Options
Your top 5 Japanese/Asian Horror Movies
juliancarswell
Posts: 8,896 Forum Member
✭
I have just watched The Eye and thought it was superb.
As I am only just getting into this genre, could you help me out?
What are your top 5 recommended Japanese/Asian horror movies.?
As I am only just getting into this genre, could you help me out?
What are your top 5 recommended Japanese/Asian horror movies.?
0
Comments
R-Point
I saw the devil
Oldboy
There's loads of others that I like but having a mental block.
Edit: you might want to check this site out:)
http://www.asian-horror-movies.com/indexm.html
2. Ringu
3. A Tale of Two Sisters
4. Shutter
5. Kairo
IMO Asian horror has been the saviour of the horror genre over the past decade or so, together with France & Spain. They really know how to make movies which get under your skin and make your blood freeze without the cheap predictable jump scares you see in most horror flix. Enjoy!
Shutter
The Grudge
Audition
Old ma oggy, Thanks for that link.
That site's loaded with ads & pop-ups & it makes you fill out a survey after you click one film link
Sorry I didn't know about all the ad & pop-ups as have adblock running:o
I thought the Ring was overated and far-fetched - just couldn't buy the premise of that one.
Although not exactly horror, the Lonewolf and Cub Series (violent samurai films) are pretty amazing often sited as the best series of films to come out of Japan.
The Story of Ricki - pretty wild bizzarre, gory, outlandish rubbery, fun film.
Tetsuo - ...and his other films e.g. Tokyo Fist etc
Slasher
*Dream House (Hong Kong) - can go under Dark Psychological
Neighbour 13 (JPN) - can go under Dark Psychological
Bloody Beach (SK)
The Doll Master (SK)
Doubt (JPN) I don't think this has English subtitles. As a replacement, Nightmare Detective (JPN).
Special mention: Security Guard from Hell (JPN) - ultra low budget, weird and unbelievably bad, but left a huge impact on my oldest brother's generation.
Folk / Urban Myths
Kuchisake-onna (A Slit Mouthed Woman AKA Carved) (JPN) - can go under Slasher
Hansel & Gretal (SK)
Haunted Drum (Thai)
The Locker (JPN)
Scarecrow (JPN)
Yogen (Premonition) (JPN) should get a mention here too, for revolving around an urban Shinto myth.
Ghost Story - the old-but-still-goody kind. All Japanese.
Ghosts of Kasane Swamp (1957)
*Ghost of Yotsuya (1953)
Haunted Castle (1969)
Cruel Ghost Legend (1968)
*Kaidan (Kwaiden) (1964) - anthology
Also, Jigoku (1960), but I wasn't that into it. A bit too surreal and weird for my taste. I'm such a disappointment to my dad.
Ghost Story - the gentle kind with some creepy moments
*Shutter (Thai)
*Silk (Taiwanese) - can go under Supernatural Mystery
*Dorm (Thai) - similar to The Devil's Backbone, but less creepy, gentler and more poignant
Uninvited (2003) (SK)
Alone (Thai)
Also, Ghost Train (JPN) - not as good as above, but still a good-fun ghost story. A remake of Ghost Train (1943) by Watanabe, which I still haven't seen but my dad said the remake is inferior to the original.
Ghost Story - the slow burn but violent kind
Ryeong (The Ghost / Dead Friend) (SK)
Bunshinsaba (Ouji Board) (SK)
Nightmare (Gawi) (SK)
Hair Extensions (Exte) (JPN) - black comedy and it can go under Weird. As a replacement, To Sir With Love / Bloody Reunion. (SK)
Rinne (JPN)
Supernatural Mystery
Into the Mirror (SK) - slow burn. The American remake Mirrors is a lot more aggressive with its scares.
The Eye (HK) - the first half is great and it falls apart in the second half. Great scares, though.
Arang (SK)
The Maid (Singaporean)
*Whispering Corridors series. Five films so far. All set in a South Korean Catholic boarding school for girls. Half are simple scary-ghost mystery stories (WC and WC3) and the other half are dark psychological mystery stories with a hint of the supernatural (WC2 and WC4). I haven't seen WC5 yet. One of rare film series that don't have a flop. Each has its own identity and mythology, and each works. My favourites: Memento Mori (WC2) and Voice (WC4).
Thriller with a streak of dread*
*Simya-ui FM (SK) - it's the solid performances from both leads that takes it above its average kidnapping/blackmail/terror story
*13 Beloved (Thai) - very black comedy and has a couple of genuinely disgusting moments
*I Saw the Devil (SK)
*Vengeance is Mine (JPN)
*The Chaser (SK)
*Not horror, but has dark suspense in spades and some toe-cringing graphic violence.
Mystery with a streak of dread and a hint of the supernatural
*Blood Rain (SK) - also a period mystery
*Cure (JPN)
Bestseller (SK)
Black House (SK) There's also a Japanese version, but I haven't seen it yet.
Face (SK)
Dark Psychological - not the Boo!Jump! kind; a dark journey into the darkest part of human psyche with occasional creepy, sinister, dread-inducing or supernatural moments
*Kichiku (JPN)
A Tale of Two Sisters (SK)
*Confessions (JPN)
M (2007) (SK)
*Kotoko (JPN)
Sakebi (Scream but US title: Retribution) (JPN) - similiar to Cure, Seance, Doppelganger and Charisma. All has the classic pairing of director Kiyoshi Kurosawa and actor Koji Yakusho, who appears in these slow-burn thriller films as a detective or man investigating bizarre and sinister incidents. My favourite kind. H, a SK film, falls under this category.
Weird
Hausu (House) (JPN)
*Kairo (Circuit) (JPN) - can go under Supernatural Mystery
Infection (Kansen) (JPN) - can go under Zombie
Uzumaki (JPN)
Hiruko the Goblin (JPN)
You want weird and creepy? Go for any of actor-director Shinya Tsukamoto's films including Hiruko the Goblin, Testuo the Iron Man, Kotoko, Nightmare Detective, Souseiji and A Snake of June.
Horror Mockumentary
*Noroi: the Curse (JPN)
Occult (JPN)
Shirome (JPN)
Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night (JPN)
*Osoi Hito (JPN) - slow burn, slasher, dark psychological
Ghost/Horror Anthologies - a mixture of gems and duds
Tales of Terror From Tokyo and All Over Japan: The Movie (JPN) - my dad LOLed throughout this because he's familiar with them as typical summer camp horror stories from his youth. Regardless, I found some rather creepy.
Phobia (Thai)
Phobia 2 (Thai)
Three... Extremes (multi-Asian)
4 Horror Tales (SK) (it was expanded into four standalone films: February 29th, Forbidden Floor, Dark Forest and D-Day; all still worth watching)
Zombie - what? You know it deserves a place here!
GP 506 (The Guard Post) (SK) - not that good, but it's probably the only Asian zombie film that takes it seriously
Bio Zombie (HK) - slapstick comedy
Versus (JPN) - black comedy
Wild Zero (JPN) - it's indescribable
Hell Stadium (JPN) - black comedy, spiteful and quite gory
Torture Porn - I didn't see many nor finished all. My least favourite sub-genre.
By Invitation Only (SK)
Men Behind the Sun (HK) - I couldn't finish this.
Guinea Pig 3 (HK) - I couldn't finish this. It put me off seeing GP 1 and GP 2
Tetsuo: the Iron Man (JPN) - I couldn't finish this. Too weird and toe-cringing
Ichi the Killer (JPN) - black comedy and funny at times
No Room Left But I'm Mentioning Them Anyway
*Haunters (SK) - a tragic psychic that kills; a touch of very black comedy
Body 19 (Thai) - dark psychological, mystery
The Booth (JPN) - slow-burn ghost thriller
Bedevilled (SK) - slow-burn dark psychological, bloodfest
Lovesickness of the Dead (JPN) - slow-burn ghost mystery
Shikoku (Land of the Dead) (JPN)
R-Point (SK) - ghost, supernatural mystery, myths, military
Acacia (SK) - slow-burn psychological mystery
Cinderella (SK) - slow-burn psychological gory mystery
Strange Circus (JPN) - surreal dark psychological mystery
You're welcome to throw rotten tomatoes.
my asian film recommendations....
A Bittersweet Life
A Snake of June
A Tale of Two Sisters
Acacia
Audition
Bangkok Haunted
Battle Royale
Battle Royale II: Requiem
Bitter Sweet
Boiling Point
Brotherhood
Bullet Ballet
Casshern
Dark Water
Dead Or Alive
Death Note
Dumplings
Ebola Syndrome
Election vol 1
Exiled
Exte
Fulltime Killer
Gozu
Hana-bi
Hypnosis
I'm A Cyborg But That's Ok
Ichi The Killer
Infernal Affairs
Into The Mirror
JSA Joint Security Area
Ju-on: The Grudge
Marebito
Mememto Mori
Memories of Murder
Oldboy
One Missed Call (1+2)
Phone
Premonition
Public Enemy
Pulse/Kairo
R-Point
Rainy Dog
Ring
Shinjuku Triad Society
Shiri
Shutter
Spider Forest
Suicide Club
Sympathy For Lady Vengence
Sympathy For Mr Vengence
Tetsuo: The Iron Man
The City of Lost Souls
The Eye
The Happiness of the Katakuris
The Host
Three... Extremes
Tokyo Gore Police
Uzumaki
Versus
Visitor Q
Whispering Corridors
Zatoichi
I'd recommend Perfect Blue - anime and psychological thriller rather than horror but wonderful nonetheless.