is a 2014 Japanese

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

directed by

Takashi Miike is a Japanese film director, film producer and screenwriter. He has directed over one hundred theatrical, video, and television productions since his debut in 1991. His films run through a variety of different genres, and range from violent an ...

. It was released on 23 August 2014.

Summary

A star, Miyuki Goto (

Kō Shibasaki is a Japanese actress and singer who has performed in television shows, movies, and commercials. She is managed by Stardust Promotion. Biography Acting career Shibasaki debuted in 2000, when she portrayed Mitsuko Souma in '' Battle Royale.'' S ...

) plays Oiwa, the protagonist in a new play based on the

ghost story A ghost story is any piece of fiction, or drama, that includes a ghost, or simply takes as a premise the possibility of ghosts or characters' belief in them."Ghost Stories" in Margaret Drabble (ed.), ''Oxford Companion to English Literature'' ...

Yotsuya Kaidan , the story of Oiwa and Tamiya Iemon, is a tale of betrayal, murder and ghostly revenge. Arguably the most famous Japanese ghost story of all time, it has been adapted for film over 30 times and continues to be an influence on Japanese horror ...

''. She pulls some strings to get her lover, Kosuke Hasegawa ( Ebizō Ichikawa XI) cast in the play, even though he's a relatively unknown actor. Other performers, Rio Asahina ( Miho Nakanishi) and Jun Suzuki (

Hideaki Itō is a Japanese actor. Biography Ito is best known for starring in the hit franchise ''Umizaru'' film series which consistently topped the Japanese box office of the year. He has also head-lined many other major Japanese films such as Takashi M ...

), lust after Miyuki. Offstage, the cast's possessive love and obsessions exist as reality. Trapped between the play and reality, the cast's feelings for each other are amplified. When it becomes clear that love is not meant to be both on and off stage, love turns into a grudge and crosses the blurred line between reality and fantasy.

Cast

* Ebizō Ichikawa XI as Kousuke Hasegawa/Tamiya Iemon *

as Miyuki Goto/Oiwa *

as Jun Suzuki/Takuetsu * Miho Nakanishi as Rio Asahina/Itō Ume *

Maiko A is an apprentice geisha in Kyoto and Their jobs consist of performing songs, dances, and playing the or other traditional Japanese instruments for visitors during banquets and parties, known as . are usually aged between 17 to 20 years ...

as Kayoko Kurata *

Toshie Negishi is a Japanese film and television actress. Filmography Film * ''Kaerazaru hibi'' (1978) * '' Toki o Kakeru Shōjo'' (1983) - Tachibana * '' Lonely Heart'' (1985) - Makoto's mother * ''The Sea and Poison'' (1986) - Ueda * '' Sada'' (1998) - Yosh ...

as Misuzu Horiuchi/Maki *

Hiroshi Katsuno is a Japanese actor.　He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University. Katsuno's debut was as a detective Texas in the television series Taiyō ni Hoero! in 1974 and he won great popularity through the role. The episode his character Texas was killed ...

as Michisaburō Ogata/Tamiya Matazaemon * Ikkō Furuya as Kanji Shimada/Itō Kihei

Reception

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

the film has an approval rating of 56% based on 9 critics, with an average rating of 7/10. Dennis Harvey of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', after watching it screened at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

, wrote: "Actors rehearsing a classic ghost tale find life imitating art in this atypically dull Takashi Miike opus".

References

External links

* * 2010s Japanese films 2010s Japanese-language films 2014 horror films Films directed by Takashi Miike Japanese supernatural horror films Films about actors Films about theatre {{2010s-Japan-film-stub