Whispering Corridors (All four movies)

Emong

I've now seen all the movies of this wonderful Korean horror franchise. The first one let me down a little but the other parts are just simply great. I'm talking about very famous "Whispering Corridors" (AKA Yeogo Goedam) -movie series, which started the Korean "horror explosion" and has now seeded four elite-class movies: Whispering Corridors (1998), Memento Mori (1999), Wishing Stairs (2003) and The Voice (2005).

The movies are based on creepy ghost horror, twisted and dramatic plot and all-girl schools. The first two parts have also managed to shock Koreans by showing the Korean school system in a such negative way and including this lesbian relationship between school girls. (I think it was a taboo back then in Korea)

Here's some facts and comments on those movies. I've tried to bring up all the important and essential things but because I'm not a professional reviewer those main points are propably missing...

1. Whispering Corridors (1998)

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The original Whispering Corridors was a success in South-Korea and has now become an international hit as one of the most successfull and finest Asian movies. It's said in the trailer that THIS movie started the Asian horror boom but I still think that THAT movie has to be the original The Ring.

The story of Whispering Corridors is not as good as the other parts' of the series. I'm talking about a traditional (And unique back then) ghost story. The movie takes place in a strict all-girl school. I think it's a perfect place for horror. (School are scary places, don't you think?) It's very shocking to see how teachers treat their students by hitting them and even by harassing them sexually. If this is not creepy enough for you, add a tragic incident and gallons of blood. Overall the plot does its job quite well, keeping the viewer on its grip till the end. Some may be moved by the sad ending but (Unfortunately) I wasn't touched.

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The movie is strongly based on interesting characters and their relationships. It sets the viewer exactly on the right side so you can actually feel those characters' emotions. The actresses and writers do quite well on this part.

But I disliked the horror part. The movie doesn't give you any kind of creeps but if you like splatter and gore you might find something from this. I prefer creepiness but unfortunately there's not as much of it as I would have liked. The director manages impressively in horror, even when there's only gore.

But the directing - "Wow!" I have to say! Park Ki-huyng is *very* professional and his directing is awesome and artistic even. Cinematography is beautiful and so are sets and lightning. Despite some screenplay problems, Ki-huyng gets everything out of the movie and its actors.

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The Judgement
Whispering Corridors is a classic no doubt but it I didn't like it that much. The director and actors are awesome but there's some problems with the screenplay and the horror side of the movie. Whispering Corridors is very essential for those who like every kind of horror movies.

2. Memento Mori (1999)

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Very popular Whispering Corridors seeded a sequel quite soon. Memento Mori (AKA Remember the Dead) is obviously much better than the original. As did its prequel, this movie also schocked people but this time by showing a dramatic and beautiful relationship between two school girls. Ofcourse the main idea is still there: A ghost in an all-girl school. There's not very intimate scenes (Besides one passionate kiss) and it's good that there isn't. I think the movie would have suffered if there were. But the censour did an ugly thing when cutting out some very important and interesting scenes seen in the trailer. (Including the bathtub scene)

The screenplay is amazingly wide and deffinately the best of the four movies. The use of flashbacks is great but it can be very confusing if you don't concentrate carefully. The story goes something like this: 17- or 18-year-old all-girl school student Min-ah finds a red-covered diary which has belonged to other two students from the same school, Hyo-shin and Shi-eun. Min-ah soon finds out the secret relationship between those girls. When Hyo-shin is found dead (Apparently she commited suicide), Min-ah starts to see nasty visions and feel the presence of the ghost of Hyo-shin. A brilliant plot gives a great chance for a good movie.

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Characters are just awesome. They're made with a brilliant and careful touch. The actresses are amazing as usual and the characters have the famous "it". Min-ah is a curious and quite ordinary school girl, Shi-eun is a cold sports-type and Hyo-shin is a tender lover. Everything clicks.

Memento Mori is a debut of two talented and young directors. Their directing is careful and artistic. Especially when we're talking about these little details like shaking camera in right places etc. Cinematography fits in the style. The whole movie is shot with a shaky camera and there's a lot of fast cuts. It's just brilliant.

Memento Mori isn't scary. It just simply isn't. There are just a few horror scenes with some easy shocks, bloody gore and creepy hands. Luckily the movie is not supposed to be based on horror but drama instead. But I would have liked to see some more horror.

Another weak part is the soundtrack. It's a little hard to watch the dramatic ending scene when a choir is singing "Jesus Christ" in the background. Or relate to horror when action-like music is played at the same time. There are some problems with the soundtrack but it manages to do averagely.

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The Judgement
Memento Mori is a great and touching movie. The directing is stylish but if you are looking for horror, forget it. But if you happen to like quality-drama and the other movies of the series this is made for you. The story is amazingly unique and free of klichees.

3. Wishing Stairs (2003)

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The popular franchise gets its third part in 2003. Wishing Stairs is absolutely the best movie of the four. (Memento Mori is almost as good) This movie also beats the other Korean horror movies, like the famous movie Phone. Everything is good in Wishing Stairs.

There's everything you need for a horror movie: A black-haired ghost girl, awesome drama, creepy elements, a bloody murder and interesting characters. Here's the synopsis for starters: Along a wooden path to the school dormitory is a stairway with 28 steps. The stairway is called "Wishing Stairs" because it will grant wishes if someone climbs the secret 29th step that appears when someone goes all the way to the top. However, the students who climb the stairs are not aware that the wishes granted return as terrible curses. What you wish for could turn into your worst nightmare. Sounds great but how is this done in the movie?

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The screenplay is elite. The drama part is complicated and dramatic as in the other movies of the same series. The art-based all-girl school is a perfect place for a horror movie. The sets and lighting create a creepy atmosphere so there's no complaints on those. The talented director makes the actresses to do their best and gets everything out of horror. The movie is a beautiful work of part.

The characters of this movie are amazingly well-done. They're deep and interesting. Especially I noticed a mentally unstable and overweight girl Hae-ju who gets bullied whole the time. It's no use to start listing her charasteristics because there's so many of them. But it's very clear that she wants to be beautiful and popular but before all, she wants to be with So-hee. But So-hee has a crush on someone else named Jin-sung. She's a very ambitious ballet dancer who is jealous of So-hee's dancing skills. The movie is strongly centered on her and her very close relationship with So-hee. The bond between the girls is so strong that it doesn't fade even when So-hee commits suicide. (Because of the stairs ofcourse)

Of all the four movies, Wishing Stairs is the scariest. There are a lot of klichees but fortunately it's not a bad thing. (It's hard to use klichees properly) The black-haired ghost plays its part well but we've all seen "the window scene" before (If you've seen this you know what I'm talking about) in many many many other movies. There's also a little bit of gore. To be exact, there's one bloody murder. It's very well done.

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The Judgement
Wishing Stairs is a fine (Five stars) movie which reflects well the elite class of Asian horror. There's also some quality high-school drama so if you like that you should watch this. The movies is stylish and it has all the elements to be a classic.

4. The Voice (2005)

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The last part of the series lowers the quality of the franchise. But you should still watch The Voice cause it's deffinately not bad! The movie resembles Memento Mori because there's so much drama going on. A touching and beautiful story takes place in the world of music and school with some ghosts in it. But what's different in The Voice is that it's mostly seen from the viewpoint of the ghost. It's a little weird but working.

The plot is interesting: Young-eon, a girl who dreams of becoming a singer, dies horribly in front of the elevator with a note paper cutting her throat. When she wakes up she realizes that she's invisible and no one can hear her but her best friend Sun-min. Things get creepy when Young-eon finds out that she's not the only one who has died in the same school.

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The Voice is partly a horror movie, partly a drama. It's a conflict between beauty and fear which is brought up with a tragic lesbian relationship. The ending is quite touching though I didn't manage to cry. (Damn I'm never moved by these beautiful endings) The characters are not as well done as in the other movies but the actresses are great once again.

The horror part is a little too Hollywood-like with all the visual effects and shocks. But luckily the movie is not entirely based on horror. The directing is average but it manages to satisfy the viewer. It's interesting to watch what kind of solutions are made concerning the cinematography. Camera movements are a little unusual but still very brilliant.

The soundtrack is awesome! Singing and music are a pleasure for ears and the effects have a natural feel rather than fake. The Voice has absolutely the best soundtrack of the whole franchise.

[img:e51f742f2b]http://www.beyondhollywood.com/moviepics2/voice12.jpg[/img:e51f742f2b]

The Judgement
The Voice is a beautiful but not that scary movie. The soundtrack is great but the visual part is not so good. Maybe the genre could be "thriller", "mystery" or even "melodrama" but NOT "horror". If you're a fan of the series you should see this. I liked it nevertheless.

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