The Rope Curse 2 is a Taiwanese horror movie directed by Shih-Han Liao and starring Kang-sheng Lee, Wilson Hsu and Vera Chen.
Ah, the fun entertainment of watching silly horror movies. The Rope Curse 2 opens with a man with red eyes. No kidding, he has blood red eyes that look absolutely ridiculously funny. It sets the tone for the entire film, and you know what you’re in for from that moment on.
The Rope Curse 2 is a movie that takes into account the various traditional Taiwanese beliefs and merges them with the more modern aspects of the culture. It follows various demons and deities and tries to amalgamate all of them into a singular demon who curses drug dealers (?). That, in itself, is an extremely entertaining notion to think of and it does not get any less ridiculous any time soon.
The film follows several characters, amongst them is Jia-min, a woman who can see spirits and who is plagued by these visions since her childhood. It has caused a rift between her and her family, which consists of her aunt and her abusive uncle. However, as the demon’s curse spreads, it kills the uncle. There’s a scene where the aunt cries over his dead body and it is absolutely heartbreaking because you know that the guy used to brutally beat her. These conflicting emotions strike a very raw nerve.
On the other hand, there’s Huo-ge, who, like Jia-min, can also see spirits. His character starts off this insane story after he invariably kills his master who taught him how to perform exorcisms. Although this causes him to distance himself from such affairs, he forcefully has to join another exorcism in order to get rid of the demon that is making people hang themselves.
The Rope Curse 2 is a story very much embedded in Taiwanese culture and is thus a huge hit in the country. However, for people outside, the film provides nothing more than your average everyday possession story that just looks and feels funny. There’s not a moment where you will feel scared – if anything, it feels extremely tacky. On the other hand, it focuses on how both Huo-ge and Jia-min accept their abilities and make good use of it instead of hiding away from it. There are moments where you feel the genuine human emotions from these characters, but it does not make up for the fact that the film has literally no scares.
This is a goofy, campy horror movie that does not loom too heavy on your head. Instead, you get to giggle through it while seeing goofy possessions taking place infront of your eyes. The story could’ve been way better, but its inclusion of traditional folk religion is interesting. However, without any scares, it becomes quite boring and lacklustre.
Summing up: The Rope Curse 2
The Rope Curse 2 isn’t a movie that will give you any scares. If anything, you’ll laugh at most of the horror sequences. This movie showcases some good distinctions between traditional and modern cultural norms and also gives a good insight into Taiwanese religious practices and rituals.
Funnily, The Rope Curse films have created an onslaught of people trying out these practises as a means of testing them out. This has caused quite the stir in Taiwan, where residents are annoyed at the recent developments since, according to them, it brings them bad luck.
The Rope Curse 2 is streaming on Netflix.
Liked The Rope Curse 2 review? Read our other reviews here.