Obviously GONJIAM: HAUNTED ASYLUM doesn’t come to reinvent the horror mockumentary genre, but it does offer some great, well-orchestrated, hair-raising moments in the second half of the film, which is where the good stuff is.
The beginning of the movie seems very typical, everyone is happy, rock music, partying, some alcohol, etc, while they prepare to make an online horror show, where they have the mission to be seen by a million of people. It was all a big pantomime, staged scares here and there, but in a turn of events, what was a staged program becomes real…
We’re not going to find great characters or an inspiring story here, Gonjiam Haunted Asylum gives what it sets out to do by making use of the subjective view, but also adding an additional camera focusing on the subject’s face, which seems very well added in this film to increase the sense of terror, after all, seeing the face of some scared Koreans is morbidly fun.
It’s true that the film takes a little while to get going or to offer good horror scenes, but when they do arrive….! There are at least three horror scenes that I would place among the best of this year (if I were to make a compilation) very well done. In the aspect of the realization, the atmosphere, at some point reminiscent of the best times of Fatal Frame (The video game saga) and that can only be a compliment.
The location seems ideal and perfect, but above all the actions and reactions of the characters seem credible and in tune with what the film proposes. Without too much fireworks or bombastic explanations like Grave Encounters 2, GONJIAM HAUNTED ASYLUM is entertaining and recommendable for those who like this genre.
