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RATING:  
SINGAPORE : This portmanteau horror film is the more cohesive, even-toned and slick sequel to last year's Thai scarefest "4bia".
Paween Purijitpany gets off on the right note with "Novice", a moralistic tale of a young boy sent into hiding in a creepy forest temple for the crime he has committed. Haunted by guilt and hungry ghosts, this well-told tale of karma effectively scares with its surreal special effects.
"Backpackers" by franchise newcomer Songyos Sugmakanan, about a Japanese couple on a hitchhike gone wrong, is also a refreshing surprise, borrowing his campy scare tactics from good old zombie greats like "Night Of The Living Dead".
The second and fourth stories don't quite fare as well, as "Ward" (a young biker hospitalised next to a comatose man) and "Salvage" (an unscrupulous businesswoman passes off cars from horrific accidents as almost brand new) fall flat with run-of-the-mill direction and expected scare-'em shock tactics.
It is "Shutter" co-director Banjong Pisanthanakun's hilarious, self-deprecating horror parody "In The End" that both steals and seals it all.
Bringing back his four incredibly likable happy campers from the previous "4bia" to ham it up as scene-stealing members of a horror film crew, his comedy of horrors is an uproariously clever way to end this NC16 fright fest.
- TODAY/rs
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