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Fantasia 2019: ‘Door Lock’ is a Tense, Terror-Fueled Thriller

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Door Lock

Korean cinema has mastered the art of the killer thriller. Films like I Saw the Devil and The Chaser manipulate their audience with a combination of tension and action that pulse through the screen and elicit a strong reaction of fascination and disgust. Door Lock continues this incredible trend of terror with a tech-infused twist. 

The film follows Jo Kyung-min (Kong Hyo-Jin), a quiet and unassuming bank teller who lives alone in a studio. One evening, coming home, she finds the cover of her door lock left open and changes the code. But that night, before she goes to bed, she hears a terrifying sound: “Beep, beep, beep… You have entered the wrong code.” She repeatedly calls the police to alert them that an intruder has come rattling at her chamber door, only to have them downplay her concerns, essentially gaslighting her into the belief that it’s nothing to be worried about. 

via Fantasia Fest

Of course, there is plenty to be worried about when it comes to her personal safety. Kyung-min is haunted by this night stalker; it becomes an obsession that gradually takes over her life. Door Lock is technically a remake of Jaume Balagueró’s Sleep Tight (a phenomenal film on its own), but the two are so dramatically different that they hardly bear comparison. There are certainly parallels, but they hold their own as separate, unique films. 

While Sleep Tight focuses on the villain, Door Lock has a firm focus on its protagonist. Not only does this create a mystery within the story – a “whodunnit”, essentially – but it also allows the audience to empathize with Kyung-min, who must navigate this threat as a young woman in a world filled with overbearing men. 

She is expected to be polite, agreeable, and delicate; a passive woman who makes no fuss and smiles along through awkward flirtations. She sets up her apartment to look as though a man lives there with her, just in the interest of her own safety. After yet another condescending dismissal from the authorities, Kyung-min — feeling her concerns are not being properly addressed — takes matters into her own hands to try and solve the mystery. 

Violence is woven through the film, but it’s not gratuitous; it acts more as a warning of the danger that follows Kyung-min. It amps up the tension and keeps the audience on edge, knowing the horrific fate that lies before her. Visually, the cold, harsh urban scape is alienating, reflecting the isolation that Kyung-min feels.

The door locks in Kyung-min’s building are mechanical, so anyone with the proper code or key fob could gain access to her home. This concept is pretty terrifying; you don’t know who could have your code without your knowledge. Physical keys are harder to copy, but any observant individual could easily learn or guess your combination. This tactic conveniently allows for some astute detective work on Kyung-min’s part, driving the story forward and into some dark, dangerous places. 

via Fantasia Fest

Door Lock preys on the idea that any interaction you have could be misconstrued by the wrong person. What starts as an infatuation can flourish to a full-blown obsession with dangerous consequences. According to a study by the University of Gloucestershire, stalking behavior has been identified in 94% of murders; it’s a sobering statistic. 

Brilliantly directed by Kwon Lee, Door Lock prickles with anxiety; it strips away the safety and comfort of your own home and paints the walls with the worst case scenario. It’s a captivating and compelling film that brilliantly explores the dark and unpredictable side of human nature. The scariest thing about the film is that you could easily see it happen to you; if you live alone, it’s downright terrifying. 

If you’re interested in a good creeping, chilling thriller, definitely check this one out. And don’t forget to lock your doors. 

Door Lock is playing as part of Fantasia Festival’s 2019 lineup. For more films, check out their website or keep an eye out for our reviews.

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‘Evil Dead’ Film Franchise Getting TWO New Installments

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It was a risk for Fede Alvarez to reboot Sam Raimi’s horror classic The Evil Dead in 2013, but that risk paid off and so did its spiritual sequel Evil Dead Rise in 2023. Now Deadline is reporting that the series is getting, not one, but two fresh entries.

We already knew about the Sébastien Vaniček upcoming film that delves into the Deadite universe and should be a proper sequel to the latest film, but we are broadsided that Francis Galluppi and Ghost House Pictures are doing a one-off project set in Raimi’s universe based off of an idea that Galluppi pitched to Raimi himself. That concept is being kept under wraps.

Evil Dead Rise

“Francis Galluppi is a storyteller who knows when to keep us waiting in simmering tension and when to hit us with explosive violence,” Raimi told Deadline. “He is a director that shows uncommon control in his feature debut.”

That feature is titled The Last Stop In Yuma County which will release theatrically in the United States on May 4. It follows a traveling salesman, “stranded at a rural Arizona rest stop,” and “is thrust into a dire hostage situation by the arrival of two bank robbers with no qualms about using cruelty-or cold, hard steel-to protect their bloodstained fortune.”

Galluppi is an award-winning sci-fi/horror shorts director whose acclaimed works include High Desert Hell and The Gemini Project. You can view the full edit of High Desert Hell and the teaser for Gemini below:

High Desert Hell
The Gemini Project

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‘Invisible Man 2’ Is “Closer Than Its Ever Been” to Happening

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Elisabeth Moss in a very well-thought-out statement said in an interview for Happy Sad Confused that even though there have been some logistical issues for doing Invisible Man 2 there is hope on the horizon.

Podcast host Josh Horowitz asked about the follow-up and if Moss and director Leigh Whannell were any closer to cracking a solution to getting it made. “We are closer than we have ever been to cracking it,” said Moss with a huge grin. You can see her reaction at the 35:52 mark in the below video.

Happy Sad Confused

Whannell is currently in New Zealand filming another monster movie for Universal, Wolf Man, which might be the spark that ignites Universal’s troubled Dark Universe concept which hasn’t gained any momentum since Tom Cruise’s failed attempt at resurrecting The Mummy.

Also, in the podcast video, Moss says she is not in the Wolf Man film so any speculation that it’s a crossover project is left in the air.

Meanwhile, Universal Studios is in the middle of constructing a year-round haunt house in Las Vegas which will showcase some of their classic cinematic monsters. Depending on attendance, this could be the boost the studio needs to get audiences interested in their creature IPs once more and to get more films made based on them.

The Las Vegas project is set to open in 2025, coinciding with their new proper theme park in Orlando called Epic Universe.

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Jake Gyllenhaal’s Thriller ‘Presumed Innocent’ Series Gets Early Release Date

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Jake gyllenhaal presumed innocent

Jake Gyllenhaal’s limited series Presumed Innocent is dropping on AppleTV+ on June 12 instead of June 14 as originally planned. The star, whose Road House reboot has brought mixed reviews on Amazon Prime, is embracing the small screen for the first time since his appearance on Homicide: Life on the Street in 1994.

Jake Gyllenhaal’s in ‘Presumed Innocent’

Presumed Innocent is being produced by David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, and Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of Scott Turow’s 1990 film in which Harrison Ford plays a lawyer doing double duty as an investigator looking for the murderer of his colleague.

These types of sexy thrillers were popular in the ’90s and usually contained twist endings. Here’s the trailer for the original:

According to Deadline, Presumed Innocent doesn’t stray far from the source material: “…the Presumed Innocent series will explore obsession, sex, politics and the power and limits of love as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.”

Up next for Gyllenhaal is the Guy Ritchie action movie titled In the Grey scheduled for release in January 2025.

Presumed Innocent is an eight-episode limited series set to stream on AppleTV+ starting June 12.

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