Description: Sagori possesses spiritual powers which enable her to converse with the dead. After she dies at the age of sixteen, her mother attempts to bring her back from the dead. Sagori’s friends decide to investigate the history of Shikoku Island which is also known as The Kingdom of the Dead. Will Sagori’s friends be able to stop the awakening of Sagori from the dead?
How the Past Haunts the Present This is a quiet psychological Japanese ghost story. Its a very dry film, in that there is no blood and gore. There is little if any action. It reminds me of Peter Straub novels and how ghosts from the past haunt people years later like in Ghost Story, Julia, and If You Could See Me Now. It a way its a Straub novel with a Japanese setting. Straub would have a lot more action. It also has a lot to do with Shikoku and the 88 temples and how the area is known as a place for the dead. I like to think of this movie as a Buddhist's vision of hell. I took a class on Zen Buddhism at Kansai Gaidai in Osaka, Japan. The teacher passed around a book on Buddhist's hell. They were many ink drawings and illustrations about pain and suffering that are just as good as those done by Dore for Dante's Inferno. That is the weak part of the film for me. The director could have explored the whole concept of hell but I don't think it was his aim. He was trying to recreate and interpret, in his own way, the novel by Bando Masako. The whole movie could have been a lot scarier. There are other quiet psychological horror movies that work better like Hitchcock's The Rear Window. I originally bought this movie used on VHS at a Tsutaya videostore in Osaka around Umeda. I bought it recently on DVD so I could see the English subtitles and see if I liked it better. I understand the story better than when I just watched the Japanese VHS and tried to piece it together with my knowledge of Japanese. Still, its just not scary or as fun as other Japanese horror movies. The best thing about the whole movie is Kuriyama Chiaki's performance. The whole movie is boring until you get to the scenes with Chiaki and she steals all the scenes she is in. If your interested in seeing Chiaki before Kill Bill and how she has grown as an actress then you might like it. There are better movies that she has starred in like Battle Royale and Ju-on. I wanted to like it better if only it had been scary.
A good film but... I thought this was a good movie. I bough it because Chiaki was on the cover, and she is my favorite actress. I was disappointed when I watched it because she is hardly in the film at all. She is in the film about fifteen minutes, if that. She did do a good performance, though. But this isn't my favorite film. If I were to recommend a Chiaki film, it would have to be Battle Royale or Kagen no Tsuki.
Long on atmosphere Slowly paced, there are no real shocks here but this is a ghost story that emphasises humanity. There is an ongoing sense of foreboding and the film does finally deliver. I don't believe in spoilers but I will say that you can almost sympathise with the ghost! This is a worthy addition to any Asian horror fan's collection. It's slow and subtle and a welcome change from the little boy and water-logged girl spirits that haunt Asian cinemas so much now. Shikoku is at least worth a look. I like it.
A sad and beautiful Japanese ghost story I thought this movie was wonderful. The Japanese make the best horror films in the world, but many of those films, especially ghost stories such as Shikoku, operate on a different spiritual plane than Western horror. The fact that Shikoku is hyped as a product of the studio that produced the Ringu series will have many viewers expecting chills and frights that just aren't to be found here. When it comes to J-Horror, you can't expect the movie to conform to your expectations; instead, you have to embrace what you are given. Shikoku is about love and loss and sadness, not horror per se. It has its creepy moments, but I would describe Shikoku as a spiritual horror movie, operating at a wavelength that those of us in the West have to learn to appreciate. If you can do that, you'll fall in love with movies such as this one.
I found the first few scenes somewhat confusing, as we see three children enjoying themselves and then watch one of them, Sayori (Chiaki Kuriyama) take part in a strange, voodoo-like ceremony. Then one of the friends, Hinako, moves to Tokyo with her family. As we later find out, this greatly upset Sayori, for she was the one who had long dreamed of the day she could leave the rural and isolated village on Shikoku. Time passes, and then an adult Hinako (Yui Natsukawa) returns to the village, only to find out that Sayori had drowned sixteen years ago. Fumiya (Michitaka Tsutsui), their mutual friend, is still there, however, and he and Hinako begin spending time together. There's a level of discomfort to it all, though, as Fumiya always seems to act as if he fears someone is watching them. At the same time, strange and troubling things begin happening in the village, including the desecration of some holy statues outside of town. Some of the villagers seem to fear that Hinako's presence has somehow provided the means for the dead to return.
Truths emerge slowly as the story develops. Sayori's absent mother, who is a priestess of some sort, has been taking annual pilgrimages to all 88 temples on the island of Shikoku. It turns out, however, that she has been visiting each temple in reverse order, as her secret intention is to tear down the veil between the physical and spiritual worlds in order to reclaim her daughter. We also learn of the depth of Fumiya's relationship with Sayori, which adds a great deal of emotion and feeling to the ending of the film. You just don't find this kind of poignancy in Western ghost stories.
An understanding of Japanese culture and language would add much to the viewer's experience of Shikoku, but it is not necessary. The two possible meanings of the word Shikoku, for example, are made pretty clear in the context of the film. I also have to say that Chiaki Kuriyama is mesmerizing as Sayori. I believe this was her first true film role, but you wouldn't know it as it's impossible to take your eyes off of her whenever she is on the screen.
Shikoku does come with a few special features. The behind-the-scenes look at the filming of the movie is really just that, a narration-free look at the preparation and filming of several of the film's later scenes. You also get interviews with director Shunichi Nagasaki and both leading actresses - and, fortunately, all of these special features are accompanied by English subtitles. It's always interesting to get some insight into the atmosphere of Japanese movie sets, as there always seems to be a relaxed professionalism between cast and crew that provides a refreshing contrast to the almost-constant turmoil to be found on most American film sets.
Just know that this is not a frightening movie; it's suspenseful, and it does have some creepy moments, but it's not a horror movie in the Western sense of the term. There is no strict dichotomy between good and evil established, as the ghost ends up being the most pitiable and plaintive character in the whole film. Perhaps, more than anything else, Shikoku is a tragic love story - and quite a beautiful one, in my opinion.
The dead will rise... or not
Asian horror has been the big thing for a few years -- long-haired ghouls, blind girls who see ghosts, and so forth.
But I doubt Hollywood will be rushing to remake "Shikoku," a creepy and pretty movie with too much shakycam. While the star Chiaki Kuriyama does a solid job, the movie is too vague, blurry and full of loose ends that never really get tied up. It feels like they were making up the movie as they went along.
Hinako, Sayori and their mutual crush Fumiya were inseparable as children, until Hinako moved away. Now ten years have passed, and Hinako (Yui Natsukawa) returns to the old hometown -- but she finds that Sayori (Chiaki Kuriyama) drowned some years before, and Fumiya (Michitaka Tsutsui) is still haunted by her presence.
But ghosts are rising around the town, and a muttering old priestess is making her rounds, reversing the seals on temples -- and breaking down the barrier between life and death. As Fumiya and Hinako start to fall in love, Hinako begins seeing Sayori's apparition -- and finds that Sayori's mother is determined to bring her daughter back to life.
"Shikoku" is a play on words -- the kanji logogram means both "four countries" and "land of the dead," which sounds promising for a horror movie. But don't expect it to ever be fully played out to its full promise.
It starts off promisingly -- ghosts are rising, a vengeful dead girl, a corrupted friendship, and a cave leading to the next life. Then Shunichi Nagasaki just seems to lose interest in the plot. Half the subplots are dropped, so don't expect any "land of the dead" stuff. And what is retained of the plot never really gets fleshed out.
The whole last act is a rush job, with few explanations, and all the character conflict between Hinako and Sayori left up in the air -- apparently Hinako just forgets how Sayori loathed her. But it is very beautifully filmed, once you get past the nauseating shakycam shots -- lots of misty forests, mountains, forests full of light, and mossy old shrines. As a visual experience, it's absolutely lovely.
Kuriyama gives a solid performance as Sayori, and she's very creepy and amoral. The only problem is that we're expected to feel sorry for Sayori, and frankly she's too whiny and vicious for that to ever happen. Natsukawa gives a decent performance, but her character is too passive and emotionless.
"Shikoku" had the seeds of a good supernatural thriller, but the end result is rushed and full of dropped subplots. It could have been great, but became a lame ghost story instead.
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