Yeogo goedam II (1999)

In this second installment of the Whispering Corridors series, a young girl finds a strange diary, capable of arousing hallucinations, kept by two of her senior fellow-students who seem to have an unusually close bond.

Directors:

Tae-yong Kim, Kyu-dong Min

Writers:

Tae-yong Kim, Kyu-dong Min

Stars:

Gyu-ri Kim, Yeh-jin Park, Yeong-jin Lee

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Gyu-ri Kim	...	Min-ah (as Min-sun Kim)
Yeh-jin Park	...	Hyo-shin
Yeong-jin Lee	...	Shi-eun (as Young-jin Lee)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jong-hak Baek	...	Mr. Goh
Min Han
Seung-Yeon Han
Jae-in Kim	...	Yeon-an (as Min-hie Kim)
Hyo-Jin Kong	...	Ji-won (as Hyo-jin Kong)
Hye-mi Lee
Seong-Eon Lim
Ji-Yeon Park

Storyline

Min-Ah finds a strange diary, capable of arousing hallucinations, kept by two of her senior fellow-students, Hyo-Shin and Shi-Eun, who seem to have an unusually close bond. But Hyo-Shin suddenly kills herself, for no obvious reason, and the entire school is shocked and depressed. Min-Ah, however, starts to feel different. It's almost as if she's somehow possessed by the dead girl...

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Plot Keywords:

teen suicide | bloodstain | drink thrown into someone's face | diary | love | 

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Taglines:

A student committed suicide, leaving behind a mysterious diary. Those who dare to read it are bound to die.

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Genres:

Horror | Romance | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some violence and sexual content

Details

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

24 December 1999 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

Whispering Corridors 2

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cine-2000 Film Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min 186 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The directors wanted to make a supernatural tale without ghosts or scary scenes. But the producer refused the idea and they had to add some ghost scenes.

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Quotes

Hyo-shin: The first kiss, like the smell of apples? On your lips I've smelled the blood, that touches my tongue.

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Connections

Followed by Yeogo goedam 3: Yeowoo gyedan (2003)

User Reviews

Nothing like the original, but brilliant nonetheless!

Fans of the original "Whispering Corridors" will be disappointed to learn that this is a sequel in name only; it shares absolutely no connection with the original movie apart from its title. The story tells of a girl, Min-ah, who finds a diary kept by two lesbian lover classmates at her boarding school - and soon begins suffering from strange hallucinations whenever she reads from it. Shortly after, one of the lovers is found dead and it's up to Min-ah to discover whether she killed herself or whether someone murdered her; before her spirit returns to the school for revenge.

"Memento Mori" is a wonderful movie, but it isn't an out-and-out horror flick as some have suggested. It's actually a cross between "The Virgin Suicides" and the original "Whispering Corridors", ie. a school ghost story ridden with teen love and infatuation, and the result is a beautifully crafted dreamlike feature which is a true delight to watch.

Acting is phenomenal from all concerned, with the actress playing Min-ah using a wide range of skills to play the different states her character finds herself in to perfection. The directors do a commendable job, too, even if their choice of camera angles is sometimes confusing - and the storyline occassionally lacks a clear narrative - I haven't enjoyed a Korean movie as much as this for quite some time.

Basically, "Memento Mori" is excellent from start to finish and seamlessly blends horror, suspense and romance to create a truly unforgettable feature. You'll need to think about some plotpoints carefully in order to fully understand what's happening - but it's totally worth the extra effort. Highly recommended. ****.5 / *****