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Another stale American remake of a successful Japanese horror film, Pulse bypasses the emotional substance of the original and overcompensates with pumped-up visuals and every known horror cliche. Read critic reviews
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Movie Info
After her boyfriend commits suicide, a psychology student (Kristen Bell) and her friends begin receiving unsettling e-mails and video messages. After a number of disappearances across campus, she teams up with a computer hacker (Ian Somerhalder) to shut down the deadly force before it spreads to the rest of the world.
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Rating: PG-13 (Intense Sci-Fi Terror|Disturbing Images|Language|Sensuality|Thematic Material)
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Genre: Horror, Mystery & thriller, Sci-fi
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Original Language: English
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Director: Jim Sonzero
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Producer: Michael Leahy, Joel Soisson, Anant Singh
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Writer: Wes Craven, Tim Day, Vince Gilligan, Ray Wright
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Release Date (Theaters): wide
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Release Date (Streaming):
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Box Office (Gross USA): $20.3M
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Runtime:
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Distributor: Weinstein Co.
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Production Co: Neo Art & Logic, Dimension Films, Weinstein Company, Distant Horizon
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Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS
Cast & Crew
News & Interviews for Pulse
Critic Reviews for Pulse
Audience Reviews for Pulse
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nothing remotely scary, just the ususua boring teen horror film. Wes Craven again puts he's name to an inferior film. the ending was intriguing but the whole idea is a little over the top
brendan n Super Reviewer -
Another Hollywood's failed attempt to adapt J- Horror, the film used grotesque images to cover up the flaws in the plot and some suspense that failed to make the audience suspenseful. The satire message of the use of technology didn't convey well, making it an below average flick.
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2.9/10 "Pulse", also known as "Kairo", was a nice, creepy Japanese horror film that made its U.S. debut in 2005 and has since garnered somewhat of a cult following. Don't get me wrong; it's a good movie, and it got some solid praise, but the fans love it the most and boy do they know it. I also assume that they will be the first out of many to be pissed off when it comes to the film's American remake, which is about as bad as every other recent J-horror remake. It has no soul, no scares, no atmosphere, with characters and dialogue written as if they were spewed right out of The Asylum; and I'll assume you know who I'm talking about. This film is very, very bad. So bad that, in fact, I could barely stand it. While I happily floated in the intelligent, suspenseful depths of the original "Pulse", this remake is too stupid to really enjoy. It takes a good premise - the one from the original - but this time, it adds in characters as thin as paper, and scares that are nothing short of wit-less. The problem is that there are many horror movie clichés, and well-made genre pictures can work their way around them, but this is a great example of a movie that is not well-made, and therefore, it cannot achieve any of what it intends to. But then again, I suppose it might entertain the stupid teenagers that think they understand that genre, and therefore go to see the film because they think it's going to be loaded with insanely creepy CGI visuals, and they would be right. Now, the story involves, if you recall, a virus spread through electronic devices and the internet. It allows ghosts, ghouls, SPIRITS, if you may, access to the world of the living. It is there that they feed off our very souls, hoping to cast the entire Earth in their own dark shadow. But we must have characters; oh yes, we must. Mattie (Kristen Bell) is just one, out of far too many (of these "characters"). She is a student, studying to be, if I remember, a...shrink? Yeah, I think that was it. We learn that Mattie's boyfriend has killed himself for whatever reason, although that reason (oh yes, that reason) shall be revealed later in the film, and I would spoil it for you, but that would go "against the rules". Anyways, regarding the character of the boyfriend, he is first seen wandering a dark library (horrible idea, but just in my opinion, you know) in the film's opening scenes, and then, out of the blue (or out of the darkness, whichever you prefer), he is assaulted by a library-dwelling ghostie that pops out at him and yells "boo!" It would appear that he was down with some sort of sickness, and this is precisely why he might have hung himself by a computer cable. However, as these movies go, this just wasn't the END of these suicides; it becomes an every-day thing, and a threat to the characters and their mental states. This is where we're supposed to find out that the ghosts have some sort of evil scheme planned out; and I already mentioned what it was. The idea that the original "Pulse" brought to the cinematic screen was a good one. I admire how the Japanese value technology and intend their horror films, involving technologies, to be, should I say, cautionary tales? If not, then it's just going to show how easily a ghost can find its way from its world to ours with just the click of a button. One of the film's gimmicks is the quote that the ghosts send to the people via computer: Do you want to see a ghost? It's a dumb gimmick, really, it is; but it got the attention of some, and hey; that works for the film's benefit, doesn't it? The actors are emotionless. The tension is frightless. The story is senseless. What more can I tell you? "Pulse", the remake, is dull, derivative, and stupid enough for one to despise every moment within it. It does, like most remakes, make me want to revisit the original; and that is something that I might do very soon. But for now, I'd see it; and I'd avoid this lame, repulsive, intellectually insulting piece of trash. Take my word for it; it's that bad.
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What is the deal with remaking excellent horror films? The films are terrific to begin with. There's nothing wrong with them, the only thing is that the American Studios want to cash in on the remake because they're so greedy and don't give a shit about destroying classics. With the remake of Kairo, now titled Pulse, we get just that. The film is a recipe for disaster. There is nothing good to be found within. The entire film is waste of Celluloid and it's just a big stylish special effects extravaganza. A good horror film uses atmosphere to build its horror, but this remake uses special effects, and it works badly. Although not as bad as the sequels, Pulse is still a sloppily made horror remake that just doesn't cut. The acting, story and directing are all terrible, and there's nothing going on that will appeal to the diehard horror fan. This is a pointless, awful remake of great film and it scraps the bottom of the barrel when it comes to trying to outdo the original. On the rare occasion a remake works, but 97% of the time, it doesn't. One reason they fail is because they never capture the essence, the creativity, the richness of the original film. Pulse is yet another awful horror remake and it doesn't work whatsoever. Luckily, it will be forgotten in the next ten years.
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