The Cure (1997)
"Cure" (original title)

A wave of gruesome murders is sweeping Tokyo. The only connection is a bloody X carved into the neck of each of the victims. In each case, the murderer is found near the victim and ... See full summary »

Director:

Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Writers:

Kiyoshi Kurosawa (novel), Kiyoshi Kurosawa (screenplay)

Stars:

Kôji Yakusho, Masato Hagiwara, Tsuyoshi Ujiki

9 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kôji Yakusho	...	Kenichi Takabe
Masato Hagiwara	...	Kunio Mamiya
Tsuyoshi Ujiki	...	Makoto Sakuma
Anna Nakagawa	...	Fumie Takabe
Yoriko Dôguchi	...	Dr. Akiko Miyajima
Yukijirô Hotaru	...	Ichiro Kuwano
Denden	...	Oida
Ren Ohsugi	...	Fujiwara
Masahiro Toda	...	Tôru Hanaoka
Misayo Haruki	...	Tomoko Hanaoka
Shun Nakayama	...	Kimura
Akira Otaka	...	Yasukawa
Shôgo Suzuki	...	Tamura
Toshi Kato	...	Psychiatrist
Hajime Tanimoto	...	Takabe no shachô

Storyline

A wave of gruesome murders is sweeping Tokyo. The only connection is a bloody X carved into the neck of each of the victims. In each case, the murderer is found near the victim and remembers nothing of the crime. Detective Takabe and psychologist Sakuma are called in to figure out the connection, but their investigation goes nowhere. An odd young man is arrested near the scene of the latest murder, who has a strange effect on everyone who comes into contact with him. Detective Takabe starts a series of interrogations to determine the man's connection with the killings.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | investigation | interrogation | criminal | hotel | 

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Taglines:

With just one word, you will do anything.

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Genres:

Crime | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Cowboy Pictures [us] - synopsis, etc.

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese Spanish

Release Date:

8 July 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Cura

Filming Locations:

Shirasato Beach, Shirasato, Chiba, Japan

Box Office

Budget:

JPY 1,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,879 (USA) (6 July 2001)

Gross:

$94,596 (USA) (7 December 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Code Red, Daiei Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In Japan, they drive on the left side of the road and the steering wheel is on the right side of the car. In every scene in this picture that's the case - except one. When the detective leaves in his car to go to the hospital because Mimiya has turned up there, the steering wheel is on the left and he drives on the right side of the road.

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Connections

References Fireworks (1997)

User Reviews

Cure: impressionistic portrait of a serial killer

I think it is important to distinguish Cure from the avalanche of white-face-ghost-girl Japanese horror flicks that followed in Ringu's wake. Purely because it's a different beast and lumping it in a convenient J-horror niche is doing it a disservice. I won't go into plot specifics because it's only a skeleton for Kurosawa to hang his atmospherics. That said, I can understand the complaint many viewers seem to share ("man, it doesn't make sense") but without having any claims on solving Cure's riddle, I'm satisfied with letting wash over me, one watch at a time.

Kurosawa wisely doesn't attempt to explain his plot. He's content to lift the veil just enough for us to sneak a glimpse in, before he disorients us again. Indeed, the plot slowly builds itself through little clues that are never followed by an orchestral crescento to signal their arrival. They just happen. A small photo in a book, muffled words on a phonogram, an old video, the ramblings of an amnesiac, theories on 18th century Austrian doctors. In the course of the film, everything seems to be coming together only to remain elusive in the end. In that aspect, I find Cure to be closer to a surrealist film like Last Year at Marienbad than your average Ringu clone. It's not about making sense, but enjoing the riddle as it unfolds and leaves you wanting more. It's about soaking in the atmosphere and the impression it makes. When muffled words come through a phonogram, they're more incoherent ramblings than a telegraphed plot solution; but they contribute just as well to the overarching feel. This "less is more" mentality is in good company of Kurosawa's style that utilizes a slow, deliberate pace and many long shots, entire scenes covered without any cuts. The gritty and rundown aspect of Tokyo is photographed like a more naturalistic version of David Fincher's work and does the job well.

It's my impression that a surrealist air hovers above and at the heart of Cure, at times reminiscent of a more languid version of David Lynch. It is undoubtedly a horror movie so don't be put off by my Resnais comparison, but it's as much bleak as it is subtle and leaves enough to the mind's eye to make you want to watch it again.