Tag-Along: The Devil Fish is a 2018 film directed by David Chung and is the third film in the Tag-Along series. Veteran actress Vivian Hsu stars in the film alongside Cheng Jen Shuo. Creators said that they wanted to make another film based on Chinese folklore outside of "The Girl In Red". So they came up with an adaptation of The Devil Fish.
Tales say that the face of a dead person appears on the body of a fish as a person starts to eat it. This face soon haunts the person, appearing in the form of their loved ones who have passed away until finally possessing the host. A family and Priest blessed with the power of a god known as Master Tiger experience the haunting.
I became a bit fearful to watch The Devil Fish after seeing so many bad reviews of the film online. More good than bad came up in my search but I enjoyed the first two films even if some people don't have the best things to say. Tag-Along: The Devil Fish isn't an award winning film by any means. This film felt to me mostly geared toward fans of the first two films. A viewer could enjoy Devil Fish as a stand alone film. I wouldn't recommend watching this film first though. Everything interesting about what happens has to do with the connection between the first two films. More so the second film than the first since Devil fish was set before the second film and after the first film. People who have seen the first two films get a background story that goes deeper into the history of one the characters in Tag Long 2. What is relieved will have you saying "Ah. I see why this character was shaped the way that he was." Kai's background story was more interesting than the second story involving the son and mother. I've seen some stupid characters in horror films. Still, the characters in the second story take the cake. Who keeps messing with something that you know is possessed by an evil spirit? Then brings the fish home like a normal pet. That haunting that boy brought to his family's front door could have been avoided big time. the film does connect the two stories several times, only really making the origin of Kai the most interesting viewing experience. I wouldn't call Devil Fish a scary time either. It's more eire than scary. The jump scares are easy to predict if you're used to the typical Horror film formula. This doesn't stop the story from being an interesting one however. Especially how the writers so easily turn horror into fantasy in the matter of a scene. Master Tiger's appearance in the second film also caused this transition which I thought was cool. Tag-Along: The Devil Fish hits all the right spots for the fanbase it was made for.
I thought the value of family the acting presents in the film was golden. The little boy who played the younger Kai stole the show in EVERY scene he was in. I felt his smart mind even as a child. The whole cast was good enough to get the job done but the stand out performances were Kai and his Father. His Father gave the viewers a lot of insight on how the Power of Master Tiger works. Their relationship was so cute as well.
Devil Fish's cinematography uses a lot of scenery to set the tone. Cites in the dark of night or forest covered in fog shown in a far away shot serves as a setting for all the lingers in the night. Some of those places needed to learn what lights were…. Let me all say that the special effects weren't as bad as some people will lead you to believe. No, the effects are not Hollywood standard but they were good for what Taiwan could do.
I recommend Tag-Long: The Devil Fish as a part of the Tag-Along films to watch together. The story is good as a side story in my opinion. I would even take another film if the script is clever.
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