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"Box" - the Japan segment- from THREE... EXTREMES (2005).
© Lions Gate Films

Mania Grade: B+
Reviewed Format: Theatrical Release
Rated: R
Stars: Miriam Yeung, Bai Ling, Tony Ka-Fai Leung, Lee Byung-Hun, Won-Hee Lim, Kyoko Hasegawa
Writers: Lilian Lee (“Dumplings”), Park Chan-Wook (“Cut”), Haruko Fukushima (“Box,” story by Bun Saikou)
Directors: Fruit Chan (“Dumplings”), Park Chan-Wook (“Cut”), Miike Takashi (“Box”)
Distributor: Lions Gate Films

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THREE... EXTREMES

There are several odd things about this film one of which is that the "shorts" are actually edited down from three full features. The segment that is arguably the most eye-widening, "Dumplings," curiously comes first in the running order, casting a long shadow over the other two. "Cut," the second segment, has the most action, the most overt violence and the most humor, but a lot of people are still going to be grappling with the whole "I can't believe somebody did that" subject matter of "Dumplings." As for "Box," it is a beautifully made TWILIGHT ZONE-esque piece that has genuine horror but comes off as positively quiet and poetic in view of what has preceded it though it was perhaps chosen to end the trilogy because it has unquestionably the most striking final shot.

In "Dumplings," writer Lilian Lee and director Fruit Chan use the idea of special food as beauty treatment to make the audience squirm. Any horror fan worthy of the designation (and quite a few moviegoers who aren't horror fans, too) has seen multiple variations of cannibalism onscreen, but the filmmakers do something new here. Miriam Yeung combines a certain hauteur, controlled desperation and actual vulnerability as a wealthy woman seeking to look younger and more sexually alluring for her straying husband (Tony Ka-Fai Leung), while Bai Ling is positively bouncy as Aunt Mei, a woman who has enthusiastically found a way to combine two professions, both practiced within her home. The matter-of-fact tone combined with the subject matter is what makes "Dumplings" so indelible.

"Cut," directed and written by Park Chan-wook (OLDBOY), plays like a much more cerebral version of the SAW franchise. A film director (Lee Byung-Hun) who has everything going for him, including a reputation as a genuinely decent human being, finds himself held hostage by a highly disgruntled extra (Won-Hee Lim), who resents everything the director has that the extra doesn't, including his humanity. There's not much the extra can do about wealth and talent, but he's determined to bring the other man down to his monstrous level and goes about it in fiendishly inventive fashion. The script has biting humor as well as some really horrific activity and superb performances by Lee and Lim; the latter shows off some ace dance moves at one point in the proceedings. It is the liveliest and the most morally challenging of the trio, as Park succeeds in making us wonder what we would do in the director's dire straits.

"Box" has a good twist ending, but for the most part, it's a physically gorgeous and very quiet tale of a shy writer (Kyoko Hasegawa) tormented by dreams about a traumatic childhood event. Director Miike Takashi (AUDITION) and writer Haruko Fukushima, working from a story by Bun Saiko, focus on vivid imagery and tone it's creepy but lacks the mind-blowing properties of its predecessors.

THREE... EXTREMES is not so much scary as it is unsettling. If you want jump shocks, go elsewhere, but if you want something different and disturbing, check this out.