Three... Extremes
Three... Extremes is an Anthology Film directed by three Asian filmmakers from different countries; Fruit Chan (Hong Kong), Park Chan-wook (South Korea) and Takashi Miike (Japan).
It was predated by the earlier anthology Three; the film's international release came after this one and was thus called 3 Extremes II.
Dumplings
An aging actress wishing to reclaim her youth goes to a woman who makes dumplings that supposedly have regenerative properties; however, they contain a gruesome secret ingredient. Directed by Fruit Chan. Was later released on its own in an extended cut.
- Alternate Ending/Recut - The extended cut has additional subplots and a different ending not present in the original short.
- Back-Alley Doctor - Mei performs black market abortions.
- Body Horror
- Fountain of Youth - Eating the dumplings helps one retain a youthful appearance. Mei looks thirty, but is in fact sixty-four years old.
- I'm a Humanitarian - The dumplings are made from aborted fetuses.
- Infant Immortality - Averted.
- Parental Incest - A girl gets an abortion because of this.
Cut
A successful film director and his wife are kidnapped by an extra, who forces the director to play his sadistic games. If he fails, his wife's fingers will be chopped off one by one every five minutes. Directed by Park Chan-wook.
- Absurdly High Stakes Game
- Axe Crazy - The Stranger.
- Black Comedy
- Body Horror - The fingers. Eek.
- Fingore - Yep.
- Life or Limb Decision
- Mood Whiplash - The film goes from horror to absurd comedy.
- Sadistic Choice - The Director is told to strangle a child to save his wife. In the end, the now-insane Director ends up strangling his wife, thinking that he is strangling the child to save her.
- Show Within a Show - We see a vampire film by the Director, foreshadowing Park's next film Thirst.
Box
A soft spoken young woman has a bizarre recurring nightmare about being buried in a box in the snow. Searching for her long lost sister, she realizes her dreams and reality may possibly be connected. Directed by Takashi Miike.
- And I Must Scream
- All Just a Dream - Apparently.
- Buried Alive
- Circus Brat - The sisters grew up working at the circus.
- Conjoined Twins - What the sisters are.
- Mind Screw - An understatement.
- Rule of Symbolism - Lots of imagery that's open to more than one interpretation.