Death Bell

I came across this movie when I was going through a list of dramas and movies starring Nam Gyu Ri (I liked her in the drama '49 Days'). I realized that this is a horror movie and its synopsis interested me so I thought about watching it as I didn't watch horror stuff for a long time (and I'm a great horror movie/shows buff).

This movie has an interesting plot and it actually creates the anxiety in you that not every horror movies does. The story is pretty unpredictable, making you wonder what is gonna happen next. The ending was totally unexpected (at least I didn't expect that kind of ending). There is definitely blood and gore- feature of a typical horror movie but I don't think to the extent that will make you go 'Ewwww' and quit the movie.

The cast is fairly good. But I don't remember the music. Did anything really play in the background? I don't know. I was probably too busy watching people die one-by-one that my ears didn't pick the background music.

The reason I gave the rewatch value 8 is because this movie is highly thrilling and even though I will know what's going to happen next when I watch it again, it is fun.

To sum everything up, I would say that if you are a horror buff, then this movie is worth giving a try.

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When I started to watch Death Bell it reminded me of Saw for some reason. Maybe because of murder cruel ways used to eliminate students. Maybe because the riddles.

Movie has great background music which fit the story perfectly. Acting was really enjoying to watch, actors captured emotions truly well, especially surrounding chaos which took whole school hostage.

Overall I enjoyed watching this movie although there were so common trick which basically directors uses in this type of movies. Like never trust "good guys" or people which say about themselves that their are worthless etc. I was disappointed that murder revealed it self right at the begging. But lucky it did not demanded the story ^^

I have to mention that the last scene with titles in the end made me laugh so hard! This is pure dark humor - and excellent I have to say!

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I'm not usually the type to watch horror/thrillers movies since I'm easily frightened but I decided to give Death Bell a chance since the plot seemed interesting. However I was incredibly disappointed and kind of feel like I wasted my time. It was badly edited from the start so some of the scenes were a little confusing. There wasn't enough distinction between the past, present and the locations of some of the characters because of how some of the scenes were cut. If you're prone to seizures or anything of the sort, I would definitely avoid it entirely. The characters weren't distinct enough to care about them individual, which made it a little difficult to keep track of who was dying/being killed. Not only that but the chosen students are technically supposed to be some of the smartest kids in their school yet not only did they seem really struggle with the questions but also with general common sense (Example: Don't break off into groups, protect the person who you think is going to be killed next, don't go off on your own, stop leaving your friends by themselves, etc) Overall, I wouldn't recommend it. It wasn't scary, just really sloppy and badly edited.

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At first, when I heard the name "Death Bell", I thought it sounded like a very interesting movie. (What can I say? I like Horror movies.)
But when I started watching the movie, it didn't seem all that great and scary.

Truthfully, maybe the only reason I kept watching was because Kim Bum appeared on the screen. How can you not like that cute face of his?
Most of the time, I was laughing instead of being scared...

But the movie wasn't THAT bad. I mean, it had some scary parts and the plot was pretty decent too. Perhaps the only problem with this movie was that it felt like they were trying so hard to make it scary, but ended up making weird, dramatic scenes instead.
So all in all, it was a good movie, I guess.

I recommend "Death Bell" to people who are looking for a movie that can give them a scare and have some gore here and there.

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I'm a bit surprised that I'm currently the one person who gave this movie a really positive review. As an anti-fan of horror movie, I'd say this one wasn't as much scary as how disturbingly good it was. Personally, this really reminds me of Battle Royale and I absolutely adored that movie. This film has a bit of everything: thrills, suspense, horror some romance here and there, and to my luck - no jump scares! I'm a sucker for romance, so the chemistry between the main couple had me jumping up and down from time to time. There are clearly some plot holes that make you question this movie's existence and the reasons behind it, but I hope people start watching this with a light heart and not taking it too seriously. Overall, a non-scary horror with a captivating storyline, perfect to watch in a group of friends on Halloween.

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not very good

i recently realized i loved killer game plots so i decided to try this one. i had high expectations but it was pretty disappointing. the students outside of the main group of 5 barely existed. the reason behind the games was pretty predictable which i wouldnt have minded if the games themselves as well as the character interactions and dynamics were interesting but they werent. the switches in perspective after the groups split up were hard to follow and i was lamenting about stupidity too much to enjoy the movie
- why did the guy friend feel the need to turn 180 degrees just to yell at the girl to run when he couldve taken advantage of the fact he pushed a crazy killer on his ass and restrain him or something?
- the groups constantly splitting up when theyre literally being kidnapped one by one (where is the logic there?)
- answering the questions achieves nothing because the students are killed afterwards anyway even if you get the answer right. the best friend dying anyway was so stupid and i kept getting confused about whether the answers were correct because the kids were dying regardless. its very boring watching a killer game when the hosts are constantly breaking the rules
- not sure if this counts since the teacher was the killer but him killing the crazy kid pissed me off because he literally didnt know if it was him (he didnt seem composed enough to set all this up anyway) and he was already unconscious. they couldve at least tried tying him up and getting some answers or something
- no one wanting to answer the 3rd (?) question and the teachers just letting them stay back as if their classmates arent literally dying and its better to at least have more minds working on the problem
- the parents reasoning made no sense to me. itd make more sense if they wanted to punish the kids for whatever reason
- what the hell was going on with that crazy kid who kept trying to kill the main girl? he saw the teacher murder jiwon but was that supposed to be what made him totally crazy? he acted possessed. theres no way thats supposed to be from witnessing a murder.
- the truth was rooted in reality so im confused about some of the scenes that seemed to be driven by supernatural forces like the hallucinations, ghost looking girl spawning and despawning instantly, people being kidnapped in such a weird manner
- the deaths were super brutal which could be considered good since its horror. i like when brutal deaths elevate the sense of suspense and dread (like in jigsaw) but since the games were boring and the rules were being broken, it fell flat.
- some scenes were strange…like did we really need to see the main girls underwear as she bled through on her period (which had no plot relevance) or her best friends underwear (surely the uniform couldve had build in shorts no?) but whatever

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I feel robbed of my time.

I've seen this movie pop up from time to time but never actually looked into it (smart). Until today when I was like "eh why not" (dumb). Saw Kim Bum was in it and instantly thought "Fuck yes! Horror AND Kim Bum, Why haven't I watched this sooner!?"

*spoilers*
I felt zero connections to any of the characters. None. I mean the actors did great jobs and all, but I couldn't tell you anyone's names. I couldn't tell you shit about them other than, the females screamed. Non. Fucking. Stop. and the guys ran away.... a lot.
I didn't understand why they made it like Saw yet not. Because at least Jigsaw gave his victims time to actually save themselves or each other. This was completely pointless because as soon they were given a question to save their friend, the friend was killed. I don't understand.

I also don't understand why kill them. Even at the end, you find out they didn't have anything to do with it. but to punish(?) the parents? Are you fucking serious? And for what? They weren't even the problem.
When it showed her flashback, I feel like I was supposed to have sympathy? I didn't. I had sympathy for none of them to be honest. Except Kim Bum. Lol
No. for real, does this man ever get a happy ending? I'm officially about to be on the hunt for his happy ending in anything. X_X

I regret watching this, but hey, at least I got to see one of my favorite actors.

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Death Bell is a really thrilling movie. It has really good cinematography and the actors did a great job at playing their roles. I figured out the plot twist a little early, but, there were things I hadn't figured out before the movie had ended. I don't get scared that easily but I found myself screaming with the characters sometimes. This is a horror movie, in which it's not everyone's cup of tea. Some of the scenes can be a bit uncomfortable to watch (Specifically the death scenes). Though, those scenes are my favorite despite still being uncomfortable for me to watch lol. This isn't the best and isn't the worst either. It's still really enjoyable to watch.

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"Saw" Movie in a Korean School

This film was reminiscent of the American "Saw" franchise, if it had taken place in a Korean school setting. Since horror movies are a popular medium used to not only reflect our fears but also criticize societal issues, it was refreshing to have a horror movie centered around the pressure put on students for high grades, especially during exam season. It had both satisfying thriller and horror elements, displaying torture contraptions which were both twisted and creative.

On the other hand, the ambiguity of whether this was a slasher or supernatural horror (or a mix of both) made it harder to be fully invested. Though a clearer narrative would have been beneficial, the ending clarified the previously ambiguous aspects, making this an overall satisfying watch.

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