Pulse (2001)

Pulse (2001) Movie Info

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Eastern cinema goers have long accepted the philosophy that sometimes, things just happen. As this is a primary belief in their culture, they don’t need a reason for everything that happens on screen. Sometimes, this reluctance to fill in the blanks allows us Western viewers an opportunity to use our noggins to draw our own conclusions (a skill we don’t normally use while watching horror films). Other times it just makes us scratch our heads and wonder what the fuck just happened.

In the case of Kairo, the 2001 Kiyoshi Kurosawa film on which this remake is based, the plot purposefully unveils itself slowly, allowing us to connect the dots only near the end. Pulse hits us with the plot at the very start which, in a rare exception, actually works in its favor, allowing us to kick in and roll with the tension and making for a more gripping story.

From the opening credits of college students texting each other on cell phones and computers, it becomes quickly obvious that Pulse wants us to know we are all way too connected. This is a cautionary “man vs technology” tale and that part of it, at least, works quite well.

What few parts it takes from its predecessor are effective Mattie (Kristen Bell) finds her boyfriend Josh swinging from a phone cable in his apartment and quickly realizes it has something to do with the images of people committing suicide on his computer. Soon, those images begin showing up on everyone’s computers in a sick infestation caused by ghosts that are somehow using the Internet to get around. But the film goes a bit astray when it adds unnecessary teenaged characters Mattie’s friends as feed for the demons, providing extra jump scenes that don’t really work anyway.

Faring much better is Dexter, the man who unwittingly purchases Josh’s computer without realizing its history. Played by Ian Somerhalder (Lost), Dexter is easily the most interesting character, quickly absorbing himself into Josh’s world in order to figure out how to stop the ever increasing threat to humanity.

Where the film ultimately fails though is where the original film failed. It’s simply boring at times, despite its clocking in at more than half an hour shorter than Kairo. Strangely, the ghosts all look exactly the same (and, in a strange move for a big budget release, are different than the ghosts shown on the box art!). Additionally, the decision to show a death that was quite poetic in Kairo (due to an earlier foreshadowing) makes absolutely no sense when shown in Pulse.

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