Kuroneko Blu-ray Review

Director: Kaneto Shindo

Starring: Kichiemon Nakamura, Nabuko Otowa, Kiwako Taichi, Kei Sato, Hideo Kanze,

Running Time: 100 Minutes

Certificate: 15

Extras: 32 page booklet containing essays and interviews, Original trailer

Four years after Kaneto Shindo has amazed the world with his excellent horror ONIBABA, he returned to the genre to once again explore the murky depths of vengeance and folklore. KURONEKO (or to give it its full title YABU NO NAKA NO KURONEKO which translates as THE BLACK CAT INSIDE THE BAMBOO GROVE) accesses the films tone and atmosphere to explore the more frightening elements while also keeping a firm grasp on the emotional context.

The opening is a piece of unforgettable cinema. Once again displaying Shindo’s preference for lack of dialogue where visuals will do, we are subjected to a gang of samurai emerging from a calm forest before stealing food from a small house and gang raping the residents. Shindo uses suggestion, editing techniques, and repetition to heighten the horror. Just as the intent of the samurai has been made clear the film cuts away, upon its return to the scene we assume the horror is over but Shindo once again suggests without ever explicitly stating that the crime is far from over. By giving us the relief and then snatching it away, Shindo proves his awareness of the audience and film’s power over them.

The two women are resurrected as black cat/vampire ghosts and prey on wondering samurai, until one day their son/husband returns home from a gruesome battle and is tasked with ridding the province of these cursed beasts. This creates scenes of powerful emotion throughout. By the time the reunion has happened, the man’s wife and mother have succumbed to their demon powered vengeance. Analysing fear and fate is something Shindo does with assured confidence.

The visuals are beautifully crafted time and time again, as Shindo employs theatrical elements to give his ghosts an eerie but lofty status. They glide effortlessly in slow-motion, or perform a ritual dance meant only for the viewer. It’s the perfect marriage of style and content, as the dots between old-fashioned folklore and theatre are connected with modern horror and cinema. The best of both worlds are on display here and we are also treated to poetic tactics such as repetition, dramatic irony, and a certain rhythm that changes the film’s pace every now and again.

As if it needed mentioning, the transfer here is glorious, with both lights and darks emanating from the screen in detail that serves the themes well. As the doomed mother and daughter-in-law, Otowa and Taichi strike a delicate balance between tragic victims and horrifying monsters. As their son/husband, it is Nakamura who steals the show, going from skittish warrior, to revered samurai, before entangling us in a complex love affair. KURONEKO shows exactly what horror is capable of when the correct balance of frights and tears are mixed with dramatic performances. A dark masterpiece that is every bit as memorable as its classic predecessor, ONIBABA.

KURONEKO is released on Blu-ray on 24th June via Eureka’s Masters Of Cinema series.