Looking for more Asian horror movies

March 18, 2012 10:40 AM

Please recommend me some Asian (supernatural) horror movies to watch. Problem is: I have already watched most or all of the classics, so I need some fresh suggestions, preferably something from the last 3-5 years.
posted by dcrocha to media & arts (18 answers total)

Check out No-Roi: The Curse, a really creepy, relatively low-key mockumentary involving demons and whatnot. Actually, just check out the site featured in this post, which is how I found it in the first place.
posted by Toby Dammit X at 10:46 AM on March 18, 2012 [3 favorites]

I was literally typing out a recommendation for Noroi, it's one of the best horror movies I've seen in the last few years.
posted by emmtee at 10:48 AM on March 18, 2012

Nthing Noroi, i'ts kind of like The Blair Witch Project except it's actually scare and interesting things happen in it.

Another one that is not all that new, but obscure enough that you probably haven't seen it: R-Point. It's about South Korean soldiers who attempt a rescue mission in Vietnam, and end up setting up their base in a haunted building. Does a good job of mixing the military aspect with traditional atmospheric Asian horror, and the plot is kind of like Event Horizon set in Vietnam.
posted by burnmp3s at 10:59 AM on March 18, 2012

Kwaidan is a visually incredible movie (if you can find it). Onibaba is also pretty creepy.
posted by KokuRyu at 10:59 AM on March 18, 2012

Argh, I came here to recommend No-Roi too!

You've probably seen Three Extremes, but if not it's very good. Three medium-length films by three different directors, one of which is good old Takashi Miike.

Oh yeah, there's one Japanese horror movie I always recommend. It's called Uzumaki. A bizarre curse falls over a town and people start dying in absurd spiral-related ways. It's a completely ridiculous, over-the-top, surreal movie, based on a horror manga by Junji Ito.

Also: If you want to watch an animated series, Paranoia Agent (by Satoshi Kon) is some of the best horror I've ever seen. Very psychological and ghostly, extremely well done. In the same vein, Kon's feature film Perfect Blue is great animated psychological horror about a pop star-turned actress being stalked and menaced by an obsessed fan.
posted by One Second Before Awakening at 11:02 AM on March 18, 2012 [1 favorite]

Spider Forest.
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 11:05 AM on March 18, 2012

Assuming you've seen it, but: Hausu?
posted by area.man at 11:14 AM on March 18, 2012

I have seen R-Point (so-so), Three Extremes (ok), Spider Forest (wtf in a good way). Already anxious to check out No-Roi and Hausu.
posted by dcrocha at 11:19 AM on March 18, 2012

I don't know if it really counts as horror, but have you seen Kibakichi?
posted by esmerelda_jenkins at 11:39 AM on March 18, 2012

No idea what the original title is but "Old Boy" is AMAZING.
posted by raccoon409 at 12:00 PM on March 18, 2012

Yes, was just going to mention Oldboy. If you like vampires, check out Thirst.
posted by Anima Mundi at 12:25 PM on March 18, 2012

Kwaidan

I came here to say that too. It's a much older movie. Very moody! It's on netflix if that helps.
posted by hot_monster at 12:43 PM on March 18, 2012

Oldboy and Thirst: been there :)
posted by dcrocha at 1:39 PM on March 18, 2012

The Host
posted by stroke_count at 2:39 PM on March 18, 2012 [2 favorites]

I was going to recommend Onibaba also, but Kokuryu beat me to it. It's from 1964, but has (like Hausu, another not-actually-new one) seen a revived attention lately because there's a new film print of it making the art-house rounds. Very spooky, very supernatural.
posted by bubukaba at 3:24 PM on March 18, 2012

Shutter (Thai)
posted by knave at 5:37 PM on March 18, 2012

Have you seen Marebito? I have a friend whose an Asian horror film fan and he's shown me a bunch of Asian horror films, but that's the only one that has stayed with me.
posted by Kattullus at 6:04 PM on March 18, 2012

Thirst is a bizarre and great (imo) vampire movie.
posted by M Edward at 10:18 PM on March 21, 2012