Gripping but hard to watch

Rating: 8/10 (3 October 2004)

Very clever scenario, great acting, nice music, great directing. This movie would be great if not for the violence. Be prepared for several hard to stand violent images (live teeth removal being one) plus a strong underlying psychological violence.
I'm used to Asian movies and I believe to be quite hardened to some degree of violence but this movie was hard to watch. My girlfriend couldn't. If you make it past the first 10 minutes then I think you can make it to the end. If you feel disturbed you might want to stop watching. It's up to you, but you might feel depressed and kind of "stained".
I believe this director previously made "Sympathy for Mr Vengeance" which was also very very hard to watch (couldn't finish it myself). So if you don't mind feeling depressed then go for it you'll be rewarded with a great movie and an outstanding plot.