''Soul'' () is a 2013 Taiwanese
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...
written and directed by
Chung Mong-hong
Chung Mong-hong (; born 1965), also known by his pseudonym, Nagao Nakashima (; or in zh, p=Zhōngdǎo Zhǎngxióng), is a Taiwanese film director, screenwriter and cinematographer.
Career
Chung received Golden Horse Award for Best Director for ...
. The film was selected as the Taiwanese entry for the
Best Foreign Language Film at the
86th Academy Awards
The 86th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best 2013 in film, films of 2013 and took place on March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5: ...
,
but it was not nominated. The film was screened in the Vanguard section of the
2013 Toronto International Film Festival
The 38th annual Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 5 and 15, 2013. ''The Fifth Estate (film), The Fifth Estate'' was selected as the opening film and ''Life of Crime (film), Life o ...
.
Plot
A young man, ah-Chuan, falls unconscious at work. At his bedside, a boy offers him his room in a few days, as he (the boy) will be leaving.
Ah-Chuan is sent to stay with his father, Mr. Wang, in the mountains. Ah-Chuan's older sister comes by, but is disturbed by his behaviour upon waking. Ah-Chuan kills her.
When confronted by Mr. Wang, Ah-Chuan says he entered the body because the real ah-Chuan left it, but will return shortly. Mr. Wang hides his daughter's body, kills his son-in-law when he arrives, and buries the son-in-law's car. He confines ah-Chuan to a shed. A messenger appears and tells ah-Chuan that the real ah-Chuan won't be back for a while.
At the clinic, Mr. Wang reveals that his late wife killed herself due to depression. Later, he uncovers an old well and persuades ah-Chuan to jump in. Ah-Chuan jumps in and sees visions of ah-Chuan and his mother, then awakens in the house. Mr. Wang reveals that his wife didn't kill herself, but asked him for a mercy killing in the shed.
A city cop arrives to investigate the disappearance of Mr. Wang's daughter and son-in-law. Ah-Chuan kills the city cop.
Ah-Chuan's police friend, Wu, checks on Ah-Chuan, who injures him in the eye, pursues him through the woods, then saves him from drowning. As ah-Chuan walks away, Wu shoots him in the back.
Mr. Wang takes them down the mountain while concocting a different version of events - taking all blame for the murders - for Wu to use.
One year later, ah-Chuan works in the mountains and Mr. Wang has been transferred to a sanitorium due to poor health. Ah-Chuan visits and tells him about the first time he met the real ah-Chuan (in spirit form), who said he was going home.
Cast
*
Joseph Chang
Joseph Chang Hsiao-chuan (, born 28 December 1983) is a Taiwanese actor. He is best known for his role in the critically acclaimed 2006 Taiwanese film '' Eternal Summer'', which earned him two Golden Horse Awards nominations for ''Best Support ...
as A-chuan
*
Jimmy Wang as Wang
*
Chen Shiang-chyi as Yun
*
Leon Dai as Son-in-law
*
Jag Huang
Jag Huang (; born 13 May 1981) is a Taiwanese actor, screenwriter and acting coach
An acting coach or drama coach is a teacher who trains performers – typically film, television, theatre, and musical theatre actors – and gives them advice ...
as A-chuan's Workmate
* Chen Yu-hsun as Doctor Wu
*
Chin Shih-chieh
Chin Shih-chieh (; born 29 December 1951) is a Taiwanese actor, director and playwright.
Biography
Chin was born in Pingtung County, Taiwan, on 29 December 1951, while his ancestral home in Hefei, Anhui. He graduated from the National Pingtun ...
as Messenger
*
Wu Pong-fong
Wu Pong-fong (; 2 November 1964 – 25 May 2020) was a Taiwanese actor and choreographer.
Wu was born on 2 November 1964. His father was from Zhao'an County in Fujian. His parents married in 1950 and divorced when Wu was eight years old. He li ...
*
Tou Chung-hua
See also
*
*
References
External links
*
2013 films
2013 horror films
Taiwanese horror films
Films directed by Chung Mong-hong
Taiwanese supernatural horror films
2010s Mandarin-language films
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