John Hsu’s Lifeless Skills Society is a cutesy and buoyant Taiwanese horror-comedy assured to place a smile in your face. It is funnier than horrifying, with shades of Monsters, Inc., Beetlejuice, and The Influencer. John Hsu and Kun-Lin Tsai write the afterlife as a corporatized competitors for virality, the place your soul’s value is tied to its profit-grossing scare ways. J-Horror influences encourage scare sequences, however the movie is extra considering discovering humor behind the scenes as “professionals” fastidiously architect every hang-out’s logistics. Think about Sadako vs. Kayako however as a Christopher Visitor sports activities comedy. Hsu values lighthearted leisure over frights in a soulful means, which could not work for everybody, however ends with a climactic showdown occasion that brings all the pieces collectively.
Gingle Wang stars as Cho Hsiao-lei, a novice spirit who’s afraid of “glitching” into oblivion. In case your dwelling relations overlook your existence, you disappear like a foul tv rerun within the afterlife — her fingers actually flicker like bad-reception static. Hsiao-lei fears final termination when her household misplaces artifacts from her dwelling days, so she applies for a Haunting License. It is the one means for dearly departeds to stay apparitions if their hosts transfer onward to acceptance. Hsiao-lei joins supervisor Makato (Bo-lin Chen) and one-time legend Catherine (Sandrine Pinna) as their moldable rookie, hoping to stop her vanishing by changing into a primetime scare professional in thirty days.
It is an cute situation that does not care about staying connected to conventional ghostly representations. The lore is each wealthy and slight in numerous facets to the movie’s profit. Hsu invests closely within the universe’s business-like strategy to scares as theater, hilarious talk-show segments, or superstar gossip information experiences. A rivalry between the washed-up, Kayako-like diva Catherine and Jessica (Eleven Yao), a youthful Sadako stand-in who takes benefit of newfound technological realms, turns into comical fodder as they bicker throughout interviews or are instigated by tv hosts.
All the things’s overdramatized like a prying actuality present, particularly when Hsiao-lei’s bumbling mentee enters the combination. Catherine should resolve between preventing for her highlight or letting the subsequent era take over, as she makes an attempt to remain related as a legendary “Room 414” huantress. Lifeless Skills Society turns into a office comedy with spectral influences in these elements: when the movie is at its greatest.
Hsu and Kun-lin are lax with their illustration of ghostly attributes. Hsiao-lei seems such as you and I, maybe a bit paler. Her bodily kind abides by textbook physics, interacting with the world as she did when alive, however can solely be seen by the dwelling when crammed with resentment (triggering scare sequences). We watch Hsiao-lei and her greatest pal Camilla (Bai Bai) slam laptops, swing open doorways, and push trinkets off desks whereas their human goal solely sees Catherine’s “Exorcist Crawl.” It is a goofy illustration that breaks down how groups of ghosts execute a single hang-out, as carefree charms outline an “America’s Acquired Expertise” tackle hauntings as a sustainable supernatural profession alternative. Hsu and Kun-lin’s script takes delicate metatextual swings like Catherine’s contortionist yoga coaching or Hsiao-lei’s coaching montage, which turns into its signature quirk.
Even in dying, characters can’t escape the pressures of viral branding. Lifeless Skills Society is a crackup comedy as American vloggers summon Jessica or well-known influencers like “Non-Believer” make a mockery of the afterlife for clicks. Hsiao-lei’s no one ghost would not have that attain in the beginning — and faces erasure consequently. Hsu confronts self-worth as a recognition numbers sport, and navigates a heartwarming story that intertwines with Hsiao-lei’s earthy days spent chasing trophies in our grinding, perfection-obsessed existences. As humorous as Lifeless Skills Society could be, with Catherine and Jessica caught of their fame-seeking behaviors, Hsiao-lei’s emotions of being a “loser” and “I hate this life!” catchphrase result in a potent introspective finale. Revelations aren’t greater than realizations about coming collectively as communities and valuing your self, however they’re hardly low-cost platitudes. Whether or not a fleshy human or a sturdy apparition, feelings are common — which Hsu champions with sentimental compassion.
There’s just a little bit for everybody in Lifeless Skills Society. As an underdog story, juicy competitors applies ample stakes to Hsiao-lei’s coaching as Catherine’s crew — together with deceased pop-idol Makoto (Chen Bolin steals a karaoke scene) and technical help Kouji (Soso Tseng nails an exhausted worker vibe) — provides us a lot to root for. When the horror parts intensify, Hsu splashes blood on victims and impales Hsiao-lei on a neon resort marquee with spiky lighting fixtures to ugly outcomes. Then the video games start between Catherine, Jessica, and Hsiao-lei, leading to cheekily humorous sabotages (all the pieces from Legos to costumed physique doubles). Hsu loses management of softer comedy beats in spots, and the movie’s practically 2-hour period begs for just a little trimming, however these complaints are overshadowed by real coronary heart and soul that is nowhere close to rotten or invisible.
Lifeless Skills Society is a pleasant paranormal romp that does not care about horror uniformity for the higher. Hsu trades grim existential dread for a ghostly realm that does not seem all that completely different from actuality, which brings relatability to points past the grave. It is Asian Horror coded and would require an appreciation for Taiwanese squee-brand comedy, at all times approaching scenes from a spot of cheerful enjoyment — setting expectations appropriately. It is about as scary as a Casper film (albeit blood-soaked), however who cares? Lifeless Skills Society justifies its story as a comfy-cozy horror-comedy that turns the artwork of a scare into an undead nationwide pastime.
Film Rating: 3.5/5
