Feng Shui (2004) Movie Review
Written By: JR
Edited By: Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: Chito Roño
Producer: Tess Fuentes, Charo Santos-Concio et al.
Screenwriter: Roy Iglesias
Date Released: September 15, 2004
Cast:
Kris Aquino as Joy Ramirez
Jay Manalo as Inton Ramirez
Lotlot De Leon as Alice
Ilonah Jean as Thelma
John Manalo as Denton Ramirez
Julianne Gomez as Ingrid Ramirez
Ernesto Sto. Tomas as Billy
Cherry Pie Picache as Lily Mendoza
Nonie Buencamino as Louie
Rating = 1.5/5 Graves
***May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
While taking the bus ride home, Joy (Kris Aquino) picks up a package left by one of the passengers. She uncovers it and finds a Bagua mirror which is believed to cause good luck. In the next few days, instant blessings come her way such as promotions, high sales, and raffle wins. She then notices that those who caught a reflection of themselves in the mirror start to die one by one, according to their Zodiac sign, every time she receives a blessing. Afraid that her family will encounter the same fate, she pursues the secrets behind the Bagua to put a stop to the deaths.
Gore Factor
Feng Shui (2004) is known for its unique death scenes, having entertained the concept of Chinese Zodiac. Every death has an associated animal that corresponds to the Zodiac of the person. Whether it is crashing to a poultry truck, falling to bottles of beer called Red Horse, being bitten by a snake, or just plain leptospirosis, it gets creative that you would start betting on the next cause of death. Besides the fancy manner of obliteration, it ends up cheap and hilarious.
The Grave Review
Feng Shui (2004) has, pretty much, endorsed some elements of classic Asian Horror. There are vengeful ghosts trying to finish their businesses. There’s a cursed object, the Bagua mirror in particular, that pushes past tales to the present. More than that, it combines horror with family drama, featuring cultures that are familiar to the Asian crowd. It amounts to a homage of Filipino ties with the Chinese belief system.
Speaking of which, the Zodiac concept and the foot-bound ghost could have been its ace card. These takes are undeniably new to the horror archive. It’s quite exciting to know for yourself how these concepts are used in the film. However, when everything is finally revealed, you would realize that it would have been better to have taken a peek instead. There is a lot of originality and imagination being displayed, but it slowly crosses into the realm of the ridiculous.
I’m not quite sure if the dialogue hampers with the acting or is it the other way around. All I know is that it is refreshing to see Kris Aquino, deemed as the ‘Queen of Filipino Horror,’ being less of herself and more of the character she is portraying. There is less of her screaming and more of controlled acting. Feng Shui (2004) could have been her awaited redemption, however, it just got riddled with artificial dialogue. The script sounds like a play in a classroom setting, making the characters stiff and unnatural.
Zooming out to see the bigger picture, Feng Shui (2004) is a good horror flick but it is a terrible contribution to the Asian classics. It has a knack for schemes, but lacks the grounds for it. It could have been significantly better if they downplayed the treatment to an already grand premise. It is a proof that Philippine Horror is still in its early phase and has a long way to go.
Because of the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Feng Shui (2004) one and a half graves out of five graves.
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