Movie spotlight
Kokkuri-san: Nihon-ban
Many years ago when Cammy (Aiko Ito) was in primary school, she played Kokkurisan with 3 kids. Suddenly, a kid vanished strangely. Now Cammy is grown up and becomes a sales representative of a property company. One day, she goes to investigate about the strange cases happened in a haunted house. Coincidentally, she finds that big house was the home of her old friend who vanished in the past. in the meantime, the psychologist Yuki (Nao Nagasawa) finds that one of her patient was forced to suicide by a kind of strange strength. Before that patient died, she drew a picture of a little girl who wore red clothes and kept on screaming scarily of "Holy Angel". Beside this, the other friends of Cammy who joined to play the game of Kokkurisan in the past, also encounter strange incidents. Unreasonable disappearance cases happen in many places of the city. To reveal the truth, Cammy and Yuki decide to go back to the old place and call for Kokkurisan again!
Insights
Plot Summary
A group of junior high school students decides to perform the Kokkuri-san ritual, a Japanese spirit summoning game, as a prank. However, their playful séance takes a terrifying turn when the spirit they summon, Kokkuri-san, appears to be malevolent and begins to haunt them. The students find themselves targeted by increasingly disturbing supernatural events, forcing them to uncover the truth behind the spirit's vengeful nature before it's too late.
Critical Reception
Kokkuri-san: Nihon-ban received generally negative to mixed reviews from critics and audiences. While some appreciated its attempt to tap into Japanese folklore for horror, many found the execution lacking in originality and effectiveness. The film struggled with pacing and character development, leading to a less impactful scare factor for many viewers.
What Reviewers Say
The film relies heavily on jump scares and familiar J-horror tropes without adding much novelty.
Character development is weak, making it difficult for audiences to connect with their plight.
The supernatural elements, while rooted in folklore, often feel underdeveloped and unconvincing.
Google audience: Information regarding specific Google user reviews for this film is not readily available or consistently documented.
Fun Fact
The Kokkuri-san ritual, featured prominently in the film, is a real Japanese folk divination game that became popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, similar in concept to the Western Ouija board.
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