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Lee Mi-Yun, Mi-yeon Lee, Kim Kyu-Ree, Park Yong-Su, Lee Yong-Nyuh ... see more see more... , Se-yeon Choi , Yoosuk Kim , Kim Kyu-Li , Choi Sae-Yun , Park Jin-hee , Yoon Ji-Hae , Lee Mi-Yoon , Gyu-ri Kim , Kang-Hie Choi , Min-jeong Kim , Yu-seok Kim , Ji-hye Yun , Jin-hie Park , Min-jung Kim , Roe-ha Kim , Yi Shin , Yong-nyeo Lee , Yong-soo Park

Every three years, the gloomy halls of a highly regimented all-girl Korean school are haunted by the spirit of a student who died as a result of her teachers' cruel forms of discipline. Though outward... read more read more...ly a Gothic, sometimes gruesome horror tale, the story is actually a critique of Korea's militaristic approach to education. At the school, it is not uncommon for errant students to be slapped or hit hard upon the head. The ghost died a decade before in a freak accident and since then her restless spirit reemerges at the same time and interval to get revenge by taking over the body of a new student and using her to cause all kinds of trouble for the instructors. One of those educators was a former student and a best friend of the deceased girl. The ghost's reign of terror is threatened by the presence of a shaman's daughter, who has at her disposal the means to send the ghost away forever. Yeogo Goedan was screened at the 1998 Vancouver Film Festival. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Flixster Users

52% liked it

3,197 ratings

Critics

20% liked it

5 critics

R, 1 hr. 45 min.

Directed by: Park Ki-Kyung, Ki-Hyung Park

Release Date: February 22, 2005

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DVD Release Date: February 22, 2005

Stats: 148 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (148)

  • WrenchLT
    April 13, 2011
    WrenchLT
    Occassionally chilling but disappointingly slow-paced, which is a trend that continues in other entries into the series, this being the first of five to date. The opening sequence is awesome and the best moment of the film. It does create a spooky atmosphere but there just wasn't... read more enough scares, and things got a little confusing during the second half of the film. It's not a bad movie by any means, just not a very exciting one. There are better Korean horrors out there.
  • newvogueravyn
    March 11, 2008
    newvogueravyn
    Somewhat more psychological than some Asian Horror films, the body count in this is low - though some of the effects are quite creepy. The plot is convuluted like A Tale of Two Sisters, though not as much, and clearly 'resolves' itself in the end.
  • ceWEBrity
    January 25, 2007
    ceWEBrity
    The movie is a strongly-plotted, suspenseful and intelligent mystery with a good thematic plot and a handful of intense scenes. It's slow, granted, but almost everything that comes out of Asia is. Good performances, a twist ending and some pretty rough abuse scenes make the movie... read more stand out from the crowd.
  • danieljparsons
    September 14, 2008
    danieljparsons
    Whispering Corridors, the first of a series of ghost stories set in all-girl schools from Korea, is aptly enough, a haunting film that builds on atmosphere and emotion rather than any actual scares. Character driven and featuring excellent performances from the majority of... read more the players, the potential from the tense prologue, which features some brilliant camera framing and sound editing, is mostly delivered throughout the remaining running time. Whilst the middle section gets bogged down with too many characters and mini sub-plots that don't conclude satisfactorily, the main storyline is gripping and emotive, and the themes of friendship, isolation, trying to fit in and the general pressures of high-school are just as resonant as say, the early days of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. There's a lot of exposition in the final act of the film, which thankfully doesn't get too confusing, and the ending is, refreshingly, heartfelt and moving, with an actually quite effective twist. The film also becomes clearer and benefits greatly from repeat viewings.
  • alanjayh
    June 1, 2008
    alanjayh
    effective storytelling..decent acting..this movie holds your interest and keeps you thinking..I enjoyed
  • threefolddado
    May 17, 2008
    threefolddado
    Some people love this. I thought it was a little slow. The "twist" was also a bit obvious.
  • Hellshocked
    September 25, 2007
    Hellshocked
    The weaker (and first) entry in the Whispering Corridors "series" is a very intelligent and sensitive film in its own right. The problem is that, for whatever reason, I never felt particularly engaged by it. Unlike in "Wishing Stairs" and (especially) "Memento Mori" the characte... read morers never truly called to me. I watched the film unfold but was never exactly in the middle, and believe me I gave it many chances.

    At its core, the film is an exposé of the appalling ammount of physical and verbal violence inflicted upon students by their teachers in the South Korea educational system. With pressures to get into college and be "successful" while maintaining a docile, hardworking demeanor coming from everywhere, it is not uncommon for a student to commit suicide. It is very telling that the film goes out of its way to show the teachers as the bullies. There is conflict among the girls, arguments and even the occasional tussle, but they are all equally appalled and empathic when a teacher beats one of his students, be she the most or least popular in the school.

    The ending manages to generate the pathos that (to me) had been sorely lacking for the first hour and 20 minutes. Once we find out exactly what is going on, and why, it is as heartbreaking as anything in the other two entries. The final shot, a typical double-twist ending, oddly enough does not feel out of place. It was certainly not attached with the idea of a sequel in mind and is very much in tune with the themes the film has raised. I may not have missed it if it had been cut, but it makes perfect sense and does not feel cheap or out of place.

    The direction is rather flat a lot of the time. The photography is grainy and the film is not particularly well lit. The editing, on the other hand, is fantastic. There are sequences, large and small, that are given life sheerly by the way they are cut. One of the creepier sequences involves a series of jump-cuts of a person approaching another. The whole thing takes 2 seconds, the camera never moves, and the effect is jarring, almost like stop-motion. I also quite liked the way the discovery of the opening suicide was cut. The performances are, for the most part, quite good. Even the teachers, though their behavior may be over the top at times, never absolutely chew up the scenery.

    I will watch this one again, to see if I am more involved from frame-one this time. Even if my opinion remains the same, however, this is still a good, intelligent film very much worth watching. That this is the weaker "Whispering Corridors" film (despite being the first) is akin to saying "Return of the Jedi" is the weakest of the Holy Trilogy. It is only weaker by comparison.
  • GabrielKnight
    February 20, 2011
    GabrielKnight
    I'm not a huge fan of this kind of ghost stories, but after seeing the good reviews, I decided to give it a chance. Unfortunately, the movie didn't work for me. The artificial "spooky" atmosphere (creepy music, weird camera angles) was rather annoying, and the ending was so impla... read moreusible it just ruined whatever was left of the story.
  • simsgoddess
    May 16, 2008
    simsgoddess
    The first of a trio of South Korean films about supernatural happenings in a girls' school. The three films are not directly related so they can be watched in any order. This first one is the best. Followed by "Memento Mori" and "Wishing Stairs"

View All Whispering Corridors Reviews

Critic Reviews

James O'Ehley
February 27, 2005
James O'Ehley, Movie Gurus

Nothing Ever Happens! Full Review

Christopher Null
February 25, 2005
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com

a garden-variety ghost story Full Review

David Nusair
February 16, 2005
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

...almost a prototypical Asian horror movie - sharing all the positive and negative aspects of this genre. Full Review

Staci Layne Wilson
February 12, 2005
Staci Layne Wilson, Horror.com

They should have called it 'talking corridors'... Full Review

Derek Elley
August 19, 2009
Derek Elley, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
August 26, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Felix Vasquez Jr.
April 29, 2009
Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

Click to read the article Full Review

January 26, 2006
Time Out

Click to read the article Full Review

February 19, 2005
Film4

Click to read the article Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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