Shikoku

I recently watched the Japanese horror 🇯🇵 film Shikoku (1999) on Shudder. The story follows a young woman who returns to her childhood home, hoping to reconnect with a friend she lost contact with after moving away. Upon arriving, she discovers that her friend has died and that her friend's mother is in a dramatic stage of grief. Soon after, she begins seeing the ghost of her friend, leading her to uncover the mystery behind what happened and why.

Directed by Shunichi Nagasaki (The Enchantment), the film features a solid cast, including Yui Natsukawa (The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi), Chiaki Kuriyama (Kill Bill), Tarô Suwa (Battle Royale), and Toshie Negishi (Audition).

Shikoku is one of those films that has just enough going for it to hold your attention but doesn't particularly stand out in the genre. The first half is a slow burn, though I did enjoy the opening possession sequence. The lighting, costumes, and settings create a solid atmosphere, which works well for the tone of the film. The horror elements are decent, and I particularly liked the "backbreaking" scenes and accompanying sound effects-they were eerie but ultimately left me wanting more. The plot is fairly straightforward and incorporates many elements that feel derivative of Ringu, albeit with its own twist.

In conclusion, Shikoku has a decent storyline and atmosphere but lacks the impact to make a lasting impression. I'd rate it a very average 5/10.

There are many Ring knocks off around and I bet there are even more in Asia I bet. But I got along to watching this flick without knowing nothing about it but I feared what it might be. So I put it on and from the opening I knew this film was different. It was more than a horror movie, it's more a classic ghost story and drama about 3 people. It's a weird mix because a lot of the film is about faith and the question of "when you die do your feelings die too?" So through out the film, it plays out more standard, there are no BOO scares, and limited killing. This isn't about a killing ghost it's about a ghost that still wants to live and a mother who won't let go. You can't help but to be dragged into the film and care about the characters because you understand them and why they are they way they are. Warning: If you one those moderen Hollywood horror movie fans than this movie isn't for you. But if you want something new than watch this film.

Really liked this movie, throughout it of course I was saying, "who is she? I've seen that actress before!" At the end of the movie, found out it was Go-Go Yubari from Kill Bill Vol. 1. This movie, like most Japanese horror movies was quite strange, but was also quite picturesque and well done. I kept expecting some sort of wild twist in the movie, but it never really came. There was a lot of guesswork as to who did what to whom, but the story was actually quite a bit simpler than that, and by the end, almost sweet. I highly recommend that you go to the foreign section of your video store and see if they have this movie. Although its quite old (1999) they may have the newly released DVD in stock. I can see why Chiaki Kuriyama has had so many film roles since this one, she definitely deserves it. (you can also find her in Ju-On, aka The Grudge, I believe she's the crazy girl in that one...)

This has an interesting story based on the shinto-religion. The island Shikoku has 88 temples and every year the priest go to each one of them in a certain order to make sure the people will prosper the following year (or similar), one priestess who lost her daughter walks the route the opposite way the same number that her daughter was old in order to resurrect her.

It begins very creepy when a woman returns from the city to visit her childhood village. It then turns into a mystery investigation delivering something else than what was promised. Recommended for horror fans.

The opening scene, like the premise, seems primed to set the stage for the horror story to come. And so it does, most certainly - but with soft pacing and a soft tone, it takes a long while for that story to especially develop, let alone the sinister vibes we anticipate. Even with little tidbits along the way, it's not until we've reached the halfway mark that it begins to feel that the plot is moving, and longer still before the film begins to unlock its potency. Tales in all genres can make such pacing work for them; though it does ultimately succeed, this has a more difficult time. In struggling to meaningfully progress and foster atmosphere under such circumstances, it's not that 'Shikoku' is bad, but the impact that the saga should have is unquestionably diminished. I don't specifically fault filmmaker Nagasaki Shunichi, let alone the writers, but whatever else is true here, it was a stylistic approach that didn't fully pan out.

Be that as it may, Bando Masako penned a fine story of folklore and the supernatural, with tragedy, grief, and personal drama intermingling with bigger dark ideas in keeping with the expected horror; I'd be keen on reading the novel. While screenwriters Manda Kunimi and Sendo Takenori share some blame for the tone and pacing, they also allow the narrative to build slowly such that when at last the mood turns more distinctly dreary, the wait proves to be worth it. We're fairly deep in the back end before the intended ambience truly manifests, but it does nonetheless, bolstered with Kadokura Sotoshi's flavorful music, deliberate, eerie lighting and nighttime shoots, and excellent production design and art direction. It may not achieve its utmost potential, yet the picture is definitely creepy and a little unsettling: less visceral and striking, perhaps, and more quietly gnawing, which can be just as effective if not more so when exercised carefully. And so it is here. I maintain that the pacing and tone are troubled in being so muted, and still Nagasaki discovers the understated power of 'Shikoku' right when it matters most.

In a similar fashion the acting is notably subdued, but as all elements come together in the last act the nuance in the performances brings out the emotional depth that allows the feature to resonate. Nagasaki continues to have a hard time realizing the story as it should ideally be, Sinoda Noboru's cinematography is very pointedly no help at select junctures, and even seemingly modest production values are an obstacle at times, but I think Tsutsui Michitaka, Kuriyama Chiaki, and Natsukawa Yui demonstrate appreciable acting all the same through these conditions. I actually do quite like this flick, and all the right components are in place for a viewing experience that's gently dreadful in the best of ways. That goal is met in my opinion, but it's just unfortunate that the tenor is so low-key as to stifle the complete scope of what the concept could have achieved. When all is said and done this is not a title that demands to be seen, and even if you're a big fan of someone involved it isn't a critical recommendation. Nonetheless I'm glad I took the time to watch, and even if not perfectly satisfying, those who are receptive to the more dramatic and hushed side of the genre may do well to check out 'Shikoku.'