by: Anthony Testani

For most of the Western culture, when we think of horror films, we might conjure THE SHINING or THE EXORCIST, perhaps, HALLOWEEN or TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE. Modern audiences might even go and reference SAW, BLAIR WITCH PROJECT or DRAG ME TO HELL as more relevant horror films. But what if I said ICHI: THE KILLER? or AUDITION? You might think, “Who ever heard of those?” It mostly demonstrates the divide that keeps the Eastern genres unfamiliar to us.

Whether or not these Western horror films we have come to familiarize ourselves with are the “scariest” or “haunting” or just “good cinema” remains challenged overall, yet there are still some films out there that few people get the opportunity to hear about, let alone see. With out recent entertainment climate, Asian filmmaking has made its break into our culture with a little more ease, courtesy of the remakes that Hollywood has been churning out. Yet, many of these seem haphazard in their attempts with little or no understanding of the source material and, instead, turn it into a bizarre ghost story that seems to have no logical structure. We know of RING, THE GRUDGE, ONE MISSED CALL, DARK WATERS - but how many know they are remakes based originally on Japanese or Asian films?

Asian horror has a distinct “flavor” that separates from the standard slasher flick that most of us are born and bred on. There seems to be a mysterious turn regarding some ancestral haunting. And this becomes something more psychic than just a killer on the loose.

When asked what the “scariest Asian horror film” there is, it is not an easy answer to come up with. But I have seen some excellent films that, for those uncertain of what to watch, would be a great place to start for their introduction into Asian horror. I must contend that it was not easy for me to just pick and choose so readily like I would with say, THE EXORCIST as one of the best horror films made. However, there are some excellent films out there that get little exposure to the common person. So below is what I would consider some of the best Asian horror films, in no particular order.

Takashi Miike’s AUDITION

An older man looking for a woman in his life decides to stage auditions for a leading lady for his upcoming film. When he finds the perfect woman, she turns out to have a little more on her mind than just a settled life. The plot moves along somewhat slow, but once it kicks in (and you know when that happens), it does not let you go. You will cringe at the whole ending!

Takashi Miike’s ICHI THE KILLER

I considered whether this is a horror film or not. It might be debatable, however, there is enough blood and guts to qualify it as such. Probably the only film where a guy ejaculates during the opening credit sequence. Right then and there you have an idea of what you are in for. I dont know if I found this film “scary” in the proper sense, but certainly has as much surprises any film should.

BATTLE ROYALE

Hmmm...if you think we Westerners cross the line, try this film. A look at a strange future ala The Most Dangerous Game. This version, however, decides to use the school classroom as its setting where kids are asked to take weapons and destroy each other in a revenge plot set by the teacher. If the kids refuse - well, they are easily disposed of. Whoever survives, wins? A no-holds barred cinema that is graphic in its depiction of gore and yet has a social message that sets the action in motion. Definitely a cult film!

RINGU

This might be the most popular of the Asian horror genre since the American made RING led people to want to see the original. While I enjoyed the American version, there is definitely a different story overall that is being told with its Japanese original. Its slight, but comparably, it makes more sense in the end. It might seem for the most part that everything is nearly the same as the American made version, which is why it was so successful.

OLDBOY

For me, this is one of those films where I put it on, not knowing what to expect, and was completely involved in it from beginning to end. Based on a manga comic book (which I never read), however, the film itself is a complete marvel! I love this film! While not a proper horror film and it skims the line of scary, but it is knee deep in the disturbing aspect with lots of torture. Not only is it exciting to watch, but maintains a true cringe of suspicion, deception, torture and secrets revealed from beginning to end. Truly a must see, not only for horror fans, but fans of great cinema in general.

TETSUO: THE IRON MAN

Not to be confused with the Robert Downey Jr. version, TETSUO: THE IRON MAN is really an assault on the senses for a complete hour. Even if what you are seeing is completely mesmerizing and new and you have, nor ever will, see anything like it again! It is utterly disorienting and unnerving the whole way through. You might laugh along the way, but thats only to make it seem easier to take. While there is little dialogue that will help the story, I found it to have a strong social commentary about man’s marriage to machine and the implications behind it. Our involvement in technology has become so immersed, that to tell human from machine has been blurred, and perhaps, this is one interpretation TETSUO attempts to get across. From watching it recently, however, I also get a “manga” feeling from it where it seems comic-bookish - more in its style than anything else. The scenes where the main character and his girlfriend have sex, she becomes this mechanical beast that rivals any demonic character in any manga book.

BEHIND THE SUN / PHILOSPHY OF A KNIFE

This is a little off the beaten path, but I think for just plain disturbing and gross material, this is definitely the punch in the lower gut. These 2 films I put together for the sake that they are both based on the same incident and are relatively similar in content. During World War II, Japan’s investigation of death created what is infamously known as Unit 731. This was a facility designed specifically to find out how long it takes people to die in varying ways. BEHIND THE SUN maintains somewhat of a story, but once the experimentation takes place, the horror really sets in and is relentless once it starts. This film is actually a Korean film as no Japanese film industry would support such a film to be made. According to reviewers on Amazon, Japan has yet to even take full responsibility for the events that occurred and even less are willing to talk about it. PHILOSOPHY OF A KNIFE is a Russian made film where a Russian doctor who actually worked there at the time of its happening discusses what happened there. The directors give as much of an account of their experience making the film where it took over 10 years to make because they were held up in prison for a time because of it. Needless to say, what remains are re-enacted scenes of what happened during the experiments. In sum, it hinges on porno where the exploitation factor is too much as the film runs for 4 hours!! If you can stomach that, you will love it. Otherwise you become numb or it begins to get silly as the budget is low, so you start spotting the fakeness of it to get away from the disgust of it all.

And for fun, I choose TOKYO GORE POLICE

This film caught me by surprise. Whoah! The word “gore” should not be taken lightly when getting ready to watch this film. In fact, it becomes virtually its own character in the film taking on dimensions that I would never fathom. What is it about? Honestly, I really didn’t care given how over the top this film was. All I know that it was outrageous fun (and funny!) and would be great with a bunch of friends with some drinks.

There are a lot of other great films out there, but to me, these are great primers that one can begin with in their journey through Asian horror.

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