July 27, 2004
Natsukashiiiiiii! Ne!
The Japanese know how to make a good horror film. They also know how to make it funny. Even if it that was not their original intention.
The second half of "Chakushin ari" ("One Missed Call") was really scary. Creepy. It was also the funniest thing I've seen in a very long time. It was like "Ju-on", "Ringu", "Dark Water" and a bad J-Dorama all rolled into one. Cheesy, topped off by a cheddar-packed J-pop aria by Rui (who, incidentally, also stars in the film) - "Ikutsuka no Sora" for the closing credits. No J-Horror is complete without one. "Chakushin ari" was truly fabulous.
The Forum was pretty packed out for last night's session. If we'd seen the movie in Japan, there'd be horrified gasps around every corner. In Australia, there were titters and belly laughs all round (as well as a few well-earned pant-crapping shocks).
Japanese acting is seriously O.T.T. When we lived in Japan we became immune to it. It even became cool. Here, it is what it is. Hysterical. Embarassing. But with the bit of distance we've had from Japanese TV, I find it hard to believe that the producers of "Chakushin ari" didn't make it funny on purpose. Not funny in a slap-stick way, rather, golden expressions and melodramatic stating of the obvious.
It makes me wonder if we'd have found "Ju-on 2" as scary if we'd seen it at an Australian theatre. That movie gave me nightmares for 2 weeks. In Australia, who knows if it would have made me crap my pants laughing.
i often watch the trailers over at apple.com/trailers to see what's coming to the local theatre. i watched the preview for "ju-on" and thought, wow, that looks pretty freaky. i then went on to watch another preview entitled "the grudge" and was blown away because it's the same movie as "ju-on"!! if you watch both trailers you'll be mightily confused. it looks like the american movie monster syndicate took a japanese horror flick, slapped some sarah michelle gellar in there, and called it a new movie even though it's using the same footage! check it out and maybe you can figure out what's up.
Ah! A cinematic challenge to start my Wednesday morning - excellent!
My response is. Why bother? Obviously someone paid Takashi Shimizu enough money to save the Japanese economy - I just don't get why you'd risk fucking up your own film.
"Ju-on The Grudge" is the original Japanese version with a truly shocking voice-over. "The Grudge" is a remake with a gaijin twist, god help us. They were shooting the remake in Tokyo last northern winter. It was a horrifying concept then and it still is now (the thought of the remake, that is). No doubt I'll see it sooner or later, but please please PLEASE see the original first.
Oh, and by the way, thanks for the tip on apple.com - goldmine!
I just saw "Chakushin ari" up at a Montreal film festival, and I think you're right -- the first half of the movie is intentional parody, right up to the savage take on Japanese television. Miike's mocking both J-horror and the obsession with cell phones.
Then he pulls his usual 180 degree turn and freaks us out horribly in the last 30 minutes, of course.