Jiu ming (2004)

Jealousy, desire, trust, and revenge. A complicated love triangle emerges during an investigation into the theft of a woman's kidney. At a wedding party in a fancy hotel, a guest happens on... See full summary »

Director:

Chi-Leung Law

Writers:

Susan Chan (screenplay), Sin Ling Yeung (story)

Stars:

Kar Yan Lam, Angelica Lee, Andy Hui Chi-On

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kar Yan Lam	...	Suen Ling (as Karena Lam)
Angelica Lee	...	Chi Ching (as Lee Sinje)
Andy Hui Chi-On	...	Raymond (as Andy Hui)
Raymond Wong	...	Ah-Keung
Kai Chi Liu	...	Sergant Lee Wah-Biu
Roy Chow	...	Chi Ming
Annie Man	...	Ah-Shan
Hong Dou Liu	...	Chi Ching's Mother
Candice Chan	...	Bride
Ho-Yin Wong	...	Bridegroom (as Wong Cho Yiu)
April Tung	...	Naked Woman
Monica Mok	...	Hypnotism Teacher (as Mo Qi)
Carlos Koo	...	Bestman
Elton Mak	...	Lobby Manager
Wong Kwok Man	...	Hotel Attendant

Storyline

Jealousy, desire, trust, and revenge. A complicated love triangle emerges during an investigation into the theft of a woman's kidney. At a wedding party in a fancy hotel, a guest happens on the victim. The guest, Chi Ching, reports seeing a suspicious woman at the wedding, and at a police station, it's disclosed that the woman in question, Suen Ling, has slept with Ching's fiancé, Wei. He claims he loves only Ching, but Ling keeps showing up. Reassured by Wei, Ching tries to befriend Ling. Ling's back-story, Ching's health, and Wei's desires keep the love triangle spinning. It's not back-stabbing that Ching must worry about, but a 9-inch incision on her side.

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Plot Keywords:

wedding | love triangle | revenge | police | kidney | 

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and some nudity

Details

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese

Release Date:

22 April 2004 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

Koma

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$182,722 (Hong Kong) (30 April 2004)

Gross:

$882,836 (Hong Kong) (14 May 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Camera Media, Filmko Entertainment Limited

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002)

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Soundtracks

"Koma"
Composed by Kwong Wing Chan
Lyrics by Lin Xi
Sung by Kar Yan Lam (as Karena Lam)
Click Music Ltd. (Admin. by Music Nation), Gold Label Music Ltd.

User Reviews

Interesting

Traditionally, Asian films have been sticking more to the classic horror styles and elements. What I'm saying is that in general, they are deeper, more frightening, and overall much better than American horror films. But I found something odd about "Koma." It seemed to be a combination of a slasher film, a psychological horror film, and a family drama. True, this has worked before, in much better films such as "The Silence of the Lambs", but there is something different about "Koma." It almost seems as if the filmmakers wanted to make an "American slasher flick" rather than an "Asian horror film", and to be blunt, they found something in-between.

It is hard not to notice some American influence in the film. There are several shots ripped straight out of "Fight Club" and "The Evil Dead", and the musical score is taken directly from M. Night Shyamalan's "Signs" (Though it is a computerized version of the music, not the original studio recording), with only minimal original music.

But still, it manages to tell a rather absorbing (If not genre-confused) story about friendship, betrayal, and redemption, all revolving around the idea of kidney-theft. (Yum!) Unfortunately, the movie is only 88 minutes long, and all of the interesting ideas are condensed into lesser versions of what they could be. Perhaps if the movie was longer, and took more time to explore it's characters and stories, it would have been better. Hey, it might have even become a modern classic... But because of uneven direction (Zooming cameras and quick cutting in the beginning become long, steady shots as the movie progresses) and a compressed story, what we get is marginal.

Sure it is memorable, but that is only because of it's odd vagueness in what it wants to be, transforming it into a mish-mash "referential" horror film. Overall, even though it is only "pretty good", and there are much better films out there, but be sure to at least give this one a shot, you might like it.