History and conventions of Japanese Horror

Shinto and Buddhism are the two largest religious beliefs practised in Japan, However followers typically combine teachings. As we have been researching Japanese horror, in order to understand the origins of the genre we need to be aware of the cultural conventions. The Shinto religion suggests that every person has a soul that will be unable to transcend beyond their physical body if the person dies while feeling excessive emotion. This is presented in films such as Sadakos character in The Ring, seeking revenge from being killed by her father and the antagonist in The Grudge Kayako. The deceased person then becomes a Yūrei, a spirit. These spirits are typically wrathful and seek revenge over whatever has stopped their soul from the peace and rest of afterlife. The spirits are characterised as “Generally female, although male Yūrei do exist. They wear white clothing, which is the color of funeral garments in Japan. They have long, often unkempt black hair, which comes from the tradition of ancient Japanese women growing their hair very long and wearing it pinned up, only letting it down in death" This relates to the mise-en-scene of most contemporary Japanese horror films, and to the costume and make-up we are going to use in our opening sequence.

Additionally, damp dark settings are recurrent in Japanese horror films for example Sadako being trapped in a well in The Ring. This is because the Japanese associate spirits with water, hence the bathroom being a key location for horrifying incidents. However, in our opening sequence we are not referring to this convention but are using the binary opposition of light and dark to create the horror and suspense.

Technology is also a key convention within the history and culture of Japan and their horror films. As Japan is one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world, this has reflected in the narratives of the contemporary horror films. For example the haunting video tape and television being the focal point in The Ring, a mysterious camera in Shutter and the eerie mobile phone in One Missed Call. Our opening sequence does not use this convention; we have done the opposite by deciding to use a comic book to return to original pastimes in the midst of our society’s technological revolution.