The news is official: UFV is moving to online classes after taking a week off to transition. You know what that means? It’s time to distract from the real horrors of the world with fictional ones! Asian horror is a unique subgenre that’s known for being especially chill-inducing and unsettling, and this selection of ‘90s-era movies ranges from laughably bad cult classics to genuinely hair-raising. There’ll be something here for everyone that wants to sit back, relax, and distract themselves with spooky storylines that get neatly wrapped up in the end — think of it as cathartic.
Perfect Blue – 1997
Although this animated film takes place before the rise of modern technology, it tackles a very modern question: are our curated personas reality? Perfect Blue follows the storyline of Mima Kirigoe, a pop singer retiring to pursue acting much to the dismay of her fans. She’s ready to stray from the image of a naive pop idol to a more mature, sexualized actress, but soon finds the line between her work persona and her real life blurring. Director Satoshi Kon masterfully wields psychological horror to show Mima’s reality as it breaks down; she begins losing track of time and forgetting where — and who — she is. Meanwhile, a doppelganger of her popstar self haunts her, and she has the nagging suspicion she could be getting stalked by an angry fan.
House – 1977
This film is part of the Criterion Collection and perfectly encapsulates the absurdity and aesthetics of the ‘70s. It isn’t so much grounded in reality as it is fantasy, with scenes dramatically washed in surreal colours, goofy action scenes, and character names like Prof, Kung Fu, and Sweet.
Gorgeous, the protagonist, is upset with her father for remarrying after the death of her mother and flees to her aunt’s for the summer along with her friends. They realize too late that her aunt’s house is not as it seems, and hijinks ensue that will change how you see the iconic cat on the movie poster forever. House is incredible to take in as a psychedelic art piece and entertaining to follow along as a movie.
Audition – 1999
This movie is a staple in Asian horror. It follows a widower who wants to remarry, but he decides to go about it by staging auditions for a fake movie to bring in pretty, young women. From there he (questionably) decides to use his authority to pursue the women outside the sham acting gig, and he meets Asami. She’s quiet, pretty, but also extremely elusive. Any attempts the protagonist makes to track her down or contact her turn up empty. At some point, even the audience questions if Asami is real. The protagonist isn’t interested in these women for who they are, as it turns out, and when he begins to uncover Asami’s past, he realizes he’s in deeper than he thought.
Audition also features an extended and horrifying torture scene near the end (although not necessarily gorey) that will be burned into the memory of its viewers.
Wild Zero – 1999
Watching Wild Zero is the equivalent of getting whiplash; it will leave you wondering what the hell you watched but also oddly intrigued. It’s a piece that’s best gone into blind and without expectations. The essentials are that aliens have unleashed a horde of zombies upon the earth, and rock ‘n’ roll enthusiast Ace gets caught up in the action. Guided by his hero and blood brother, Guitar Wolf, Ace protects those he comes across and also discovers something about his sexuality by the end of the movie. How all these seemingly unrelated themes fit together is for you to find out.
The DVD release features a drinking game: drink every time a head explodes, fire comes out of anything, a character brushes back their hair, or when someone yells “Rock ‘n’ roll!” Not recommended if you value your liver, however.
Three… Extremes – 2004
This collection of three short films is a great introduction to the Asian horror genre, and it includes one film by the same director as Audition, Takashi Miike. It covers a variety of cultures: **Dumplings is from Hong Kong, Cut is from Korea, and Box is from Japan.
These films range from abstract, moody, and almost silent (Box), to plot-driven arcs not for the faint-of-heart (Dumplings), to captor/hostage situations full of dark comedy (Cut). Serving three uniquely disturbing and equally well-made stories in one feature film makes Three… Extremes a suckerpunch that’ll keep viewers reeling long after they’ve finished watching.
Chandy is a biology major/chemistry minor who's been a staff writer, Arts editor, and Managing Editor at The Cascade. She began writing in elementary school when she produced Tamagotchi fanfiction to show her peers at school -- she now lives in fear that this may have been her creative peak.
