Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Taiwanese film ‘Dead Talents Society’ is a hilarious horror-comedy movie which imagines the spirit world as a corporate firm, where ghosts are expected to perform and haunt humans, because the more scared they are, the more offerings they’ll make to the spirit world.
Directed by John Hsu, ‘Dead Talents Society’ follows Cho Hsiao-lei (Gingle Wang), the ghost of a young woman who struggles to find her place in the afterlife much as she did in life. Her troubles worsen when she learns that the forgotten dead eventually disappear for good. To survive, she must carve out a career as a professional haunter, earning recognition and continued existence by becoming famous for terrifying people.
But like I said, ‘Dead Talents Society’ imagines the ghost world as a corporate set-up, so Hsiao-lei simply can’t get up and spook people. First, she must get some sort of ghost agency to hire her, so that she can get a license to haunt. Encouraged by her rich-ghost friend Camilla (Pai Ching-I), Hsiao-lei gives a disastrous audition (yes, it’s a serious celebrity gig) but is still hired by a guy called Makoto (Chen Bolin), who works with legendary ghostress Catherine (Sandrine Pinna), known for haunting a hotel and freaking the hell out of humans.
A comedic parallel subplot in ‘Dead Talents Society’ shows how Catherine is essentially a diva-level ghost, locked in a tense rivalry with a younger supernatural celebrity, Jessica (Yao Yiti), as the latter overshadows the veteran with a more popular The Ring-style haunting on the internet. Their world is filled with award shows and parties attended by legendary supernatural figures.
Gingle Wang is absolutely mediocre as Cho Hsiao-lei, but that’s a total compliment to the actor because she is supposed to be an ordinary rookie with zero talents. She has low self-esteem, her energy levels are abysmal, and she certainly has no talent for anything, let alone scaring people. What she does have, however, is a kind heart. Hehe.
Thanks to the cheery Makoto, who believes he can turn her into an urban legend, and a little help from the reluctant Catherine (she isn’t keen on another young rookie stealing her thunder), Hsiao-lei does become an accidental ghost star. But one successful gig is obviously not enough to stay relevant, so the team must ensure the rookie continues to scare the daylights out of the living. Or the threat of disappearing completely remains very much a real possibility for the young ghost.
Okay, look, this is a super silly, fun horror-comedy about how the right kind of friends can help you survive even the afterlife. It’s packed with funny moments, the cast shares great chemistry, and the hauntings in the second half are genuinely hilarious. Sandrine Pinna is exceptionally good as Catherine, a fading superstar in the world of the dead, and her storyline serves as a clever dig at how even in real life, actors can start to fade from the spotlight when a new generation of stars arrives.
In the climax, things get crazy competitive when Hsiao-lei is pitted against Jessica, with both ghosts tasked with terrifying a famous vlogger determined to prove whether ghosts really exist or if the so called haunting in popular spots are just silly rumors. The found-footage, influencer-style angle adds a cheeky modern twist to ‘Dead Talents Society’.
If you are a fan of the horror comedy genre, and have enjoyed campy Taiwanese horror movies like ‘Secrets in the Hot Spring’ (I saw it so long ago, but it was hilarious AF!), then you should definitely give ‘Dead Talents Society’ a chance. Even in its climactic moments, the creators pack in blood, gore, and laughs.
Dead Talents Society is on Netflix.
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