Now, I almost 100% of the time look at both front and back covers when buying a DVD and I swear I did this time as well, but for some reason the glaringly obvious assertion on the rear cover stating "Based On The Top Selling Playstation Video Game!" completely escaped my notice. Not that it would have stopped or slowed me down in any way, but I probably would have made a mental note going into the film to expect some "video game" type elements. Well, to say that St. John's Wort is based on a videogame becomes completely redundant almost as soon as the movie begins. It's almost as though you're just watching a video game being played which, depending on the game, could be a real turn off to some people. Especially those, like myself, who were expecting a well paced and intricately plotted Asian supernatural horror film.

Instead there's all kinds of nonsense revolving around a couple, Kohei and Nami, whose job designing video games involves them traveling to a creepy old mansion in the middle of nowhere that Nami inherited. The purpose of this is so they can film backgrounds to be used in their new "survival horror" game. I'm not really sure if that is what the "St. Jon's Wort" game was like, but there are so many badly dated computer graphics and effects used throughout this movie, that they look as though they were taken directly from the Playstation. The only intriguing use of this video game subplot is that while the couple explores the mansion, they upload video to their staff back at the office that then proceed to map the whole mansion and help them to discover secret rooms.

Anyone who's ever sat down and played a game of "Resident Evil" or any similar game will know exactly what's going on the minute the couple comes to a door that won't open or finds an obstacle in their way. Countless backtracking and lucky coincidences all contribute to their making their way through the mansion. Every now and then an "event" will take place which will give them access to a new area or a clue to figuring out the mystery. Oh yeah, the mystery somehow involves Nami's past, a possible twin sister (named Naomi), her twisted Artist father, and the remains of several mummified children. Like any good video game, if you see an item that may be useful, it probably is, and will almost surely come into play by the end of the film.

There are some really cool concepts at work here, as the video game aspect isn't too annoying at first. Other ideas include the figure of the father and the art they create to flesh him out as a character. It's truly some disturbing stuff, as all of it seems to portray some rotting, festering presence in the house. There s also a voyeuristic element, a la Sliver where a character watches the couple on several monitors from video cameras hidden all over the place. Still, these ideas, as clever as they are, don't really make much sense in the overall scheme of the film and just kind of fall flat by the film's end. Oh, and that's the other thing, the ending… I'm not trying to give anything away here, but there are multiple endings, none of which make a lick of sense, going for more of a visceral punch than a logical conclusion. Game Over.

The DVD:

Picture: St. John's Wort is presented in a 16:9 widescreen presentation that looks good. The film is very atmospheric and with the exception of the rather dated looking digital effects, captures a sufficiently eerie mood.

Audio: There are two language tracks available on this disc. I passed on the English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track for the Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Track. The Japanese audio sounds good with a nice strong soundtrack mix.

Extras: This DVD doesn't have any Extra Features, except for the Original Japanese Trailer and some assorted trailers for other Art Asylum films. I will give them added props for including both the Original Japanese Langiage version (with English Subtitles), as well as their English Dub.

Conclusion: Coming at this film from my American background, I immediately tried to make a real-world connection between the St. John's Wort herb and the treatment of depression. Within the first several minutes of the film, St. John's Wort, we learn that in the language of flowers, St. John's Wort means Revenge. I guess this is supposed to payoff somehow during the course of the film, but other than the creep mansion being situated in a veritable field of the stuff, and the creepy Artist father's paintings incorporating the yellow buds into every single one of his works, there just seems to be little to no justification for this seemingly momentous symbolism. If anything, I wish I could take revenge on this filmmaker for the 2 hours I just wasted.