Indie Gems: Thirst

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Bakjwi
 
A priest named Sang-hyeon (Kang-ho Song) volunteers for a study to find a vaccine for a deadly disease. Eventually, he and the other 49 volunteers succumb to the disease, but during a blood transfusion during his final moments, Sang-Hyeon actually rises from the dead, only as a vampire. He keeps that little tidbit of information to himself, but now the rest of the world seems him as a miracle and beg him to pray for their sick ones. He only takes blood from people who want to die, or are near death, but he came help some of the other urges that come with being a vampire, like lust. He starts lusting after a childhood friend's wife, Tae-ju (Ok-bin Kim) who seems to be abused by the family she lives with. Trying to help her may be harder than it seems.
 
I thought the imagery in this film was stunning. It seemed very unconventional, even for a vampire movie. I wouldn't go as far as calling it 'scary' but it definitely had it's disturbing moments of gore.  The film kind of does a 180 during the middle, and it almost feels like you're watching two different movies, but it stays fascinating throughout. I can see why this ended up on so many 'favorite horror films' lists. that I read last October. That's why I chose to check it out.
 
Grade: B-
 
Memorable Quote: "Can you jump from here, or is this too high?" - Tae-ju (Ok-bin Kim) 


Comments

  1. s.January 10, 2014 at 11:52 AM

    Oh, I'm so glad you got to see this one. Tae-ju is one of my favorite characters and Kim's performance was wonderful. I really loved this movie, it was so sensual and atmospheric.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 10, 2014 at 4:22 PM

      She was wonderful, and I loved Tae-ju. She surprised me so much.

      Delete
  2. UnknownJanuary 10, 2014 at 1:34 PM

    Now Hollywood is the modern amount in the word. The most popular movie in Hollywood word is now Bluray and 3D Movie.

    Movie Corner

    ReplyDelete
  3. thevoid99January 10, 2014 at 7:54 PM

    This is easily one of my favorite films by Chan-wook Park as it was a major surprise when I saw it nearly 2 years ago. It was unlike anything I saw and made me realize that if the vampires in this film came across the lame vampires from Twilight, the Twilight kids and steroid-boy would pretty much die instantly which I would have a big smile in my face.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 11, 2014 at 7:35 AM

      It's hard for me not to compare every vampire movie out there with Twilight because it's just sad that it's so popular when there are so many better vamp films out there.

      Delete
  4. JoshJanuary 11, 2014 at 1:32 PM

    I still need to check this one out, but it looks very interesting.

    ReplyDelete

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