Thirst

There have been several vampire flicks in recent months but Park Chan-wook is definitely not jumping on the band wagon; his latest gore-fest, Thirst, has been more than 10 years in the making. It tells the story of a village priest who offers himself up for an experiment that is hoping to find a cure to a mysterious virus. After becoming infected and almost dying he makes an unexpected recovery only to find that he is left with an unquenchable 'thirst'. The film starts off strongly and displays all the strengths the Korean director has become known for, in particular his eye for striking images. However the story rapidly begins to run away with itself, becoming increasingly bizarre and morphing into quite a different beast by the end: a comedy, vampire romance. If you make your mind up to go along for the ride you’ll find this entertaining enough but fans of Old Boy may be left wishing for a tighter execution.