With early films like Ugetsu and Kwaidan, the state of modern Japanese Japan was set out to scare through tales that revere the past. This is why so many of the genre's films have to do with ghosts and folklore.
Culturally speaking, what scares the average Japanese person might not be the same thing that frightens a Western viewer. Regardless, fear is universal. And through the lens of Japanese culture, we can better understand what unnerves its citizens. Taking all this information into , there are Japanese horror movies that will leave everyone terrified.
Updated on August 10th, 2020: The scariest in J-horror cannot be limited to only ten movies, though, so an additional five have been added to this creepy collection of terror tales from Japan.
The Ghost of the Hunchback (1965)
Hajime Satô's 1965 Toei movie Kaidan semushi otoko goes by several names in the West: The Ghost of the Hunchback, House of Terrors, and Satan's Pit. Regardless, they are all the same film. The black-and-white picture is considered a lost gem as the Japanese version with Japanese on-screen text intact has yet to be released on home video. However, it has infrequently aired on television. There is also a mostly yet rare faithful Italian dub.
The Ghost of the Hunchback is an eldritch movie about guests congregating at a recently departed man's isolated estate. In failing to heed ominous warnings from the film's namesake, the party is stalked by a disturbing presence haunting the premises.
Haunted School (1995)
The first in Toho's franchise of family-friendly horror, Haunted School (also known as School Ghost Stories) begins with a girl getting trapped in a derelict elementary school with a spooky reputation.
While the movie does not make the most sense, and it does devolve into a series of zany setpieces, the special effects are quite astounding for the time. The inclusion of regional folklore is also notable.
Kakashi (2001)
Loosely based on the story of the same name (which means "scarecrow") by famous horror mangaka Junji Itô, Kakashi follows a woman in search of her missing brother. After receiving a letter sent from someone in a remote, bucolic village, the main character goes there in hopes of finding her sibling. Instead, she stumbles upon the locals preparing for a strange local festival involving the veneration of scarecrows.
As much as a movie like this doesn't follow logic or feels inclined to ever explain itself, the uncanny ambiance is undeniable.
Being Natural (2018)
What seems like a slice-of-life drama about rural, simple life in Japan ends up being one of the most surprising discoveries in Japanese horror. It's an entirely misleading movie until the last act. Everything that happens before then is worthwhile to see, no less. It helps add to the growing tension that is ready to explode at the right time.
Being Natural requires patience, but the reward is so worth it once the conclusion draws its shocking head.
The Demon (1979)
It might appear odd to include this ghouls and ghosts. Real life can be just as scary, if not more so.
The Demon is a modernization of "Hansel and Gretel;" a cheating husband's mistress leaves their kids with him and his actual wife before disappearing. Rather than caring for his young, the father attempts to get rid of the children in horrible ways.
St John's Wort (2001)
Along with her ex-boyfriend Kōhei, Nami is developing a new video game. She's in charge of the art, and she's been basing her designs on some recent dreams of hers. When she and Kōhei visit an abandoned mansion resembling the one in Nami's dream, they uncover lost secrets from Nami's childhood.
Very little about St. John's Wort (Otogirisō in Japan) will make sense. It's a dreamy horror movie with an interesting color palette. The story is definitely undercooked, but the surreal atmosphere is precisely why St. John's Wort is so unsettling.
The Booth (2005)
An arrogant radio host named Shogo is forced to temporarily relocate his late-night show to an old radio station where another host died of suicide several years ago. During his broadcast, Shogo receives a series of bizarre calls from one listener. As the night furthers along, it becomes unclear if Shogo is simply imagining this, or if there really is some evil force at play in the studio.
The Booth is shot on video, but don't let that fact deter someone from watching. The suspense and psychological storm in this hidden gem are both deep-seated and effective.
Uzumaki (2000)
A teenager notices how everyone in her town has become fixated with spiral shapes. This includes her friend's father, who is caught videotaping snails and obsessing over narutomaki. This growing compulsion becomes fatal, though, as it causes people to perish in unimaginable ways. Eventually, the curse reaches epic proportions.
Based on Junji Itō's manga story of the same name, Uzumaki (Japanese for "spiral") is a sterling example of creeping, cosmic horror. It's riddled with dark humor and visual shocks. If someone can't get enough of Uzumaki, a four-episode anime adaptation is set to air on Cartoon Network in 2020.
Dark Water (2002)
As her divorce proceedings become complicated, a mother is forced to move into a run-down apartment building with her young daughter in the interim. They find another child's bag on the premises, but the superintendent claims no other children live in the building. If that's true, then who is the young girl the mother and daughter see, lurking around their apartment?
Hideo Nakata balances drama and horror with mastery in this eerie adaptation of Kōji Suzuki's short story "Floating Water". Like the unsettling water stain in the protagonist's apartment ceiling, the tension steadily increases in this poignant spook tale.
The Ring (1998)
A reporter investigates the recent death of a relative, who died of sudden heart failure. Her inquiry leads to an urban legend about a cursed videotape. It's said that if someone watches it, they will die in seven days. The reporter is understandably skeptical, but she becomes a believer when her son accidentally watches the video. Now, she seeks a way to remove the curse before she and her son succumb to their deadly fates.
All Japanese ghost movies released in The Ring's wake strove to emulate the sheer uneasiness found in Hideo Nakata's 1998 film. Some arguably came close. Though most weren't as successful in of dread-building.
