Nothing is creepier than Asian horror. Well, sometimes.
Asian Horror isnāt a genre nor sub-genre, so it has no defining qualities, besides being made in Asia. It is made up of multiple genres and movements. I’m not just including the J-Horror films with their long haired ghosts, contortionists, and cursed electronics, nor just adding K-Horror (and #-Horror), but also the stylized Japanese horror flicks of the ’50s and before, the Kaidan movies of the 1960s, and Hong Kong action-horror. Most anything that can be called horror and was made in Asia. The exception is that I’m not countingĀ daikaiju (that’s giant monsters for those not into fan terminology; those get their own list). For my reviews of films that fit under the umbrella of Asian Horror, look here.
My ten films span 5 countries and at least 4 cinematic movements.Ā Starting with #10:
#10: The Ghost {aka Ryeong} (2004)
From Korea, The Ghost, also known as Dead Friend, is the perfect 10th place film as it isnāt original, but encapsulates the J/K-Horror movement. Thereās a long haired ghost connected to water, old school friends getting murdered, and an amnesic girl who needs to find out why. It has enough twists and tension to satisfy horror buffs and enough clues and complications for mystery enthusiasts, but really wins on character. J/K-Horror is often weak on character development, but here we really get to know the heroine. If someone asked me what J-Horror was, Iād say watch this. (My review)
#9: Bloody Parrot (1981)
We move to Hong Kong and a wildly different type of movie. A master swordsman under suspicion of robbing the Emperor tries to uncover the real thieves, and the path leads him to a weird town filled with secrets. This is a Shaw Brothers martial arts film, that also happens to have demons, gore, spells, a vampire, and nudity. Itās definitely horror, but it is aiming for fun. The colors are psychedelic and the fights are energetic and well choreographed. It has a few more flaws than the other entries on this list, but I give it an extra point or two for being unlike those film. When youāve had enough long-haired ghosts, or are a wuxia fan, this is your film.
#8: Pulse {aka Kairo} (2001)
Pulse appears to be a Ringu clone, with a computer disk standing in for the tape, until it isnāt and everything we thought turns out to be either wrong or inconsequential. Pulse is an art-house discourse on existentialism, with J-horror trappings. If thatās what you are looking for, you are going to be in heaven. If you wanted a sensible horror film, you will be less pleased. Itās an easy film to rip apart, and yet still be in awe of. It sticks with me, and is arguably the most meaningful work on this list. Thereās an American remake, that tried to make sense of it, correcting the āflawsā by supplying answers, except the original wasnāt going for answers. (My Review)
#7: Shutter (2004)
Thailandās swing at joining the J/K-Horror movement, and they hit it out of the park. A photographer and his girlfriend hit a young woman on the road one night, and after appear to be haunted by a ghost. Our heroine assumes it is the ghost of the girl they hit, but the story is thicker than that, and the answer is in the photographs. This one rips at you in the final act. A huge hit in Thailand and a string of smaller countries, Shutter has been remade 3 times; the American remake oddly is set in Japan and has a prominent J-Horror director at the helm.
#6: The Maid (2005)
An innocent Filipino takes a job as a maid in Singapore, and not knowing the rules, apparently offends the ghosts that all the locals believe walk the streets in the 7th month. Ā Soon, she is seeing ghosts everywhere and needs to figure out what they want. The Maid was Singaporeās first horror film and they got it right the first time. The acting is flawless, the characters are involving, the culture is fascinating, and the story is one of the strongest among ārecentā ghost movies, Itās also the most accessible Asian horror film for Americas as the main character is no more familiar with Singapore than the average Westerner, so we can learn as she does. (My review)
#5: Ju-On 1&2 (2000)
Ju-On is one of the two foundational films of the J-Horror movement. Which Ju-On? Things get complicated. In 1998, director Takashi Shimizu created two very short segments for the anthology film School Ghost Stories Great. In 2000 he expanded these into Ju-On, and its sequel Ju-On 2, which were made for TV/home video, and are sometimes known as Ju-On: The Curse 1 & 2, but generally not.Ā Ju-On 2 repeats close to 30 minutes of the first film (taken from the beginning and the end) and is not a sequel but a seamless continuation making one film. The films were such a success that theatrical versions were madeānot exactly remakes, but not exactly sequels either.Ā These films were called Ju-On and Ju-On 2 as well.Ā In the West they sometimes are called Ju-On: The GrudgeĀ and other times a suffix is added thatās a Japanese word meaning ātheatrical.āĀ Then a semi-American version was made, just titled The Grudge, and still set in Japan and still with Shimizu directing, but with White Actors taking the lead roles. This is a semi-remake, semi-sequel, incorporating pieces in the previous versions. It is the original home video version Iām ranking here. It is as creepy as horror gets, with a sense of utter hopelessness. (My review)
#4: Onibaba (1964)
Coming out of the kaidan horror movement, but dropping the Kabuki theater remnants in favor of a hyped-up realism, Onibaba feels like a poem put on film. Based on a fable, but then twisted out of its religious basis to make a very different statement, Onibaba spends most of its time with a woman and her daughter-in-law who murder weakened samurai on their way home from war in order to sell their weapons and armor for food. If that sounds dark, youāre on the right track. Japan is depicted as a hellhole where survival is difficult in the moment and unlikely longer term. The duoās murders are depicted less as evil and more as basic reality. The greater evil seems to be the older womanās desire to deprive the younger of a bit of pleasure (as life only has bits). The supernatural aspect comes toward the end, but it is up to the viewer to decide if that is where the horror lies, or in the basic savage existence of the characters.
#3: Ringu (1998)
And this is the other foundational film of J-Horror, giving us a cursed piece of technology (a video tape) and a long-haired ghost performed by a contortionist, and the result is unsettling. Ringu is exciting, frightening, and very clever. It works so well because it is, for most of its runtime, the standard ghost story: Several heroes who have nothing to do with the cause of the haunting find themselves in a haunted situation and investigate the tragic event behind the haunting; when they find the answer, they confront the ghost, at which point it vanishes or it becomes clear the ghost will always be there and attempt to leave themselves. Almost every ghost story follows this pattern, with the best ones simply doing a better job of it. Ringu does an excellent job, until near the end, when it turns the tables and reveals it is something different. The American remake, starring Naomi Watts, is even smarter, replacing psychic readings with detective work. (My review)
#2: A Chinese Ghost Story (1987)
A naĆÆve tax collected ends up in a haunted temple in a haunted woods, where he is seduced by a ravishing and adorable ghost (played by the ravishing and adorable Joey Wang) who is under the command of a evil demon. This Hong Kong thriller is like The Evil Dead merged with a martial arts film and then merged with a romance, and itās a joy from beginning to end. It generated two sequels, a remake, an animated version, and a whole series of fantasy films, but nothing could touch the original.
#1: Kwaidan (1962)
A three hour, four part anthology film, it is unsurprisingly part of the Kaidan tradition (the translated film title usually gets the āwā while the movement does not). Each story is a period ghost drama, mostly fables where the evil or foolish are punished for their lies or jealousy or cruelty. It could easy be performed on stage instead of on film, providing that the stage was ridiculously gorgeous. Reality is not the goal, but beauty is at least one of several. Itās mesmerizing, which at three hours, it needs to be.