Scary Movie You May Have Missed: Sigaw (The Echo)

Sigaw is an Asian ghost movie, that I’m sure all zombie games lovers will enjoy. I know what you’re possibly thinking: Not another one! — but this one isn’t from Japan, Korea or Thailand, it’s a Filipino film. The story revolves around an old apartment building that exists both in the present and the past.

When Marvin moves into his first home away from home, he does his best to fix the grim little place up with the help of his buxom girlfriend, Pinky. At first, things look to be going well despite the strange noises and the even stranger neighbors also residing on the 7th floor.

At night he hears his drunken neighbor, Bert, physically and verbally abusing his wife Anna, and their young daughter Lara, but Marvin doesn’t want to get involved — not only is Bert  very violent, but he’s a cop. However, Marvin can’t help but get involved when one evening Anna begs him to look after her daughter for a few hours, just until Bert cools down. The fact that Lara has dark, long hair ought to be clue enough. But what really sends Marvin to flip-out is how she keeps disappearing and then reappearing in the strangest places. A limp rag doll is her constant companion.

Marvin shares his concerns with Pinky, who convinces him to move out. But this is the first place he owned, one that he bought with his own money working at a nearby restaurant, and he isn’t about to be so easily convinced to just pick up and leave. Pretty soon, Pinky starts having her own nightmarish experiences in the building too. Both can’t deny that something is terribly wrong when the bloody apparitions of Anna and Lara show up in places other than Marvin’s apartment; the couple’s everyday life seems to fade in and out of reality and they vow to set things right.

Sigaw, despite its oppressive use of dreary sepia browns and drab olive greens, is a beautifully shot film with some clever use of negative space and truly interesting camera angles. The moody musical score adds to the feelings of impending danger, and the ambience of crying, knocking and clanking are cunningly woven in to create a creepy cloak of sound. Each of the actors delivers a believable job of conveying a real sense of dread. While some questions are left hanging and the solving of the mystery comes as no surprise, the writer and director does a nice job of making the audience care on what could possibly happen to the characters anyway.

Slowly drowning in a netherworld of loneliness and torment, Sigaw is definitely not a feel-good horror movie. It’s not even exceptionally scary or thought-provoking, but there is something inexplicably compelling about it. While it spends too much time on the build-up and not enough on the resolution, Sigaw is undeniably worth seeing.

Scary Movie You May Have Missed: Darkness

Forty years have passed after cult-like ritual killings occur in a rural area in Spain, Mark and his family move into a house close to his doctor father. As various bizarre events occur, resulting in the hospitalization of Mark and leaving his son Paul all bruised, it is up to Mark’s daughter Regina and her friend Carlos to solve the mystery behind the strange occurrence that surround the family house.
As much as Darkness is a sort of Pitch Black in a haunted house, it still manages to be unexpectedly entertaining. Even with the stereotypical clairvoyant little child role, it still looks pretty original. This is apparently a “scary movie”, so where are the scares? The elements are present. The performances and the story are pretty solid, the creepy gags work quite well but there just aren’t enough frights. It is all nail-biting suspense with no out-of-the-blue-jump-out-of-your-seat moment. There was at least one loud KABOOM and it was simply an “I didn’t mean to scare you” kind of a horror scare. The ending is quite clever, but it also too obvious to really be the last scream before credits ending. Rather it only raises an eyebrow at best.

I give credit where it’s due, the movie stuck to its ideas. The mood and atmosphere is befittingly dark. It’s just the right kind of darkness that works; there are many movies where all the lights are off in the house but everything inside is conveniently moonlit. Darkness really has great darkness.
Anna Paquin does a pretty good job as this movie’s scream queen. Some familiar faces make up the rest of the cast. Giancarlo Gianinni plays Dr. Rua, grandfather of “Regina” and “Paul” and Iain Glen is the troubled son of Dr. Rua. Although everybody here fits, I just find it strange that while it takes place in Spain, everyone speaks in English and all the accents sound Italian.

The cast does a decent enough job, the story is strong and the suspense is there but this “scary movie” just isn’t scary enough. Darkness may be worth a rent this coming weekend, but make sure to turn the volume up… maybe then you’ll really get scared.

Movie Review: Paranormal Activity 2

As a horror movie fan, I couldn’t help resist what Paranormal Activity had to offer.  But I was rather disappointed and I was really bored and dozing off half way of the film. I swore to myself that if ever there’s a sequel, I’m sure to be the last person to see that movie. But after watching the trailer of Paranormal Activity 2, I suddenly had a change of heart and felt like giving it a chance.

This is actually a prequel

First would be the plot. This is actually a prequel to the first film as it takes place two months before the events of the first movie. Katie’s sister, Kristi, and her family are the ones involved. The story begins with their family setting up security cameras around their house after experiencing what they thought was a series of break-ins, only to realize that the events unfolding before them are more dangerous than they seem. Weird things start to happen even during day and a lot more during the night. Through the surveillance videos, they find out that they’re being haunted by an evil presence that has come for their baby. It wasn’t explained if the evil in this film has something to do with that in the first movie. However, it is implied that Kristi and Katie’s mother is to blame for drawing the attention of the demons that haunt them.

As for the acting, it’s actually a bit of a step above the first movie. Not that the acting in the first one was really bad or anything, it’s just that the acting in this movie is way much better because it really does feel like the characters are actually conversing. In the first movie, there were times that the actors were like reading off a script, but here they sound pretty natural throughout the entire film.

Events happen largely as they did in Paranormal Activity, with the same development from small scares to the jump-out-of-your-seat big ones. The effects were really good especially the scene where Kristi got dragged down the stairs. That was really the most terrifying scene as it was very intense.

Paranormal Activity was a big hit only because it offered audiences something that is different from the customary horror film. Paranormal Activity 2, however, is just the same as any other unexceptional sequel but is still worth the watch on a Friday night.

My Scary Wash Room Experience

Way back 2005, I worked as a marketing assistant for a steel manufacturing company. The building was a bit old and I’ve heard a lot of ghost stories from my co-workers. A lady in white has been said to be haunting the 7^th floor where our office was located. I really didn’t believe in ghosts so I simply ignored their stories.

 

 

It was my fifth day on the job. It was almost 5pm when I felt the need to go to the men’s room. It was big and it had 6 cubicles. I went to the sixth cubicle. I was about to close the door, when I heard a flush apparently coming from the first cubicle. It was really creepy because I didn’t notice anyone inside when I got there. Besides, if someone has entered right after me, I should have heard the door open because it was very heavy.

 

 

Anyone inside?

I was really scared but out of curiosity, I still went out to check if there was really someone with me inside the men’s room. I checked the cubicles. I was at the third cubicle when I heard the door of the first cubicle unlock. I was waiting for someone to get out. I was hoping that someone will. Seconds passed by but no one came out. I was shaking out of fear but I mustered the courage and walked slowly towards the first cubicle. I pushed the door open but no one was inside. That got me really freaked out. I wanted to run or maybe even scream but I couldn’t.

 

The Great Escape

My body won’t move an inch. It seemed like forever when suddenly, I heard footsteps coming from behind me. I closed my eyes and prayed. Finally, I was able to move and I ran as fast as I could. I went back to the working area and acted as if nothing has happened but my officemates noticed that I was shaking and I looked really scared. I told them what happened and they informed me that I wasn’t the first to experience that inside the 7^th floor men’s room. After that incident, I never went to that men’s room again. Even the guy in charge of cleaning was scared every time he went to the 7^th floor. He said that he could feel someone with him even when he’s alone.

 

 

It took me another week before I decided to quit the job. No one knew the reason behind all the haunting.  As for me, I actually didn’t care. All I know is, I wouldn’t want to go back there ever!

3 Movies That Made Me Leave the Lights On at Night

Terrifying movies are the ones that challenge your guts and force you to scream even when you have tightly held your lips not to scream. Ever thought what the most horrendous thing would happen to you? Yes? Then my list of movies is definitely for you. Even if you don’t spend your time whipping up macabre thoughts like I do, perhaps these movies could simply be a vehicle of entertainment for you. In either case, I’ve put together 3 terrifying films for you to watch at your leisure. From zombies, ghosts to ghouls, there are thousands more out there just waiting to be explored.

The Exorcist (1973)

The Exorcist is definitely one of the scariest movies of all time, but if you have a strong stomach and heart, you might not find it to be as horrifying as die-hard fans make it out to be. The exorcism in this film is for little Regan. At first, she complains of her bed shaking at night and eventually she turns into a terrifying little thing with little regard for things like priests and crucifixes. The conclusion? Don’t play with Ouija Boards. Also, she has bad party manners. LOL! Kidding aside, The Exorcist is petrifying in a way that only old school films are, quietly giving you goose bumps and a sense of disquiet.

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

I think It’s safe to say that everybody knows about The Blair Witch Project (TBWP), and many of its fanatics call it “scarier than The Exorcist”. The movie is very basic. It was shot using a handheld camera, mostly by the three characters in the film and has a pace that picks up feverishly and climaxes to an eerie ending. TBWP has its share of terrifying moments as three people camping out in the deep woods, day and night, would come up with pockets of horror. The fact that the film was being acclaimed as a true story also added to its grisly charm.

Gin Gwai (The Eye) (2002)

Gin Gwai is so chilling you might just have sleepless nights after watching it. The story revolves around Wong Kar Mun, who was blind since she was two and eventually gets a cornea transplant. Mun soon apprehends that she can see more than just what is around her in the perceptible world; she can also see ghost, which follow her to calligraphy classes, tea shops and even the elevator. Imagine being in an elevator with a decaying ghost! Hollywood has made an adaptation of Gin Gwai starring Jessica Alba but unfortunately, it isn’t even half as terrifying as the original.