Malaysia doesn't have a very rich history in horror movies and it wasn't until in 2007 when the generic ghost movie "Jangan Pandang Belakang" was released that they started to realize that this could be a very lucrative business. This spawned a wave of atrocious horror movies in Malaysia - and then came Hysteria.
This movie is gory, the production looks very expensive and it's definitely up-to-par with western standards. Asian horror flicks in general tend to focus on local legends and myths but Hysteria is on a much more international level. No kuntilanaks, no pocongs, no hantus, just a kick-ass monster that looks like the creature from the black lagoon. The characters are built up nicely and it only took me a couple of minutes to like every single one of them. Don't get me wrong, the girls really aren't all that nice to each other - but they're real, they feel genuine.
Hysteria is proof of how quickly Malaysia is evolving in terms of movies. It definitely lives up to its title as the death scenes are brilliant, there are a few good scares, the atmosphere is perfect. What can I tell ya? It's just a whole lot of fun.
