Wishing Stairs (2003)

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

The Yeogo goedam movies aren't necessarily connected. Each feature different characters and different locations, though the setting is always at a school and features a similar sort of premise. It is obvious that this movie tried to be like the second entry out of the series, using a similar sort of build up and approach to the story but it's definitely not as good or effective with it.Problem is that the movie just never becomes really that interesting to watch. It really isn't a very involving movie, which is due to its lacking characters and directing approach by Jae-yeon Yun.The movie is obviously deliberately picking a slow approach, to build up its tension. It however feels far too stretched out, which again, is really due to the fact that the movie never really becomes an interesting or involving one. The long shots of people staring got old and annoying pretty fast, especially when nothing is really happening in the movie. It takes an hour or so to finally pick up some pace and for the movie to become a real horror movie. Far too late and it besides feels too much out of tone with the overall atmosphere and approach of the first hour of the movie. In that regard this movie is also being a lot like the first movie, out of its long running series.So yes, besides not being that interesting to watch, the movie is also really a lackluster. Lovers of Asian horror cinema can also definitely pass on this movie. There really is not all that much to enjoy for the fans of horror. No tension, no scares, no good mystery. No, this movie is definitely a failed attempt to try to recreate the success formula of the second movie.The story itself features too many sidetracks that don't really get developed properly enough. Seems to me that the writer was having some difficulties coming up with a story for a full length movie and therefore came up with all kinds of thin plot lines and characters, that really don't add any real depth and surely don't make the movie any more interesting to follow. It's often a bad sign when a movie has lots of writers involved but in this case it probably wouldn't had harmed the script if it had received some help from some more and other writers, or some rewrites by better and more experienced people.It really isn't a very well made movie.It never finds the right approach and pace for its story and also never becomes effective with its build up and pay off. It's all lacking a true horror film director's touch. I'm still sure a somewhat more capable director could had managed to make this a more effective, or at least more interesting. genre movie to watch.5/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

The social context is once again played in the class rooms of South Korean horror, Wishing Stairs bases itself on the concept of human misunderstands, fretted relationships and troubled times, if not minds. Human ecology is the main teachings, concerning these young ladies here, that intertwines love, jealousy, rivalry, hate and of course, wishful thinking.Jae-yeon Yun's, this being her first movie, and containing a smattering of horrors past, work here is highly commendable. It delivers a purposely-built crescendo in a pace that honours this Asian genre well, not in a rush to over excite but to keep us near to the truth of the matter. That as life beats its perpetual heart the coming to terms with its perplexities and dealings are never going to be a free ride and at some point the inevitable human spirit shall once again torment itself beyond its capabilities of sanity. To counteract this movies pace, we are dealt with what seems a horror noir, albeit in the visual sense, dark and menacing, though not threatening, Wishing Stairs still has the power and charisma to startle and disturb. With imaginative cinematography from Seo Jeong-min, his use of contrasting both light and dark is compelling viewing, set against the score of one Gong Myeong-ah this combination of both sight and sound can at times have the nerve endings jumping and twitching.The social consequence of the complexities of human interaction are shown to us in a manner that has our actions, in this case negative actions, producing negative results, when one wishes for ones own personnel gain, then one will expect to personally pay the price. Wishing Stairs pays homage to this principle of emotional turmoil, via a beautiful and strong development of its characters long before we see retribution and mayhem that plummets deep into the abyss of madness.

For many, watching certain types of Asian films delivers more of an emotional experience than say do American or European genre films. This is the same emotional territory that (Japanese) anime fans claim sacred. If you are one of those folks, then the schoolgirls of the Wishing Stairs will deliver a fascinating dramatic narrative with intriguing horror elements to keep you glued to the TV set. As in so many "haunted schoolgirl" films from Asia (especially South Korea and Japan) there often exists a romantic, dark innocence about the characters that Western films and their female characters simply lack. When Asian girls of this breed are thrown into a dramatic tragedy within a horror narrative you get wonderful films like The Wishing Stairs. Similarly, the ideas of Asian superstition add greatly to the interest factor of the characters - their motivations, reactions, expressions, etc. And like so many other Korean films, Memento Mori, Dead Friend, and Bunshinsaba, the subtext of "bullying" (a very real element in modern Asian society) adds yet a very earnest, heartfelt drama to the film. Having said that, for fans of Asian schoolgirls in horror peril, the Wishing Stairs indeed answers your prayers.

i think this movie had a lot of potential to be really scary, but unfortunately it's not. for some reason it just doesn't work till the final 30 minutes. for example in the beginning i got really distracted by the bad "fat" - make up of the red haired girl, and her weird shy/crazy acting. it's supposed to explain her character, but that's about the only explanation you ever get about her. and it was obvious from the start what's gonna happen to her. if you had more emotional access to her, i think that character could have gone down as a new icon in horror movies, cause - man - this Asian girl with weird red hair could scare the sh*t out of you. later in the movie, her "shy/evil" changes are actually very well acted.the other two girls are not bad either. but most of the time i felt like watching some Asian version of an olson twins movie...OK, the "ring - style" girl through the window will definitely not scare you. it has been abused in too many movies now, and is not done very well here. but still the final 30 minutes will give you a nice sense of unease and slight terror.oh, and i dare you not to get haunted by the sight and sound when the blood starts tripping through the ballet shoes at the rehearsal - god, and that girl keeps smiling. hats of to that!so, see it if there is nothing else on, but this is no "grude" or "ring"