The Sinners of Hell
(1960)
|
|
| 0Share... |
The Sinners of Hell
(1960)
|
|
| 0Share... |
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
|
|
Shigeru Amachi | ... |
Shirô Shimizu
|
|
|
Utako Mitsuya | ... |
Yukiko /
Sachiko
|
|
|
Yôichi Numata | ... |
Tamura
|
|
|
Hiroshi Hayashi | ... |
Gôzô Shimizu
|
|
|
Jun Ôtomo | ... |
Ensai Taniguchi
|
|
|
Akiko Yamashita | ... |
Kinuko
|
|
|
Kiyoko Tsuji | ... |
Kyôichi's Mother
|
|
|
Fumiko Miyata | ... |
Mrs. Yajima
|
|
|
Torahiko Nakamura | ... |
Professor Yajima
|
|
|
Kimie Tokudaiji | ... |
Ito Shimizu
|
|
|
Akiko Ono | ... |
Yoko
|
|
|
Tomohiko Ôtani | ... |
Dr. Kusama
|
|
|
Kôichi Miya | ... |
Journalist Akagawa
|
|
|
Sakutarô Yamakawa | ... |
Fisherman
|
|
|
Rei Ishikawa | ... |
Old Man with Tatoo
|
A graduate-school student has a friend who is pure evil. His friend and he are out driving one night when they hit a drunkard and the friend leaves the accident victim to die. The student's life then goes downhill from there. Written by Horror-Fan
Alright, I think I know what you're here for: the Buddhist Hell scene at the end, that, without spoiling anything, offers some really oldschool splatter. Well, you should probably forget it. That scene wasn't made to shock you; it was made to shock 1950s and 60s audiences who were used to stately, formal, nearly stage-playish cinematic conventions--conventions that Jigoku follows to potentially alienating effect, despite its then unprecedented violence. There are gems of stylistic genius here and there, but this is of greatest interest to anyone into Asian mythology or the history of Japanese horror.
The first half of the film is a thinly-veiled morality play crossed with a ghost story that, despite some heavy contrivances plot-wise, works fairly well dramatically as it slow-burns into inevitable purgatory. For all its syrupy melodrama, editing hiccups and various other low budget blemishes, Jigoku is a very poetic visual experience with many otherworldly images that will linger in your head long after you forget the film's flaws.