Paul Magne Haakonsen "Rinne" (aka "Reincarnation") was a refreshing change of pace in the Japanese horror genre, that was otherwise flooded with these stereotypical ghostly women in white dresses and with black hair covering their faces.The story in "Rinne" is about young actress Nagisa Sugiura (played by Yûka) who is hired to play the lead role in a movie about a horrible tragedy where 11 people were murdered at a hotel. However, once on set and on location the past ghosts come to visit as there are things that are unfinished.Actually, the storyline was quite good, because it had a good flow to it and there was a good continuation. Director Takashi Shimizu did a good job at building up suspense and keeping the audience in the dark. Although this is a horror movie, the movie doesn't really play on scaring and spooking the audience; it is more of a suspense and thrilling story, one that slowly seeps in and broods, and then takes a twist towards the very end.The people hired for the various roles in the movie were also doing good jobs with their given characters.If you enjoy Asian horror cinema, and have had a bit too much of the stereotypical ghosts, then perhaps give "Rinne" a chance. I was thoroughly entertained by the movie and found it enjoyable.

tree offish Dialog was disjointed and pacing was problematic. Acting was wooden. The children seemed very well mannered kids, that their distressing scenes seemed polite and staged. The doll element was used quite effectively. As usual, people do not seem to behave naturally throughout the movie. Understandably, it wanted to keep the audience guessing about its concepts of reincarnation, but it didn't engage the audience immediately enough. "Who's who?" Who cares.It also fell into the pit of not wanting to explain itself and provide resolutions by the end of the movie.Put me to sleep halfway into it.

slayrrr666 "Reincarnation" is a severely engrossing but not entirely exciting entry.**SPOILERS**Returning from an audition, Nagisa Sugiura, (Yuka) learns from her agent Tadashi Murakawa, (Tetta Sugimoto) that she has landed a part in director Ikuo Matsumura, (Kippei Shiina) new film about a real-life murder case in Japan. Arriving on the set to start shooting, she begins to have strange feelings of deja-vu over the project, and eventually starts to think that she has actually experienced reincarnation over one of the guests in real life, the character she's actually playing in the movie. As the visions tell her a different story than the official version, she tries to keep her investigations from the crew while she carries on, eventually learning the truth about everything and tries to put an end to the strange goings-on before anything more dangerous can happen to her.The Good News: There was some good stuff in here when it really tried to. One of the best features is that there's an incredibly enjoyable story here that manages to get better and more entertaining as it goes on. The general concept of the murder-in-the-past is great and creepy on it's own, and when it changes it up there's a lot of fun to be had. There's a couple of great inventions to the story, from the fact that it infuses the film being shot on the tragedy with the events that really happened through flashbacks that are seen through the eyes of one of the actors on the film, and it's all incredibly enjoyable and exciting to see it play out in here. This has a lot of rather fun times to be had, especially when it gets later into the film and it blurs the line between what time it is happening in. The action that occurs, from the family being stalked through the hotel and the different ghosts that spring to life around the location and get in on the action themselves and it becomes all the better. Even some of the earlier scenes, such as the incident in the hallways where the ghosts manage to take over the film shoot and completely blackened them out which only one of the participants notices, the scenes with the young girl running around or the scenes of her in the flashback experiencing the action from the true story as though they're participants in the story is a lot of fun and definitely makes the film more enjoyable. That there's a series of outstanding ghost scenes also manages to provide a lot of great points in this one, making it feel even better. The confrontation in the library stacks are absolutely fantastic, as the setting is perfect for getting the isolation down, the ghostly faces appearing in the darkness provide some great scares and the resolution is perfect for this kind of story. Other good scenes include the fantastic moment in the beginning where she alone keeps feeling like ghosts are walking through the abandoned hotel behind her, and turns to look at each of the three levels merely moments too late to have her prediction come true, a ghost disappearing from view just a split-second before she can see them, and the long, single take is what makes it feel really creepy. The setting of the house is rather good as well, making sure to offer plenty of opportunities for creepy situations, real tension and a credible source for the action to follow and this one here does those in spades. The last plus in the film is the whole deal with the family in the flashbacks, which runs the gamut from creepy to sleazy to utterly freaky and disturbing, and make the film that much better.The Bad News: There wasn't a whole lot here that didn't work out. One of the only flaws was the fact that the film is just incredibly confusing, especially when it gets to the ending. There's hardly anything here that manages to make sense, from the way it keeps switching between being unable to understand what time-frame it is in, and neither that or the film makes any kind of statement over what's going on. It's impossible to know whether we're in the film version of the past or the actual events that happened, and it's made even worse when the film-crew tries to film the scenes through the reenaction basically being the same as the actual events, making it even more confusing as to what's happening. There's not much hope for it being explained throughout in here, making it just a never-ending series of scenes that don't make any sense at all. The other flaw in this one is the opening minutes of the film, which again don't make any sense at all, only this time as for why they're included. The characters aren't seen again and nothing is mentioned about the point they serve to the film, and all in all their inclusion is a little troubling, even though just on the surface they're fun in and of themselves. Otherwise, the confusing end is the film's only flaw.The Final Verdict: With a lot to really like about it and only a couple of minor flaws, this one manages to score very highly and comes off as really great. Highly recommended to those who have an interest in the Asian genre, if it sounds interesting or fan of the creative cast, otherwise heed caution.Rated R: Graphic Violence, children in danger and Language

The_Void I consider myself retired from modern Asian ghost films after having been stung by the likes of The Grudge, The Ring, The Eye, A Tale of Two Sisters etc...but I decided to give this one a chance anyway because it was a part of the Eight Films to Die For series (which I've been slowly making my way through) and because the plot sounded rather interesting. While I would say that this film is above average for its type; and certainly better than most of the other modern Japanese horror films that I've seen, I wouldn't really say it was worth the time or effort. The plot focuses on a young actress that is given a role in a horror film after proclaiming to the producers that she would be perfect for the role as she was killed in a previous life. The film depicts the real life murders of a bunch of hotel guests by a crazed madman, and it's being filmed at the very place where the massacre took place. It's not long before the actress begins to be haunted by the malevolent ghosts killed at the hotel.The film is very slow and takes a while to get going. I've got no problem with this in theory, but unfortunately the build up to the plot and the central character are not very interesting, which makes things a bit tedious right from the start. Once it does finally get going (over halfway through the film), things do get a little more interesting and director Takashi Shimizu (who directed The Grudge, its sequels and remakes) even manages some really creepy sequences; one taking place in a library is the best, but the ending is rather well done too. The film does seem to expect the viewer to invest some thought in the plot; and for me this is the worst thing about it. It's just not interesting enough to captivate the viewer in order to make us want to invest any extra effort in the viewing. To the film's credit, the style is rather good and the director does have an eye for horror. Overall, the film didn't do enough for me to bother recommending it. The fact that it was a part of After Dark's series will (hopefully) mean there won't be a remake on the horizon any time soon.