Review of Shutter (2004) by Maria C — 26 Apr 2010

[i]Shutter.

[/i]dir. Banjong Pisanthanakun, Parkpoom Wongpoom.

Light on scares, this film nevertheless manages to produce a few genuinely creepy moments involving the spirit of a tenacious and exquisite female who has been horribly wronged in her short life.

Tun (Ananda Everingham) and Jane (Natthaweeranuch Thongmee) are too kooky kids out for a care-free drive in the country. Suddenly a woman appears on the road and Jane plows her over before spinning rather humorously out of control. Tun convinces her to leave the scene and Jane reluctantly drives away. Tun is a photographer who takes pictures at a friend's graduation. After developing the film he notices a spooky face hidden between two of the graduates. This initiates a series of encounters with some unknown force that has clearly taken a liking to Tun. As it turns out the haunting creature is a girl named Natre (Achita Sikamana) whom Tan dated clandestinely because he was too embarrassed to show her to his friends. This girl is mighty peeved and proceeds to irritate Tun for much of the film.

The scenes where Natre is slinking about being strange and unwieldy are the most effective as is always the case in these types of films. There is something supremely sexual about her gestures and movements; her game is strictly revenge and she will stop at nothing to wreak vengeance upon those who created so much pain for her in life. Tun wanted rid of her and he employed his close friends to help him get rid of her. Instead they raped her and Tun took photographs for his own amusement ostensibly. So, this is essentially a rape revenge story that just happens to have spiritualist elements that come off as kind of cheesy ultimately.

This film builds up a bit of tension and the chemistry between the two leads is effective enough but it's Natre who gets all the choice scenes. As a living being, Natre is shy, unassuming and fiercely devoted to Tun. But she's also a scourge that needed to be dealt with and Tun took the measures he saw fit to put a final nail in the coffin of their relationship. Jane is the one who finds out about all the spirit mumbo-jumbo and ultimately finds the horrible pictures of Natre's face contorted in sheer anguish.

Overall, this film works in the sense that the scenes with Natre's spirit are genuinely effective. Otherwise it's pretty much a straightforward tale about the fine line between the living and the dead which isn't all that interesting, ultimately. It needs a fiend to scour the marks and Natre's character does this exceedingly well. She kills because she has been mistreated and her acts make logical sense in this light. She's getting back at those men who brought her so low and she is getting back at Tun by never letting him go no matter what. He will never be free of her tantalizing, terrifying presence and she will always be there to irritate him as a reminder of his previous cruelty upon her person.