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Not only have Japanese horror movies like Ring (Ringu) and The Grudge (Ju-On) found a mainstream audience in the U.S., they literally changed the genre with shocking approaches to scaring audiences. It turns out that Japanese filmmakers have an entirely deeper level of shock-value that hasn't quite caught on in America yet.

Known as J-splatter or J-spoitation, there are films that are so disturbingly violent and gory that they push the boundaries of art, while challenging the sense of morality. Some of these truly shocking movies from Japan must be seen to be believed because mere words cannot accurately describe the demented visions they portray.

Tag

Tag (2015)

A girl's life cascades into chaos as everyone around her suffers a gruesome fate while she becomes less certain of who she is and her once-once normal. Starring Reina Triendl, Mariko Shinoda and Erina Mado.

Release Date July 11, 2015 Director Sion Sono Runtime 1 hour 25 minutes Genres Action,...

Based on the novel “Real Onigokko” by Yusuke Yamada, which has spawned six other films, “Tag” is another bloodthirsty trip by one of the masters of the category, Sion Sono.

The film starts in a fashion expected from Sion Sono, as a bus filled with schoolgirls is torn in half along with them, by something that seems like wind, in a bloodbath that leaves only Mitsuko standing. The cutting in half of schoolgirls continues for a while, until Mitsuko arrives in a school where Aki greets her, although she cannot remember who she is. The story continues in that fashion, with the protagonist finding herself in different settings, in one as Keiko, a woman who is about to get married, and in another as Izumi, a runner. The rest of the movies is a sequence of battles and constant running, in a story that is quite hard to follow.

I’ve only seen two other Sion Sono’s films before I watched “Strange Circus.” “I’m Sion Sono”(1985) is the earliest film from him that I’ve known. I was amazed and floored by the sheer energy of the film. Sono goofs around with his friend and practically shouts throughout “I’m Sion Sono”; what a way to introduce yourself to the world of cinema! The other one I’ve seen is “Tag” (2015) featuring Reina Triendl (fans of the reality television show “Terrace House” might be surprised by her performance in this film). That’s the first time that I’m aware that Sion Sono isn’t merely content of being weird or provocative. He is also interested in the nature of narrative and how that relates to our self-identity and sexuality. And he also has an astute eye on Japanese psyche, especially their particular way of fetishizing young girls’ bodies.

Nick Aldwinckle Nov 27, 2017

Our latest round-up of genre DVDs and Blu-rays covers George A Romero, Damnation Alley and more...

With real life’s ridiculous news stories almost beyond parody, it seems fitting that 2017 was the year we saw George A. Romero, the master of satirical zombie tomfoolery, responsible for horror classics from Dawn Of The Dead through to Tales From The Dark Side, shuffle off this mortal coil. To commemorate three of Romero’s less celebrated early movies, Arrow Video has released the intriguing Between Night And Dawn set on Bluray, with ample extras to sate the most eager fanboy/girl.

First up, and by far the movie most will know (perhaps due to its 2010 remake), 1973's The Crazies plays out almost like a retread of Romero's 1968 debut Night Of The Living Dead, with a group of townsfolk again subject to a dodgy violence-inducing substance whilst military jackanapes try and control the epidemic.

Tag

Written by Yûsuke Yamada, Sion Sono

Directed by Sion Sono

Japan, 2015

Tag is a thought provoking film — or it isn’t; what a viewer takes away from “experiencing” Tag is going to drastically vary from person to person. Sion Sono’s cinematic assault on the senses, Tag, is a rare filmmaking feat that acts as a Rorschach test projected upon the silver screen: Tag is so wildly open to interpretation that its message will reflect the audience’s state of mind going in. Tag offers enough cryptic symbolism to fuel countless hours of discussion among cinephiles (be it in coffee shops or on reddit), while the movie’s violence ensures that gorehounds can turn off their brains and enjoy the film’s numerous well-choreographed blood baths.

Tag is a difficult film to discuss without spoiling, and at the same time, a detailed synopsis of the plot would be so...

After 23 unbelievable, uninterrupted days of screenings, today marks the Closing Night of the 19th edition of the Fantasia Film Festival. There is always a sadness lingering in the air on the last day. I often compare it to the feeling you get as a kid on the final day of summer camp. You get to spend an entire month with a group of friends from around the world knowing you might not have the opportunity to see some of these people again for an entire year. Known worldwide as North America’s longest-running genre film festival, Fantasia is special because of the people who not only make it happen but also for those of us who choose to spend the beautiful hot summer days crowded inside a gloomy theatre to watch movies we might not have the chance to see otherwise. And for the sixth consecutive year, the event succeeded...

Read More: 5 Must-See New Genre Films From the Fantasia International Film Festival Montreal's Fantasia International Film Festival recently concluded its 23-day festival, which featured sold-out screenings of Peyton Reed's "Ant-Man" and Gilles Paquel-Brenner's "Dark Places." The festival also held 22 world premieres, including "Ludo" and "Momentum." Check out the winners of this year's festival below. The winner's of the 2015 Fantasia International Film Festival include: Cheval Noir Award- Feature Films: Cheval Noir Award for Best Film: "Tag"- directed by Sion Sono Award for Best Director: Malik Bader for "Cash Only" Award for Best Screenplay: Tomoe Kanno for "La La La at Rock Bottom" Award for Best Actor: Subaru Shibutani for "La La La at Rock Bottom" Award for Best Actress: Reina Triendl for "Tag" Special Mention: Sion Sono’s "Tag" for its creative, surprising and...

Montreal’s genre film festival wraps with over 100,000 spectators attending across its 23 days of screenings.

Sion Sono’s Tag was among the winners at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival, which wrapped yesterday [Aug 4] with the Canadian premiere of Shinji Higuchi’s Attack on Titan.

This year saw over 100,000 spectators attending across the festival’s 23 days of screenings, including 195 indoor screenings, three outdoor screenings, eight virtual reality films and other special events, such as the debut international performance of Glass Eye Pix’s live horror radio show Tales from Beyond the Pale.

Over 900 international guests, including more than 400 film industry professionals, visited the festival and its Frontières Market which saw two deals close during the market. Raven Banner boarded worldwide sales on Gigi Saul Guerrero’s El Gigante, while Frank Murray of Lux Capta Films signed on as producer of Renaud Gauthier’s ‘Lude Behavior.

Guests included Jon Watts and Kevin Bacon for Cop Car, Michael Ironside, [link...

Tag

Written by Yûsuke Yamada

Directed by Sion Sono

Japan, 2015

Delivering a brisk and fast-paced action comedy about the nature of reality, Sion Sono’s Tag stands out as among the best films so far this year. Sion Sono has never been a stranger to pushing boundaries – his films have consistently tackled taboo subjects through the gauze of the unreal. His most famous works operate on the tone of hysteria, as emotions and actions are amplified to create a surreal and fantastical landscape.

Tag begins as Mitsuko (Reina Triendl) and her class are riding the school bus. Her friends are asking to see her poetry, and in a small tug of war she drops her pencil. As she bends down to pick it up, the bus and the upper torsos of everyone on the bus are sliced off by a mysterious force. More cartoon than tragedy, the film’s cold...

One director not going to Cannes this year is Sion Sono, though with four films and one TV movie due for release in 2015, you would think something from the director would hit the Croisette. But one could understand how he might be too damn busy to walk down the red carpet, so we'll just have to take the movies as they come. And as per usual, Sono has a way of stoking excitement, and "Tag" fits right in the vein of his wilder, wackier films. Starring Reina Triendl, Mariko Shinoda, and Erina Mano, and based on the novel "Real Onigokko" by Yusuke Yamada, the story follows high school girls who become the target of a shape-shifting ghost. But if this trailer is anything to go by, this is far, far beyond your average flick about supernatural entities, with tons of bodies, lots of blood, and plenty of machine gun fire.

Prolific Japanese filmmaker Sion Sono has released multiple feature films in each calendar year for a number of years, and 2015 is poised to be no different, as Sono is slated to release six films during the years. With trailers for his Shinjuku Swan and Love & Peace already having been released, another feature of Sono’s now has a trailer.

Titled Tag, aka Riaru Oniggoko, Sono adapts the screenplay from the novel by Yûsuke Yamada, which also bears the same title, and takes on directing duties as well, working with a cast that includes Reina Triendl, Mariko Shinoda, and Erina Mano. The plot synopsis is as follow.

A bus full of high school girls are on their way to a school trip. A sudden gust of wind slices the bus in half, length-wise killing 40 girls in the blink of an eye, except Mitsuko our protagonist, who ducked just in time. The Wind,...

A bulky selection of new stills from the Masayuki Ochiai ('Shutter') directed horror sequel 'Ju-On: Beginning of the End' have arrived bringing with them more spooky images of Kayako and Toshio amongst some new faces set to come across this ghostly duo in the latest installment. The next chapter in the the long-running J-horror franchise will be making an appearance at this months Fantasia International Film Festival and was unleashed into Japanese theatres last month. Nozomi Sasaki, Sho Aoyagi, Kai Kobayashi, Reina Triendl, Miho Kanazawa and Haori Takahashi all star. Check out the new images below....

In honor of it playing as part of this year's Fantasia Film Festival, we now have over a dozen images from Ju-on: Beginning of the End for you cats to start screeching over. Or maybe that screeching is just Toshio again. In any event...

Directed by Ochiai Masayuki (Infection, Hypnosis and the 2008 remake of Shutter), the sequel stars Nozomi Sasaki, Sho Aoyagi, Kai Kobayashi, Reina Triendl, Miho Kanazawa and Haori Takahashi.

Synopsis

An elementary school teacher named Yui (Sasaki) visits the home of a boy named Toshio Saeki (Kobayashi), who's been absent from school for a long period of time. When she arrives, she re-lives the horrific tragedy which occurred in the Saeki household 10 years earlier. A cardboard box left in a closet holds the key to revealing a long-hidden truth.

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While we wait for the recently announced second remake of Ju-on (aka The Grudge), a seventh installment in the original Japanese franchise is on its way, set to open in Japan on June 28th. It's titled Ju-on: Beginning of the End, and today we've got the Japanese trailer for ya...

...which is guaranteed to make those pesky little hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Enjoy!

Directed by Ochiai Masayuki (Infection, Hypnosis and the 2008 remake of Shutter), the sequel stars Nozomi Sasaki, Sho Aoyagi, Kai Kobayashi, Reina Triendl, Miho Kanazawa and Haori Takahashi.

Synopsis

An elementary school teacher named Yui (Sasaki) visits the home of a boy named Toshio Saeki (Kobayashi), who's been absent from school for a long period of time. When she arrives, she re-lives the horrific tragedy which occurred in the Saeki household 10 years earlier. A cardboard box left in a closet holds the key to revealing a long-hidden truth.