User reviews

We went to see PULSE yesterday afternoon (got to the theater too late for DESCENT). I have not seen the original KAIRO for comparison. So, it's not the worst movie I've ever seen, and not the best. Yes, it was slow to start and get to the point. But IMO it had a creepy, dark atmosphere (god, if I lived there I'd want to commit suicide in any case), the visuals weren't bad, and it had a few good scares. Unfortunately, it also depended on VOLUME to enhance the scare. If you're more of a gore fan, then it's probably not the movie for you. The movie may not be worth the price of a ticket, but I think it's worth a rental. Eh, I'm just your average moviegoer and don't watch movies to analyze them to death. I even liked The Grudge. That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.

I had just went to see a pre-screening of pulse last night, and I must say that it was not all that bad compared to recent horror films. The main problem with pulse is that in trying to be original it borrows from other films. I understand that this is an American version of a film from Japan. The film just reminded me of too many other films for me really to appreciate it. Once again this was a pre-screening and I am 100% sure that parts of the version I have seen will be changed. The other problem with pulse is that it is very hard to follow at times, and you are left to interpret the movie in your own way. The deaths are also very cheesy, and not really that creative. I am a huge horror fan and I was really interested to see this film because of the trailer that I very much enjoyed. The movie gets a boost in points for breaking away from the normal horror films we have been seeing as of late. Another thing that I had to pick at was the mediocre acting of the main star Kristen Bell. She just did not give a great performance...the rest of the cast with the exception of Ziagler give somewhat good performances. To continue on the scares were another part that bothered me..once again we see a pg13 movie relying on loud noises and crashes to make the audience jump...but on a brighter side there are a few scenes (the laundry room scene, and the car attack scene towards the end) that were actually pretty scary. One last thing the ending is not all that great, it is one of those things that you either love or hate...the audience at our screening mainly hated it, I will assume it will be changed come the release date. Overall "Pulse" is a decent horror film which is a step above the horror movies that I have seen as of late, just do not be surprised if you are left scratching your head after this film is over.

I went to see Pulse knowing it was PG13, so I didn't expect much gore, but couldn't the writer of this story at least have done something more with it?

Pulse is a movie about a hacker who releases a strange computer virus which immediately affects computers everywhere as well as cell phones and even TV screens. We soon find out that the virus is really the dead who have found a way to return to the living world. What they want is the life force of every living being. So it is up to our heroes to try and find a way to stop them before they can consume the entire world.

That's the plot which in my opinion was a rather clever idea. Too bad that the story makes very little sense and is filled with implausibilities that go against the very story that the writer and director were trying to get across. I won't explained these because of the spoilers that would be involved. Of course there aren't many spoilers anyway, since the commercials give much of it away.

The acting was decent, and some of the visuals were nice, but there is very little suspense. This is more of a simple shock film like so many other horror movies that have been filling our theaters for about three years. There is one horror movie that is the exception, and that is The Descent which was released last week. If you want to see one of the best horror movies in the past couple years, go see that one instead and forget about Pulse.

I would just like to say that you'd probably be better off watching the original. For reasons that make the Japanese version that much more powerful.

1) The Japanese version is set in a time period where the Internet is "new" so this makes for a much more mysterious set of events as people are still not use to the everyday aspects of the Internet.

2) Since this movie is another import from Japanese horror one could say that this is just another attempt to capitalize on the genre that Hollywood has created for itself, that of the imported/re-shoot/foreign film.

3) There is a certain aspect of desperation in the original as the director & writer try to convey the concept that despite technology we as humans are growing further apart and finding it harder to connect leaving us alone in a world full of people. So please for your sake, if you want to enjoy this movie go get the Japanese original. It's at Blockbuster, you can watch it in the comfort of your own home and if you don't like subtitles then put the dubbing option in the audio settings on...because the movie is worth it.

• Teno Dulina

We just came home from seeing Pulse. Sorry friends, this is one film you won't be sorry you missed. Slow, boring, and lots of loose ends. No thrills, chills or characters you can care about. You are presented with a group of close friends -- yet no one seems concerned or even to notice that one of their buddies hasn't been around, anywhere, for a few days. No one seems to care when his fate is discovered. For some reason, all the college students seem to reside in apartments with black walls and leave food scattered all over the place to rot. I'm guessing the props dept had a lot of bugs around and wanted to use them up. Better to wait until this film shows up on cable at 3 am and you have nothing better to do before you watch this one.

I am sure you are all familiar with how a good book can be ruined by its movie rendition. Well, this is a perfect example of how a good movie can be ruined by its American remake. Sure there are advantages to Hollywood-ification; take a look at the difference in special effects for 'The Ring' and 'The Grudge'. But, in turn, what is then sacrificed is quality in story and plot development, case and point being the American 'Ring 2' involving an attack from possessed deer. Yes... deer.

The movie that inspired this one, 'Kairo' (aka 'Pulse'), had a very complex plot line with real suspense, real attachment of audience feeling, and real take-home messages. The storyline for the new 'Pulse' is something a child could have come up with and is highly reminiscent of a movie released a few years back - 'Dot com'. The whole direction and point of the American version is so far distant from that of the original Japanese that I have no idea why they didn't just separate themselves from it in the first place. Basically, whoever wrote the script had just seen 'Kairo' and thought to himself, "Hey, some of those scenes were awesome! And the way they did this and that? Wow." Twenty minutes later, the script for an 'original' Pulse was created where certain events were directly copied but liberated from all that 'plot' baggage.

Honestly, I cannot find an ounce of merit for this film. Not suspenseful, not scary in the least, and even the effects failed to impress. The action felt rushed, the logic behind everything abandoned for the sake of a 'just go with it', and the message dumbed down so far that even the densest of movie-goers can get smacked across the face with it.

I am not preaching that you should watch the original; just, please, for the sake of America's general intelligence level, do not consider this movie good or clever or inventive. Or good. Thanks.

Here's another in a long, long line of predictable horror movies aimed at teens.

Like so many tired teen horror films before it, we get a semi-interesting premise that is never given the chance to take off the ground. We get a tried-and-beaten-to-the-ground formula that's becoming nearly a parody of itself. "Pulse" has the laziest of horror film ambitions: an endless series of characters making slow, deliberate walks to some sort of random objective (in this movie, it is usually a computer screen) with the steadily rising score beneath their paces. And then, the orchestra crashes, the sound effects are blasted at dangerously high levels, and something (ghost, corpse, animal, landlady, Dick Cheney, etc.) bursts out at the character. Over and over and over. If the characters aren't doing that, they are setting up an opportunity to do so. Again and again and again. Such payoffs are not payoffs. They are sudden, very loud noises that explode suddenly after rising, slightly-softer noise.

It's tough to tell whether the director is a cookie-cutter hack emulating everything that's been released in the last five years, or if he is just being ordered by the studio to emulate everything that's been released in the last five years. Either way, "Pulse" is a dreary movie with nothing to say and little thrills to share. Mostly, it's a take-off of "The Ring"...we get the always-overcast urban setting. A Naomi Watts look-alike as our lead. A lonely piano hits nearly the same keys as the above-mentioned film. And we get the quick cuts of single scenes. Instead of the mysterious video used in "The Ring", we get equally mysterious images in computer screens. At times, it has the disorienting sensation of watching a film student's class project titled "How To Make Creepy Images Like What Was Used In That Video In The Ring".

Throughout the movie, characters go through the motions as if they've just been locked in a room watching a marathon of awful teen horror films. They laugh, they grieve, they act confused, they act scared, they act concerned, blah, blah, blah.

A plot summary for those interested: an internet virus is rapidly spreading across a college campus. Basically, ghostly images appear on your computer screen, and then at some point in the near future, a ghostly image will sneak up on you and take what appears to be your soul. Thus, you are left very sad to the point of being despondent. After that, you off yourself. Or you just spontaneously combust into ash. Either way.

The better looking of our leads manage to doge the virus, unlike literally the rest of civilization, despite the fact that they are more immersed in the virus than anyone else. Funny how that works. Whether or not they succeed in stopping this ghost virus (if you're the screenwriter there's no need to explain anything beyond "ghost virus" when all you're writing are set-ups for characters to peek slowly into things) is for you to find out. If you choose to find out, God bless you. Please keep in mind that it is a real bitch getting your ticket refunded at the average multiplex.

I've seen the trailer for this movie some time ago, and I decided to watch it. It's one of those horror movies with eerie sets and shots. They chose Bucharest, Romania as a main location, so I found familiar places in it. The campus featured in the film is the one from "Politehnica" University.

The movie itself is well written and has a coherent plot. Of course, there are times when you can predict the next turn of events. But this does not happen very often.

The special effects are OK, not dated or something. They integrate very well in the unfolding of the plot. The soundtrack is also good, many low frequency noises, kind of electric ones (reminds me of "The Ring").

For a remake of a J horror movie, this one does a pretty good job. Worth watching if you have a couple of hours to spare.

For what its worth, I enjoyed this movie. I tend to rent all B-movie DVD's from my local Blockbuster (big plug for the movie pass). Despite what many of the folks have posted on this site, I can tell you that I have seen The Grudge, The Ring, The Darkness, and many other Japanese remakes. I also have lived in Japan for many years and (as much as westerners can), I claim an understanding of their film-making. I thought that this movie was well done, but I cannot in good faith recommend any other remakes. Unfortunately, there is generally an element lost in translation. Luckilly, IMO, Pulse does not lose that and manages to keep its Japanese nature very well intact in its U.S. translation. Kudos to the producers.

Years ago when Wes Craven was still attached to direct this American remake of the almost perfect Japanese thriller, I was quite excited to see it. Seeing as Craven had never made a bad movie (except for the Hills Have Eyes sequel, which was taken away from him), I thought it would be great. Unexpectedly, the project was canceled when Bob Weinstein thought it was too similar to THE RING and sent Craven to work on the disastrous CURSED instead. Eventually Weinstein found a way to make a cheaper, ultra dumbed down version of PULSE, completely scraping any intelligence left in Craven's original screenplay (he still maintains a writing credit, which Craven says does not reflect his work). The result is one of the top five worst horror movies ever made. A complete and total insult to anyone who pays money to watch it. This made-for-teens only abomination represents everything that is wrong with the horror genre today: over-explanation to the point of aggravation (the producers must think we are brain-dead as an audience), the casting of pop stars instead of actual actors (Christina Milian), and cookie-cutter editing due the number of times the picture was re-edited and re-shot to get a PG-13 rating. Even Kristen Bell, great on "Veronica Mars", seems bored here. You will be too if you make the mistake of watching this. It's ironic that a movie called PULSE doesn't have one. 0/10.

This remake from Japanese film begins when a hacker penetrates the computer of Josh(Jonathan Tucker) and spontaneously releases a weird virus, starting to happen rare things to the University residents. His ex-girlfriend, a psychology student named Matte(Kristen Bell) along with her friends(Christina Milian, Rick Gonzalez,Samm Levine) investigate a series of suicides linked to an Internet web cam which causes visitors an interacting with astonishing dead. Some of them watch crawling shadows on the wall and vision of dead people . Later Matte befriends a new boy(Ian Somerhalder), both facing spectres from beyond the grave when sinister deeds are going on.

This creepy movie contains ghostly images,chills, thrills and a completely eerie mood throughout.This supernatural horror film talks about people may become solitary, the loneliness in modern society, in spite of connecting wireless technology, cellphones and internet .Ghastly and astonishing frames about apocalyptic happenings with dark skies, deserted streets,creepy mood, similarly to classic films, such as 'Lifeforce and Quatermass and the pit'. Casting is quite good, along with young actors,Bell, Milian,Tucker,Somerhalder, appear distinguished veterans,as Brad Dourif, Zach Grenier and Ron Rifkin. Well written by Wes Craven and Kiyoshi Kurosawa, original author of Kairo(2001) and professionally directed by Jim Sonzero. Dark photography with muted colors generating a horror sensation by Mark Plummer. Haunting and incredibly eerie musical score by Elia Cmiral. Followed by an inferior sequel titled : ¨Pulse, after life¨(by Joel Soisson with Jamie Bamber, Giorgina Rylance).Rating : Acceptable and passable, this psychological horror tale will leave you stunned and squirm for intensely eerie events.

Towards the end of Pulse, a US remake of the hit Asian horror Kairo, there was a moment which actually made me jump. It was a cheap mechanical scare that was totally predictable, but it still managed to jolt me. And I was grateful that it did, because it stopped me from lapsing fully into a coma.

After the dreadful American remakes of other J-horror hits such as The Ring, The Grudge and Dark Water, all of which did their best to cause my brain to shut down entirely, I did wonder about the wisdom of watching yet another. But I'm a fair man, and I like to give films the benefit of the doubt, so in went the disc...

Sporting a grungy, desaturated look, and nasty MTV style editing, Pulse is typical of the unimaginative and stale horror output that has blighted the genre this decade. The film, aimed at the teen demographic, does away with logic, suspense and a decent plot; instead, we get an easy-on-the-eye cast, some cool CGI effects, and a story that makes no sense whatsoever.

In this confusing tale, a hacker accidentally allows strange creatures from another dimension to come into our world, using communication devices as conduits. Once in our world, these things suck out our will to live, which results in people either disintegrating into ash, or committing suicide (and by the end of the film, you'll know exactly how they feel!). As these monsters slowly take over any part of the world in which technology allows them access, a couple of teens discover the existence of a computer virus which may be able to put an end to the evil invaders, but with red tape as their only protection (don't ask!), will they succeed?

Dreary cinematography, coupled with a dull-as-ditchwater script and uninspired performances from a bored looking cast, make Pulse an experience that I am not in a hurry to repeat. Director Jim Sonzero manages one or two visually impressive moments (involving the bizarre other-worldly freaks, which look like they're straight out of a Chris Cunningham video), but for the most part, he seems content to translate the illogical, badly written and plot-hole ridden screenplay into uninspired visual tripe, without giving a moment's thought to the fact that nothing makes much sense.

It's a trend that should have ended with the first one.

This was boring and self-conscious with its artsy pretensions. I was looking all around at the scenery to see if I could tell where it was filmed rather than paying too much attention to the story. Still, I didn't miss anything.

I'm not surprised that this is from producer Wes Craven. It's full of his anti-technology hippie ideals, with plenty of nonsensical "movie science" that teens and pre-teens will take as fact.

Of course, all of the technology being slammed here as detrimental to our existence by removing in-person interactions, are being used fully by all those making this tripe, including Craven himself, and by the blank-minded ones who will love this and not even realize the irony that it comments on their technology addiction.

I'm also sick of all the grays, sickly-looking greens and putrid blues used in these type of films to present the civilized, yet oppressive, society, along with the grungy, unclean characters with pale faces and dark eyes under constant fluorescent lighting. Cities don't look like this, there is color and life all around, even in the poorest areas. This film's view is the misguided angst of rebellious teens with nothing to rebel against.

And then we are treated to Craven's simplistic Waltons-like ending that, once you go rural, you are colorful and clean. Here's a suggestion, Wes Craven, why don't you go rural and give up all your non-personal technology, so that we don't have to see any of your productions again?

Don't bother with this and watch the Japanese original "Kairo". The setting , mood and alll that much better. It's authentic you can tell Japan knows horror. (>o<)

The hacker Josh (Jonathan Tucker) invades the computer of Douglas Ziegler (Kel O'Neil), who is developing a powerful wireless signal and accidentally releases a mysterious force that takes the will to live of the human beings, generating a suicide epidemic and increasing the force. His girlfriend and student of psychology Mattie (Kristen Bell) sees each one of their common friends die and the destruction of the modern world, and together with her new acquaintance Dexter (Ian Somerhalder), they try to plant a virus developed by Josh in the network to shutdown the system and save mankind.

The storyline of "Pulse" is very original and has potential, with the concept of wireless signal bringing some evil and lethal entity. However, the screenplay is weak, presenting characters without any previous development and making this interesting theme similar to a pilot of a TV show. The lead actress Kristen Bell is gorgeous and maybe a good actress for romantic comedies, but her face has no expression in the dramatic scenes when her friends die, or in the creepy and scary scenes, when she is attacked by the forces. Anyway, Ian Somerhalder from "Lost' has a good performance and this movie is a good entertainment. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Pulse"

I was fortunate enough to see the original 2001 Japanese movie Pulse(Kairo)

But I was also lucky enough to see his earlier films the best being Kyua (1997) (Cure).

His films tend be abstract set pieces dealing with complex human emotion, in the original Pulse the central theme was extreme isolation and loneliness, suddenly people you cared about were disappearing and the world was ending. Basically everything I've just written summarized the entire experience of the original film.

But then how did all that change? Enter Wes Craven, who after making this film is clearly out of touch to what makes a good modern horror film. He literally took out all the abstract surreal spookiness that made the original good and did what any cliché director would do. He used Expositing like it was going out of style, he explained Everything. Then when you do that, you basically end up a with a pointless special FX boo driven nonsense. Craven will be the kiss of death for modern horror.

(For the record: Kiyoshi Kurosawa did not take part in the screenplay process, if pay close attention to the opening credits it was Wes Craven and another writer.)

Beyond the fact that PULSE is based on an Asian film, it also plays like a cross between THE RING and THE GRUDGE. And the lead actress, Kristen Bell, bears a strong resemblance to Sarah Michelle Gellar and Naomi Watts, which is not the worst thing in the world. Anyhow, beings from another dimension are breaking through into our world via electronic signals. They may be ghosts, they may be aliens, and then again they may be something entirely different, like the creatures in EVENT HORIZON. The apparitions are scary, but the death scenes involve an energy transference, so there's no blood or gore and this is rated PG-13. The CGI work is outstanding, especially in suggesting the rot these creatures spread everywhere as they enter our world. In the end, though, this is a kids' film, with one teen/young adult after another being knocked off in fairly quick succession. In this way, PULSE proved a disappointment. SILENT HILL, with its similar theme of alternate realities/dimensions, was actually more entertaining -- and SILENT HIll was nothing to write home about. Bell is attractive but has a way to go as an actress. She'll get there.

Pulse is a strong candidate for worst film of the year. It's completely devoid of any interesting characters, any interesting camera work or visuals, and anything the least bit horrifying.

Set in what i assume to be a futuristic time where everything looks the same as it does now, only there's no sunlight or working indoor lighting, Pulse tries to makes us afraid of our digital machinery, as if it were a new storing place for hell's angels. Instead, it makes us afraid of more Japan horror being remade as cheap one-note American crap.

i don't know where to begin to describe the banality of this film. Another reviewer really nailed it when they said the film would be more tense if we actually cared whether the lead actors lived or died. Even the normally plucky and watchable Milian is relegated to interchangeable terrified and puzzled looks. The soul stealing imagery and black plague like marks that are supposed to be so terrifying get lost in the film's direction, and would be scarier as a series of still photographs.

The lack of sunlight makes the characters seem pale and boring, or maybe they were just that way to begin with. Inexplicable coincidences and convenient meetings attempt to stitch the film together but it's a total lost cause. Who, what, or where it all happened are completely lost by the end of the film, and the sense of bewilderment i felt at the end was perhaps the most horrifying part of the experience.

i have seen the future of reality horror, and it is sitting through a screening of Pulse.

Grade: F

This movie is about a computer freak who, by accident, stumbles over something on the net, that has a life of it's own.

I thought about to turn it off after about 20 minutes but my wife insisted to go on with it. I'm glad I did. I see many many movies, not professionally, just for fun, but I'm not easily scared and I have a good taste in movies. This movie gave me some really great creeps!! Sometimes the pace is a bit slow but the very, very, good artwork and the great scares make it worth your while. The atmosphere is great. The artwork might be to much for some people, it might not be what you expect. I think this is the kind of movie where in about ten years everybody says it's a classic.

If you like movies like The Ring or Silent Hill, I think you will like this one, it has many elements of both movies.

As remakes of Japanese horror movies go, Pulse is actually pretty good. It's directed by commercials whiz Jim Sonzero, who combines low lighting and impressive effects work to create a genuinely creepy atmosphere. Despite the high-tech nature of the premise, Sonzero is careful to have the creepiest scenes occur in all-too-familiar places such as the bath, the toilet and, in the film's most terrifying scene, the laundry room. Kristen Bell makes an excellent lead and even survives a not-at-all-gratuitous T-shirt change scene with her integrity intact. Somerhalder is good too and there's strong support from Milian and from Ron Rifkin as Mattie's skeptical shrink. There's also a superb crowd-pleasing cameo, which it would be churlish to reveal here. The only problem with the film (providing you buy into the premise in the first place) is that Kel O'Neill (as the mysterious Zieglar) really overacts his crucial explanation scene and comes close to derailing the movie altogether. Fortunately, however, he's only in the one scene.

In short, Pulse can comfortably join the ranks of Japanese horror remakes that are actually quite good, alongside The Ring and Dark Water. Worth seeing.