Double Vision

Rating:
Summary: Not Brilliant But Different and Interesting
Review: A businessman is found dead in a highrise office block sat in his chair. The pathology report insists that the evidence points to death by drowning. A woman is found dead in her flat. The flat is untouched by fire but she appears to have been burned to death. And a priest is found dead and horribly disembowelled. The Taiwanese cops have no clue what to make of all this so they call in bigshot FBI serial killer expert Kevin Richter (David Morse). Morse gets paired up to work with local cop Huang Huo-Tu (Tony Leung), who is a bit of a mess. He lives in his office avoiding his wife and his trauma-damaged daughter, plagues by endless personal demons. Meanwhile the strange murders continue and the evidence starts to point to some strange religious cult.

This is an interesting and enjoyable movie. In many ways, especially at first, it's a bit derivative from `Se7en' with its series of murders following some weird religious agenda but while the `Se7en' the murderer was inspired (doesn`t quite seem the right word somehow!) by a very familiar Christian tradition, here there is a whole Taoist thing going on, intriguing and fun in its relative unfamiliarity. It's one of those movies where the audience is kept guessing whether they are watching a crime story or a supernatural story. Richter, Scully to Huo-Tu's Mulder, is certainly unwilling to believe anything remotely spooky is afoot. Not brilliant but certainly different and interesting. Part of the appeal to the likes of me is the sheer exoticism of it all so if you're Chinese I suspect it's maybe rather less interesting.


Rating:
Summary: Another Cheap Taiwanese Knockoff
Review: Double Vision was Taiwan's most expensive production ever (at just over a million bucks) and directed by Chen Kuo-fu, who did the wonderfully quirky The Personals. This is basically a clone of Se7en with a supernatural twist and a marketable Hollywood almost-star David Morse. Sadly, all that effort only goes to prove that Taiwan is just as capable of making soulless cinematic knockoffs as well as Hollywood. This film combines a muddled script filled with cring-inducing dialogues, plus indecisive direction and mostly stiff acting into a mess with a high production value. It tried very hard to be very moody, but only ends up being manipulative and unsubtle. Worst of all is that awful ending, with its sappy message spelled out literally for all audience to see. Argh, it makes me embarrassed to be a Taiwanese ex-pat. Truth be told, the story is actually kind of interesting, and the film could have been somewhat enjoyable if it wasn't executed without any care for plausibility and so much care for melodrama. BTW, can someone tell me how David Morse can walk into a room and dig up the precise piece of evidence without knowing where to look?

Rating:
Summary: Reckless collision of art and commerce
Review: DOUBLE VISION [Shuang Tong] (Taiwan - 2002): Following a series of murders in which the victims died under mysterious circumstances (one drowns on the top floor of an office complex, another is disembowelled in his sleep, etc.), Taiwanese police engage the services of an FBI agent (David Morse) who joins forces with a disgraced cop (Tony Leung Ka-fai) and traces the clues back to a murderous religious sect...

Produced by the Asian wing of Columbia Pictures, DOUBLE VISION is a beautifully-made bore. With its moody visuals and stately pace, Chen Kuo-fo's torturous film aspires to something more upmarket than your average 'slasher' movie, and the results are pretty mixed, to say the least: Too 'arty' for the multiplex crowd, and too commercial for Art-house audiences, DOUBLE VISION swaps atmosphere for action at almost every turn, save for a violent massacre toward the end of the film and a confusing climax which suggests a supernatural explanation for the murders before going off in a different direction altogether. In fact, Chen's kid-glove treatment of the established 'serial killer' formula - a series of outrageous crimes, followed by an investigation in which an assortment of details lead to a final confrontation with the killer - suggests an aversion to the material that extends all the way down to the murders themselves, few of which are especially graphic, except for a couple of CGI-enhanced eruptions early in the movie, and the narrative suffers accordingly.

On the plus side, Morse and Leung (not to be confused with Tony Leung Chiu-wai, star of HAPPY TOGETHER [1997]) are well-matched as cops from opposite sides of the world, forced to set aside their cultural differences in order to track the killer to his/her lair. Morse is OK, as usual, but Leung has the showier role, playing an honest man whose life is in turmoil following a recent tragedy in which his young daughter was taken hostage by an officer whom Leung had accused of corruption. Rene Liu Re-ying (FLEEING BY NIGHT) plays Leung's wife, a lost soul struggling to cope with the fall-out from her husband's guilty conscience. Grim stuff, in every sense of the word. The uncensored director's cut - available on DVD in Asia - adds more gore to the proceedings, but little else. Gorgeous production values, expansive widescreen compositions and a busy soundtrack aside, the movie is a wash-out.

As usual, Columbia Tristar's DVD is fine in terms of sound and picture quality, but there are no extras, except for a handful of trailers, including one for DOUBLE VISION itself. However, viewers should take note: For some reason, Columbia insists on continuing to provide optional English subtitles even when the characters on-screen are speaking English themselves (this is also true of other multi-language films in their DVD library, including GEN-X COPS). Anyone who tries to switch off the subs during these sequences may be caught out when the characters revert to speaking Mandarin. This ridiculous practice is deeply irritating and should be stopped at once...

109m 38s
2.39:1 (Panavision) / 16:9 enhanced
DVD soundtracks: Dolby 5.1
Theatrical soundtracks: Dolby Digital/SDDS
Language: Mandarin and English, with optional English subtitles
(Also contains version dubbed completely in English)
Closed captions
Region 1

Rating:
Summary: Quite good, actually...
Review: First off, it's obvious that David Morse was just brought in to broaden Double Vision's international appeal but his presence doesn't take away from the intensity and mystery of the film. In truth, the involvement of the FBI is kind of irrelevant (you'll get a feeling it's just added upon).

The real star here is Tony Leung (the other one, not the Infernal Affairs/Hero Tony Leung). His portrayal of a troubled Foreign Services officer is compelling, and his tortured performance really drives the movie.

It's basically X-Files, mixed with an Eastern-style Seven and a temple massacre that predated Kill Bill, Double Vision is an enjoyable thriller with moody cinematography and excellent production values.

The deliberate pacing is perfect for this type of genre. It builds up the creepiness factor, while fully realizing the conflicts of Tony Leung's character.

Although the end is not as tight as the first 3/4s of the movie, Double Vision is a thriller worthy of purchase.

Rating:
Summary: One of the scariest thrillers I've seen this year
Review: Produced and Directed by Chen Kuo Fu & scripted by Kuo Fu with Su Zhao Bin, DOUBLE VISION has to be one of the best serial killer movies since SE7EN.
In Hong Kong the local police are baffled by a bizzare series of murders including: a woman who's been burnt to death, but there are no signs of fire damage in her home; a priest who is disembowelled & a businessman who's literally frozen to death at his desk. The only link between these murders police are able to find is the discovery of mold in nasal cavities and/or brains of the victims. In addition to this a Taoist talisman has been printed on the body of Victim #3 in blood.
The Taiwanese cop (played by Tony Leung) assigned the case is still recovering from a personal trauma of his own: two years previously his daughter was taken hostage by his deranged brother who then commits suicide. His daughter survived but has been mute for the past two years & incarcerated in an institution- all of which adds extra stress to what is to become the most demanding case of his career.
He is teamed with Kevin Richter (David Morse), a retired FBI Agent now teaching at Quantico; who is called in from Virginia to assist the Taiwanese police with their case.
DOUBLE VISION is an intelligent & gruesome chiller which tends to drag occasionally, but generally this is a must-see and ought to send a message to Hollywood on how to make a REAL thriller: something that hasn't come from them since THE SIXTH SENSE. Full of twists & scares, directed with panache & with three dimensional characters, DOUBLE VISION is one of the scariest movies I've seen this year. Sadly not many people I've talked to seem to know about it- which annoys me a bit. There's loads of neat lesser known movies out there, but some people are unwilling to watch anything that isn't mainstream, or that only feature overrated "stars" like Ben Affleck or Adam Sandler (I admit I'm guilty of watching their movies, but that means I have an excuse to make fun of them online).
Make it your New Year's resolution to expand your movie viewing horizons a bit. If you see this in your local video store, rent it or haggle your relatives into buying the DVD for you for Xmas (That way you won't have to suffer through the millionth repeat screening of THE SOUND OF MUCUS or MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET). DOUBLE VISION gets my seal of approval, & warrants a placing on my list of the best movies I've seen this year. Check it out.

Rating:
Summary: One of the scariest thrillers I've seen this year
Review: Produced and Directed by Chen Kuo Fu & scripted by Kuo Fu with Su Zhao Bin, DOUBLE VISION has to be one of the best serial killer movies since SE7EN.
In Hong Kong the local police are baffled by a bizzare series of murders including: a woman who's been burnt to death, but there are no signs of fire damage in her home; a priest who is disembowelled & a businessman who's literally frozen to death at his desk. The only link between these murders police are able to find is the discovery of mold in nasal cavities and/or brains of the victims. In addition to this a Taoist talisman has been printed on the body of Victim #3 in blood.
The Taiwanese cop (played by Tony Leung) assigned the case is still recovering from a personal trauma of his own: two years previously his daughter was taken hostage by his deranged brother who then commits suicide. His daughter survived but has been mute for the past two years & incarcerated in an institution- all of which adds extra stress to what is to become the most demanding case of his career.
He is teamed with Kevin Richter (David Morse), a retired FBI Agent now teaching at Quantico; who is called in from Virginia to assist the Taiwanese police with their case.
DOUBLE VISION is an intelligent & gruesome chiller which tends to drag occasionally, but generally this is a must-see and ought to send a message to Hollywood on how to make a REAL thriller: something that hasn't come from them since THE SIXTH SENSE. Full of twists & scares, directed with panache & with three dimensional characters, DOUBLE VISION is one of the scariest movies I've seen this year. Sadly not many people I've talked to seem to know about it- which annoys me a bit. There's loads of neat lesser known movies out there, but some people are unwilling to watch anything that isn't mainstream, or that only feature overrated "stars" like Ben Affleck or Adam Sandler (I admit I'm guilty of watching their movies, but that means I have an excuse to make fun of them online).
Make it your New Year's resolution to expand your movie viewing horizons a bit. If you see this in your local video store, rent it or haggle your relatives into buying the DVD for you for Xmas (That way you won't have to suffer through the millionth repeat screening of THE SOUND OF MUCUS or MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET). DOUBLE VISION gets my seal of approval, & warrants a placing on my list of the best movies I've seen this year. Check it out.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting...
Review: This film is different. It's advertised as a horror film, but it isn't. It's a phycological suspense drama. Tells the story of a cop who has had a pretty tramatizing past. You see his brother had stole some money and when he was caught he broke free and held his daughter at gun point. He felt as though he didn't do enough to stop him. His brother pulls the trigger but somehow manages to shoot only himself. Well his daughter has spoken for 2 years, and his wife wants a divorce. Suddenly people start dying in odd and unusual ways, so the father must team up with an american FBI agent to solve this killing spree. Who's responsible for the murders? Well you're gonna have to watch the movie and find out. Be warned that this film does make you think. Oh and the dubbing is probably the best I've seen on a foreign film. No seriously! Oh and there is graphic gore in some scenes so if you are squemish then I wouldn't recommend this to you.

Rating:
Summary: Close But No Cigar
Review: This movie is supposed to be great. Headed by outstanding and proven casts such as Tony Leung, David Morse and Rene Liu, it simply couldn't go wrong. For Asian standard, this production is rendered as sleek and cohesive but for Western standard, it is a slightly off the mark. However, the production value in Asia has certainly come a long way and it bounds to improve further. The movie started off with several people been killed off in different forms and then, Taiwanese authority has to eat the humble pie and proclaimed that with limited technology and detective skills to deal with such a complex case(s), it sought assistance of FBI. Thus, the unlikely pairing of two authority figures of very different cultural backgrounds. Naturally, there are conflicts but through time working together, both start to respect one another's dedication to their professionand we gradually come to understand that their dedication comes at a great personal cost. As this is an Asian case, it is up to the viewers to decide if science should reign or that paranormal supernatural power rules. The production team endeavours to create a tense atmosphere and to a certain extent, it works. To simplify the description of this movie, it is a mismatches of Seven (going through several sins) and X-Files (particularly with Mulder having to deal with his personal ghost). Overall, a rather good effort but somehow, it's lacking of the X factor to make it standing out from the crowd. Watchable.

Rating:
Summary: Expecting something like Ju-on or Ringu? Don't.
Review: Well if I'd ever had the illusion that Asian horror films were inherently superior, Double Vision set me straight. It was an interesting way to kill an evening, I'll grant you, but only just.

Plot summary: a series of bizarre deaths in Taiwan baffle local investigators, so an American FBI agent Kevin Richter (David Morse) is called in to solve the murders. He's the topmost serial killer expert in the field, but even he cannot explain the seemingly supernatural circumstances surrounding the crime scenes. For example In one case a businessman froze to death in his office - in the middle of a heatwave; the mistress of a prominent official telephones the fire department and is later found burned to death - with no sign of a fire in her apartment. Richter's partner, a local cop, has less trouble believing that something supernatural is behind them, and on that angle he persuades him to investigate a local cult. They discover increasingly disturbing evidence that there are demonic forces at work in Taiwan.

My big letdown with this film started when I realized that the story was very slowly paced and not nearly as creepy as the trailer would have led me to believe. It's clear that the director is going for an atmospheric buildup in a tradition similar to that of Ringu; it just doesn't pay off well. Another sore point for me was the way that Richter's relationship with his Taiwanese partner was sketched in halfheartedly, as if it was something conventionally expected in a "cop buddy" flick , but not important enough to take more than a whirl at. The usual clichés apply there, like the American being overly blunt and disrespectful, the local trying to reign in his embarrassing partner. Finally, the explanation for all the mystery seems a little bit trite compared to what my imagination was conjuring throughout the film. Trust me, you'll be disappointed.

With good production values and a stellar setup, Double Vision is a study in unfulfilled potential. It wasn't badly done, but fans of Ju-On and Ringu should steer clear.
-Andrea, aka Merribelle