During Spooky season, most of the horror that gets ingested along with fun-size candy bars is from American or English studios. People are eager to revisit the classic scary monsters. But we’re not the only people in the world who likes to get a fright at the movie theater. The Japanese have a rich culture of supernatural spirits that will haunt you from beyond the grave. Daiei Gothic contains three films from the legendary Daiei studio (the home of Gamera). These aren’t all out supernatural shockers. All three feature females as the supernatural scares that end up in rather complicated relationships with men. They also take place during the time of Feudal Japan so there are Samurai and swords mixing with the undead. The Ghost of Yotsuya, The Snow Woman and The Bride From Hades aren’t merely ghost stories, but nightmarish tales of marriage.
The Ghost of Yotsuya (1959 – 84 minutes) opens with blood dripping off the titles. There’s plenty of blood in this film about love, betrayal and revenge from beyond the grave. Iemon Tamiya (Zatoichi’s Vengeance‘s Shigeru Amachi) is a frustrated samurai who is unemployed. He makes umbrellas and fishes for his dinner. He gets a break when he comes to the defense of two men and lands a job as a supervisor on a construction project. Turns out in feudal Japan, if you have an issue at work, you don’t go to HR. You whip out your swords and go at it. Iemon and his pal Naosuke meets Oiwa in a cute meet that involves him fighting a gang at a restaurant. He decides the best way to move up in the world is to marry Oiwa even though he’s already married. Naosuke also wants to marry Oiwa’s sister. The two have to go an extreme measure to get the Oiwa’s father to agree. They marry and move to the big city (future Tokyo). What about his wife? The heartless warrior arranges what could be considered an extreme Samauri divorce. She promises revenge with her final breath. Thus she becomes the title ghost eager to screw up her ex-husband’s happy life.
The Snow Woman (1968 – 80 minutes) doesn’t hold back on the winter weather. We’re told the people in the area of Mido and Hida always spoke of the Snow Woman who traveled within the blizzards. If you saw her, she’ll kill you. Why would anyone go out in a blizzard know that could be their fate? A master wood carver and his assistant (Kamen Rider Black: Terrifying! The Phantom House of Devil Pass‘s Akira Ishihama) go trudging through the snow blanketed woods in search of the perfect tree for a temple sculpture. They find it. They are both in awe of the tree and the soulful power it radiates. The snow kicks up so they take shelter in a nearby barn. The wind blows open the front doors and the apprentice sees the Snow Woman. She’s in all white with long black hair. She puts the carver in the deep freeze, but takes mercy on the assistant with a sacred promise. He returns home to find out that he’s been promoted to be the master carver on the temple sculpture project. Yuki (Shinobi no Mono 2: Vengeance‘s Shiho Fujimura) arrives in town and finds herself drawn to the work of the young sculptor. They seem to be a happy couple. An unwanted lovers triangle emerges when the local official wants Yuki as his mistress. He’s willing to fake charges to get the young sculptor out of the way. Will he need the Snow Woman’s help to his relationship survive?
The Bride From Hades (1968 -89 minutes) does have a title that sounds like a Richard Lewis’ “Girlfriend from Hell” joke. But there’s little to laugh about when Shinzaboro (Satan’s Sword‘s Kojiro Hongo) finds himself being forced into a marriage by his family during the festival of Obon. He’s already a disgrace to the family by giving up the samurai life in order to teach elementary school in a small village. The least he can do is marry the young widow of a recently departed relative. He’s not turned on by the woman. Obon is the festival where the dead return to Earth for a few days so the family swears this is the dead relative’s will. Shinzaboro is reluctant and goes home a single man. During the festival he leads his children put their lanterns on little boats and let them sail onto the water. After he pulls a kid’s lantern out of a branch to sail away, he releases two other trapped lanterns. Out of the darkness come two women: an older woman and the young Otsuyo (Lady Snowblood‘s Miyoko Akasa). They’ve had a bit of trouble lately and need his help. He is smitten by Otsuyo and they quickly marry each other in an extremely private ceremony. On their first night together, we discover she’s in rather rough shape when her true form is revealed. Can he give up his ghost lover or do the heart wants what the heart wants?
Daiei Gothic has three extraordinary, haunted stories. The cinematography and the color palate are visually rich. There’s a level of beauty that we normally don’t associate with horror films in America. The dramatic elements aren’t just set ups for jump scares. There’s a lot going on between the regular people before the supernatural arrives. It’s easy to realize why a couple of these guys married a ghost or a supernatural creature. The films aren’t completely out to spook you. They are meant to haunt you as you reflect upon your own relationships. The Ghost of Yotsuya has wives die because the husband wants to be a social climber. The Snow Woman is all about a deep secret that can tear a relationship apart. The Bride From Hades is about making sure your lover not only has a heart, but body heat. Daiei Gothic contains three fantastical films filled with extraordinary chills.
The Video is 2.39:1 anamorphic for all three films. New 4K restorations of The Bride from Hades and The Snow Woman feature new 4K restorations for the 1080p image. The Ghost of Yotsuya is a high-definition digital transfer of The Ghost of Yotsuya. The Audio is LPCM 2.0 mono for each film. There’s a depth to the mixes so you feel the ghosts lurking on the screen. The movies are subtitled in English.
Limited edition 80-page perfect bound book features by Tom Mes and Zack Davisson, reviews from the original releases and two ghost stories by Lafcadio Hearn.
THE GHOST OF YOTSUYA:
New interview with filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa (19:33) about director Kenji Misumi’s work. The film scared him when he first saw it. He praises the make up effects on Owai and how it comes from the kabuki version. There’s something interesting to him about her ghost being disfigured.
The Endless Curse of Oiwa (22:08) is a visual essay by author Kyoko Kirano about the classic Ghost of Yotsuya story. The first performance was in 1855. The first major film version was in 1949. This seems to have been remade as much as a Shakespeare play.
Trailer (1:43) looks pretty nightmarish.
THE BRIDE FROM HADES:
Audio commentary by author Jasper Sharp has him giving a lot of detail about the production, crew and cast. He points out other ghost movies from this era. He does point out that the film isn’t jump out scary. While at Daiei at this point was coming to an end, the studio was still making sure the films had high production standards compared to their rival studios. He mentions the Ghost Cat movies. I really want to see those.
New interview with filmmaker Hiroshi Takahashi (17:39) features the screenwriter of Ring. He remembers the story from Chinese folklore collection from the 17th century. He gets into how the story ended up a part of Japanese ghost stories. He talks about how much he likes Satsuo Yamamoto’s film. He saw it as a student during an all-night film marathon. He points out it was one of Daiei’s last ghost stories.
Trailer (2:24) sets up the ghosts arriving in the little village.
THE SNOW WOMAN:
New interview with director Masayuki Ochiai (15:50) and how The Snow Woman affected him. He explains how she’s a supernatural creature and not a ghost. We get her linked to yokai. He compares the movie to Lafcadio Hearn’s short story about her. He admires the practical effects used in the movie. Ochiai directed Hypnosis and Shutter.
The Haunted Mind of Lafcadio Hearn (6:47) is a visual essay on by his biographer Paul Murray. We learn how Hearn heard these folk horror tales during his Dublin childhood. He believed in the supernatural. He ended up in Ohio as a journalist before moving to a newspaper in New Orleans. He eventually ended up in Japan and began writing books about the culture including one about ghost stories. Many of his stories ended adapted into films over the years.
Trailer (2:16) promises a blizzard of fears when the Snow Woman arrives.
Radiance Films present Dalei Gothic. Directed by Kenji Misumi, Tokuzo Tanaka & Satsuo Yamamoto. Screenplays by Fuji Yahiro & Yoshikata. Starring Kazuo Hasegawa, Yasuko Nakada, Yoko Uraji, Shino Fujimura, Akira Ishihama, Kojiro Hongo, Miyoko Akaza & Michiko Otsuka. Boxset Contents: 3 movies on 3 Blu-ray discs. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: October 29, 2024.
