Asian Film Festival of Dallas 2010

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“As you can see, this ain’t an easy village.”

Equal parts nature-gone-wild thriller, ecological cautionary tale and dark slapstick, CHAW expertly combines drama, chills and laughter in the form of an unstoppable, shaggy monster movie.

After writing “anywhere” on his relocation form, Seoul police officer Kim (Eom Tae-woong) is re-assigned and ends up in Samaeri, a quiet, uneventful town in the idyllic countryside.  In tow are his pregnant wife and senile mother, who is prone to wandering off if left unattended. Su-ryeon (Jyeong Yu-mi) is a visiting zoologist who wants to be the next Jane Goodall.  And Chun (Jang Hang-sun) is a reclusive local hunter, quite the opposite of his adversary Baek (Yoon Jae-moon), a media-superstar hunter who takes a more sensational approach to tracking down big game.

When a woman’s mutilated remains are found, Kim, Su-ryeon and the rival hunters set out to bring down what they believe to be a massive, man-eating boar. As further attacks occur with increasingly gory results, the local community leaders fear their upcoming organic food festival will be affected. Before you can say “You’re gonna need a bigger boat,” mayhem ensues.

CHAW is a fun take on the comedy-horror genre, with a reliable beast, terrific cast and just enough scares and severed limbs to treat the genre geek in all of us.

Director

Shin Jeong-won

Cast

Eom Tae-woong, Yoon Jae-moon, Jeong Yu-mi

Country

South Korea

Language

English Subtitles, Korean

Alternate Titles

차우 (Cha-woo)

Release Date

2009

Runtime

121 minutes

Exhibition Format

35mm