In a Nutshell. Mini reviews of movies old and new. No fuss. No spoilers. And often no sleep.

Monday, 9 March 2015

Suffocation (2005)

aka Zhixi

Suffering from visions of his dead wife, Shen Xiao (Ge You) consults a therapist. The film analyzes his guilt from infidelity and feelings of resentment. While many of the scenes are portrayed as truth, it's pretty obvious they're delusions within Shen's mind. Edited in a very non-linear path as a number of concise yet repetitive chapters, the uninteresting plot quickly degenerates. The minimal score and lack of humor leaves the events completely devoid of joy. Despite being marketed as horror, very little suspense is distilled from the few moments that endeavor to frighten. Apparently this was director Zhang Bingjian's attempt to serve both the artistic and commercial but he fails miserably on both ends.

1½ cello cases out of 5

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