Stocker

The creepy, chilling yet stylish "Stocker" starts at the plot's end, taking the viewers on a lurid and shocking journey before letting them land where they started and see every little detail from a different lens. It is disturbingly brilliant!

Some audiences may say that the emphasis on psychopathic behaviors glorifies and exploits violent acts splattered through the entire screen - no wonder many people feel like walking out after some scenes, such as the masturbation sequence in the shower laced with flashbacks of murders.

But following similar films like "Natural Born Killer", "Badlands", and "Cold Blood", Stoker is not a shallow story about simple murderers. The crimes are committed not just by gangsters or masked monsters, but by broken souls born without any conscience (or have left it somewhere behind).

One minor drawback, though: although Park Chan Wook's talent is undeniable, he showed it off a bit too much that you might even feel distracted in some scenes. Certain shots (ex: the zoom-in of the pencil's red curlicue shaving after being used as weapons) are brilliantly executed and darkly funny. But sometimes, you might wish there was someone else in the room to remind the director: "Is this solo scene really necessary?"

Release: 2013

Genre: Mystery, Horror, Thriller

Stars: Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode, Nicole Kidman

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 70%