Infection
(Lion's Gate Advance Copy Screener)
(2004)
review by Don't Feed the Dead

I remember one of the first Asian horror titles I was exposed to was a gruesome little ditty called Organ. New to the market, I was perplexed by the goings on of the film but entranced by the way the film was shot and the extravegant use of green goo throughout. A couple years later I pop in Infection, the second asian release due out from LGF and I still find myself with the same perplexed demeanor, yet still horribly enamored by the green goo phenomenon.

In its enitrety, Infection is a strange film to say the least. Part ghost story, crossed over with gore-fest and sprinkled with a touch of psychological horror, this is one film that attempts to touch all the bases of the sub genres in a 98 minute period. A bit much to take on, Infection oversteps its boundaries quite frequently to become a mega film, and unfortuantely trips up its audience in the process. Much like many horrors to come out of the asian market, Infection tackles the issue of karma, rather than the standard "good vs. evil" plot. In this film, it is a group of doctors and nurses at an understaffed hospital that must confront a medical mishap cover-up before the "infection" claims their lives.

Establishing psychological undertones early on in the film, Ochiai makes it a point to question the perceptions of the audience frequently with color filtering, misleading plotlines and a medical phenomenon that completely stumps the hospital staff. An emergency patient has been left in the ER with no record of admittance and seems to have some rare form of bacterial infection. His internal organs quickly liquify and the doctors and nurses are perplexed as to what the cause of the ailment may be. In addition to the mystery ailment, the medical staff must also focus their efforts into covering up a patient death due to malpractice and negligence. Fearing that one of their own may rat them out to the authorities, the staff must tip toe around the facility and stop the spread of the infection, all the while making sure the body of the malpractice patient remain unseen.

As mentioned earlier, Ochiai utilizes a plethora of sub genre material for Infection to keep the horror flowing. Switching between ghost story, psychological thriller and bio-terror, Infection certainly is diverse, but the story becomes a bit cumbersome and by the film's end is too much to process. Perhaps it was the director's intent to overload the audience with plot and sensory intake to give them a feel for what the characters are experiencing, however, confusion is sometimes best left for being solved in the film. I don't need to be holding my head during the credits wondering if my blood will soon turn green and my internal organs seep out of every hole in my body.

Overall, the film will be a nice change of pace for those fans bored with the Kaidan scene and looking for a quirky little piece of art. Ochiai certainly exhibits the same talents for psychological disturbance as he did in the Hypnotist with Infection, and I'm curious to see what he has up his sleeves for future horror installments.