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July 24, 2026
 

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HORROR

Suzuka Chinzei (right) plays a school counselor dealing with a string of deaths in horrormeister Takashi Shimizu¡¯s ¡°Sana: Play With Me.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Jul 17, 2026
¡®Sana: Play With Me¡¯ can¡¯t recapture the simple scares of J-horror¡¯s glory days
The latest film by J-horror director Takashi Shimizu (best known for ¡°Juon: The Grudge¡°) starts with an intriguing premise but becomes overblown by its third act.
In Dave Boyle¡¯s ¡°Never After Dark,¡± a medium (Moeka Hoshi, left) hired to exorcise a spirit from a former hotel discovers that this is no regular haunting.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 6, 2026
¡®Never After Dark¡¯ finds fresh chills in familiar J-horror territory
Written and directed by Dave Boyle, the film begins as a paranormal investigation and transforms into another type of horror story altogether.
Sara Minami plays an unhinged art student turned ghostbuster in Yuriyan Retriever¡¯s horror comedy, ¡°Mag Mag.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Feb 20, 2026
¡®Mag Mag¡¯: A wild, messy riff on Japan¡¯s vengeful ghost tradition
Yuriyan Retriever¡¯s debut feature recalls the rambunctious spirit of 1990s indie cinema, mixing J-horror tropes with meta humor and shameless gross-out comedy.
Teenage girls (from left: Anji Ikehata and the single-named Miro) at a boarding school are drawn closer together after the death of a popular student (Nico Aoto) in ¡°White Flowers and Fruits.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Dec 25, 2025
¡®White Flowers and Fruits¡¯: Inside the fragile, haunting world of female adolescence
Strong performances from newcomer actors anchor Yukari Sakamoto¡¯s J-horror centered on tight-knit teenagers at a Protestant all-girls boarding school.
Series composer Akira Yamaoka and writer Ryukishi07 were integral figures in helping one of Japan's greatest horror gaming franchises land a Japanese setting.
LIFE / Digital
Oct 17, 2025
How Japan¡¯s greatest psychological horror game came home
Since 1999, the Silent Hill franchise of psychological horror games has always leaned into American settings. But with the new Silent Hill f, the series comes to Japan.
A call girl (Kaho Seto) traumatized by the death of her young daughter becomes entangled with a strange client in ¡°New Religion.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Jul 17, 2025
¡®New Religion¡¯: Chic debut is low on shivers
Keishi Kondo¡¯s horror film dives deep into dream logic and dread, but its emotional detachment leaves a chill that¡¯s more cold than scary.
An actor portrays a "pocong," a ghost widely known in Indonesia, at a horror entertainment venue at a mall in Jakarta. The pocong is just one of the monsters that features in massively popular Indonesian horror movies.
CULTURE / Film
Apr 15, 2025
Indonesia¡¯s horror movie industry rises from the grave
Five of the top 10 films from 2024 were categorized as horror movies, a statistic that underscores just how popular the genre is.
Strange things are afoot in Ryota Kondo¡¯s ¡°Missing Child Videotape¡± as Keita (Rairu Sugita) investigates the 13-year-old disappearance of his younger brother.
CULTURE / Film
Jan 23, 2025
¡®Missing Child Videotape¡¯: Subtle chiller may leave J-horror fans underwhelmed
Ryota Kondo¡¯s eerie ghost story debut goes for ambient dread rather than jump scares.
Japanese film director Kiyoshi Kurosawa gestures as he poses for photos during a press conference at the 29th Busan International Film Festival.
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2024
Japan¡¯s ¡®master of horror¡¯ Kiyoshi Kurosawa highlights ¡®B-movie¡¯ appeal
The director, who received the Busan International Film Festival¡¯s Filmmaker of the Year Award on Wednesday, said he¡¯d like to see more artists explore genre cinema.
A grandmother fights back when the angry ghost of a social recluse starts killing off family members in ¡°House of Sayuri.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Aug 29, 2024
¡®House of Sayuri¡¯: J-horror fights ghosts with pitch-black humor
Koji Shiraishi¡¯s horror comedy matches the darkness of the deeds on display with a fiery grandma who takes on a wicked spirit with her tai chi skills.
A substitute teacher (Nagisa Shibuya, center front) at a junior high school finds herself caught up in strange goings-on with violent outcomes in ¡°Who¡¯s That Girl?¡±
CULTURE / Film
Jul 26, 2024
¡®Who¡¯s That Girl?¡¯: Junior high school antics just got scarier
J-horror master Takashi Shimizu¡¯s latest offers familiar genre elements with a practiced hand and fresh twists.
Horror artist Junji Ito adds just a dash of comedy to his work, though he aims for it to be understated. ¡°If it¡¯s truly a horror story, the humor must be restrained and more veiled,¡± he says.
CULTURE / Art
Jun 29, 2024
Fear still matters to Junji Ito
Currently on view at Tokyo¡¯s Setagaya Literary Museum is an extensive collection of the horror master¡¯s work, the first large-scale exhibition of it¡¯s kind in Japan.
A bloody demonic outbreak strikes Japan in ¡°Visitors: Complete Edition.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Feb 22, 2024
¡®Visitors¡¯ revels in all its gory glory with deadpan humor
Kenichi Ugana¡¯s extended version of his brilliant splatter short is endearingly shaggy ¡ª and messy.
Two lovers on the run (Misa Wada, left, and Takahiro Fukuya) wrestle with poverty and a monstrous mutant appendage in Taichiro Natsume¡¯s ¡°The Beast Hand.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Jan 25, 2024
¡®The Beast Hand¡¯: Splatter movie has more soul than guts
Misa Wada proves a standout in Taichiro Natsume¡¯s surprisingly soulful low-budget horror flick.
A nursing student (Kotone Furukawa, right) is terrified by the bizarre goings-on in her hometown in ¡°Best Wishes to All.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Jan 18, 2024
¡®Best Wishes to All¡¯: Home is where the horror is
Yuta Shimotsu¡¯s first feature about a small town gone mad delivers shocking frights but its message fails to surprise.
After losing her eyesight in a car accident, a woman goes to the home of an eye doctor and his son to receive a miracle device to restore her sight in ¡°My Mother¡¯s Eyes.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Nov 23, 2023
¡®My Mother¡¯s Eyes¡¯: Psychodrama pushes to mad extremes
Takeshi Kushida¡¯s atmospheric horror film about toxic parent-child relationships unfolds in a fantasy world that strains credulity.
The classic Japanese ghost story often features a vengeful female ghost.
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 12, 2023
[Rebroadcast] Japan¡¯s got ghosts
This week we discuss a few horror movies before ¡°Uncanny Japan¡± podcast host Thersa Matsuura tells a classic Japanese ghost story.
A TV director (Kanna Hashimoto, left) is haunted by the dead wife of an old office crush (Daiki Shigeoka) in ¡°The Forbidden Play.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Sep 21, 2023
¡®The Forbidden Play¡¯: J-horror mishmash offers satisfying scares
Horror legend Hideo Nakata¡¯s latest flick is a halfway return to form, in part due to actor First Summer Uika¡¯s chilling turn as a vengeful wraith.
A couple with a young daughter move into their dream house but soon realize there is something sinister afoot in ¡°Home Sweet Home.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Sep 2, 2023
¡®Home Sweet Home¡¯: Horror house is light on frights
While the main cast delivers strong performances, Takumi Saitoh¡¯s film about a dream home with spooky secrets offers chills rather than true terror.
A deceased schoolgirl lures members of pop group Generations into her world with a killer earworm in ¡°Sana.¡±
CULTURE / Film
Aug 10, 2023
¡®Sana¡¯: Boy band horror flick is largely fan service
Takashi Shimizu¡¯s film about a deadly ditty infecting members of J-pop group Generations offers generic scares with real-life concert footage.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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