Three... Extremes (2004)

more a drama than a horror movie, dumplings is so wonderfully acted that his strange subject have become believable and disturbing . The picture is astonishing ,the color perfectly fit the backgrounds so that it creates a special atmosphere. for the fans of gore don't't suspect a lot of goo. But still, a couple of scenes will disturb you.. Very intelligent, this movie provides a lot of thinking; incest, abortion, cannibalism and the search for youth are the topics approached. Those taboos will make you see horrible things that happens in everyday's life around the globe. The use of the incredible music is done with professionalism so it helps a lot on the spooky mood of certain scenes.

The end pour vrai là.

Fmovies: Three...Extremes is an anthology of three horror films by three respected Asian directors. 

"Dumplings" - Directed by Fruit Chan

In Dumplings, an actress who has entered middle age and begun to lose the attention of her husband to an affair with a younger woman visits Aunt Mei, an old woman who still has the looks of her youth. Aunt Mei has a secret recipe that makes anyone look years younger, but such an unnatural benefit comes from a truly abominable source. I found Dumplings to be absolutely stomach-churning. A horror movie that doesn't even attempt to scare you, but actually tries (and succeeds, in my case) to horrifying you. Not for the squeamish. Even the sound effects eventually became almost more than I could bear. Disturbing and entertaining. - 8/10

"Cut" - Directed by Chan-wook Park

A talented director and his wife are taken captive by a murderous, utterly insane movie extra. Cut is darkly comedic, utterly absurd, and far more meta than the other movies in this collection. It took me a while to figure out whether I liked it or not, but by the end of the segment, I was won over. Like Dumplings, Cut isn't frightening in the conventional sense. Instead, it's flat-out zany (in a good way). - 7/10

"Box" - Directed by Takashi Miike

The most haunting of the three segments. Box is about a jealousy-fueled tragic accident involving two young sisters. The surviving sibling suffers from suffocating (literally) dreams and disturbing visions of her deceased sibling, even years later as an adult. Box is probably the creepiest of the three, and it has a psycho-sexual aspect to it that makes the whole thing even more unsettling. Definitely more of an atmospheric, "mood" movie than the other two. - 8/10

I liked all three segments, as well as the movie as a whole. I found Dumplings to be the most effective/entertaining, but I recommend the entire anthology. The three short films are not only memorable and very different from one another, but they're also fairly unique among the other horror movies that I've seen. 

Overall - 8/10

3 extremes were 3 short stories about extreme situations. Each story has very different qualities and gave the viewer something to enjoy. Not American style, scream queen, psychobabble laden horror films. More intellectual and artistic as the characters are made to look good rather than deviant. Shorts were you can turn off the subtitles and still understand the plot are hard to come by, but these fit the bill. I wish I could speak the languages of the films because the English translation detracted from the emotional content and context. If you like slasher movies and jump out of your seat scary, pass on these. If you like more artistic, intelligent, and subtle horror films, then these shorts are for you. Some blood and minor amounts of gore. A job well done.

Three... Extremes fmovies. This compilation movie of three horror stories is dark and disturbing. The first story concerns a woman's greed for beauty and the bizarre path she takes to get it. The second story centers on a director who gets held captive by a film extra with an agenda. This leads to torture and a strange game of cat and mouse. The final story regards a writer with a twisted past. This part is surreal and at times awkward in storytelling and direction. I enjoyed this film as a fan of the horror genre. The elements of surrealism and paranormal activity were effective in each story. While the movie did have a relatively slow pace, the intensity of each stories climax made for a fulfilling watch. Recommended for fans of Tales from the Darkside, Tales from the Crypt, The Twilight Zone and admirers of Takashi Miike and Chan-wook Park.

Three short films that are plenty extreme and if the endings of all three leave us wondering maybe that is good. I did however find the end of Cut more than a little baffling. There again 'unsatisfactory' endings of Eastern films as judged by Westerners is nothing new. All three are beautifully shot with great camera-work and excellent use of colour. I found Miiki's the most perfect if not as much like his usual output as many would like. Park's Cut is a little pedestrian at times but so gloriously over the top and bewildering at others. Dumplings is a little predictable and I am surprised that it is said to still work at 90 minutes as it seems very much a single idea film. It's a good idea though and not without social interest and it has to be said the grossest of the three. The sound of tiny bones being crunched - aagh!! I watched all three on separate occasions, fearing that otherwise they might blur into one another - no fear of that though so I'll watch them again soon, all together. Good effort by all concerned

The idea of having Chan-wook Park, Takashi Miike and Fruit Chan as part of the same DVD set is enough to warrant a purchase. This was the sole reason I watched these three shorts.

While Miike's offering was very enjoyable, and had some interesting scenery and Chan's Dumplngs was also very entertaining, Chan-wook Park stole the show in my opinion.

I now wonder if CUT isn't what SAW should have been.......?

Unfortunately I can't speak on the film too much as I could ruin the story, but if you are a fan of either OLDBOY or Sympathy for Mr Vengeance this short IS A MUST. Chan-wook Park continues to impress me with his creativity, and the camera work in this film was GREAT. There are two directors that I currently find to be very interesting, and I will watch anything they produce. Micheal Haneke is one, Chan-wook Park is another.

I have heard rumours of Sympathy for Ms Vengeance, and I can only hope they are confirmed.

This was an easy purchase.