A horror thriller from Taiwan starring Jimmy Wang Yu, best known for his 1967 Shaw Brothers wuxia film, “One-Armed Swordsman”, “Soul” netted him a Best Actor Award at the 15th Taipei Film Festival in 2013. Sadly this is also his final film role, on April 5, 2022 Wang Yu passed away in Cheng Hsin Hospital, Taipai, aged 79.
The story begins with Ah Chuan (Joseph Chang), a chef who works in a Japanese restaurant and suffers from fainting spells and blackouts. Unable to work anymore, he is sent home to recover in the rural mountain home of his father, Wang (Jimmy Wang Yu), who lives alone and grows orchids for a living. During his stay, Ah Chuan hardly talks, seems to be possessed and behaves as if being totally lost. That's when strange, violent things begin to happen, including a murder. Ah Chuan tells his father that he sees this empty body, so he just settles in and the real Ah Chuan is gone. Wang is willing to protect and look after him at any cost, thus begins the bonding of father and son. From here on, the movie also moves into the dark and violent world of Ah Chuan, a shell of a man who behaves like a mentally ill and whose soul eems to be elsewhere.
Yes, there are gruesome murders and plenty of blood to match Jimmy's old Shaw Brothers movies, but not the sword-fighting kind of action. After all, Jimmy Wang Yu had a stroke a couple of years before making this movie so he is moving rather slowly, which, in fact, suits the overall pacing of the movie. Although there are violent and bloody scenes throughout, this in not a slasher movie, as they are presented in almost an art house fashion and are quite moody, as they intercut with outbursts of beautiful, slow motion images.
Overall, “Soul” is a good psychological thriller and a very well put together, slow burn, character driven family drama. It will probably divide viewers because of the movie's art house feel, but it's also good to see veteran actor Jimmy Wang Yu on screen after his stroke and doing a great job.
