The Complex Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: After moving into a new apartment, a girl believes she is being haunted by her recently deceased neighbor.

Review: Uhh...there was supposed to be a plot here, right? Sometimes I am completely baffled when I read a positive review for a film such as this one. "The Complex" is a complete fucking mess and lacks many, basic film making concepts. More than that, the unforgivably slow pacing wastes precious time rather than building up atmosphere or presenting a compelling story. Realistically, this is a torturous, boring drama with minor supernatural elements used simply to keep the plot rolling. When the horror elements do finally show themselves, it's too little too late with virtually no payoff. The ending is especially disappointing in both presentation and its general lack of satisfaction. For a film that surprisingly looks respectable, you would never guess it was mishandled this disastrously.

I'll do my best to try and explain this nonsense. Some girl, named Asuka, was in a bus accident when she was a kid. Her parents and brother were killed during this accident, and she was left as the sole survivor. This is meant to be a twist in the film since she imagines they're still living with her. Believe me, this will not surprise anyone! Coincidentally enough, Asuka's neighbor dies due to neglect, and she feels guilty over this for whatever reason. Asuka is then convinced that this neighbor, an old man, is haunting her except he only shows up like 3 times over the course of the entire movie. By the way, he disappears from the story entirely at one point, making his inclusion utterly useless! Adding more bullshit to the story, Asuka befriends a little boy who turns out to be an evil spirit out of nowhere. Surrrre, why not? Complicating matters further is some cleaning guy, serving as a semi-love interest, who feels guilty that his girlfriend is in a coma. Complicating things EVEN FURTHER is a random exorcist that tries to get rid of the ghostly little boy; there is also a cop and Asuka's relatives at play too, but I won't bother to acknowledge their roles. And what the hell is any of this madness building toward? Nothing. Asuka is obsessed with the ghost, they fail to exorcise the spirit, and the boy pulls a "Drag Me to Hell" on the love interest at the last second. The film then abruptly ends with Asuka's relatives driving her back home as she rambles to herself. Oh god, this is so fucking stupid I'm laughing over it.

Considering this was directed by the same guy who made "Ring," this is an outright embarrassment. Was there a storyboard on this set--serious question? Oh, I have no doubt there was intended to be a pretentious interpretation of this film somewhere along the way, but, between the boredom, needless background characters, and severe lack of horror elements, they lost me. What did any of this have to do with a complex? They could have played it safe with a cliched, haunted apartment story, and it would have been ten times better, guaranteed! If you are having trouble sleeping at night then check this out--should clear that problem right up asap. However, if you're looking for a coherent story, with any trace of scares, then you best avoid this debacle.

Notable Moment: When the ghost pounces on the wannabe love interest--badly shot and laughably so.

Final Rating: 4/10