The parts of this movie that are meant to be scary are certainly suspenseful. Director Law Chi-Leung previously helmed "Inner Senses", a ghostly thriller that was noteworthy for little more than the fact that it was Leslie Cheung's final movie. Fortunately, Chi-Leung has only improved since then. His deft direction carries the film at a swift pace with some stunning visuals (loved the camera pan around the lavish hotel in the opening scene). The production values and cinematography are gorgeous; this is commercial filmmaking, yes, but it seems that Chi-Leung is a student of Italian horror. The bright colors he uses to light some scenes recall Dario Argento's "Suspiria" and almost give the film an arthouse look. "Koma" doesn't skimp out on the gore either ? be prepared for a few grisly scenes involving a scalpel.

The story follows Angelica Lee's character, a young woman suffering from a kidney condition which causes her to be emaciated and unable to control her bowel movements. Understandably, she can occassionally be highly neurotic as a result. She shies away from intimacy and doesn't like others to see her undressed. As you can imagine, this puts a strain on her relationship with boyfriend Andy Hui. As befitting a horror film, however, Andy is not all he seems. As the movie progresses, we are witness to his own psychological defects. They are often directly related to Karena Lam's character, a severely lonely girl who cares for her comatose mother. Naturally the two women come into conflict with one another as they vie for Andy's affections. Meanwhile, in the background of this love triangle is a mysterious kidney thief preying on young women in Hong Kong and selling their organs to the highest bidder.

The dramatic portions of the film, which are really its heart, are not quite as interesting as the horror elements due to an uneven script. Some plot conveniences and dialogue exchanges seem rather illogical. For instance: Angelica Lee has a dream in which her home is broken into in a very particular way. When she wakes up, she finds that the break-in has occurred, exactly the way she dreamt it ? but this is never explained and has little bearing on the overall plot. Thankfully, the two lead actresses are so compelling to watch that you rarely notice these incongruities. They both give it their all but Karena Lam in particular emerges here as a young Hong Kong star to watch. Her style and moody screen presence reminded me of Scarlett Johansson. Her natural good looks and acting ability make this movie worth renting just for her performance. Even when scenes become trite or unnecessary during the first two acts, the actresses keep the film grounded in reality and the viewer invested. Also, kudos to these women for not being afraid to show the ugly side of their characters. Some of the most disturbing scenes deal not with grisly kidney thefts but the way Angelica's character feels like a prisoner in her own body. She is a character who is tragically human, which makes her all the more relatable. After all, how many of us are truly happy with our bodies?

The third act of "Koma" brings with it a plot twist that you may or may not see coming. Its believability is arguable but it worked for me; it made the last thirty minutes an exciting and horrific thrill ride. This is the kind of film that at times forgoes logic and consistency for the sake of psychological bravado and unsettling scares. But you know what? I found it to be an entertaining horror flick and one well worth watching. The cinematography and acting talent involved make this an Asian horror film not to miss.

Drunken bridesmaid Fung Ching (Angelica Lee- The Eye, Princess D) stumbles down a hotel hallway, then into a hotel suite, and runs right into a poor girl who has just awoken in a tub fill of ice with her kidney removed. This turns out to be just one of a rash of such involuntary surgeries someone has been committing. Ching identifies a girl named Suen Ling (Karena Lam- Inner Senses, Heroic Duo) as being the only other person in the hallway.

As if suffering from renal failure didn't make the crime hit home with her enough, Ching soon finds out that Ling had an affair with her boyfriend, Wai (Andy Hui). The police cannot link Ling to the crime and the jealous accused kidney bandit begins to stalk and make threatening phone calls to Ching. Circumstances turn the two from rivals to buddies, but, is everything what it seems and who is this figure in the shadows removing organs from healthy young women?

I'd heard Koma was pretty fair, a decent little suspense pic teaming two of Asia's hotter young actresses. While Koma delivers a few good scares (I can think of at least two moments that have completely surprising shocks), the film is almost maddingly contrived. It is like the script was spat from some b-horror screenplay machine. Too may coincidences, too may contrivances, leading to a very predicable scenario. The attempts at mystery, like the kidney theft killer's identity, are very half hearted- the list of possible suspects is very small, so when the person is revealed two thirds of the way in, it makes the rest of the film a breeze to figure out.

Atmospherically, the first sequence with the nameless victim waking in a tub and discovering the crudely patched wound shows some promise, including some trick shot, computer enhanced, camera work. Beyond that, it just has the same old standbys. Florescent lights, for instance. In a horror film, flickering fluorescent lights are a sure sign of trouble. In the real world, more than likely, flickering florescent lights mean you are in a Waffle House bathroom- which is a different kind of trouble. Another would be the ol' back against an empty window gag. Gee', do you think something is going to pop up in the window and scare the pants off someone? There is also just some general silliness too, like one of out heroines being pathetically defeated by a sheet of hanging plastic.

The actresses do a fairly good job, and considering the weakness of the material they had to work with that is high praise. Angelica Lee's Ching can get a little grating and bratty, but her ultra thin frame and wide eyes really convey the psychical frailty of her character. Hell, she is as fawnlike as an Olsen twin. Karena Lam has the angrier, more bitter, menacing role, but manages some pathos too...

Conclusion: Well, for me, the film was built around too many cliches, and I found myself predicting nearly every twist and turn and not really caring too much. Still, at least it was a technically well shot film with some game lead actresses. For Asian horror fans...worth a casual purchase for die hards and a good weekend rental for most everyone else.

In a drunken stupor during a hotel wedding reception, Ching (Angelica Lee) stumbles into an hotel room where a woman, drenched in blood is crawling along the floor. It turns out she's one of the many victims lately who have had their kidneys removed, presumably to be sold on the black market. Having witnessed a mysterious woman just prior to her discovery, Ching points her out later in a police lineup. She is Suen Ling (Karena Lam) and she has it out for Ching, with a vengeance. Despite her aggressive behaviour, she is soon dismissed from the investigation but continues to harass Ching. Secrets are subsequently revealed that has many connections to the past, including to Ching's boyfriend Fung (Andy Hui)...

Not that Susan Chan's script (Law's writing partner on Till Death Do Us Part) isn't competent or the direction by Law Chi Leung for that matter either. Because you can easily set aside the obvious plot device lifted from Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance and get on with it but after a first half, that is firmly on an open straight road, Chan and Law brings us onto an icy one where only two of the wheels seem attached to the surface. How's that for symbolism?

As a character piece, Koma does some decent things, bringing in themes of loneliness and desperation. A theme that's reexamined by Chan and Law after the two co-wrote the screenplay for the mentioned Till Death Do Us Part (directed by Daniel Lee). That journey lies in Angelica Lee's Ching but not as fully explored, intentionally, as in that film. For Koma it creates a sometimes touching aura as the closer ones around Ching abandons her because of her being diagnosed with kidney failure and it becomes a bleak, downbeat piece because of this content obviously when you look at it.

Now, Law is aiming higher, no doubt about it, but it soon becomes quite apparent that there's maybe one too many goals set up and even when the first half is clearly told and executed, with flair I might add, Law stumbles upon hurdles when he's bringing Ching and Ling closer to each other as characters. I wish I could say what was inherently wrong here but what I can say that it isn't as full on gripping as it attempts to be. The emotions do resonance in sporadic bursts and towards the end but this flip flopping in quality, not confusion, proves to be a bit frustrating throughout.

It's not that Law's direction, and technical execution, thoroughly saves the movie either but after all, he's been a protégé, and been supported by Derek Yee over the years. Koma marks the first time he's not backed up by him and perhaps Law is left alone a wee bit too early. Yee, as a director, has not been Hong Kong cinemas visual thinker number one but rather a fine storyteller. Visually, but not overbearingly so, Law actually holds his own rather terrifically throughout. There's that suitable combination of storytelling and drawing in audiences visually on display and the film looks absolutely dynamite throughout, despite being a small scale film story- and character-wise. Chan Chi Ying's (Elixir Of Love) calm cinematography allows us to study the frame, look for clues, and it's a nigh on perfect example of why you don't need to be MTV to grab the audiences attention. Law does that fine with the horror, which will probably leave a slight harrowing effect on many viewers, thanks to some excellent usage of effects. Law isn't afraid to let us look at nasty wounds in close-up's, have us watch actors puke or shed blood and it's remarkable how he can leave an effect when he in fact does very little as a matter of fact. He also, maybe overly so, fills the design with red everywhere but its meaning isn't any more deeper than the obvious.

Koma is a case though where performances, even if the final movie comes with flaws, lifts it securely into that decent-territory. On board, Law has two of the most engaging female performers in Hong Kong cinema currently and they are creating themselves a wonderful track record; Angelica Lee and Karena Lam. Lee has been acting scared convincingly prior in The Eye and she takes what isn't terribly much on paper and gives us an expected solid performance but still remarkably unexpected considering the young age of this Malaysian actress. There are only select times where Ching's loneliness is touched upon but it does come off as believable in the hands of Lee. Karena Lam, providing the requisite psycho character, has been directed much towards that very behaviour, which in reality is all too familiar (although The Shining reference in the film unexpectedly belongs to Lee). That and the coldness to Ling becomes quite engaging in the hands of Karena though. It's an easy to direction to give since the character, in her own words, is a bitch longing for love but Lam brings the limited traits home. Don't look for any awards down the line for this but the pairing proves largely excellent despite. Liu Kai Chi (Fu Bo, Infernal Affairs II) and Raymond Wong co-stars (the overactor of the piece but at least they made him look a little different for this one).

What Law Chi Leung does with Koma isn't remarkable and his first outing without the reliable Derek Yee by his side proves to be a little too much for him to handle. He has trouble balancing the story at all times but in a minor way brings the correct emotions to the viewer after 90 minutes. His technical direction is rather terrific though, with an emphasize on a suitable calm, style and doing that in combination with telling a story decently...well...it deserves some form of kudos don't you think?