If I'd never seen an Asian horror flick, I'd be pretty impressed by Cello. But, it seems to take from several other movies more than would be appropriate. Including Bill Murray's Groundhog Day.Not very scary and not particularly good. I really didn't feel anything for the main characters. Some of the characters in the movie seemed inexplicable. Like the housekeeper. Was the ad, "Wanted: Mute housekeeper. Must be creepy". Why did they let her in the house? Is there a shortage of housekeepers in South Korea? The issue with the angry student seems kind of tacked on, maybe a red herring.In essence, the woman was jumpy when the movie started and didn't really change by the end. Maybe she was being subtle.I was expecting more.

Despite the lukewarm reviews on Amazon and IMDb, I still decided to give "Cello" a chance. Why? Well, because it is a Korean horror movie, and I do enjoy Asian movies quite a lot. And I am glad enough that I did pick up this movie from Amazon.The story in "Cello" is fairly straight forward for a horror movie, but it was refreshing not to have the stereotypical Asian ghosts lurk at every dark corner here in this movie - there is nothing particularly scary about an Asian girl in a white dress with long, black hair covering the face.But back to the story at hand, Mi-Ju has survived a car crash, but she is haunted by her past. And things around her are starting to become strange and threatening as her past is catching up with her. With her secret hidden from her family, she has no one to turn to, and slowly, an encroaching darkness is creeping up on her family.For an Asian horror movie, then "Cello" was rather unusual. That being said, I am not saying it is bad. It was a nice change of pace in the Asian horror genre to have a movie take this approach. But for a horror movie, then "Cello" was surprisingly devoid of scares and spooky moments. The movie isn't boring, but it trots along at a fairly level pace - a pace that some might find slow and dull. But it serves the story well, as it builds up suspense and it does reveal the storyline, one slice at a time.The acting in the movie was quite good, not amongst the best I have seen in Asian horror movies, but it was good and served the movie well. People did good jobs with their given characters."Cello" is a good addition to any DVD collection that contains Asian horror movies. And if you are looking for an Asian horror movie that is not centered around the stereotypical Asian ghost, then "Cello" is a good choice.

Cellist Mi-ju (Hyeon-a Seong) survives the terrible car crash that claims the life of her best friend Tae-yeon (Da-an Park) but finds herself being haunted by the dead girl's ghost.Why waste your time watching all of the Asian ghost films out there, when you can watch Cello, which sums up the entire genre in one easy hit. Vengeful ghosts, freaky imagery, a dark secret, creepy kids, scary phone calls, supernatural deaths—all the staple ingredients are there, along with an embarrassingly uninspired finale whereby events start all over again, trapping Mi-ju in a never ending cycle of horror (yawn!).Technically the film is hard to fault, the whole package boasting stylish direction, solid performances, lovely cinematography, and excellent music, but thematically it is way too similar to countless other previous Asian ghost movies to be a truly effective and worthwhile addition to the genre. And, of course, there's that sucky ending...

Actually, checking the "spoiler" box was a tad bit of an oxymoron. There's nothing to spoil really. And actually, right now I'm sitting at my desktop with a dumb, moronic facial expression, wondering what I should type...Instead I'll just go over what this movie has:Mysterious bedtime ghost visitations (The Grudge)? Check. Mysterious Marie-Antoinette-esquire Decor (Strange Circus)? Check. Mysterious haunted recording devices? (The Ring)? Check. Mysterious Long Haired Female Ghosts? Check, though I'm surprised there aren't two of them, which means DOUBLE the aggravation... oh wait... Mysteruious scary noises made by female long haired female ghosts (The Grudge)? Check. Myaterious distorted pictures (the Ring)? Check. Mysterious hands (The Grudge)? Check. Mysterious False endings (The Ring)? Double check.In short, just watch the above movies instead and keep far away from this fragmented craporama.