Tokyo Psycho (2004) User Reviews

Less isn't more in this case.

[wierzbowskisteedman · 4/10 · 3 June 2006]

Vague spoilers...ish

"Tokyo Psycho" is about...well, not what the title suggests. While it might be suggested that the film is about a city wide manhunt for a deranged killer, it's actually confined to the escapades of a single woman and the nerdy guy from the back of the class who still has a crush on her from school. Still, "Sexually Confused Apartment Block Pervert" doesn't quite have the same ring to it, yet that is what the film concerns itself with.

Shot in an almost documentary style and running at a very modest 78 minutes, "Tokyo Psycho" certainly doesn't outstay its welcome too much, however the short running time doesn't mean it is fast paced. It does get off to a reasonable start, with the central character having an unpleasant encounter with a nut who may or may not be Pete Burns from Dead or Alive...yet this doesn't seem to have anything to do with the rest of the film.

The characters is where the film really slips up. The "killer" really isn't threatening at all, and the central heroine is pretty hard to root for; yet this isn't so much the fault of the actress, but the fault of the writer who gave her nothing to work with. To be fair, the minimal cast does do its best; however with the clichés coming thick and fast (who'd have thought the stalker would have boarded up the windows of his apartment and plastered pictures of his target everywhere?) and a unsatisfying ending that disjoints the film even further (which takes some doing with the paper thin story), "Tokyo Psycho" doesn't leave a good or bad impression; it's just yet another average Japanese "horror" with little in the way of scares or thrills; destined to sink into the abyss of mediocrity.

MARRY ME

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 23 June 2019]

Yumiko (Sachiko Kokubu) is annoyed by letters by someone in her past. . . someone who is a bit psycho. He wants to marry her, but lacked appeal since he offed his parents with piano wire, something apparently frowned upon in the Japanese culture. Well guess who shows up at the end of the film?

There was no real horror aspect. No real slasher aspect, and no torture . . . oh wait, a guy cuts his hand on glass.

Nothing to see here folks.

Dull, little scare factor and just plain boring

[antra_chief · 3/10 · 6 June 2007]

Upon watching the movie I expected more psychotic doings of the killer however all I saw were strangling and deranged laughter. None of the characteristics of the killer do the film any justice in terms of scare factor. The only part of the film that I found a little creepy was near the beginning where the cross dressing guy runs down the corridor holding an umbrella laughing fairly erratically. However throughout the movie the actor tries to portray what a psycho would (presumably) be like: 'complete and utter random laughing and unnecessary shouting'. The term 'psycho' does not usually fall under those categories and the actor and writers should've put more effort into the creation of this character. With that being said I can't help but noticed how most of the film was shot in apartment buildings. I understand the sense of eerie-ness the shots of the corridor scenes have on the audience however the over usage of it completely butchered that feeling. It seemed like the director was mainly relying on this as their main 'scare factor' for the settings however I believe there are other more useful and horrifying ones that they could've used. I didn't understand why the film ended up being more about feeling for the characters on screen instead of actually scaring the audience. The film completely lacked that suspense and fear factor and making us as an audience wanting to see the shocked expressions on the character's faces. What makes it even unscary was the time of day some of the scenes were shot in. Why daytime? Even the long corridor scenes which was suppose to bring about that sense of eerie-ness failed to shock us and the reason being, imo was due to lighting. The film felt like it was shot in a documentary style but throughout most of it I couldn't really sense anything documentary. It seemed more like a low budget camera shooting as indicated by the poor sound effects and a video camcorder type lense. Lighting is a huge factor in a horror film and this film fails in that department. The first quarter of the film was great, it had a strong build up and I can feel that sense of haunted-ness about it, however the rest lacked the requirements of a standard horror film and it failed to maintain my attention and engagement.

A confusing crap-fest.

[RossLikesMovies · 1/10 · 15 April 2005]

###possible spoilers###

Tokyo psycho is about a woman who goes to a high school reunion. Before this she has received a blood stained letter saying 'you have to marry me'. From the outset this sounds quite interesting. Though unfortunately the film never developed or fulfilled my intrigue. The plot of the movie could be compared to the American horror valentine. In fact you may even call it a rip off.

The first thing that struck me was the look of the film. The director has chosen to use, in the scenes of the 'tokyo psycho' moving around, a grainy camera. Similar to video camera style. A sort of crawling, slow moving angle. Which really doesn't work that well. The film in general looks very cheap. This is obviously a very low budget production. The settings are very bland and white. I'm also guessing that the film stock was cheap as this simply doesn't look like a film. It looks unprofessional in a way I can't quite explain.

The main character, Yumi something or other, has virtually no personality. She just looks scared every now and then but has no depth whatsoever. The others characters don't fare much better. Her friend who's name I forget is also fairly wooden in her role. The only character worthy of a mention is the 'psycho'. He gives quite a demented, although random and unrelated to anything actually going on, type performance. Its almost like he stepped into the wrong film, as he seems a little out of place in this oak forest school of 'actors.'

Eventually the story of Tokyo psycho becomes dull. Its not a long film but watching it became a chore. The script is fairly lousy and takes way to many liberties in getting to the point. For example the psycho is conveniantly posing as Yumi's friends fiancé. Oh the coincidence! The 'psychos' motives are never really explained in depth either. We are simply given a shallow, cliché, this is the loner kid kind of explanation. Theirs also no specific reason why the guy chooses to pick on Yumi. Even valentine came up with a better, although still crap reason.

To conclude I have to say that I'm rather disappointed with this film. If you like films with wooden characters, a confusing, ridiculous plot and a dull storyline apply here. If not I recommend that you steer well clear. That everyone then?

By the way it never really becomes clear why the film is 'Tokyo psycho'. I don't believe that tokyo was mentioned at all. By the way the subtitles are bad. The translations are often sloppy at best. Final thought: Nice boxart, shame about the film. Its destined for the bargain bins or more accurately, the rubbish bins as thats where my copies headed. Oh and From where I'm standing it seems they translated the Japanese title incorrectly. It wasn't Tokyo Psycho, it was Tokyo Bore.

Rubbish

[kevbee · 1/10 · 7 October 2005]

I've just watched the DVD of this film. It ranks as one of the most awful films I've seen over recent years. The look of the film is dreadful - if you gave someone a cheap video camera and told them to film in a high-rise block of flats with a bunch of amateur actors, then you get some idea of what this film delivers. I don't think there was a sound man either - in an early office scene they were clearly using the mike on the camera - horrible echoes. But it's the pace of the film that really gets to you. It's so slow. No it's very slow. It's like a sloth on Valium. If you play the DVD at 16x then it becomes watchable. It's a remarkable thing that this film feels like its been going on for hours, when in fact the credits roll after only 75 minutes. Avoid at all costs. This film is complete pants.

No one should see this film

[suicide_ted · 1/10 · 4 February 2007]

This movie was so incredibly boring, one good scene in the entire 80 min. and it was only because it was funny. I saw an add in fangoria boasting shocking imagery and scares. It consisted of an Asian teen being scared about having a stalker.Instead of going to the police she whines about for the length of the film.I was very disappointed I have been a long admirer of Asian horror and shock cinema. This is not up to snuff by any means I think the director ran out of money or inspiration after the first twenty minutes of shooting. Just like any country Asia has it's great directors and there are reasons you don't hear about movies like this one that often..............because they are awful. Stick with Miike in japan and shame on you fangoria!

Boredom strikes when you least expect it...

[paul_haakonsen · 2/10 · 24 December 2015]

I was suckered in by the DVD movie cover and had hoped to see a movie with more brutality or at least just a movie with a proper storyline.

"Tokyo Psycho" (aka "Tôkyô densetsu: ugomeku machi no kyôki") is about Yumiko who is stalked by an unknown person, sending her strange letters and macabre photos. As the walls close in on Yumiko, she finds herself trapped in a bizarre and twisted game.

The storyline was so mundane and stereotypical that it was boring beyond comprehension, and it was equally predictable as it was boring.

The acting in "Tokyo Psyhco" was adequate, just don't expect to be dazzled by anything extraordinary. But not even the adequate acting could do anything to lift up the storyline in any way.

This was definitely not one of the brightest moments in Japanese cinema, and it was an ordeal to sit through the movie to the very end. If you manage to sit through the entire movie, it will be bagged, tagged and put on the movie shelf never to be watched again.

Cold, Clinical & Creepy - Highly Recommended!

[flickhead · 10/10 · 1 November 2005]

Tokyo Psycho is a very atmospheric telling of recent events involving the "Otaku" murders in Tokyo, Japan. It benefits from fine performances and chilling set pieces, but most of all from an almost medical sparseness. The cinematography takes full advantage of the very bare set design, which includes a lot of concrete and wood to create a claustrophobic intensity that director Oikawa exploits to maximum effect. I haven't seen a film with such an insidious use of music (which is to say almost none) since Todd Browning's Dracula, and yet the ambient noises that create a sonic background score are both sublime and disturbing, much like the film itself. The story follows a a pretty, young designer who is receiving obsessive love letters from an unknown admirer who she may or may not know. These letters quickly escalate to include body parts and threats, and the author of these valentines quickly becomes her assailant. The use of the DV video format makes the viewer feel like a voyeur to the terrors that unfold, and invokes a David Lynchian atmosphere of dread and suffocation while utilizing mainly daylight locations. In many ways the mood of the film is acid-trippy with sudden bursts of violence & tenderness in places where each is least expected. This is not a film for the "Boo!" crowd, as the disturbing nature of the unfolding narrative is creepier than it is scary, but this serves to indelibly imprint that mood and theme on the viewers psyche for weeks after viewing. Recommended.

Not as bad as people are saying

[robotaffliction1103 · 8/10 · 5 January 2006]

OK, so I'll admit that this isn't the best movie ever made, but some of the other comments here are a touch harsh. Tokyo Psycho isn't supposed to be Ju-On or Ringu. This is a cool ass, low budget j-horror flick. And as a trashy, freak out, straight to video (or DVD, or whatever they call it these days) exploitation flick it totally works. I dug the washed out, stark appearance of the high-rise setting. Most horror films these days go for that post-Se7en look – filthy and dank and decaying, which looks cool, but has kind of become visual shorthand that tries to make up for a lack of actual scary stuff (see crap set piece films like Saw for example) and, more importantly, doesn't really jibe with reality. Most of us deal with over-lit, over-modern spaces. That sexy, 70's lower east side NYC look just doesn't exist anymore, and defiantly not in a place like Japan. Totally freaky stuff is secretly scarier when it happens in brightly lit spaces.

This is totally a "throw in the DVD player when you're hanging out drinking and kicking it with a bunch of people" film. Not to be taken seriously, but still good, bloody low budget fun.

I actually felt fear for once

[sethpoirot · 9/10 · 13 March 2019]

Of all the horror films I have seen in my life I must honestly say that "Tokyo Psycho" was one of the best. Though the critiques of other reviewers are right in the assertion that characterization was weak, I believe that there was more to this film than they are giving it credit for. The cinematography and sound choreography were the most chilling parts of the film; the building of suspense was well done, and the antagonist scared the living crap out of me. I won't go into too much detail on all of these, but they helped make the film creepy beyond expectation.

The film does do an excellent job of building suspense with its POV shots and false jump scares. In many films the saturation of fake jump scares will take away from the horror, but not in this one. There were very few actually scary jump scares and they were all used as red herrings mostly. The true horror wasn't a cheap gimmick, it was lingering shots, slow build up and it was all too close to reality. The shift of the red herring jump scares making you expect one thing and the real horror denying you that expectation was not lost in the film for me.

The lighting shifts between darkness and light helped build atmosphere and I believed that the acting was very genuine from many of the characters. I really enjoyed the atmosphere that the director chose within the movie.

Characterization was definitely weak, but that is to be expected from a horror film and most films in general. The medium of film itself is very difficult for characterization. The protagonists were not there to tell their life stories and to be fleshed out. They were there for a horror film.

I do have some criticism, and that lies in two scenes. I wonder why the protagonist didn't contact the police and instead went to a private investigation firm when she was being sent some very offsetting and creepy items from her stalker. I also was confused as to the reaction of her fellow classmates when the "flesh" came out of the envelope with the creepy drawing on it. I would have to be very drunk to not be shaken up by a woman's screaming and the possible body part coming out of a package. I digress and would say that these are the weakest parts of the film.

Characterization was very weak, and it was not a film to write home about in story telling. Still...the acting, atmosphere, sound and cinematography were all spot on to give me the emotion that the film is supposed to elicit; Fear. That emotion was what I was left with at the end.

Don't hate it for what it isn't

[moon_petal_geisha · 9/10 · 14 July 2006]

For those of you looking for a movie full of blood and gore, this isn't a movie for you...but for those of you looking for a movie that will have you paranoid, and disturbed to the core...this is your movie.

I loved this movie for the fact that it's roots based in true events could be enough to shake anyone...the fact that it could be realistic is scary enough. It doesn't rely on gore or blood to be scary, and then when it does decide to use blood...you're not expecting it, and you've already been shaken by other things to not be shaken by blood.

It's a great movie...

So don't hate it for what it's not...but like it for what it is...creepy