Review of Phobia 2 (2009) by Steven V — 12 Jan 2010

With stories seemingly ripped from the headlines, GTH's masters of slick, suspenseful horror are back with Phobia 2. With the Thai title Haa Phrang, literally "five crossroads", the result is a more cohesive and even-toned effort than the first set of short thrillers, last year's hit 4bia.

All are tied together by the spinning wheels of a conveyance of one type or another. First out of the gate is Novice by 4bia returnee director Paween Purijitpanya. It's his best work yet, with the cartoonish special effects favored by the young director of Body #19 dialled down.

The result is an effective and pretty awesome start. As a first-time director, veteran studio exec Visute Poolvoralaks applies a sure and steady hand to the next segment, Ward. Franchise newcomer Songyos Sugmakanan again teams up with his Fan Chan, Dorm and Hormones star Charlie Trairat in his darkest role yet in Backpackers.

Next stop is Parkpoom Wongpoom's Salvage and finally it's In the End, Shutter and Alone co-director Banjong Pisanthanakun's laugh-filled, self-deprecating parody of the notion that there are ghosts on horror-movie sets.

But the real stars are those four guys again, playing clownish members of the film crew. An added element is a wheezing, coughing actress who is thought by everyone to actually be dead. This leads to the typical running around and screaming of Thai comedy-horrors, but the gag is they are struggling to come up with a new way to end a horror movie.