Review – Pulse

As is not exactly unusual with Japanese ghost stories, this production’s way more atmosphere than anything else. The plot involves ghosts from an overflowing afterlife leaking over into our world via computers. Not that it comes as much of a surprise that Windows machines are inhabited by evil spirits. The spooky visual gimmicks carry the picture for 20 or 30 minutes, but after that the creepiness wears off and nothing steps in to maintain the remaining hour and a half. Indeed, the subtitles tell a dreary tale of angst and ennui worthy of the legendary Werner Herzog himself (though the most famous name that actually shows up in the credits is Kurosawa, and even then it isn’t Akira). The production might also score a point or two for coming up with a new way for the world to end. Beyond that, however, this is just a big bunch of boring. Mildly amusing