The Whole Truth is an interesting, albeit drawn-out, Netflix Original from the sunny shores of Thailand. When siblings, Pimm and Putt, find themselves living with their Grandpa and Grandma after their mother suffers a head injury in a drunken car accident, things take on a spooky turn.
The Whole Truth Premise
With their mother in intensive care after being involved in a collision with a drunk driver, siblings; Pimm, and Putt, are blissfully unaware until their estranged grandpa turns up at their home to inform them of the accident. The brother and sister duo fail to recognize the man calling himself ‘grandpa’ but are soon convinced due to him knowing their names and the name of their mother.
On arriving at their alleged grandparents’ house, Pimm and Putt quickly notice that things aren’t quite right. Despite their high school age, they are met each morning with the exact same breakfast of eggs; toast, and hotdogs – arranged into a childish face; Putt is coerced each day into drinking a huge glass of milk, despite his protests; and the grandma keeps reading the time from a clock, seemingly only seen by her.
One day after school, the pair notice a hole in the wall; a perfect circle, around three inches in diameter. With curiosity urging them on, they eventually peek through the Hole of WTF to see a ghostly deformed girl, dragging herself across the blood-drenched floor in the token Asian cinema way. Furthermore, the room on the other side is a macabre mirrored version of the room in which they stand.
On asking their grandparents about it, they claim to be unable to see any hole and accuse Pim and Putt of lying.
With their situation growing increasingly worrisome, the brother-sister duo looks for answers. Will they like what they find?
A Gripping Story
Despite the over-two-hour-long movie dragging its heels on more than one occasion; it keeps the interest alive by punctuating the 125-minutes with question-raising events. The movie almost compels you to keep watching, in a bid to find answers to the many hanging questions.
Without being too obvious about it, The Whole Truth tells you there is more to the story than meets the eye. As the movie winds on, it becomes increasingly apparent that there’s more where the grandparents are concerned.
The hole, and the view through to the other side, slowly trickle the answers to the questions as more of the story is revealed through ghostly flashbacks of tortured souls reliving their final moments.
The Whole Truth Hides a Twist
Without giving too much away, The Whole Truth did end with an interesting twist. Usually one to spot a twist from a mile away, I was caught unaware by the ending. The climactic conclusion answers any remaining questions and does so with a certain flair – tying the neat package off nicely.
A Few Uninspiring Moments
Dotted throughout The Whole Truth are clear attempts at visual effects that are rendered ineffective by going a little overboard on the ol’ TV blood. Scenes that had all of the potential to be great moments of horror, fall flat on their faces in a pool of unrealistic blood.
While these moments are far from plentiful, they still manage to break the ominous atmosphere that The Whole Truth tries so hard to build up from the very offset.
Summary
The Whole Truth is an interesting telling of a harrowing tale of family betrayal and evil intent. While a little tame compared to what we have come to expect from Asian Cinema; the movie is not without its redeeming moments. If you have the ability to endure uneventful stretches, then this movie will pay off. If you’re looking for a rollercoaster of a story, however, The Whole Truth is better off left unwatched.
You can watch The Whole Truth on Netflix now.
