Asian horror remake covers same old ground -- ho hum
This week's rote Asian horror remake comes to us from Thailand. The original "Shutter" was a big domestic hit there in 2004 and was already remade last year in India.
Now a third version exists, thanks to producers Taka Ichise and Roy Lee, whose combined U.S. remake resume includes "The Ring" and "The Grudge" series, "Dark Water" and "The Eye."
"Shutter" offers yet another wronged girl ghost with long black hair. The original was informed by phi tai hong, Thai spirits who seek vengeance for their violent deaths. How these differ from cheesed-off Japanese ghosts (onryo) is of little concern to Ichise, Lee and director Masayuki Ochiai (2004's much better "Infection"), who move the action to Japan, making our Western protagonists outsiders, as in "The Grudge."
The stilted exposition begins with American newlyweds Ben (Joshua Jackson, a poor man's Tobey Maguire) and Jane (Rachael Taylor). While driving one night, a distracted Jane hits a woman who appears in the road and disappears just as quickly.
Ben urges her to forget the accident and the couple relocates to Tokyo. Ben's a professional photographer (who oddly has no problem using disposable cameras) and his old buddy Bruno (David Denman of TV's "The Office") hooked him up with a job.
Jane's not thrilled about the young models and assistants surrounding Ben, but she soon becomes more concerned about the weird white blurs that appear in the couple's photos. In some, she can make out a spectral woman, who looks like the woman Jane hit with the car.
Through a combination of incredible deductive leaps and convenience, Jane determines that the photos are capturing a ghost. It's lucky that Ben's assistant has an ex-boyfriend ("Heroes" sidekick James Kyson Lee) who works for a spirit photography magazine. He gives Jane a mini-lecture on the phenomenon as we see a series of real spirit photos in the film's only truly spooky sequence.
Otherwise, "Shutter" alternates between languid domestic scenarios and endless versions of the ol' "gulp! Who's there?" until its final third, when the ghost turns mean. Her identity is revealed, as is her connection to Ben, which anyone who's seen the TV ads can guess. The truth is much nastier than the film's PG-13 rating suggests, and coming so late feels both forced and tawdry.
The only mystery here is how long this barrage of Asian horror remakes will continue.
"Shutter"
1 1/2 star out of four
Starring: Joshua Jackson, Rachael Taylor, Megumi Okina, David Denman
Directed by: Masayuki Ochiai
Other: A 20th Century Fox release. Rated PG-13 (terror, disturbing images, sexual content, language). 85 minutes.