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Friday, September 23, 2005
Dark Water (Honogurai mizu no soko kara)
By Jojie Alcantara
JAPANESE ORIGINAL FILM: Directed by Nakata Hideo, 2002, 102 minutes, Starring: Hitomi Kuroki, Rio Kanno, Asami Mizukawa, Fumiyo Kohinata, Mirei Oguchi, Shigemitsu Ogi, Yuu Tokui, and Isao Yatsu. USA RELEASE: Directed by Walter Salles, 2005, Starring Jennifer Connelly
IT IS no secret that I am an obsessed collector of Asian horror films since 2000, and a little bit sarcastic over Western remakes (look at my poor, favorite Ju-On or The Grudge). When Japanese author Suzuki Koji wrote the super creepy Ringu (The Ring) in 1991 it was instantly made into box-office hit in Japan in 1998 by Nakata Hideo. America quickly made a remake of The Ring in 2002, which was surprisingly as scary as the original film.
As Suzuki churned more horror novels, director Nakata respectfully made films out of them. The once obscure writer inspired two sequels and a whole new genre of movies called "Psycho-Horror" (Spiral, Rasen or Ring 2, and Birthday, which became the basis for Ring 3, the origin of my long-haired spooked idol Sadako). Then came Koji's supernatural and melancholy drama Honogurai mizu no soko kara, which was filmed by Nakata Hideo in 2002.
Its English title, Dark Water, was then made into a US film in 2005, directed by Walter Salles and starring Jennifer Connelly.
In the Japanese film, Nakata goes creepy and subtle on moviegoers as oppose to the screamer The Ring, although he can't shake off shades of the Sadako legacy.
Dark Water's story is about a young mother, Matsubara Yoshimi (played by Kuroki), who is going through a very messy divorce from a manipulative husband, and fighting for permanent custody of their five-year old daughter Ikuko (cute Rio Kanno).
Trying to make her life more stable (had a history of mental condition and therapy), and currently jobless and homeless, she rents a new flat in a dilapidated building that screams haunted the minute you step on the elevator, puts Ikuko in kindergarten school and gets a new job.
However, she finds out her building has a grim history--a little girl (Oguchi) who used to lived in the flat upstairs went missing years ago and was haunting the place. The little ghost seems to take a liking to Ikuko, which scares Yoshimi (but not enough to make her snoop inside the abandoned flat upstairs!).
Meanwhile, water seems to be staining and dripping everywhere in the ceiling of her apartment. Strange things begin to happen with a sinister threat. Water dripping all over, raining, raining, and oh, that darn spooky elevator that doesn't work.
Water serves a very significant point in the story, giving us clues and images to what is going to happen, like some harbinger of doom. The dark set design and hair-raising music, plus unsettling glimpses of characters and spirits are enough to make us jump on end.
Although I personally do not like it's ending, it is still a beautiful horror film that speaks of a mother's love and defiance to set everything right. It may not scare you out of your skin as much as Ringu, but it will still take your breath away. Ultimately, it has a sad ending.
With the US remake as point of contrast, you will find two versions in the same twists of a plot: one gives you a silent climax of terror that mentally gets on your nerves. The other is aided by heavy Hollywood effects that rattle your senses with its loud and graphic visual scares.
Dark Water (US) is now being shown in local cinemas, while Dark Water (Japan) is available in your video stores.
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"Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (September 23, 2005 issue)
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