Plot: A reckless youngster Eun-soo drives to his mother’s, and has a car accident. When Eun-soo wakes up, he meets a mysterious girl and is led to her fairytale-like house in the middle of the forest. There, Eun-soo is trapped with the girl and her siblings who never age. Soon he learns all the adults who visited or stayed in the house have met mysterious yet terrible ends. More shockingly, their cruel deaths are drawn in details and made into a fairytale book by the children. Scared Eun-soo tries to find the way out, but the house is secluded in the forest with no way out. And then, Eun-soo discovers a book which tells a brutal end of none other than himself!
«The production design is terrific — the colour palette is as lurid as a plate of cupcakes. But the film loses its tension in a baggy final act that overexplains the secret of the house. »
Variety, by ROB NELSONsource:
http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117938665.html?u=IMDB&p=H2BE&cs=1
«Hardly innovative, but effective and handsomely produced, "Hansel & Gretel" puts the "grim" in Grimm while placing South Korean director Yim Phil-sung on the shortlist of "Pan's Labyrinth" emulators to trust.»
«Pil-Sung Yim’s second film “Hansel & Gretel” has some good things going for it: very strong production values, child actors performing wonderfully, and that unique angle of wrapping a children’s storybook like setting around a dark story centered abuse. Unfortunately, the dark subject matter wasn’t shown in a convincing manner and felt more like a cheap trick to disturb the audience.»
Eye For Filmsource:
http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/reviews.php?id=7643
«Hansel & Gretel has all the irrational wish-fulfilment, not to mention the happy ending, of a children's story, but at the same time it exposes a more adult perspective on exploited innocence, desperate dreams and broken lives...»
«Visually, the film is gorgeous, with a truly distinctive look. Im shows an incredible eye for detail, with the house itself being an immaculate creation, filled with decorations, old-fashioned toys, odd furniture and candy. ... This unique look is the icing on the cake, and “Hansel and Gretel” stands as one of the most interesting and unsettling Korean films of the year, and is a work of considerable imagination. »
Fangoria, by Calum Waddell source:
http://www.fangoriaonline.com/reviews/2-film/708-hansel-and-gretel-fil~~~ew.html
«Take heed, because this freaky fable (currently touring the international fest circuit) manages to outdo even the likes of PAN’S LABYRINTH and THE OPRHANAGE in its presentation of a bold and beautiful, but still downright terrifying, adult nightmare. ... See HANSEL AND GRETEL if you can, and prepare to be amazed. It is one of the year’s best.»
Twitch, by Xsource:
http://twitchfilm.net/site/view/19770/
«Hansel and Gretel uses every inch of film stock in a creative way, convey the right vibes, and set the whole thing on fire with their power. It’s like a grotesque, abstract, somewhat absurd but stunningly beautiful little trip of imagination. It’s like going back a few decades and turning the light off. Good night. Sweet dreams…»
Twitch, by Kurt Halfyardsource:
http://www.twitchfilm.net/site/view/reel-asian-2008-hansel-gretel-review/
«If only Im Pil-Sung decided to tell his tale in a more coherent, less visually busy fashion, the film may have reached the level of artistry achieved in A Tale of Two Sisters.»
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Hansel and Gretel
