long-dead student upon them and must save them before it's too late.This was an exceptionally enjoyable effort that really has a lot going for it. One of it's best features is the fact that it manages to contain plenty of strong and somewhat chilling ghostly encounters throughout here. From the opening boardgame where they play with the board in the brightly-lit red light where the ghost is released to the numerous scenes of the ghost appearing around the school to the tormentors resulting in not only the fantastic scene of the ghost encouraging the one victim to commit suicide in front of the rest of the school but also getting to see the various flashbacks to the past that show how the original girl was tormented and killed the bullies seeking revenge. That is the rather fun part of this one as the various scenes showing the girl carrying out not only her revenge on the classmates as well as the several flashbacks that feature how the actions of the village affected the outcome of the future and set the curse into motion. With some brutal and enjoyable elements popping up in the finale to exact this retribution, it has a lot to like with the ghost here. Likewise, alongside the fantastic ghost action is the exceptionally chilling atmosphere that's nearly better than the ghost itself. The idea of the boardgame causing the curse itself isn't all too original but the fact that there's plenty of stellar sequences here showing the atmosphere around the classroom which is handled rather nicely. Not only does the events in the film's current time shown to interact with the events of the school-bound ghost legend from the past but the reaction of the students which furthers that connection quite nicely. Even the scenes of her being bullied and tormented by the gang both in their one-on-one confrontations as well as their attempt to kill her in the classroom which is one of the finer scenes in the film as a whole and all ties together to give this one the feeling of the curse coming together with the other storylines. Otherwise, there isn't much else wrong here. Among the few problems to be had here is the fact that the film really makes it quite hard to invest itself in this story based on the languid and unnecessarily slow pacing. Although it makes out the cause of the problem early on and gets in some great ghostly activity in the first half, this one still takes quite a while to reveal it's true purpose with the initial feeling of this one taking the route of a released entity preying on the classmates after their turn with the board-game. It's not until late in the film that the full extent of the ghosts' actions are revealed which is due to the second minor issue here with the film relying more on flashbacks to fulfill the story more than anything. It's sometimes hard to keep track of everything because it's all revealed there rather than mentioned to everyone and then expanding on it in the flashback and the film is slightly disjointed in terms of pacing due to that. Its other flaw is the rather convoluted manner in which it plays out, as it ranges from several possible storylines that could've worked separately without being forced into a singular film so it's a bit of an issue here with this scattershot approach. As these aren't that detrimental, overall the work is quite enjoyable.Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Language.

Bunshinsaba is not a name that will roll off of your tongues. Comes in the wake of other far eastern horror movies, and generally follows similar traits to them. Story surrounds the horrific "suicides" of girls at a school in a Korean village, whilst bringing back memories of dark chapters in the communities past.As is the norm for Korean movies, probably the best in the world at the moment, the film is set in beautiful scenery whilst the direction and acting is surprisingly great also taking in the age of a number of the actors. Really puts to shame the teen horror films from the US.On the other hand, the film's main weaknesses are two fold. The story meanders and doesn't seem coherent, whilst the film also takes too much from others in the genre, e.g. the teenage girl with long hair who is the outsider (e.g. Ringu, Phone), broken families, ghosts, revenge etc... At points it appeared to go for frights above all else, trying to outdo it peers, but really its the storyline that is usually the most important point of the Far Eastern horror films. Regardless, original it really isn't, but its still not bad. I enjoyed it, but I still wouldn't push anyone to go watch it. A good viewing but no classic.

If Ringu and Juon were J-Horror, then I guess this is K-Horror. A high school girl and one of her teachers become possessed by the angry spirits of a mother and daughter killed by villagers 30 years before. The usual Ringu/Juon clichés are put through their paces here. The movie is handsomely produced and stylishly directed, but because this genre is getting so played out, there are few real scares and only a handful of effective scenes. Gorehounds will like the climax. Mainly it's just a case of "been there done that." Worth seeing only if you're a completist on a mission to see anything in the horror genre that Asia produces.

Totally thought this would be a garbage throwaway movie, but was pleasantly surprised. If you like Ringu or Ju-on you will love this movie. The number of times that the people in the theater gasped or shrieked was surprising. The row of young people (was this in Singapore) next to me watched the whole movie through their hands or with the collars of their shirts ready to cover their eyes. Excellent. Creepy and atmospheric, with enough twists to make you follow it to the end. Heathers meets Freddy. Top Notch.