Plot: What’s it about?
Shin Hyun (Cho Seung-woo) is a serial killer, a man who has killed multiple women in brutal fashion. His methods were so horrific, even the most hardened police officers were shocked, as this man took violence to a whole new level. His reign of terror had ended however, but not because he was captured, instead he simply turned himself over to the police. He confesses to the murders and now he sits in prison, with a certain death sentence in his future. But even as he is locked up, the murders continue and while Shin Hyun was the killer, it seems as if someone has decided to pick up where he left off. The two detectives assigned to the new murders have instant conflict, as their styles and personalities are so different. Even as suspects are brought in and some are even caught in the act, the murders continue. Will the brutal killings ever stop and if not, what is the true force that drives the wave of violence?
A recent trend in cinema is the twisted thriller, a genre piece which rides the line between suspense thriller and horror movie. The twisted thriller usually has a serial killer as the centerpiece, one with some kind of sick moral message they need to deliver to the masses. The Cell, Tell Me Something, The Silence of the Lambs, Seven, Saw, The Bone Collector, Memories of Murder, Copycat, and countless others have given us horrific visions of serial killers with mad missions. As a fan of these kind of often highly disturbing movies, I greatly looked forward to H, a Korean production I had heard a lot of good things about. As it turns out, H is a solid movie, but lacks the punch I had expected, not to mention how derivative the movie is at times. But what H doesn’t have in creativity, it balances out with great visuals, performances, and direction. I admit, I was a little let down with this one, but H is still a solid movie and worth a look for those interested.
Video: How does it look?
H is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The transfer here runs the scale a little, as the visuals often look excellent, but some flaws do surface. The print is in excellent shape, with no debris or signs of wear, which is just great news. But, this is a dark movie and that means lots of shadows and low light sequences, which prove to be an issue here. In those scenes, a lot of grain is visible and while not a huge deal, it is a problem and I wish it wasn’t there. The grain is the lone distraction however, as the rest of the visuals shine and represent the intended visual design to near perfection.
Audio: How does it sound?
Tartan is always generous with the soundtrack options and this release is no exception, with dual 5.1 options in both Dolby Digital and DTS. I was most impressed with the music here, as the surrounds are really used to enhance the musical tracks. I know music is often overlooked in the technical reviews of the audio, but I had to mention it here, as the music sounds excellent. The rest of the audio isn’t as impressive, but the surrounds help add to the tense atmosphere. Even so, this movie doesn’t need a lot of brash surround presence, so this subtle, atmospheric mix works quite well. This disc also includes subtitles in English and Spanish, should you need those at some point.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes one of the more unusual behind the scenes featurettes I’ve seen, as well as an alternate opening sequence. The featurette is quite strange and shouldn’t be missed, though only half of the time is devoted to traditional behind the scenes material.
