Overrated and overhyped

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Great Film overall

An action-packed slog

"Premonition" is an exceptional horror film--with a very original plot that kept me on the edge of my....well, actually, it was not my seat--I was actually watching while walking on my treadmill! But either way, it's a dandy film, that's for sure.The film begins with a family coming back from a trip. The father, Hideki Satomi, is too busy with work he's doing in the back seat of the car to pay any attention to his wife and daughter. When they stop at a pay phone, things get VERY strange. Hideki sees a newspaper on the ground under the phone and something grabs his attention--a clipping that talks about his daughter's death!!! And, the article tells the time she was killed--just a moment away! Hideki tries to run from the phone booth to the car parked across the road--but he's too late. An out of control truck careens into the car and kills the little girl.Several years pass. Hideki's marriage has crumbled and he's divorced. It seems that his story about seeing the article has ruined his marriage--ask she doesn't believe he saw this weird prescient clip--and it was lost in the confusion of the accident. And, he's simply obsessed by it--as well as quite depressed. The wife returns to him, however, when she realizes that there are others who have described similar things---claiming to have knowledge of deaths JUST BEFORE they occur! There is much more to the film--but I really don't want to ruin the film. Suffice to say, it's extraordinarily creepy and original. And, although technically a horror film, it's also a wonderful film about love and sacrifice. Well worth your time, that's for sure.

Don't get this confused with that garbage Sandra Bullock flick of the same name. Premonition (or Yogen if you're a cinephile snob) is a nice little surprise in the J-horror genre. Actually, J-horror doesn't exactly define Premonition all that well. A little bit Twilight Zone and a little bit Kiyoshi Kurosawa, it has plenty of that impending doom feeling, immediately followed by goose pimples. There was at least one scene where I wanted to turn off the movie because it shook me bad enough to rattle my nerves, so that's good enough to warrant a recommend. I'm sure if I went back and watched this again anytime soon, I'd probably bump it up higher. So for now, let's just call it a day and say 7 out of 10. Enjoy!

Japanese horror movies are often being praised for their originality. And compared to Hollywood genre-pieces they are original but to be perfectly honest, all Japanese modern horrors are more or less being the same, so I wouldn't call them original at all. Only thing that can make distinct themselves is having one effective and original main premise and this movie luckily has that. This movie is a good example of what the genre is all capable off.In its style and build up this is really being a typical Japanese genre example. It's all about its creepy atmosphere and often slow build up. And this movie does have some more slow moments than other genre examples but I really didn't mind that, in this particular case. It seems like the right approach for this movie and its story, that is being a bit more 'clever' than just having a couple of ghost appearing every now and then. This movie is still being more of a supernatural orientated one than anything else, though it definitely is not without is typical horror moments as well.The story is quite engaging and well written. It makes the movie an effective one to watch, also really with its horror themed moments. The main premise of the movie is really great and they handled it quite well throughout in this movie. Yes, it does combine several themes and elements from other genre movies but it simply does this well and at an original way on its own.Because the movie is being somewhat slow at certain parts, it becomes all the more effective when things are really happening in it. Such as the last part of the movie, that is simply just being great and quite hectic.Overall this movie is being a really good watch. Nothing too special or impressive in the end but it simply is one that really satisfies and is being a quite original one to watch as well.7/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Much criticism is being pointed at the new(ish) crop of Asian horror, due in part to a lack of originality. Yogen, aka Premonition, can at least be spared this criticism - not one grumpy long haired female spectre in sight! The story itself is also fairly original, with our protagonist stuck in an eternal hell as the curse of the 'Paper Of Death' weaves its evil spell over him and his family. Unfortunately, the director never quite delivers on the scares the premise promises, and too many missed opportunities to strike genuine fear into the audience leave us with yet another Asian Ghost flick that, whilst it has its moments, overall will disappoint those looking for genuine creeps.Having watched the film several times, along with its J-Horror Theatre predecessor 'Kansen' (amongst others), one criticism I do have of the 21st Century glut of Asian horror is that most simply aren't that frightening, and Yogen is no exception.The reason I began collecting Asain horror DVDs was that they brought a genuine breath of fresh air to a genre long since left stale by a seemingly endless run of American slasher flicks, with their annoying, half naked teen protagonists, cartoony killers and cheap 'scares'. The Japanese showed us that horror lurks, not in 250 litres of fake blood, but in the darker corners of the imagination. Using intelligent, often sensitive stories, minimal special effects and striking imagery, fans of the genre were buoyed by the knowledge that the Horror film was not, after all, dead. I quickly began to buy the films that I had read about; Audition, Ju-On, Dark Water etc etc and eagerly looked forward to new releases, only to realise quickly that I already had the creme de la creme of Asian Horror. It is with each new release, and subsequent purchase that I again look forward to, if not stunningly original, then at least frightening films, and can honestly say that that hasn't happened in a while.Yogen appears (for the moment at least) to be the last of the J-Horror Theatre releases, the promised remaining 4 proving elusive. It also continues the trend of heavy atmospherics, interesting visuals and mainly scare free script. Not that Yogen doesn't have its moments, but the majority of the film follows the usual 'investigation' plot, where our heroes must find out 'why' the events are occurring. Surely much of the fear factor is 'not' knowing? Anyway, suffice to say that Yogen still entertains on a level, it's just that that level is more psychological than genuine horror, and with a (literally) big bang start and intriguing conclusion, the mid section drifts through a desert of scare free exposition and ubiquitous, sometimes dull plot development that sadly, I have come to expect from more recent releases. I'm just hoping that the next in the series, the writers and director remember that they are producing a 'horror' film.