HELL
A very odd, and very culturally specific, look at Hell from a noted Japanese science fiction writer.
The RING Books
You’re likely familiar with the RING movies, but you may not know that, as with many successful films, they were books first
The Ten Most Overrated Horror Movies
The horror movie genre, like any other, contains more than its share of overpraised clunkers
TEN NIGHTS OF DREAMS: From Text to Film
The 2007 Nikkatsu production TEN NIGHTS OF DREAMS (YUME JU-YA) is a monument in Japanese genre filmmaking.
DRIFTING CLASSROOM
One of the most iconic horror manga series of all time was this sprawling quasi-science fictional saga by writer-illustrator Kazuo Umezu
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
I’ll confess I’m not as fanatic about the work of Japan’s Haruki Murakami as many mainstream critics–note this book’s blurb page, filled with adjectives like “masterly,” “virtuosic,” “extraordinary” and so forth. I do, however, appreciate Murakami’s gift for the odd and oft-kilter. That gift is in abundant evidence in the 24 stories collected in BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN, which also showcases Murakami’s unfortunate penchants for overwriting and self indulgence.
Biogenesis
Readers familiar with the medically informed horror fiction of Michael Blumlein will find a most welcome equivalent in this collection by Japan’s Tatsuaki Ishiguro. That Ishiguro has an extensive medical background is evident in these tales, which are nearly all presented in the form of medical journals, complete with relentlessly clinical syntax, yet with vivid portrayals of desperation, obsession and madness.
Ten More Essential Unreleased-in-the-U.S. Horror Films
Here I have another round-up of worthwhile international horror films that have yet to be distributed (outside the festival circuit) in the United States.
WOLFGUY: ENRAGED LYCANTHROPE
Kung Fu and lycanthropy: an irresistible combination if you ask me, and this fun Sonny Chiba movie proves it!
THE MYSTERY OF RAMPO
A strange and often puzzling fantasy about the late Edogawa Rampo (1894-1965), Japan’s foremost horror/mystery scribe