Dark Water (2002)

A mother and her 6 year old daughter move into a creepy apartment whose every surface is permeated by water.

Director:

Hideo Nakata

Writers:

Kôji Suzuki (novel), Ken'ichi Suzuki (screenplay)

Stars:

Hitomi Kuroki, Rio Kanno, Mirei Oguchi

6 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hitomi Kuroki	...	Yoshimi Matsubara
Rio Kanno	...	Ikuko Matsubara (6 years old)
Mirei Oguchi	...	Mitsuko Kawai
Asami Mizukawa	...	Ikuko Hamada (16 years old)
Fumiyo Kohinata	...	Kunio Hamada
Yu Tokui	...	Ohta (real-estate agent)
Isao Yatsu	...	Kamiya (apartment manager)
Shigemitsu Ogi	...	Kishida (Yoshimi's lawyer)
Maiko Asano	...	Young Yoshimi's Teacher
Yukiko Ikari	...	Young Yoshimi
Shinji Nomura	...	Mediator
Kiriko Shimizu	...	Mediator
Teruko Hanahara	...	Old Lady (twin, elder)
Youko Yasuda	...	Old Lady (twin, younger)
Shichirou Gou	...	Nishioka

Storyline

In the final stages of a messy divorce, Yoshimi struggles to build a new life for herself and her daughter. Unfortunately, the challenges of single parenting and an ongoing custody battle are further complicated when they move into an apartment plagued by mysterious water leaks and haunted by the apparition of a little girl.

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Plot Keywords:

2000s | water | apartment | stain | water stain | 

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Taglines:

From The Creators of Japan's Acclaimed RINGU, Inspiration for the hit phenomenon THE RING

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for terror and disturbing situations

Did You Know?

Trivia

Second film by Hideo Nakata to be based on a novel by Koji Suzuki. He previously directed Ring (1998) and its sequel Ring 2 (1999).

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Goofs

(at around 1h 3 mins) When everyone is up on the roof examining the water tower, a flap of cloth or pant leg can be seen at the top of the ladder. This could be something attached to the tower, but later when she climbs it by herself and we see the whole thing, no such cloth is visible.

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Connections

Referenced in High Chaparall: Robert Englund (2004)

User Reviews

One of the best ghost movies ever made

This is my idea of a horror movie. No junk, no noise, no random jolts, but plenty of fear, delivered quietly and compactly, without fuss. It's the most suspenseful movie I've seen since "Ring," and I think it's even better. Like that movie, it put my stomach in knots to prep them for the chills, which rose up like waves out of calm water. I thought "Ring" rather like a Robert Aickman story; this is as near as a movie can come. The director has uncanny skill in knowing where to place the camera and how long to hold a shot. And the leading actress gives a wonderful performance. Her face in the elevator...but that would be giving it away. The conclusion is foreseeable--maybe the ends of all ghost stories are foreseeable--but nonetheless satisfying. If you like tales of quietly disturbing dread, this is one for you.

Details

Official Sites:

Cinema Without Frontiers [Russia] (Russian)

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

19 January 2002 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Dark Water

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,686,839

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co., Nippon Television Network (NTV), Video Audio Project (VAP)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1