'Re-cycle' suffers from a lack of identity, critics say

"Re-cycle" offers stylish visuals but lacks an overall coherence and tries to overcome a thin plot with fancy special effects.

Photo: 'Re-cycle' suffers from a lack of identity, critics say

Malaysian actress Lee Sin-je plays romance writer Chu Xun, who starts penning a horror novel. As she begins writing, her apartment becomes haunted and she mysteriously enters a hell-like space.

Most of the action revolves around Chu's escape from the land of ghosts. The Pangs display an extraordinary visual creativity and imagination, crafting expansive grass fields, lush forests and a dilapidated housing complex with moody coloring, the AP reports.

The directors eventually explain why Chu was plunged into her terrifying adventure, but the given reason doesn't justify the action-packed plot in the ghost-filled world, which has the feel of a video game, accprding to the AP.

The film also gets off to a poor start with cliched horror film devices like dark shadows and phone calls with spooky sounds on the other end. A romance from the past also comes back to haunt Chu, giving the false promise that it will be resolved, but it never is.