Recently, the Netflix streaming service was marked by another genre exclusive – the horror film “Spell” ( Zhou or Incantation ). After the premiere at home, Taiwanese horror, based on real events and filmed in a pseudo-documentary manner, was awarded the proud title of the most terrible in history. But is it worth taking advertising slogans on faith?
Six years ago, Ruonan and her friends went to a village where the inhabitants worshiped a mysterious goddess. Ghostbusters and bloggers were sure that this time they would shoot something interesting. But in the process of seeking adventures, the trinity breaks religious taboos – and unleashes an entity whose degree of power cannot even be imagined. Zhonan gives her newborn daughter to an orphanage, because she believes that she is now cursed until death. Years later, she decides to return the child, because she knows how to deal with evil spirits…
You can treat claims that director and screenwriter Kevin Koh made The Conjuring based on a true story as you like. And take with skepticism the words of local critics that we got the worst Taiwanese horror of all time. But one thing definitely cannot be taken away from the pseudo-documentary horror film: we have a rare mockumentary, which is so well thought out and verified that it is impossible to tear oneself away from it for almost two hours.
Long horror films should always be treated with caution, because not every director is able to give such an interesting story that it will captivate the viewer for almost two hours. Rather, on the contrary: many horror films are drastically lacking story content in order to fill the standard timekeeping of an hour and a half. But The Spell stands out very strongly from the general background: there are no unnecessary or overly lengthy scenes in the film at all.
And “Spell” can surprise even the most seasoned fans of the scary genre. Yes, everyone has long been accustomed to various Asian horror stories about pale ghosts with long black hair. But the concentration of typical Asian tin in Kevin Koh’s horror exceeds all reasonable standards. And since Taiwanese cinema is always striving for unpredictability and complete lack of censorship, there are some particularly effective scenes in the cinema that are sure to throw anyone out of a state of peace of mind and balance.
In addition, as expected, “Incantation” is extremely well balanced on the verge of horror and drama. Following the story of the main character is not just interesting – the ups and downs happening to her are so impressive that you involuntarily begin to feel pity and sympathy.
And strange as it may seem to write this about the completely blown genre of pseudo-documentary horror and “found films”, but director Kevin Koe seems to have understood what the main problem is. It’s all about total predictability: if you watch a video recording of what’s going on, you already know that something bad happened to the main characters. But, since the theme of influencing reality with the help of thought is raised in The Spell, the main plot and the events shown allow for different interpretations and interpretations.
In addition, several times during the film, the creators very successfully break the fourth wall and, in fact, make the audience unwitting participants in what is happening on the screen. Not just passive observers, but active participants in the process.
Mockumentary horror “Spell” unexpectedly turned out to be not only a curious genre experiment, but also a solid horror that will definitely not leave most viewers indifferent. And the premiere on Netflix will surely help the brainchild of Kevin Ko find a way to the masses. And there you can already continue to shoot, since mythology allows you to expand the universe in any direction.
Incantation ending explained
After Ronan, accompanied by the foster home owner Ming, escaped from the hospital and took the Dodo with her, she headed straight for the temple where she knew she could get the cure for her curse. The priest at the temple performed several cleansing rituals on a webcam that showed footage from the tunnel. Ronan was told not to let the Dodo eat anything for seven days, as this would cause any progress they had made to relapse. But Ronan was still a mother. She couldn’t bear to see her little one in such a state, so she finally decided to feed her. As soon as she did so, a reaction began on Dodo’s hand and she knew that the curse was beginning to take effect and that she had to follow what the priests had said.
Meanwhile, Ming did his own research. He took the webcam home and reviewed the footage several times. His health began to fail, but he wanted to get to the roots and understand the curse of the tunnel in its entirety. He met a man named Shi Kong Yun, a Buddhist monk living in Yunnan, who was one of the last people who could translate ancient Buddhist scriptures. Ming went to meet him, and the monk explained to him the true meaning of the spell and how the curse got from Southeast Asia to Yunnan. Ming also restored the footage of the tunnel, but chose not to send it to Ronan. But the video began to show its effect on Ming, and he hit his head on the table under the influence of the curse and committed suicide. In the process, footage from the tunnel was also sent to Ronan.
Ronan went to the priests and found them dead too. Dodo was admitted to the hospital, and the doctors said that she was mumbling something about pineapple. Ronan knew that her daughter was trying to remember her favorite things, as she once told her not to be afraid. Ronan knew that she would have to enter the tunnel and try to break the chain herself, because otherwise she had no other option. Ronan began recording and broadcasting videos and told her audience that the spell was a religious blessing.
She encouraged her audience to sing for her, as only then could she be saved from the curse. The Doma family was cursed by Mother Buddha Dahei, an evil deity, and the curse was passed down from generation to generation. But she fabricated this story just to save her daughter from the curse. Shi Kong Yun, a monk, said that the spell itself is not a blessing. If someone read it, it meant that they wanted to share the curse and offer their name. The more people shared the curse, the weaker it became. So Ronan did just that.
She went live and broadcast her message on a digital platform, allowing viewers from all over the world to join in. She risked her life by hitting her head against the wall inside the tunnel. But her efforts were not in vain. The curse was lifted from the Dodo and she survived, implying that it was now shared by all those who watched the video and cast the spell. She went live and broadcast her message on a digital platform, allowing viewers from all over the world to join in.
She risked her life by hitting her head against the wall inside the tunnel. But her efforts were not in vain. The curse was lifted from the Dodo and she survived, implying that it was now shared by all those who watched the video and cast the spell. She went live and broadcast her message on a digital platform, allowing viewers from all over the world to join in. She risked her life by hitting her head against the wall inside the tunnel. But her efforts were not in vain. The curse was lifted from the Dodo and she survived, implying that it was now shared by all those who watched the video and cast the spell.
