The story involves a young mom (Yoshimi Matsubara) going through a bitter divorce, who moves into a new apartment with her daughter, only to find that there are some serious plumbing problems to contend with. Throw in the the strange continual reappearance of a mysterious child's purse, despite several attempts to throw it away, and the stressed mother is gradually led to madness. Or is she?!?!?! Yes, the "Is she imagining the whole thing?" card is played here, but it's well done, and certainly the claustrophobic setting warrants this approach. Gradually, the necessary "tormented soul" behind all the supernatural shenanigans is revealed, but where the film takes things from there is quite unexpected. Very cool shit—good enough that I, for once, don't want to spoil the plot. Instead, I'll spoil the plot of The Island: they're clones!!! Dark Water has plenty of almost-overly-familiar elements, but it does provide some actual scares, and offers a nicely twisted resolution at the end. See, it's like how Asian people all seem to look alike, but if you get to know a few of them, you'll recognize their diversity. For example, some like Chop Suey, while others like Governor's Chicken! So stop judging a book by its cover, BIGOT!
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