Description
Title: Don’t Look Up (1996) Ghost Actress
Alternate Title: 女優霊 (Joyû-rei)
Genre: Horror
Plot Synopsis: On the set of a wartime drama at an old movie studio, young director Toshio Murai strives to complete his debut film. The production faces continuous disruptions due to eerie occurrences, leading the cast and crew to believe the set is haunted. As Murai delves deeper, he uncovers a chilling history of the studio, blurring the lines between fiction and reality. The film explores themes of obsession, the supernatural, and the impact of past tragedies on the present.
Cast and Crew:
- Director: Hideo Nakat
- Writer: Hiroshi Takahashi
- Cast:
- Yûrei Yanagi as Toshio Murai
- Yasuyo Shirashima as Hitomi Kurokawa
- Kei Ishibashi as Saori Murakami
- Ren Osugi as Ootani
- SABU as Sekikawa
IMDb Link: Don’t Look Up (1996)
Reviews from Letterboxd:
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Zara – ★★★☆☆ “haha no don’t get murdered we gotta finish my movie ahaha”
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Gᴀᴜᴛᴀᴍ – ★★★½ “A low-budget J-horror film that, despite its modest visuals, creates an eerie world through its settings, a creepy atmosphere, and a strange tone that genuinely feels scary.”
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Dr. Ethan Lyon – ★★★★☆ “The story of a film being made within a film is kept engaging without overly complicating it, and both narratives hold up well for most of the runtime.”
Meta Description: “Don’t Look Up” (1996), directed by Hideo Nakata, is a Japanese horror film that follows director Toshio Murai as he confronts supernatural events disrupting his film production. The movie delves into themes of obsession and the lingering effects of past tragedies.
Title: Chaos (2000)
Alternate Title: カオス (Kaosu)
Genre: Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Plot Synopsis: A handyman, Kuroda, becomes entangled in a kidnapping scheme with Satomi, the wife of a wealthy businessman. She consents to being tied up and confined in his house while he sends a ransom demand. However, upon returning home, Kuroda finds her dead on the floor. Panicking, he buries her body in the woods and attempts to resume his normal life. Days later, he believes he sees her walking down the street, leading him to question his sanity and the reality of the events. The film explores themes of deception, reality, and the unforeseen consequences of one’s actions.
Cast and Crew:
- Director: Hideo Nakata
- Writer: Hisashi Saito
- Cast:
- Masato Hagiwara as Kuroda
- Miki Nakatani as Satomi
- Ken Mitsuishi as Komiyama
- Jun Kunimura as Inspector
- Yūna Natsuo
IMDb Link: Chaos (2000)
Reviews from Letterboxd:
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Rafael “Parker!!” Jovine – ★★★☆☆ “Before releasing what would become probably his second best known film, Hideo Nakata offers us with an interesting film that at first appears to deal with ‘kidnapping’ and the conflicts between social classes, only to rapidly grow into a plot full of mysteries where you’ll spend your time trying to figure out what is occurring.”
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Ziglet_mir – ★★★½ “The number one rule of being a wild card:”
Meta Description: “Chaos” (2000), directed by Hideo Nakata, is a Japanese crime-mystery thriller that follows Kuroda, a handyman who becomes involved in a kidnapping plot with Satomi, a businessman’s wife. After her apparent death and mysterious reappearance, Kuroda’s perception of reality unravels, delving into themes of deception and the blurred lines between reality and illusion.
