Looking for a chill for the far east? Look no further than these creepy films!
Every October since 2009, I watch Asian horror films and review each one on my Facebook page.
I have watched up to 165 films to date. Some beg me to watch them again while some make me question my life. Which ones will make my top fifty list? Let’s take a look!
50. Séance
Séance (Trailer español)
Junko Sato with psychic abilities decides to use her powers to find a missing little girl. Things get worse when the child escapes from her kidnapper and sneaks into Koji Sato’s sound equipment trunk. Instead of taking the missing girl to the police, Junko hatches a plan to prove her powers are real. This was a movie made for TV. Guilt and stupidity are a deadly combination.
This is based off of the novel called Séance on a Wet Afternoon by Mark McShane
49. Higanjima
Trailer - Higanjima
Akira’s brother has gone missing in this joint Japanese-Korean production. A mysterious girl comes by the house with the brother’s id, saying he’s still alive. Now, Akira goes out with his friends to look for him on an island of vampires. As one critic said, the vampires are "not the sensitive heartthrobs of Twilight but vicious, ravenous types who revel in terror and torture." So in other words, real vampires.
This movie is based of a manga with the same name
48. The Maid
The Maid (2005) Trailer
Eighteen-year-old Rosa goes to work for a couple and their mentally-challenged son during the Chinese seventh month. However, her employers are not who they them. She has to unravel the truth while solving the disappearance of the previous maid, Esther. The ghost in here reminds of Kayako in the Ju-On movies. This movie is creepy and exciting at the same time.
This won the European Fantastic Film Festival Federation (EFFFF) Asian Film Award at the 10th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (PiFan)
47. Sick Nurses
Sick Nurses - Trailer
A doctor and seven nurses sell dead bodies on the side while they work in a rundown hospital. One nurse gets killed when she threatens to go to the police after learning that her sister is having an affair with the doctor. Now, her ghost is looking for revenge. The killings... oh damn! It is just twisted, but then again it is a revenge horror story.
Board of Censors wanted to change the scene with a medical cross symbol falling off the hospital building and killing a character because the censors believed that was a bad association for the symbol
46. The Suicide Song
Densen Uta Trailer
Anzu Natsuno hears her friend, Kanna, singing a weird song from the hall of their all-girls school. When she finishes, Kanna commits suicide. With the help of a magazine columnist, Riku Nagase, she and her friends try to reveal the urban legend of the “suicide song”. Most of the members of AKB48 are in this movie. The ending threw me for a loop there.
AKB48’s Yuko Oshima made two movies and fifteen TV Dramas before starring in The Suicide Song
45. The Wailing
The Wailing Official Trailer 1 (2016) - Korean Thriller HD
Soon after a stranger arrives in a little village, a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman, drawn into the incident, is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter. The picture looks so crisp and clear. I got confused on who was who at some points. The twist at the end leads to more questions in my book.
Scott Free Productions wants to remake this movie
44. Retribution
Trailer - Retribution (Sakebi)
A detective investigates the murder of a Jane Doe in a red dress. His missing button and fingerprints are found at the scene, but he does not remember what happened. The mystery seems to be connected to an abandoned mental institution. This is from the director of Kairo and The Loft. The ending is a bit creepy.
Horror is seen as expressing some kind of social illness and collective guilt
43. The Locker
The locker (Shibuya kaidan) trailer
The movie starts out like a typical American horror film with young people camping in the woods. After that, our group of characters get back from their trip and go to this storage locker to test out an urban legend. Then, we inch into the creepy stuff surrounding the mystery of said locker. The ending feels abrupt, but there is a sequel to it. It's pretty decent, not that great, but it's not boring either.
Kei Horie also acts in Ju-On: The Grudge 2
42. Unholy Women
Unholy Women / Kowai Onna (2006)
This movie is a compilation of three films. As per rule with my personal project, I will review each film separately and then do an overall review.
Rattle Rattle: Kanako ends up in a hospital lands a female jumper lands on her. Afterwards, she is haunted by a woman in a red dress. The ghost looks like she has on a rubber mask. And we have a creepy child in this movie. Most of the ghosts except for the little girl looks so cheesy.
Hagane: This one starts with boy gets set up on a blind date with girl by her older brother who happens to be his boss. Something seems off about girl. Boss/Brother seems to be shady. Boy and girl go off on date. Then things get weirder.
The Inheritance: A mother and son go to take care of her elderly mother. The mother becomes cursed after finding a scroll in the family shed, leaving her son in danger. Shimizu Takashi, the man who gave us the Ju-On franchise, had a hand in this. Because of this, the mother and son remind me of Kayako and Toshio. The ending is just disturbing.
Overall: This is what classic J-horror looks like. No gore is really needed. The segment I was oddly attracted to was Hagane. My verdict? Go and watch this movie.
Keita Amemiya works with the Kamen Rider property
41. Reincarnation
Reincarnation - Trailer
A young woman is acting in a movie about a professor who killed eleven hotel guests before offing himself. However, she and the other actors start having strange visions about the event. This is from the man who created the Ju-On franchise. He seems to love creepy children, doesn't he? Almost all of Shimizu's horror films have creepy children in them.
Shimizu has appeared in movies Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl and Helldriver
40. Infection
Infection / Kansen (2004) HD
A patient dies from a doctor’s mistakes in a rundown hospital. The staff try to cover it up with dire consequences. This is from the guy who brought us Ju-on: The Beginning of the End. Part of the J-Horror theater series, this is one heck of a trip. It's pretty creepy and a bit gross. I seem to be attracted to mind-screw movies.
Masayuki Ochiai also directed the American remake of Shutter
39. Ringu 0
Ring 0 Birthday (Ringu 0: Bâsudei) - trailer (full)
This movie covers Sadako’s life thirty years before she was thrown down her well. She was just a normal girl who acted in an acting trope to help cure her inherited psychic powers. Almost reminds me of Carrie. I feel bad for Sadako. Those people were real jerks to her.
Ringu 0 is based off a short story called Lemonheart
38. Premonition
Premonition (2004) - Trailer
After the death of his daughter in a car accident, a divorced man is cursed with seeing the future from newspapers. He and his ex-wife try to unravel the mystery of the “Cursed Newspaper”. This is part of the J-Horror Theater series and from the man who brought us Ringu 0: Birthday. The ending gets pretty trippy and kind of confusing, but still great. I would recommend it.
This movie is based off of the manga, Newspaper of Terror
37. Suicide Circle
Suicide Club 2001
Thirty-seven schoolgirls smile and hold hands as they jump in front of a moving train. Gory stuff with lots of people driven to suicide after hearing the child idol group, Dessert’s, hit single, “Mail Me”. Sono Sion really went all out for this, didn't he? The plot towards the end gets confusing and the ending is rather anti-climactic. One thing's for sure: "Mail Me" will get stuck in your head.
This and Noriko’s Dinner Table was supposed to be a trilogy
36. Phobia
4bia International Trailer
Another Thai horror film and another split into four different segments. As the rules go, I will review each one first and then the all of movies as a whole.
Loneliness: (Happiness) A woman is stuck in her apartment because of a broken leg. One evening, she gets text from an unknown number and befriends the person on the other line. This segment doesn't have any spoken dialogue except she calls the number and the operator says the usual lines. This segment is beautifully executed. It all relies on showing you what's going on instead of telling.
Deadly Charm: (Tit for Tat) In our next section, a kid rides past some thugs on a bike. So the thugs chase him down, kidnap, and kill him. The bullied kid, Ngid, curses them all to die and the deaths all begin. The deaths are awesome and we are left with the traditional final girl who did nothing to stop the bullying. Except for the CG ghosts/creatures in this segment, it was pretty good.
The Man in The Middle: Next up, four guys are out camping. The men are just laughing and joking around. I love how the title of this film just sinks into the water. It's all fun until the raft collapses over. The movies references are rather annoying, but the segment is still good.
Flight 244: (Last Fright) A woman is a flight attendant who has to fly with the wife of her lover. The flight is pretty awkward to say the least. Things get worse when the princess dies from an allergic reaction from the flight attendant's lunch. Now, the flight attendant has to fly the body back to the princess' home country. There are some horror clichés and it's a bit weaker than the other three.
Overall: I love how all four movies connect into each other in some way. My favorite is Loneliness/Happiness for how it was shot. My second favorite would have to Deadly Charm/Tit for Tat.
There is a sequel called Phobia 2
35. House
HOUSE (1977) Trailer - The Criterion Collection
Gorgeous and her friends go to stay at her aunt’s house for the summer because her father got remarried. But then, the house starts to eat the guests one by one. As The special effects look so hammy and the movie is pretty campy. This is done on purpose, though. The movie is good when you want to kill time and it looks entertaining in an odd way.
Most of the actresses were amateurs
34. Dorm
Dorm (Thailand Movie Trailer)
A moody boy is dropped off at a boarding school to straighten out his behavior. However, it becomes clear that a lonely ghost is haunting the dormitory. This one starts off rather slow. There are small clues as to what is going on in real life. It turned out to be a rather touching story.
This movie won seventeen awards
33. The Eye 2
THE EYE 2 Trailer
No relation to first film, The Eye. A woman ends up pregnant after a suicide attempt. But then, she starts to see ghosts following around other pregnant women. This one is freakier than the first movie. It's like Halloween III: Season of the Witch, but much better.
This is the second movie in The Eye series
32. Kwaidan
Kwaidan Trailer
This movie is comprised of four shorts. I will review each film separately and then do an overall review.
The Black Hair: We have a samurai who chooses wealth over love when he wants to advance his career. Ladies, if your man wants to leave you because of wealth and power, just slap him. Also the wiki page is misleading. There is no stranger telling us what happened in the end. It just cuts to the second story.
The Woman of the Snow: Two woodsmen, one old and one young, go out looking for wood during a snow storm. While sleeping in a hut, the Yuki Onna comes and kills the older man. Years later, the younger man meets a mysterious beautiful woman .Visually, it looks great. They followed the story just like it was written.
Hoichi the Earless: We start off with a battle reenactment before we get to the heart of the story. We follow a blind musician monk who plays for a mysterious court. This one was kind of boring, but the music and the images looked great. Plus, I reconigzed one of my favorite older actors, Shimura Takashi, playing the head priest in this. So, it wasn't too bad.
In a Cup of Tea: The man sees a face in the cup of tea and goes crazy. He goes missing and things get weird around his house as his editor and a neighbor look for him. I do love how the story tries into the frame story for this one. I wished that tea story had an ending to it. That would've been interesting to see.
Overall: Visually, they looked great. I think I will have to track down these stories and read them myself.
These movies are based off the stories out of the Kwaidan book
31. One Missed Call
One Missed Call (2003) HD
This is another movie from Takashi Miike. A girl and her group of friends are killed off after reciving one missed call of their predict last words. She now has to unravel the mystery with the help of a journalist to save herself. You think it’s going to be one way, but as the movie goes along, it takes another turn. It’s actually tamer than Audition.
The movie was remade in 2008.
30. Ringu
Ring - Japanese Trailer
This is another classic movie based off of a book. If you watch a mysterious video, you will die after seven days. A journalist and her ex-husband try to solve the mystery when she and their son get caught up in the curse after the death of her niece. Ringu spawned a franchise that will be just as iconic as Ju-On and Halloween. This movie alone spawned two different sequels, Rasen and Ringu 2.
Rasen was rejected as a sequel to Ringu
29. Kaidan
Kaidan (2007) Official Trailer #1 - Japanese Horror Movie
This is one of the movies that is part of the J-Horror Theater series. The father of two young girls is killed by a samurai. He curses his murderer before his death. When one of the daughters and the son of the murderer marry, the curse unfolds and takes effect. I did get a couple of jump scares when I watched it.
This is based off the ghost story, Shinkei Kasanegafuchi by Enchou Sanyutei
28. Onibaba
Onibaba is directed by the same man who directed Kuroneko. Like Kuroneko, this is period piece and features two violent women, one older and one younger, who kill men. Things unravel when the younger woman falls for one of the targets. I can draw plenty of similarities to this movie and Kuroneko. I think Kuroneko was better.
Onibaba is based off Japanese folklore
27. R-Point
R-POINT (2004) HD
A Korean platoon answers a distress signal from a missing platoon presumed dead during Vietnam. When they arrive at Romeo Point, the last known place the platoon was, creepy things start to happen. Intriguing ride, this movie is. I just keep waiting for the soldiers to die because you know it's coming. Most of it will make you go, "Ooo, that's not good."
The official website had fictional reports from soldiers to promote the movie
26. Marebito
Marebito (2004) Trailer
A man is looking for what caused the fear of a suicidal man in a subway station. He goes underground and finds a strange feral girl who feeds on blood. Ah, another film from Shimizu Takashi. Ah, the travels of a madman and a strange vampire girl. It's a good film for psychological horror.
This was made between Ju-On: The Grudge and The Grudge
25. Spiral
Spiral / Uzumaki (2000)
A town ends up cursed with spirals taking over everything. A girl and a classmate try to find out what’s going on and why. The curse isn't really explained or it might be explained in the manga. The acting is a bit campy and the main girl's voice is slightly annoying. I have to agree that special effects kind of take away from the scary factor of this movie.
This was double billed with Tomie: Replay
24. Rampo Noir
Rampo Noir - OFFICIAL TRAILER - Japanese Horror Thriller Anthology - Edogawa Rampo
This movie is broken up into four shorts. I will review each short first and then do an overall review.
Mars' Carnal: It's silent. No, there is nothing wrong with the site/computer/DVD. It was shot that way on purpose. It's silent with a naked man walking through desert backdrop. There is some type of white noise in the middle, but this portion does have you curious on where the rest of this movie will take you.
Mirror Hell: This is one strange murder mystery. It starts out slow and a standard with the death of a tea ceremony teacher. Pretty soon, the lovers of this one beautiful man end up dying one by one. By the second sex scene it gets really strange and you are left wondering, "What the hell?"
Caterpillar: A woman has to take care of her amputee, mute war veteran husband. I thought that this would be the same thing as the late Wakamatsu Koji version. Same basic concept, but completely different. The sex scene was unnerving and the end made me go, "Huh?" I did the cinematography from the husband's point of view.
Crawling Bugs: A man become obsessed with an actress whose popularity is fading away. He ends up killing her and keeping her in his apartment. The whole time I was, "Dude, what are you doing?" I was intrigued on where this was going. It's rather confusing and the guy in this portion was really deranged.
Overall: Really weird movie, but visually appealing. I think the best one is Mars Carnal.
These movies are based off of the stories by the author Edogawa Rampo
23. Exte: Hair Extensions
Exte: Hair Extensions (2007) Trailer
A man steals the corpse of a woman when was used for organ harvest to use her hair for hair extensions. However, the extensions become cursed and kill who ever wears them. Right away, the male main character is creepy with his hair fetish. Sion Sono definitely brings in his trademark creepiness. This movie is actually tamer compared to his other work.
Chiaki Kuriyama has acted in Battle Royale, Ju-On: The Curse, and Kill Bill Vol. 1
22. Dark Water
Trailer (Dark Water 2002)
This movie is based off a short story by Koji Suzuki. A mother is in the middle of a divorce and moves into a run-down apartment. She notices strange things happening around their new home surrounding the water. The original version of this is way better than the remake. Watch this movie when you can find it and pretend the 2005 version doesn’t exist.
Suzuki also made a manga of this
21. Silk
Silk (2006) Trailer
A group of people are study what creates a ghost when they find a little ghost boy trapped in the living world. Sci-fi meets horror with this film. The ghost boy reminds me of Toshio from the Ju-On films while his mother reminds of Kayako. Good with special effects here. A heart-warming story about a mother and son love to boot.
Gold Circle Films wants to remake this
20. Dumplings
Dumplings (trailer) - Accent Films
This is the extended version of the short film of the same name. We get more details and a bit of a back story with the two main female leads. The plot and subplot are the same; (see further down the list). The ending, though different, is still chilling. Both versions are really creepy and I don't think I will be eating dumplings for a month now.
Director Fruit Chan also directed the movie, The Midnight After
19. Strange Circus
Strange Circus Trailer
This is from Sono Sion, the man who brought you Suicide Circle, Noriko's Dinner Table, and Cold Fish. An erotic author writes about a man rapes both is wife and daughter after the daughter sees her parents having sex. But, what is reality and what is fiction? The "strange" in the title doesn't even begin to cover it. When you figure it out, you will go, "Oh snap!"
Sono didn’t want to make “child pornography” with the scenes with young daughter
18. The Host
The Host (2006) – Trailer
No, this isn't Stefanie Meyer's crappy book/movie. Right off the bat, the Americans ruin everything in the beginning when an American scientist orders a Korean one to pour chemicals down the sink. A dysfunctional family tries to rescue their daughter kidnapped by a giant monster. If you like Kaiju, I don't know what they call them in the Koreas, you will like this movie. The film got confusing at one point but rocking towards the end.
Part of the movie was based off an incident that took place in 2000 between South Korea and America
17. Noroi: The Curse
Noroi the curse trailer
This whole movie is a found footage documentary looking for the origin of a curse. At first, the plot doesn't seem to go anywhere and just bounces back and forth to random places. The other half of the movie it starts to make sense. Then, it gets creepy. It has a Blair Witch feel to it.
Kōji Shiraishi also directed the movie, Cult
16. Three… Extremes
Three...Extremes (2004) Official Trailer - Horror Movie HD
This movie is in three different parts, so I shall review for each one.
Dumplings: An aging actress goes to local chef for a little treatment to regain her youth. Oh great, now I can't eat dumplings for a whole month! The beautiful singing didn't help either! I actually got to see Bai Ling in a serious, but creepy role though. Things you cannot unsee!
Cut: A popular director and his wife are being held hostage by a deranged extra. He has to play along with the twisted games or his wife’s fingers will get cut off. Creepy and sick. The ending was rather confusing to me. What the heck?!
Box: Ah, Miike Takashi. A young novelist is haunted by her circus past by nightmares of being stuffed in a box. She and her publisher try to get to the bottom of this. Still, the ending was confusing. Miike manages to throw in some sort of a mind-screw in his films to mess with the audience.
Overall: Mostly creepy. It's the producers were like, "Let's do Three again, but this time raise the stakes on the disturbing parts." Mission Accomplished.
Dumplings got expanded into a full-length feature
15. Three (International Title: Three Extremes II)
Three Extremes 2 (trailer) - Accent Films
This movie is in three different parts, so I shall review for each one.
Memories: A man can’t remember what happened to his wife. Meanwhile, his wife wakes up in the middle of the road and doesn’t remember how she got there. From the man who brought us A Tale of Two Sisters and I Saw the Devil. This section has the same feel as the former. Plus, it's not really scary at all.
The Wheel: Stolen cursed puppets are haunting this puppet trope. A puppet master and his family who originally owned them are the ones who die first. His rival then steals the puppets for his own prestige. Evil Puppets + stupid people= disaster. Plus, throw in a creepy kid and you better duck and cover.
Going Home: A police officer’s son goes missing. He is later held hostage by a Chinese doctor who keeps his dead wife around with the hopes that she will revive. More fun with creepy children! I don't know who's creepier-- the little girl in red or the guy with the dead wife that he's taking care of. I did not get the point of the little girl to begin with.
Overall: They were all decent, but not scary.
This is mislabeled as a sequel overseas despite coming first in 2002
14. The Chasing World
TRAILER REAL ONIGOKKO (リアル鬼ごっこ)
A boy is transported to a world where anyone with the name “Sato” is hunted down and killed. The key to getting back may lay with his dead mother. This one actually turned out to be really good. The premise is simple, but it kept me engaged until the ending. Speaking of which said ending will make you go, "What?"
This is based off of the novel titled, Riaru Onigokko by Yusuke Yamada
13. Noriko’s Dinner Table
Noriko's Dinner Table - Official US Trailer
This is the sequel to Suicide Circle. A young woman leaves home to start a new life after meeting new friends online. The lines of reality and fantasy get blurred when she meets another woman named Ueno. In typical Sono fashion, this movie is very bizarre. You will not understand what is going on at first, but it’s worth the ride.
There was supposed to be sequel to round out a trilogy with Suicide Circle
12. The Unseeable
The Unseeable - OFFICIAL TRAILER - Thai Horror
Starts out simple enough. A young pregnant woman is looking for her lover on this large house owned by a rich woman. Then it begins to turn creepy as the house is not what it seems. The twist will make you go, "Oh snap!" It doesn't end there; the "Oh snap!" factor keeps on going.
Wisit Sasanatieng also directed Tears of a Tiger and Citizen Dog
11. Jigoku
Jigoku (1960) HD trailer
We are on a trip to hell in 1960. A young man is dragged down a dark path after he causes a hit-and-run accident. He tries to wrestle with his guilt and the loss of his girlfriend dies in a cab accident. I do love the tortures in the hell scenes. This is a good movie if you are into theology and Divine Comedy by Dante.
This movie was remade in 1999 under the title Jigoku: Japanese Hell
10. Thirst
Thirst - Official English Trailer - New Movie by Chan-Wook Park
A priest comes down with a deadly illness while on a missionary trip in Africa. But, he is spared when he is turned into a vampire. He starts an affair with a married woman named Tae-ju after he stays with her and her family. Okay, Tae-ju is creepy! I mean, borderline Asami from Audition creepy.
Thirst is the first mainstream Korean film to feature full-frontal adult male nudity
9. Shutter
Shutter (The Original) - Trailer
A man and his girlfriend get into a hit-and-run accident after a night of drinking. They try to look for the victim and end up digging up darker secrets around her. This is not scary and very hard to feel sorry for the dude and his friends towards the end. They deserved it! You won’t need to watch the remake after this.
The director makes references to this movie in later films
8. Audition
Audition (1999) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD 1080p]
A widowed man holds a fake audition to look for a new girlfriend. Everything goes well with the relationship until she disappears after spending a night together. How disturbing is it? I ended up watching reruns of Whose Line is it Anyway? to get sleep that night. I can’t watch it again but I will recommend it.
This is based off a book under the same title
7. The Eye
The Eye ( 2002 ) ENG Trailer
I'm pretending the American remake doesn't exist. A blind woman receives eye cornea transplant to see for the first time in years. Afterwards, she starts to see ghosts. The ghost licking the glass looked creepy. It's rather interesting.
There are three more sequels that do not relate to this movie
6. Kuroneko
KURONEKO Original Theatrical Trailer (Masters of Cinema)
I decided to go back in time for some retro J-horror. This movie is in black and white. Two women are raped and murdered by rogue samurai. Because of this, they start seducing and killing samurai that pass them by. Go check it out when you have the time.
This movie was going to compete in the 1968 Cannes Film Festival, but the festival was cancelled due to the political climate at the time
5. Ju-On: Black Ghost
Ju-On: White Ghost & Ju-On: Black Ghost UK Trailer
This was released as an anniversary piece with White Ghost. It’s pretty good like the White Ghost. A little girl is being haunted to the point she ends up in the hospital. Just like in the Ju-On movies, people end up dying due to the curse spreading around. This was how I fell in love with director Asato-san.
Takashi Shizumu had no involved in neither White Ghost nor Black Ghost
4. Ju-On: White Ghost
Ju-On: White Ghost & Ju-On: Black Ghost UK Trailer
This was released as an anniversary piece with Black Ghost. A failed law student murders his family before ending his life. His curse spreads to ghosts of an old lady and a little girl. Just like in the Ju-On movies, people end up dying due to the curse spreading around. I really enjoyed both White Ghost and Black Ghost.
Toshio makes a cameo appearance in both White Ghost and Black Ghost
3. Ju-On: The Grudge 2
Ju-oN 2 Trailer
Kayako and Toshio are back when a horror queen gets into a car accident after filming a TV show in their old house. She ends up pregnant again after she miscarries her first child. The movie is still enjoyable though. So much so that I watch this every year along with the rest of the movies in the Ju-On franchise. This would also be the last Ju-On film directed by Shimizu-san.
It would be six more years before the next two Ju-On films would come out
2. Ju-On: The Grudge
JU-ON: The Grudge - Japanese Trailer (HD)
A volunteer goes to check on an old lady in an abandoned house. From there, the curse of the Saeki family spreads to everyone who comes in contact with it. Even the police cannot help the poor volunteer. I watch this every year. This is still better than the American remake.
This is the first Ju-On first to be released in theaters
1. Kairo
Kairo, Pulse (2001) ㅡ Trailer
This little gem has a post-apocalyptic feel to it. Ghosts are taking over the internet and driving people to commit suicide. An employee at a plant shop and a college student try to get to the bottom of it and escape. I want to read the novel after this. It’s a slow burn that is kind of creepy.
There is an American remake with two more sequels
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