SYNOPSIS:
Roadside Got Ghost
Swindlers Cai, Fu and Shou have a new scam - using a hotline to make random calls to people, promising them fortune. Those who win the lottery are required to pay commission to Cai or be scared into submission.
One day, Cai receives a phone call. The caller gives Cai deploying the same hotline trick. Believing it is a copycat of his scam, Cai naturally disregards the call, but goes ahead and tries his luck with the given number anyway. To his surprise, he wins. Mysterious happenings assume...
Forest Got Ghost
Nan and Lei return for army reservists' training. They learn that the place they will be send is the widely known 'haunted hill', so they take the shortcut. Suddenly, the 'haunted hill' seems to come alive - tombstones, red dress spirit and other strange sightings. Then it rains. Nan and Lei seek refuge at Yin Yin's house, a girl they just met. Little do they know their road to hell has been cut short...
House Got Ghost
It is the Lunar 7th Month, weird sightings happen at home, children can only think it is the late mother's doings. The truth slowly surface as they begin their road trip only this time it seems to be more than what they bargain for...
MOVIE REVIEW:
As much as we do not want this review section to become a platform for us to moan and groan about certain grievances we have, we cannot help but make known our frustrations with this particular local movie. Prominent Singapore director Jack Neo “invents” and new genre of movies with his latest work and promotes it to the market, hoping that it will be a hit. Oh yes, it is a hit with the masses, but does anyone remember the days when Neo made more meaningful films like I Not Stupid (2002) and Homerun (2003), which actually struck a chord with our emotions? As the years passed, we get, as much as we hate to use the word, trash, like this.
Comprising of three short stories, Neo brings together his usual gang of motley crew to tell three supposedly moral tales involving beings from the supernatural world. The first, “Roadside Got Ghost”, warns us not to be addicted to gambling. The second, “Forest Got Ghost”, warns us not to take short cuts in life. The third, “House Got Ghost”, warns us not to forget our parents after they are long gone.
Maybe the intentions of the filmmakers are good, but the execution of this production just spells W-R-O-N-G all over it. The shoddy production values were meant for television. The unfunny lines do not work at all. The predictable storyline does not make us want to continue watching. Let’s not talk about the special effects used in the 106 minute movie. The producers who gave the green light deserve to be shot for allowing such substandard work to be passed.
Performance wise, the cast delivers a passable report card which is not spectacular by any means. Marcus Chin, John Cheng, Mark Lee and Henry Thia do not leave lasting impressions with their roles. Richard Low fares best among the lot, playing a swindler in the first story that pays for his mistakes. Incidentally, the first installment is also the best of the three pieces, with a message that actually sends a slight chill down our spines.
Boris Boo, an ex TV writer joins Neo on this project, delivering some decent but forgettable results. All those who are involved in this project may have rejoiced at the popularity of the completed movie, but is this really where we want to head towards?
Sure, we understand that movie making is a money making business, and the ones who churns out products to please the markets will emerge winners at the end of the day. But with our local film industry still at its infant stage (admit it, we do not have a rich cultural history like other parts of the world), do we have to bear with movies like this?
SPECIAL FEATURES :
This Code 3 DVD contains a 24 minute The Making Of, where Neo talks about why he ventured into this genre called 'hor-medy' – he says he would like to try something new (even Ang Lee tries different genres, he states). There is also a Trailer included on the disc.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The movie’s visual transfer is fine, and is presented in its original Mandarin, English and dialect soundtracks.
MOVIE RATING:
 
DVD
RATING :
Review
by John Li
Posted on 20 December 2009
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