SYNOPSIS:
Nida is a counterfeit DVD vendor, the mother of Ton a boy with severe psychological disorder called Hikkikomori. He has locked himself in his room for the past 5 years not going anywhere or meeting anyone. The only way to communicate with him is through written notes slipped under the door. This mysterious behavior drew a lot of interest and attention from the neighbors. As the mystery seeps closer and closer to Nida, she struggles to find the answer to all occurrences until she finds herself caught in the worst nightmare of her life. Is it actually Ton that is still in the room or something else?
MOVIE REVIEW:
At the height of their popularity, there was one Thai horror movie released in the cinemas here every month or two, but waning audience interest and by extension diminishing box-office returns have since reduced that number significantly. Pakphum Wongjinda’s “Who R U” is one of the lucky few to have had a theatrical release here, and while that fact should inspire confidence that this is better than the average Thai horror, the truth is somewhat less optimistic.
Its story is based on a real-life social disorder known as Hikikomori, or “acute social withdrawal”, where the person withdraws from social life totally, either due to social phobia or social anxiety. Such describes Ton’s circumstance, whom we are told by his mother Nida has not emerged from his room for several years. A producer working for a TV show about the supernatural and the unusual- and a regular at Nida’s counterfeit DVD stall at the night market- is the first to find out about him, though that revelation also ends in his death.
The film spends its first half hour setting up Ton’s possible appearance on the TV show, but that proves to be a red herring after the producer’s untimely death. Instead, Wongjinda introduces us to another character in the next hour, a socially withdrawn girl living in the house opposite the street who is not allowed outside the house because of her allergies. Apparently, the girl also happens to be a childhood friend of Ton’s, and she becomes personally interested in finding out whether the shadow she sees walking around in Ton’s room is really him.
Indeed, that becomes the central mystery and the big reveal of the movie, which thankfully employs a clever twist to deliver some genuine thrills. The rest of the movie however is a not-so exciting wait for this, with Wongjinda resorting to the usual bag of ‘boo’ tricks to elicit some jumps from his audience. These add up to the occasional startle, but Wongjinda is much less successful in maintaining a taut and tense mood right up to the end.
As the aggrieved mother fiercely protective of her son, veteran leading lady Sinjai Plengpanich is frighteningly good at drawing out her audience’s sympathy for her circumstance- so much so that one can even commiserate why she would join an arguably disturbing New Age cult that teaches its followers the power of the mind and the ability to erm, slice a pencil blindfolded using just a piece of paper.
Still, Plengpanich’s performance is not enough to save this film from mediocrity which it languishes in for around two-thirds of its duration. Were it not for a terrifying finish, this would easily be a less than satisfying movie. As it is, “Who R U” is nowhere near the heights of “Phobia” or “Alone”, but it should be enough for an undemanding audience craving for some Thai horror.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
NIL.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 and lacks the proper surround effect for this to be even scarier in parts. Visuals are clear but could do with some sharpening especially during the scenes at night.
MOVIE RATING:
 
DVD
RATING:
Review by Gabriel Chong
Posted on 2 April 2011
|
