Pray

I love Asian cinema, especially ones within' the horror genre. We've had many wonderful releases from Japan, some scary and some utterly brutal. It's always a pleasure seeing films that feature good ghost stories. Yuichi Sato's Pray goes right into that very same list of wonderful releases. The only thing with Pray is that it's pretty different from most of the stuff that come overseas. It's a film that will have will thinking and at the same time it just messes with your mind. Although the film has its horror elements it mostly plays out like a psychological thriller. Which is not a bad thing at all considering the fact that I'm pretty fond of psychological thrillers. Pray tells the story of a desperate couple who kidnap a little girls in hopes to keep her for ransom until the family pays up a certain amount of money. They hide out in a closed down school and try to contact the girl's parents for the ransom. After a brief phone call they learn that the girl they recently kidnapped died over a year ago. Who is she, who did they kidnap?

The thing that I noticed about halfway into the movie is that it's different from a lot of other Japanese horror films released here in the US. I was so used to seeing ghosts with long dark hair and straight forward over the top blood and gore violence. Pray is different, it really plays out more like a psychological thriller and mystery. The film does feature ghosts but there is much more to it. The film has no humor and it plays out like one giant mystery as you try to figure out some of these characters. From the beginning you're unaware of what's going to happen and you're just not too sure about the characters in the film. Pray is one of those movies that you really have to sit down and pay attention to. Otherwise you may end up being stumped and confused to what may happen later in the picture. Most of the film takes place in one setting. We fallow the main characters in an old closed down school and that is where most of the film takes place.

The film features side characters who are in a different location but most of it take place at night in this school. It makes for a nice dark and really different (but still creepy) environment to be in. The biggest part of the film is the actual plot and relationships between the characters. That's where the acting is at its best. Everything is believable and I didn't find anything wrong with the acting or overall plot. This film also has its fair share twists. Viewing this film the first time was a bit hard because I got confused in some areas and I questioned that maybe I missed something or just didn't pay enough attention to a certain scene. When I watched it the second time around I realized that the reason why I got confused is because the film features twist after twist after twist. The plot and relationships between the characters change every 30 minutes or so and when you actually finish watching the movie it makes complete sense.

If you plan to see this film I highly recommend paying close attention to it and keeping an open mind. If you're expecting to see a crazy over the top gore fest then watch something else. But if you want to watch a film with a good plot and many twists then definitely check out Pray. I had a pretty neat time watching it, there is no humor and the entire thing runs as a mystery so I tried my very best to pay attention through the whole thing. It's good all the way through if you just keep with the characters and the story. The bonus features on this DVD are pretty good. It isn't jam packed with a ridiculous amount of bonus features but what the DVD does provide is good. The film is in Japanese which includes English and Spanish subtitles, a Making of featurette, an interview with the director and star of the film and even the trailer to the movie. They're pretty basic features but it still makes the DVD worth a buy.

If you miss a scene or don't pay too much attention to the film then you'll have a hard time understanding some of it. This movie is great for its mystery but it's not all fun and games. There are scenes where you begin to see these ghosts more often and there is a good body count along the way. It's nothing too fancy or too gory but it's different in the way that these characters die. Pray isn't the kind of horror film to watch for the blood and gore anyway. It's more of a mystery and a thriller which has a lot of twists. My favorite part of the film is near the end when the story unfolds and you figure everything out. For me it was very touching and nice. I would definitely recommend Pray for those who want to watch something different. It's stereotypical on many levels but they did something different with the story. If you're into Asian horror films like Ju-On or Dark Water then you'll like Pray. It has a good story and it has plenty of plot twists which will keep you guessing through most of the picture.

...and that trend is any and all JAPANESE FILMS. Creatively devoid Hollywood latched onto some Japanese horror films like The Ring and The Grudge and cranked out some vastly inferior remakes. Because these did well, the original Japanese versions became a hot commodity in video rental stores...and that's the start of our problem. Because these did so well in your local Blockbuster, we are now getting flooded with TONS of Japanese horror movies. So where's the problem? Here it is: Ringu (The Ring) and Ju-On (The Grudge) were GOOD Japanese horror movies. Not all Japanese horror movies are good, and some are just plain terrible. That doesn't seem to matter at the moment, since if its Japanese and horror, then America wants it!

Pray has ridden the coattails of this Japanese horror fervor, which it absolutely doesn't deserve. This is one BAD movie. I have no idea if people awarding this movie 4 or 5 stars are just being pretentious pseudo-intellectuals, but I cannot imagine anyone who appreciates cinema not being horrified at how bad this film really is.

First off, while Pray fancies itself a horror movie, there really is no horror in it. Usually, horror movies have to have at least ONE scary or unsettling moment. Perhaps one split second of Pray qualifies as 'horror'(and I'm being generous here), the rest of it is an INCREDIBLY boring and illogical mess. The boring part is because nothing really happens for 3/4 of the movie. When I say nothing, I mean NOTHING. On top of that, the last 1/4 of the movie has the only real happenings in the film- AND THOSE HAPPENINGS ARE BORING TOO. Make no mistake, this is not a 'psychological' horror film- this is just a very BAD and boring "horror" film. Now, on to the illogical part. Have you ever seen a horror movie where a child walks or runs past an adult who wants to speak to the kid, and the adult doesn't try to grab them and say "Wait, I need to talk to you!". No, the adult just stares and watches the kid go right on by and around the corner, and then is shocked when after finally following them around the corner, the kid is nowhere to be seen. Well, that happens OVER TEN TIMES IN THIS MOVIE!! You would think by the fifth time the stupid adult would grab the kid, but NOOOOO, it makes perfect sense to just stand and watch with a blank look on your face as the kid walk away for the umpteenth time. None of the characters in Pray act remotely like a real person would act, and that makes the film even worse.

To top it all off, the directing is terrible. The film starts at a very bizzare point, with no backstory to tell you what is going on, or who any of the characters (or what their motivations) are. Because of this, you don't ever give a damn about any of the characters in this movie- and since they are boring you to death for 3/4 of the film, you will actually PRAY that they all meet violent ends. The acting is subpar as well, especially the two lead actors. What a laughably bad movie Pray is.

Just like Hollywood, the Japanese make LOTS of REALLY bad movies. Pray is one of them. Just because a movie is Japanese, does not mean it will be a good movie. Don't bother with Pray unless you are having trouble sleeping (it will cure that right away). Instead, check out some GOOD Japanese films like Ringu, Ju-On, and (for the more adventurous) Ichi The Killer.

"Pray," is a Japanese film that tries too hard to be different, and as a result, the film falters. What you have are basically two different ghost stories converging with each other. I kind of wish the director had just stuck the first one: The film may have been better. The film stars Mitsuru (Tetsuji Tamayama) and his girlfriend Maki (Asami Mizukawa) who have just kidnapped a girl. When Maki phones the parents house for a ransom, they discover that the child has been dead for a year. However, the film veers into something totally different, when the viewer discovers that there is something else going on as well. The place that the kidnappers have taken the child to is an old abandoned school, where Mitsuru once attended as a child.

Moreover, Mitsuru and Maki have acquaintances in this caper who are about to join them. ALL of the antagonists in this film were horrible. First, their acting was questionable, and the script just went right out the door the minute the other friends entered the film. This was not a very good horror film. Yes, it had potential, but like so many horror films, it takes a detour off into a boring mess of a film. One of the highlights for me was the parents of the missing child who have been waiting for the police to find their child, as she has been missing for a year. The mother and father go to see a spiritualist named Tazuko Aoyanagi, who tells them what has happened to their child, and where she can be found.

The mother believes her daughter is dead, while the father believes her to be alive. The film, oddly enough, is actually two horror films in one. There are two narratives going on at once. One dealing with Mitsuru and his past links to this elementary school, where a tragedy occurred many years ago, and the other one with the missing child. The director should have stayed focused on the story dealing with Mitsuru, as his was more interesting. One more thing too, I am getting a little irritated with the 'vengeful child' horror films. That's getting real old. Actually is was old a long time ago. I did not particularly like this film, with the exception of the ending. Which is why I believe the director should have stuck with Mitsuru's life. Not recommend. [Stars: 1.5]