One
of my favorite things about being a horror fan is finding out about new
subgenres I’d never heard of previously.
It’s not the same as hearing about an obscure film and seeking it out. Finding a new subgenre is like being handed a
chest full of gold. Suddenly there a
multiple films and an entire history to dig back through.
J-Horror
(Japanese Horror) was one of those discoveries that sent me down a rabbit hole
with seemingly no end. There were so
many good movies to dig through from old classics like Onibaba to the chaotic
death match of Battle Royale to the twisted (pun purely intended) and gruesome
Uzumaki. Not to mention Juon: The
Grudge, Pulse, Dark Water and a slew of others.
The film that really brought J-Horror to most people’s attention was
Ringu. It’s
the story of a cursed videotape that brings death to whoever
watches it. The deadly ghost in the tape is named
Sadako and as I mentioned in the blog about my visit to Aokigahara forest, she is modeled
after the traditional descriptions of Japanese ghosts: long, scraggly black
hair, a white burial robe and a thirst for vengeance.
What
most people don’t realize is that the story behind Sadako’s tragic death and
unresolved rage is actually real. She is based on the true story of Chizuko Mifune.
She lived over a hundred years ago and was rumored to have psychic
powers. Tokyo University’s own Tomokichi
Fukurai heard the stories about her and decided it was worth investigating
further. After meeting her, he arranged
to have a public demonstration so that everyone could see Chizuko’s powers for
themselves. Instead, people called her a
fake.
Whether
she was a fake or really had a gift, no one knows for sure because before
another test could be conducted, Chizuko took her own life. This
is almost the same back story given for Ringu’s vengeful spirit.
As
for the well that Sadako climbs out of, this is also based on a real haunted
well. In western Japan there is a famous
castle called Himeji. It happens to be
the setting of one of the most famous ghost stories in all of Japan. The story goes that a servant at the castle
was approached by a samurai who tried to seduce her. She refused him and in a fit of rage, the
samurai killed her and threw her into the well.
Her ghost is said to haunt the well and the grounds around it to this
day.
The picture above is of the well she threw herself into at Himeji Castle.
If
you haven’t seen Ringu, you really should.
It’s an extremely creepy movie that holds up very well, even though most
people under 30 barely know what a “videotape” is.
See
you next week!
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