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Shane, a
projectionist at a cinema, has promised to
bootleg the latest upcoming Thai horror film which has
gotten a lot of hype. While sitting there with his
DV-cam next to him, he starts to get the feeling that
something's not right and when the movie is finally
over - a creepy sense of deja vu hits him. The events
in the movie are happening all over again - and this
time it's for real.
Coming Soon was a huge hit in its native country due
to massive exposure and the fact that it was directed
by the man who wrote the scripts for Thai horror hits
"Alone" and "Shutter". The movie handles the subject
of deja vu and that's just what this movie feels like.
Coming Soon is a pure rip-off of 2007's Thai horror
flop "The Screen", which wasn't really a bad movie to
begin with. I actually thought that The Screen had a
lot of potential and Coming Soon does indeed improve
a little on the concept but it just didn't feel like
a necessary contribution to the horror genre. Surely
it will become a bigger hit internationally since it's
got better production values and a more international
appeal in general but is it as great as "Shutter" or
"Alone"? No, not at all.
While Coming Soon has some decent scares in it, there's
nothing that will really make you fly out of your seat.
There's nothing wrong with the script itself and the
comic relieves are pretty funny but it's obvious that
first-time director Sopon Sukdapisit doesn't have a lot
of experience behind the camera. There are several flaws
and rookie mistakes to be found and there's nothing
really innovative about the directing. Sopon should
clearly stick to writing movies. To be fair, Shutter and
Alone weren't very original movies either, it was the
scare-factor that made them so great and that's what
this movie is missing. Other than that there's nothing
really wrong about Coming Soon. It's a decent time killer
but it's certainly not as good as I would have liked it
to be. I think that I set my expectations a bit too high
with this one since it was produced by a good company
and with some good names attached to it.
Coming Soon is a movie destined to be remade and just
like with "The Screen", I think that the concept is
full of potential but it doesn't quite live up to it.
They really took the deja vu thing way too far and
ended up with a generic and uneven ghost story that
felt like it was quickly put together to cash in on
Sopon's name. If you're looking for the next Shutter
or Alone, you will probably be disappointed. It has
its moments but its overall nothing out of the ordinary,
especially not considering what a huge hit it was in
its native country. Also, the twist at the ending was
just ridiculous if you ask me. If you're going to throw
a twist in at the very end - at least make it believable.
Worth watching if you're in the mood for a decent
ghost story but don't expect to get blown away.
A slit-mouthed woman - how original.
High quality score - felt expensive.
Coming Soon is proof that Thailand is becoming just as
flat and boring as the US when it comes to horror movies.
It may look great and have all the potential in the
world but it feels so mass-produced and generic that
it just falls flat. It's a decent time-killer but that's
all if you ask me.
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