Sadako 3D and the HK cinematic experience

Two days after arriving in Hong Kong, Beth and I caught a glimpse of a movie poster. It had the discernible image of Sadako, hair covering her face, and notably large text reading 3D. “Ringu? In 3D?” we mentally noted its existence and promised each other we’d come back to see it. Two days ago we did just that. I was a tad unprepared for the cinema-going experience in Hong Kong. For one, the cinema was quite difficult to find. We got lost in a 12-story mall which circled downwards. Along the way were a ton of unique and independent shops that we just had to stop in. We even managed to find a toy arcade! At level 6 we finally found UA CINEMAS, but were told to take the elevator to the first floor to purchase our tickets. A ticket at UA cost $75HK, which is about $9.75CAN. Not too shabby considering the $13CAN fare regularly seen at the theaters in T.O. When we finally walked into the theater and approached our gate, we inquired about 3D glasses, which we had to buy for an additional $6HK. Sure thing, just gimmie some scares already.

I admit, I was under the assumption that the film was Ringu, the Japanese original, but re-released in 3D. An amateur assumption, really. My lack of understanding Cantonese disallowed me to interpret the posters properly. This is not Ringu at all. This is a brand new remake of the novel “S” by Koji Suzuki, the genius behind the Ring novels. Suffice it to say, Sadako 3D was not of genius status, much like it’s original predecessor. I’d even go so far as to say the American adaptation of Ringu (The Ring) is still leagues ahead of whatever this bastardized version was. Extremely melodramatic and full of cliche horror conventions, Sadako 3D was made for a specific purpose…

Snuff and stuff

Greetings from HK! As I write this, I’m sitting in a dorm room at HKU and sweating profusely. It’s extremely hot and humid here, which is a difficult environment to live in but even more difficult to work in. While in Hong Kong I’m taking a class on contemporary Chinese cinema and trying to apply to courses for the upcoming Fall semester. Phew. I haven’t done much non-academic writing thus far, but here’s hoping we’ll change that. First of all, if you’re at all interested in following my HK adventures, please check out my tumblr! The title sex.gore.videogames is usually what comprises the content of the blog (NSFW most of the time), the exception being while I’m away. Secondly I should admit, I’m going to be off-topic on my CINEFEMALE account as well. A few key things happened in my dear city of Toronto before I left for Hong Kong that I would like to discuss in some detail. But firstly, here’s me at Victoria Peak.

Photo cred: http://bethmacdonald.tumblr.com/

I feel as though I left Toronto at an opportune time. A few days before I left, the Toronto Eaton Center was shot up during peak hours in the food court. Working on Queen street, the news of the shooting travelled rather quickly to me when customers in my store frantically informed us of what happened. I was already headed home after my shift and on the subway when a “police investigation” prevented the train from stopping at Dundas and Queen stations. My anxiety mounted, Toronto seemed like it was falling apart. I told the girls I left at work to close up, went home and  nearly suffered a full blown panic attack. A few days previous to this event, I had encountered a video I sincerely wish I hadn’t. I’m sure you’ve now heard heard of the infamous  1 Lunatic 1 Ice Pick video that’s been circling the interwebs. A friend of mine curiously asked me on twitter if I had already seen it before I even knew what it was or the case it was related to.