Time Writer | Xiao Gen looks for more possibilities in life in the movie.
Recently, the first batch of film lists of the Beijing Film Festival was announced.
One of the movies that is sure to become a ticket grabber is the horror film "Broken Tomb" from South Korea.
"Broken Tomb" set off a wave of discussion after its release, and in South Korea, it has been watched by more than 10 million people, beating "The Cry" at the box office.
In Indonesia, the number of moviegoers also exceeded 2 million.
It is very rare for a horror film to achieve such a brilliant success.
So what kind of hit genes does it have?
"Broken Tomb"
Every big hit is worth taking seriously.
Such a work tends to have a compelling story, rich genre elements, solid audiovisual skills, and more importantly, it often fits certain moods or psychology of the masses.
And "Broken Tomb" is no exception.
Phenomenal horror film
Judging from the synopsis of the story alone, "Broken Tomb" is very attractive.
Originally, the film focused on a wealthy American family whose family members often experienced some strange paranormal phenomena.
For peace of mind, they brought in the famous young wizard Hwarin (Kim Go-eun) and the novice wizard Bong-gil (Lee Ji-hui), the former is good at soothing the dead, and the latter is in charge of reciting scriptures.
When the young wizards arrive, they save the newborn baby and see the shadow of their ancestors hanging over the family.
In order to exorcise evil spirits, Hwarin and Bonggil find Feng Shui master Sangdeok (played by Choi Min-sik) and mortuary Yeong-geun (played by Yoo Hae-jin) for help, and decide to move the tomb.
But it was when the tomb was broken that the horror really began to spread......
From this synopsis, you can feel the twists and turns of the plot, and a kind of horror and chill caused by going deeper into the unknown.
The trailer also gives some rituals or scenes with a mysterious atmosphere.
For example, the exorcism of the dancing gods.
For example, Bong-gil's eyes were full of fear and he said something amazing: "You will all die." ”
What is even more chilling is that since the coffin was opened, an even more ferocious evil spirit seems to have escaped from the cemetery.
"Broken Tomb" captures the essence of a horror or thriller film very well: "The unknown is the most terrifying." ”
In terms of horror atmosphere, the film is remarkable, and at the same time, it also involves elements such as feng shui and exorcism.
From the feedback of some netizens who have watched the movie, it can also be found that the foundation of "Broken Tomb" is actually the trauma of war, and the film allows the audience to express national emotions, which seems to be the internal factor why the film can become a hit.
A few days after the film's release, discussions about it also sprung up on the Chinese Internet, especially the design of the characters in the film writing Chinese characters on their faces.
Some controversy aside, this approach does add to the horror.
In fact, in the field of horror films, especially in Asian horror films, such images are also traced.
For example, the 2022 Chinese Taiwanese horror film "Curse", the 1980 Hong Kong horror film "Evil", and the earlier Japanese horror film "Strange Talk", which was born in 1964.
From the detailed design here, you can also get a glimpse of the creative ideas of screenwriter/director Jang Jae-hyun, who watched a lot of movies, deeply cultivated horror films, and absorbed and digested the wisdom of his predecessors, so as to integrate them into his own stories.
Before watching "Broken Tomb", it is necessary to understand his previous work.
Hit maker
Jang Jae-hyun is a very unique filmmaker, he was born in 1981, he has not many works, and there is a commonality, which can be classified as a "religious horror film".
In 2014, he released the horror short film "The 12th Assistant Priest".
The following year, he wrote and directed the feature film "Black Priests", which is an expanded version of the above short film, which gathered powerful actors Kim Yun-seok and Kang Dong-won, and made newcomer actor Park So-dan popular.
"Black Priests" has a clear tribute and reference to "The Exorcist" (1973), the "originator of American horror films".
In the specific exorcism scenes, the film adheres to an attitude of inheritance towards the classics, with priests concentrating on the spirit, reciting scriptures, and confronting evil spirits.
For example, evil spirits can see into the demons of the vice-priest and destroy the confidence of the other party.
From the perspective of the theme of exorcism, the completion of "Black Priests" is quite good, and Jang Jae-hyun has also emerged as a new star in the Korean horror film industry.
In 2017, he participated in the creation of the film "Home in Time" as a screenwriter.
The film is about Mi-hee, a housewife with twists and turns in her life, her husband died mysteriously, her son disappeared for no reason, and after a difficult 25-year prison life, she embarked on her way home.
In the film, only Father Choi believes in Mi-hee and is willing to work with her to investigate the supernatural events in her home.
This story is still a religious perspective on the hidden pain of contemporary families.
In 2019, Jang Jae-hyun launched the movie "Po Suahe", which is more mature and obviously has greater ambitions.
Throughout the film, it seems to be influenced by "Double Pupils".
The film begins with a narration, in which the heroine Lee Jin-hwa (played by Lee Jae-in) was eaten by her twin sister to replenish nutrients when she was in her mother's body.
The main perspective of the film is very interesting, Pastor Park (played by Lee Jung-jae) founded a religious research institute, and he gave lectures everywhere in the name of exposing religious fraud, popularizing common sense, and raising "charity funds".
When he investigates a new religious organization called Deer Park, he discovers that many of the murders are related to it.
Later, with the help of his friends, Pastor Park learned that the "Four Great Generals" believed by the congregation were actually the "Four Heavenly Kings" (the Heavenly King of Holding the Country, the Heavenly King of Tawen, the Heavenly King of Wide Eyes, and the Heavenly King of Growth) that symbolized the east, west, north, and south.
The Four Heavenly Kings, originally evil ghosts in Hindu mythology, were converted to Buddhism after being ignited by the Buddha and became gods who captured evil ghosts.
Therefore, the murderer is the "Four Heavenly Kings", and the instigator behind the scenes is the so-called "Buddha".
This film uses a relatively rigorous drama to tell the story of the real murderer who was brainwashed in the name of religion and sent his followers to kill people to save his life.
The film's peculiarity is that all of its threads are closely related to myths or dogmas in religion, and in the end, some transcendent prophecies are accurately fulfilled, adding a sense of fatalism and horror to the story.
And Jang Jae-hyun's greatness is not only that he has mastered the usual norms of horror films, but also that he can always collide and integrate with other themes on the basis of inheritance, make variations, and give himself unique observations.
Create the book of Revelation
As the first feature film, "Black Priests" reflects Jang Jae-hyun's talent.
Narratively, he presents the story of exorcism from the perspective of the deputy priest.
In terms of villains, he proposed the concept of "twelve evil spirits", which are not as rampant as in regular horror movies, but are afraid of human beings, because of this, people will believe in gods.
In this setting, evil spirits become more hidden, and exorcisms become more superstitious and are criticized a lot.
Jang Jae-hyun uses this treatment to present the awkward position of religion in Korean society.
For example, "Home in Time", this work has an American-style horror shell, and its interior is Korean-style warmth.
In essence, it still enters the contemporary family from the perspective of "religious terror" and presents the plight of housewives.
For example, in "Po Suahe", at the level of genre films, Jang Jae-hyun's attempt is to combine horror films with suspense films, so as to create a religious horror story with suspense and constant reversal.
In addition, he used Pastor Park's identity and demeanor to reflect the phenomena and problems such as the rapid development of new religions in Korean society and the increasing number of illegal and criminal incidents such as fraud.
and then to "Broken Tomb", Jang Jae-hyun integrated feng shui traditions and various rituals into the story, thus creating a new horror situation.
It is worth mentioning that the creation of this work is closely related to his childhood experience.
Growing up in a rural community, he witnessed funerals and heard a lot of folk gossip.
In order to write the story of "Broken Tomb", he did in-depth data research, and worked with undertakers, feng shui masters, and wizards for a year.
At this point, I can't help but want to enjoy this work on the big screen.
Creators like Jang Jae-hyun only focus on a certain field, put in the effort, and continue to explore. It seems that it is only a matter of time before he makes another exceptional hit.
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