[Movie Review] ‘Grace’ is indulgently gory

Should you watch this if it’s free? OK.

Should you watch this at weekday movie ticket prices? If you like Thai horror/thrillers.

Score: 2.0/5

Secret ending? No.

Running time: 97 minutes (~1.5 hours)

“Grace” is a Thai thriller about a former Internet idol and her number one fan, and their attempt to kidnap the Internet idols of this generation. It stars Apinya Sakuljaroensuk (Grace), Napasasi Surawan (Care), Latthgarmon Pinrojnkeerathi (Ple), and Nutthasit Kotimanuswanich (Jack). It is rated NC-16.

“Grace” is every aspiring blogger’s wish fulfillment movie. After all, who wouldn’t want to be recognised as an Internet idol (if that’s your aspiration)? It attempts to be a fable about the dangers of fame and power, but in reality it turns out to be a group of insecure, jealous girls tearing each other apart in their climb to stardom. It starts as an intriguing story, but the poor storytelling, huge amounts of text, and indistinguishable cast make it a very unwatchable film.

Highlight

A story of dominance, power, and submission

While the relationship between Grace and Jack seems pretty straightforward in the beginning, the film delves into the complexities of their relationship as it reveals key events from the past. The flashbacks flesh out their characters, Grace’s in particular, showing how her insecurities and flaws make her relationship with Jack both dysfunctional and necessary. It’s one of the most intriguing aspects of the film, and a surprising gem to find amidst the bloody violence of “Grace.”

Letdowns

Crazy gruesomeness

For an NC-16 rated movie, the violence and perversions are unexpectedly extreme. Even if the film doesn’t explicitly show you the consequences of the violence, it’s clear what the results of say, a hammer to the back of the head would be. It’s an indulgent showcase of pain and gore. Don’t bring anything to eat or drink to the film, or you might find yourself regurgitating it all up in shock.

Facebook is hard to read with subtitles 

One of the key themes of the film is Internet fame, so Facebook Posts are an important plot device in that respect. However, if you can’t read Thai, the text loses its impact. There are subtitles, but the screen is so crammed with Thai words that there’s no good position for the subtitles to be easily and quickly read. And there’s a lot of reading to be done, for the plot to have its requisite payoff, so it’s not like you can ignore this aspect of the film. Perhaps different language versions would have been a better choice?

Chronological order of events is messy and unclear

The flashbacks are evident in some scenes, but not so clear in others. Without this crucial differentiation, you can’t tell when it’s happening or what is happening, and it sometimes takes you a while to realise that what you’re watching is a flashback. And knowing the sequence of events is important for understanding Grace’s motivations. This poor storytelling technique hurts the film, making it a confusing mess.

Female cast looks too similar to each other 

A certain demographic of girls is required to be an Internet idol, as the film evidently demonstrates. The problem is that physically, they all share the same attributes. They are all petite girls with long hair, and are of similar size and shape. This means that at a glance, it’s difficult to recognise them, which is important especially at the beginning of the story. Towards the end, you start to recognise the girls only because of their different injuries, and not because their features are distinctive (which they aren’t.)

“Grace” dresses up a bloody thriller in the accoutrements of modern media, so be sure you know what you’re in for before watching this film.

“Grace” opens in cinemas 5 May, 2016 (Thursday).

This review was also published on Yahoo!.