Muoi The Curse Returns Review: The Vietnamese horror sequel to the 2007 film is also known was Ten: The Curse Returns or Muoi Loi Nguyen tro lai stars Chi Pu as Linh, Rima Thang Vy as Hang, Anh Thu as Muoi, Dinh Y Nhung as Dieu and others. It has been directed by Hang Trinh and produced by Silver Moonlight Entertainment and has a runtime of 95 minutes. The film premiered earlier for the local audience, but only now on April 30, 2023 has it been released on Netflix for the international viewers.
Muoi The Curse Returns Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers
Muoi The Curse Returns Review
The leading characters are carrying traumas of their own while dealing with the cursed context of their location. And so the movie mostly tries to become about all the secrets and vengeful emotions people bury deep within, that eventually shape into abstract horrors. But, in movies like this, they’re finally manifested in the shape of old curses which can only be lifted once the conflicts of the present are resolved.
While the intentions behind the theme seem genuine enough, the translation on to the screen distances itself from the same grounded approach. Acting comes off as exaggerated with sudden outbursts from the actors at some places. Even though part of it is being done to play around with the notions of it being a horror movie, briefly, parts of it had me cringing. At one point, the amalgamation of all these aspects made me feel as if the movie was going through its own streak of mood swings along the way.
With the curse having similar implications in the past, the new age story between the two friends becomes a replica of not only the old happening, but of also the perennial cliches that, in their story, are picked up with a cliched approach and has nothing new to offer.
With more than one subplot. riding parallel to each other, it’s hard to keep up with the multiple narratives. And, it all becomes even harder to decipher as we move towards the ending. The movie leaves you with a lot of questions, and then suddenly dumps the humongous backstories (of the present characters, and that of the past as well) all at once in its attempts to thread these plots together. Despite the connections so announced, the storylines appear as disjoint entities and made me think that I was watching different movies simultaneously, but even when the revelations poured in, it made everything all the more puzzling.
Several cases of infidelity are built into the story as the present also deals with the issue of Linh and Hang’s friendship being breached due to a similar shared history. However, neither the story, nor the acting makes you want to root for the two friends’ case because their relationship is never foregrounded with any sort of depth or feeling.
The costumes adorned by them push for an idea between the whole good vs evil discourse, and here the writing layers down its nuances by subverting it all in the end, which somewhat balances out the disappointment felt earlier, but not really, due to the haphazard pacing. Initially jump-scares are incorporated in the film, but the second half got so messy that I lost sense of what was happening and even who all these characters are (except the two friends). It was so hard to keep up with all the truth bombs exploding simultaneously that seeing the multiple subplots flesh out a united front became impossible for me.
Muoi The Curse Returns: Final Thoughts
There are movies that leave you disturbed because of how much they give you to ponder over, but this one left me empty-handed with only confusion as the omnipresent partner by my side. At least, the setting is convincing enough in terms of bringing an archetypal location to light as often seen in horror flicks – a deserted and isolated mansion in the middle of nowhere with cracks all over and whatnot. Even though I was eventually able to comprehend the different steps along the story, some things were still left off without better explanations.
However, despite that, I barely felt the urge to dig into them either, or go back to the film again to look more into it all, because it never gave me enough reasons and motive to emotionally connect with its characters till the end. Even with all the piling dead bodies, I never truly felt sorry for anyone even though the narrative clearly wanted to make that happen, and that is the major setback that dragged the film down.
Muoi: The Curse Returns is now streaming on Netflix.
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The film is a sequel to the 2007 horror movie “Muoi,” but it falls far short of its predecessor. The storyline is poorly written, and the characters lack depth or development. The acting is wooden, and the scares are non-existent. The horror scenes are not even remotely scary, and the movie fails to create any sense of tension or atmosphere.
The film’s pacing is incredibly slow, and it feels like a chore to watch. The narrative is confusing and disjointed, making it difficult to follow the plot or care about the characters. The special effects are amateurish, and the makeup is laughable. The movie lacks any real substance, and it relies on cheap jump scares and predictable horror tropes to try and create a sense of terror.
Overall, “Muoi: The Curse Returns” is a forgettable film that is not worth the time or money. It lacks any real scares, a coherent plot, or engaging characters. If you’re a fan of horror movies, then you should avoid this film at all costs.