Kumanthong

This film begins with a young woman being strangled to death by an unknown assailant who, after he is finished, takes a jade ring off of her finger as a souvenir. This film scene then shifts to a rural part of Vietnam with a young woman named "Soi" (Hoang Yen Chibi) washing clothes in a nearby river when she suddenly sees an unknown man arriving to her village by boat. After quickly introducing himself to some of the other people in the village, he then requests to see the local shaman. A few minutes later, it is revealed that the man's name is "Luu Huynh" (Quang Tuan) and that he is interested in becoming the new village shaman. Needless to say, this announcement is received with a bit of skepticism since he hasn't yet demonstrated his abilities to them. As luck would have it, he gets his chance to prove his skills almost immediately when a young woman is brought to him with a serious malady. Unfortunately, his first decision is met with a great deal of laughter because, needing an assistant, the person he selects is none other than Soi--who is generally looked down upon and regarded as a social outcast because she is both deaf and mute. Be that as it may, their opinion of him changes when he heals the woman quite easily. What nobody realizes, however, is that their new shaman is keeping a secret from them--and Soi is unable to tell them what it is. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was an interesting film for the most part with decent acting and the exotic scenery having much to do with that. Unfortunately, the plot took an exceedingly dark turn around the halfway mark and my interest began to wane at that point. Even so, I still found it worth the time spent and I have rated it accordingly. Average.