Japan is very good at horror and has produced some of the best fear flicks in the history of the genre. However, it feels like things have slowed down in the last couple of years. The country still makes scary films and TV shows, but they haven’t really been making a splash, despite some of them doing new and exciting things with the formula. This Halloween season, why not give new Japanese horror a chance? Here are some streaming recommendations.
Ox-Head Village (2022)
Available on: Netflix, U-Next, Prime Video, Hulu
The final installment of the unconnected Terror Village trilogy from director Takashi Shimizu (Ju-On, Howling Village, Suicide Forest Village), this 2022 film doesn’t offer much in terms of narrative surprises or special effects, but it makes up for it in pure atmosphere and cinematic craftsmanship. The plot deals with the disappearance of a high school student exploring a supposedly haunted site, but quickly grows into a tale about disturbing folk beliefs surviving for millennia in isolated parts of Japan, bringing to mind classics such as The Wicker Man.
The story unveils slowly as it introduces new elements that change your preconceptions about what the movie is really about to keep you nice and fearful without resorting to cheap jump scares. Ox-Head Village probably isn’t Shimizu’s strongest film, but his unmistakable love and eye for horror shine through every scene.
Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre (2023)
Available on: Netflix
When it comes to Junji Ito’s recent work, we’d all love to be watching the anime adaptation of Uzumaki that came out last month. But since it’s still not available for streaming in Japan, we’re just going to have to make do with the Maniac anime horror anthology by director Shinobu Tagashira. And, as consolation prizes go, this one is very good.
Adapting some of Ito’s most disturbing stories, including the popular Tomie, into 12 bone-chilling episodes, Japanese Tales of the Macabre has a very distinctive look that faithfully brings the creator’s unique style to the small screen. Each tale is different, giving viewers a lot of choice regarding how they want to be scared. Will it be body horror, familial dysfunction in the face of psychological trauma, symbolic and fairy-tale-like commentary, or surreal nightmares come to life? Pick your sanity poison and make this year’s Halloween movie night one that you’ll never forget. No matter how hard you try.
Lumberjack the Monster (2023)
Available on: Netflix
Director Takashi Miike (Audition, Ichi the Killer) has proven long ago that he’s more than just a horror guy, having done everything from comedy to shows aimed at kids. But that does not mean he dislikes making horror, hence his long-awaited return to the genre with Lumberjack the Monster.
There are some unexpected elements to the story, such as a bit of sci-fi and a hint of social commentary about the kind of people who thrive in corporate settings, which sadly doesn’t go anywhere. Underneath it all, though, there remains the super fun core of the movie, which is: what if a slasher killer (with a creepy mask and an axe for a weapon) attacks a remorseless white-collar psychopath who then vows to “kill that freak.” The end-result is much more polished than a lot of Miike’s best horror work but is still full of that chaotic, schlocky energy that fans of the director have come to love.
Re/Member (2022)
Available on: Netflix
From director Eiichiro Hasumi comes Re/Member, the story of a group of students caught in a time loop where they’re tasked by the monstrous Red Person to find the body parts of a murdered girl scattered throughout their campus. Initially, each night ends with their bloody deaths. Soon the body search turns into something of a chore where nobody is too fazed about the inherent gruesomeness of looking for a dismembered child or getting brutally murdered over and over again.
This normalization of gore and the desensitization to violence among Japanese youth probably wasn’t intended as any kind of elevated horror-type commentary. But there is nothing stopping the audience from looking at it this way. Mixed with one or two creatively disturbing kills, Re/Member can be an incredibly enjoyable horror film if you go into it with the right mindset.
Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023)
Available on: Netflix, U-Next, Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+
Comedy horror is sadly a dying breed, but like a zombie rising from the grave and tripping over its own shoelaces, the Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead anime brings the genre back with a healthy dose of scares and laughs. Based on a manga by Haro Aso and Kotaro Takata, the series takes place during a zombie outbreak and follows a formerly-depressed office worker who decides to use the undead apocalypse as a chance to finally live his life. He puts together a list of everything he ever wanted to do before the collapse of human civilization, like travel, getting a flat-screen TV and being a superhero. He then goes out and does it in an enjoyably high-energy and oftentimes gory fashion.
In the last few years, we’ve seen more and more Japanese comic books, shows and movies about people enjoying their lives with some kind of disaster happening in the background. Given everything that’s been going on in the real world, it’s tempting to look at this emerging trend as a new subgenre of iyashikei relaxation stories where we learn that good things can still be found even among horrifying, unending horror, which this anime certainly does not lack.
