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Japanese horror

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Japanese horror (sometimes abbreviated to J-horror) is Japanese horror fiction in popular culture, noted for its unique thematic and conventional treatment of the horror genre in light of western treatments. Japanese horror tends to focus on psychological horror and tension building (suspense), and supernatural horror, particularly involving ghosts (yūrei) and poltergeists, while many contain themes of folk religion such as: possession, exorcism, shamanism, precognition, and yōkai.

Origins

See also: Japanese folklore

The origins of Japanese horror can be traced to horror and ghost story classics of the Edo period and the Meiji period, which were known as kaidan. Elements of several of these popular folktales have been worked into the stories of modern films, especially in the traditional nature of the Japanese ghost.

Ghost stories have an even older history in Japanese literature, dating back to at least the Heian period (794–1185). Konjaku Monogatarishū written during that time featured a number of ghost stories from India, China and Japan. Kabuki and noh, forms of traditional Japanese theater, often depict horror tales of revenge and ghastly appearances, many of which have been used as source material for films.

Film

Notable films

Notable directors

Anime and manga

See also: Category:Horror anime and manga

Certain popular Japanese horror films are based on manga, including Tomie, Uzumaki, and Yogen.

Video games

Further information: Survival horror

Influence

Hidetoshi Imura as Seijun from Tales from the Dead.

Since the early 2000s, several of the more popular Japanese horror films have been remade. Ring was one of the first to be remade in America as The Ring, and later The Ring Two (although this sequel bears almost no similarity to the original Japanese sequel). Other notable examples include The Grudge (2004), Dark Water (2005), and One Missed Call (2008)

With the exception of The Ring, most American remakes of Japanese horror films have received negative reviews (although The Grudge received mixed reviews).[1][2][3] One Missed Call has received the worst reception of all, having earned the Moldy Tomato Award at Rotten Tomatoes for garnering a 0% critical approval rating. The Grudge 4 was announced in 2011, but no news has surfaced since. Similarly, The Ring 3D was reportedly green-lit by Paramount in 2010,[4] and it was reported in 2016 that the film would be renamed Rings and released in early 2017.

Many of the original directors who created these Asian horror films have gone on to direct the American remakes.[citation needed] For example, Hideo Nakata, director of Ring, directed the remake The Ring Two; and Takashi Shimizu, director of the original Ju-on, directed the remake The Grudge as well as its sequel, The Grudge 2.

Several other Asian countries have also remade Japanese horror films. For example, South Korea created their own version of the Japanese horror classic Ring, titled The Ring Virus.

In 2007, Los Angeles-based writer-director Jason Cuadrado released the film Tales from the Dead, a horror film in four parts that Cuadrado filmed in the United States with a cast of Japanese actors speaking their native language.

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Ring". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  2. ^ The Grudge at Metacritic
  3. ^ One Missed Call at Metacritic
  4. ^ "Paramount to Make The Ring 3D". /Film. April 26, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2013.

Further reading

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