Death Bell
Death Bell
| 06 August 2008 (USA)
Death Bell Trailers

In a prep-class for year-end exams, a sadistic killer puts the students through mind-games in order to save each other.

Reviews
anraancog

WATCH AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!!If you're looking for a horror movie that will really scare you, well watch this! I have seen a lot of horror movies already and this is one of the most memorable horror movies for me. I don't usually got scared easily but this movie made me to do so effortlessly. Watch it!

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manuelasaez

I watched this movie on a whim without knowing anything about it beforehand, and I was pleasantly surprised at how gory, disturbing and downright entertaining the movie ended up being. The film follows a similar set up to many of the recent Japanese/Korean high school films; Students are locked in a school and picked off one by one by an unseen force. This time, however, the force is asking the brightest and most intelligent students to solve questions in order to save the lives of their peers. It's a great set-up that flows nicely between each act, with some great practical effects and some disturbing and downright horrifying scenes involving the teens. The acting was great all around, save for a few of the students that seemed to not have much experience or didn't take their roles too seriously. And while the movie seemed to get a bit confusing towards the final act, it all came together nicely in a twist that was not only unexpected, but very well executed. My only gripe with this film was that it could have been a bit more graphic with its depiction of death. I wanted to see each person as they were being killed, if only to increase the tension and disturbing element of an already pretty effective set-up. Overall, one of the better South Korean horror films I have seen, and definitely recommended for anyone who enjoys seeing annoying High School kids get their just deserts. A success, as far as I'm concerned.

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christopher-underwood

Korean torture slasher set in a school and the torture element actually adds something different to the usual Korean/Japanese school gore fest movie. I was very surprised to find that these short set pieces were very much the best thing about the film. Nasty, gruesome, suspenseful but not drawn out to the point where the audience is also tortured, these were well executed. The rest of the film was much more formulaic and somewhat confusing. The elite students having to solve some question or one of their number dies before them was a fine idea but for some reason was made over complicated and it seemed that right or wrong the victim still got it . I didn't really care about anybody, so as one after the other died it just became a bit of a carrousel , a bloody one, granted. A great start and not a bad finish, surprisingly high production standards apparent but I just lost some interest somewhere along the way.

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thomvic

This is more a slasher film where you count down who is going to be next on the list to be crossed off - it is formula driven. That being said, Death Bell has some very good moments and the middle half brings a lot of suspense and excitement and tension, though the plot gets a bit repetitive after that so you are simply waiting to find out who is the culprit.The plot is simple: a class full of high grade students are being held captive in their school. An anonymous person has told them they must answer all the questions he gives them or student by student will be killed.Of course, with Asian horror films, there is usually the usual cliché's - not to say that they won't work - because they usually do. This is no exception - you have your flashbacks, a tormented past and the reflections of adolescent school kids who often make the stupid choices while in stages of panic in their predicament - I guess that is universal.The choice of music in this film is a bit questioanble as it felt more like a high beat sort of atmosphere that doesn't work at times. The concept is interesting but at the same time the film feels more like a detective game rather than anything really scary - there are only a few moments which made me shudder - and it is mainly shock tactics that don't last for more than a few moments.Still, it is an entertaining ride. The final payoff at the end - I admit I didn't see it coming and it wasn't too bad. Think of this film like Battle Royale meets Saw.

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