Synopsis:
When a renowned shaman (KIM Go-Eun) and her protégé (Lee Do-hyun) are hired by a wealthy, enigmatic family, they begin investigating the cause of a disturbing supernatural illness that affects only the first-born children of each generation. With the help of a knowledgeable mortician (YOO Hai-jin) and the country’s most revered geomancer (CHOI Min-sik), they soon trace the affliction’s origin to a long-hidden family grave located on sacred ground. Sensing an ominous aura surrounding the burial site, the team opts to exhume and relocate the ancestral remains immediately. But as something much darker emerges, they soon discover what befalls those who dare to mess with the wrong grave.
What We Thought:
I’m not a big fan of paranormal/supernatural horror. I prefer slashers in hockey masks over ghosts and spirits, but I did think Exhuma was well made and well acted and found it to be watchable at least. Would I revisit it? Probably not, but fans of the subgenre will enjoy it.
The film comes in different chapters, but to me there are two drastically different acts. It starts out in the US before heading to South Korea. A family in the US wants to know what is afflicting their child and a shaman, her assistant, a mortician and geomancer investigate the family’s past back in Korea. They dig up an old, oddly placed burial site and think they figure it out. It’s rather straight forward and I almost thought it was over until I realized it was barely half way through.
Then they dig into the grave some more and release a bigger secret. The second half is less about family secrets and more about fighting a spiritual creature. They bring in some reinforcements and ultimately have to deal with what they dig up.
It’s that second half that actually held my attention more. I’m not overly interested in family curses and exhuming graves like the Winchester brothers might have done, but dealing with a big creature is cool. It’s a Korean film adding some historical culture elements to it. But push comes to shove, people trying to fight off a monster should always work.
Exhuma isn’t my type of horror, but it’s too well done to be bad. I’ve seen the actors/actresses before and some I really like. It doesn’t overly rely on jumpscares or paranormal activity scares which I can appreciate. If you are looking for an Asian horror flick that doesn’t rely on zombies and is more like Ringu or the like, you should enjoy it.
The Nerds Templar 