THE FIFTH THORACIC VERTEBRA - Review
DISTRIBUTOR: Indiepix Films
SYNOPSIS: Exasperated removal men give up on a tardy client, leaving their possessions in a snow-filled street. Gyeol is left to single-handedly move her worldly goods, including a mattress, into an apartment where her boyfriend Yoonlies sleeping. The mattress has a label attached promising a “fantastic combination of sleeping science and human engineering.” A mysterious mold starts spreading across the surface of the mattress, a sentient creature begins to take shape from within. The countdown begins, 337 days before birth. When the couple subsequently break up, they leave behind the mattress with the fungus that continues to grow. The creature grows stronger, finding nourishment not only in the bones and sinew it assimilates but seeming to feed on the emotions of the humans who come into contact with it.
REVIEW: THE FIFTH THORACIC VERTEBRA is a creepy, surreal quest of an awakening mattress fungus that is stealing bits from humans to complete its transformation. Kind of like a Frankenstein monster in training, with a bit of the proposition posed by “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” What I found even more shocking is the lack of mattress hygiene in South Korea, where the filmmaker is from and is set. As the story progresses, clearly the mattress becomes grungier. At one point it falls off a truck and still makes its way indoors, stain and all. In its travels it also picks up some of the karma from the humans it encounters. Also, as it grows, what it requires for its evolution/transformation has more dire consequences on the humans it runs into. Those stories add some interesting moments to the tale. They all focus on stress filled, emotional relationships. They are compelling of themselves but it is interesting how it imprints on the fungus, and how it inevitably results in the mattress ends up moving on. As you watch the film the title of the film will in the end make sense.
Filmmaker Park Sye-young wears multiple key hats in crafting the film. I wish I could provide more details of the talent in front of and behind the camera but the credits were not translated in the release I screened. I very much enjoyed the cinematography, the lighting, the edits, the angles, the creepy concepts and animation of the fungus and the mattress. The offers a variety of feels that vary from organic and gritty, to surreal and dreamlike. The sound design added depth to the uncomfortable feel of the film. I wish I could tell you the composer's name for the film, but it is an excellent composition that enhances and adds a variety of elements to the film.
The film features a solid ensemble cast. It feels like the horror equivalent of a Niel Simon movie/play, an anthology film with several stories revolving around a single location or element. The cast feels organic, drawing the viewer in and taking them on their journey until they pass it off to the next performers, the mattress serving as the baton. The stories are engaging and the performances feature a rich emotional palette.
THE FIFTH THORACIC VERTEBRA is one of those creepy, quirky and thought provoking Asian films you end up hearing about and end up going on a quest to seek it out. The film will be available on Indiepix Films, Amazon Video and coming to DVD December 12th, 2023. In light of the game “The Last of Us,” THE FIFTH THORACIC VERTEBRA will leave you never looking at the mold on food or anything that shows up around your home the same way again. Oh, and I’ve become a bit suspicious of my mattress.
CAST: Moon Hyein and Haam Seokyoung. CREW: Director/Screenplay/Producer/Cinematographer/Editor - Park Sye-young OFFICIAL: indiepixfilms.com FACEBOOK: N.A. TWITTER: N.A. TRAILER: https://youtu.be/UfNI3KKF8PU?si=yhyfS4ZbPWpaYdGJ RELEASE DATE: DVD/Digital December 12th, 2023
**Until we can all head back into the theaters our “COVID Reel Value” will be similar to how you rate a film on digital platforms - 👍 (Like), 👌 (It’s just okay), or 👎 (Dislike)
Reviewed by Joseph B Mauceri
