A demonic femme fatale,who tortures her male would-be oppressor, made Takashi Miike’s vengeance tale the horrifying launchpad for an entire genre
Japanese film-maker Takashi Miike pretty well invented the genre of J-horror as it came to be understood with this shocking, and scabrous,satirical film from 1999; adapted by Daisuke Tengan from the 1997 novel by Ryû Murakami. Above everything else, it has something which makes it very different from the vast majority of horror movies – a female evil-demon figure who terrorises the male.
Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi) is an ageing widower in the film trade who hits on an underhand ruse for finding a new wife; he will audition for a non-existent female supporting role in a film – which will attract the lawful kind of submissive, or non-diva woman,whom he can let down gently and ask out on a date. This premise on its own would be enough for a smart comedy, but from here it turns into something else. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com