Three... Extremes
Metascore
66 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
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  1. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Eric Campos
    90
    So here it is, an arena rock type film event for lovers of Asian cinema. Good news is that you won’t have that annoying ringing in your ears the day after. Better news is that you’ll have food for thought way after witnessing these spectacles.
  2. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    88
    What all three of these stories share is the quality found in Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King: An attention to horror as it emerges from everyday life as transformed by fear, fantasy and depravity.
  3. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Mike Russell
    83
    There's a sense of diminishing returns here -- "Extremes" leads with its strongest short and ends with its most esoteric. But all three offer provocative, distinct and gorgeous twists on horror and splatter conventions.
  4. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Michael Atkinson
    80
    A black-blooded hoot.
  5. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    80
    Like a bouquet of poisoned flowers -- beautiful, delicate and lethal. A trio of horror films from three "extreme" Asian directors, it shows how much evil fun talented bad boys can have on a very small scale.
  6. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    78
    Might also be the best date movie ever, depending on your idea of a good time.
  7. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jami Bernard
    75
    Blood, grotesquerie and humor mix equally in the first two, but the full combo makes a savory witches' brew for Asian-cinema cultists (or Halloween lovers in need of a gore fix).
  8. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    75
    The three-part anthology opens with its best shot, Hong Kong fruitcake Fruit Chan's "Dumplings," photographed by the great Christopher Doyle.
  9. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    75
    While most anthology films have one standout and one weak link, all three tales are short, sharp shockers -- there should be at least one for every taste.
  10. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Sean Axmaker
    75
    Don't expect scary from this trilogy of short horror films from a trio of Asia's most interesting directors, which are not so much extreme as twisted.
  11. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    70
    Few directors are as "extreme" as Miike, but ironically, his entry in Three... Extremes is the least explicit; its suggestive tale of envy and guilt resembles Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" more than Miike's usual six-per-year gorefests.
  12. Dallas Observer
    Reviewed by: Bill Gallo
    70
    Connoisseurs of horror are bound to play favorites here (this amateur votes for Box), but there's one more thing that connects these three films--the brilliant cinematography of Christopher Doyle.
  13. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Lawrence Van Gelder
    70
    Though Three ... Extremes may seem tame to jaded fans of what has been termed New Asian Horror, it serves as a fine introduction to the genre for those who are curious but squeamish.
  14. Variety
    Reviewed by: David Rooney
    70
    Plenty of vile little secrets and ghastly urges are explored in the stylishly made Asian-fusion horror triptych.
  15. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Wilmington
    63
    A bloody strange movie--and a surprise. Who would have thought that you could put together an anthology of "extreme" Asian horror featurettes by three cutting-edge Asian directors where the most tasteful, restrained contribution was the one by Japanese mad dog moviemaker Takashi Miike?
  16. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    63
    Gore fans will want to bump the two-and-a-half-star rating up a star, whereas those who can't handle on-screen violence will want to stay the hell away.
  17. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Richard James Havis
    60
    The result falls somewhere between psychodrama and horror. Cult cinema fans should come away satisfied, though the stories are probably too brutal to reach much into the mainstream.
  18. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: G. Allen Johnson
    50
    One is haunting and wonderful, one is very good, and one spoils the fun.
  19. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ben Kenigsberg
    50
    Title notwithstanding, Three . . . Extremes really offers only two.
  20. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    50
    "Cut" is the most interesting of the three shorts because Park uses the opportunity to take stock of his career and the excruciating cruelty of his movies.
  21. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Gregory Kirschling
    42
    Another pulpy Creepshow movie would be more welcome than a second installment of this stiff stuff.
  22. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Crust
    40
    All three look great and the filmmakers deliver a certain artiness, but their overall triviality and the unpleasantness of the first two make for an extremely distasteful experience.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.3 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 12 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. JackM
    9
    I only saw the Director's cut of Dumplings, but I will have to say it's a very good story. No lame ghosts, no "scary" bumps in the night, just humans being as twisted as they can be. I recommend this to ALL fans of horror who have enough attention span to occasionally read a book. Other people may be turned away by the lack of hollywood scares (thank god!). Enjoy!… Full Review »
  2. KevinE.
    6
    I am shocked how positive this filmed is being recieved and how most other horror films are being dismissed. We have some terrific directors, great acting, decent cinematography... but that doesn't make the outcome any better. The stories are for the most park boring. Dumplings was effective but the story wasn't developed right. Cut was the best of the 3 but it resembled the violence in Chan-wook's Oldboy too much and wasn't a necessary see. Miike's box was the most beautifully shot but there was nothing to be scared about. The twist at the end was kind've cool. Three... Extremes it is not. More like Three... Simples. Not very scary, not very effective... but at least interesting. Worth seeing once... but see these director's other works if you want to see something really scary and really extreme.… Full Review »
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