Tomie: Re-birth (2001) User Reviews

Decent japanese Ghost-Story

[thola01 · 6/10 · 11 September 2003]

This is the story of Tomie, a young japanese woman, who gets stabbed to death by her boy-friend in the beginning of the film. Don't ask why, because the two really seem to be in love. While he's painting a picture of her, she slightly whispers that she loves him. And suddenly he seems to lose control. When two of his friends appear, they find him holding her dead body in his arms. The three decide to keep this homicide as a secret and bury her somewhere in the woods. But a few days later she's back and looking for revenge. Strange things begin to happen.

Not the right choice if you're looking for a gory splatterflick. Almost no blood at all. But if you're a friend of films like "The Ring", "Uzumaki" or "Parasite Eve" this one could be the right choice. Can be compared with the first two but is not as brilliant as "Parasite Eve", although the end looked pretty similar.

So while the gorehounds among you might call this boring, i would say it was slow but entertaining and rate it 6/10.

Extremely Creepy

[crossbow0106 · 5/10 · 9 July 2011]

This is a very creepy horror film/psychological drama starring Miki Sakai as Tomie. In this one Hideo, an aspiring artist, kills his girlfriend/model for the painting girlfriend Tomie. With his friend's help, they bury her in the woods. However, Tomie shows up at a party. Her aim is not only revenge but to haunt the lives of the guys who did this to her. This film is okay, on a par with "Another Face". Not having read the source material of these films, as film value alone it is passable. While the revenge aspect is not only deserved to these guys but necessary to the continuity of the film, the part of her coming back more than once after she has been "re-killed" gets a little tired. So, not bad but not near the best of the series.

It's ironic how Tomie seems more alive than the rest of the cast

[kluseba · 5/10 · 29 November 2018]

Tomie: Rebirth is the weakest entry in the horror movie franchise about the evil girl that cannot die. Let's start with the few positive points. The film certainly has an uneasy atmosphere from start to finish. Sakai Miki might be the best actress to portray Tomie yet as she finds the right balance between human emotions and monstrous manipulations. The film shows a Tomie that is more powerful than ever before. She can come back to life through a picture, take possession of other people when they use her lipstick and even kill people with the help of her hair.

Despite a good lead actress, an intriguing atmosphere and a few clever ideas, the movie is boring and hard to sit through. Horror movies should be scary in one way or another but there isn't one single frightening moment in the entire film. The cast claimed that the film had humorous elements and were close to a dark comedy but that most certainly isn't the case as the atmosphere remains gloomy throughout the film and people die under terrible circumstances. Most of the acting performances are terrible since actors and actresses constantly move and speak in slow motion that would even make Inspector Mathias and Detective Chief Inspector Derrick look like dynamic characters. The story is also somewhat confusing as it shifts perspectives all the time and includes unnecessary flashbacks. The pace of the film is dragging and it certainly doesn't help that this is the longest movie in the franchise up to that point.

Tomie: Rebirth is a disappointment because it never lifts up, overstays its welcome and wastes all of its initial potential. Shimizu Takashi directed movies like Ju-On before this film and would later on create the marvelous Marebito but his involvement in this film is underwhelming. Only avid collectors and fans of the franchise can give this film a try. Anyone else should stick to Tomie or Tomie: Replay or just read the manga.

Great Tomie; Bad Movie

[taco_of_tragedy · 14 December 2004]

The fourth film attempt at the "Tomie" saga borrows a bit from the "Painter" chapter, as well as the "Hair" chapters. Unfortunately, as Tomie movies go, this one is no better than the three before it. While the direction was interesting, the cinematography above average, and the chills effective, the film ultimately suffers from a cast of really.. well, bland characters. Don't get me wrong -- the movie had arguably THE BEST Tomie out of them all in Miki Sakai, and the supporting actors did the best they could with the limited material the studio provided, but -- the lack of actual captivating characters and working plot really halts the whole movie from realizing its potential. Hideo was the second most intriguing person after Tomie, and he was gone within the first 10 minutes. I think the final product would've been much more entertaining had the script followed more into the Hideo and Tomie's "relationship", as opposed to his boring and dull friends. A straight adaptation of the manga chapter, in other words.

And then there's the "trademark" slow pacing that seems to plague every single Tomie film in existence. I don't know about you, but I really dislike how the characters seem to slow down to an almost zombie-like state once they become involved in the main plot -- it happened to Tsukiko in the original, it happened to Yumi and Fumihito in "Replay", and now it's happened to Hitomi and Takumi in "Rebirth". And with the lack of an actual coherent plot, this slug race becomes much less tolerable, and borderline irritating. Only Tomie herself should be allowed to move in half-dead fashion because that's essentially what she is, but for everyone else? Oh, God.

Nevertheless, it's not all lost; the movie redeems itself by casting Miki Sakai as the beautiful bakemono we've all come to love. Right away, she had the traditional look that had been missing since the original film (it seriously sucks that they didn't get Miki back for "Forbidden Fruit", by the way), and her portrayal of the character was much more lively and spunky than seen before. My only gripe here is that Miki's Tomie is slightly older than the ones from the previous movies and the source manga (she was 16-17 year old there; she seems about 20-ish here), but then again, it's almost a non-issue when you consider the rest of the characters also look to be in their early 20's as well. Had to bump Tomie up a few years to fit her in, I suppose. The gore and psychological scares have also been amped up slightly, although "Replay" still reigns as the better "Tomie" film in that department.

All in all, if you're a fan of the "Tomie" movies so far and had little to no problem accepting them as what they are, then you will enjoy "Reborth". If your introduction to the character is from Junji Ito's manga, and you hated all the movies so far... well, things aren't much better here than before. If anything, watch the movie for Miki's performance -- you'll see why she's arguably the best Tomie thus far.

Tsk, tsk, tsk... Bow your head in shame Shimizu.

[Alwehr · 5/10 · 7 September 2004]

After seeing the first Tomie movie i lost all interest in seeing what the sequels in the serial would bring. For a horror movie, there wasn't a single chill or climax in it, which can only leave a horror fan like me very disappointed. But then i saw that Tomie: Re-birth was directed by no other than Takashi Shimizu (The man behind the four Ju-on movies), and i thought, and (i guess) expected, that he would add a lot of his creepy imagination from his former horror movies (i cant praise them enough) to this sleeping pill of a weird love story. I was, again, VERY disappointed. Though, i have 2 good things to say about this movie. First of all, this one IS better than the first. Second, there actually was one scene in Re-birth that made my hair on the neck to stand up, and that is where a girl is sitting in her bedroom in front of a mirror and suddenly sees a girl, white as snow, peeking out of her closet. Uuhhhhhh Mufasa!! It smelled a little like Ju-on, but then the girl turns away from the mirror and the ghostly lurker is gone. BUUUUUUH!! But besides this minor chill that lasts about 3 seconds, its really hard to see that this is a Shimizu creation. Instead of taking Tomie to a new level and making it to a real creep fest, it seems more like he just goes along with the dull and not THAT fascinating theme from the other Tomie movies. And on top of that, i saw interviews with the cast and the director himself describing this movie as a blend of horror and humor? Now, without sounding like a dumb racist, but do you have to be Japanese to notice the humor? It went over my head thats for sure. But maybe some of the moments that i found laughable and not creepy, like the crawling head, wasn't meant to be scary but fun? I guess i never find out and its not important anyway. I mean, Tomie IS a horror movie right? At least, thats what it says on the movie description. But how on earth is it possible to make a horror movie where the so called "monster" dies all the time, killed by all its "victims", and not the other way around? So far Tomie hasn't convinced me that it can be done...

Please Shimizu, stick to the creepy stuff. Thats what you do best.

I gave it 5 out of 10

Tomie..the trouble centerpiece at any party

[InzyWimzy · 7/10 · 24 March 2011]

Tomie: Re-Birth mainly focuses on the characters affected by Tomie. I enjoyed the changes in characters' nature: particularly for Shunichi and Hitomi. At first, Shunichi (Mazasaya Kikawada) comes off as a confident guy who likes to have a good time with his friends. Gradually, he becomes more unsure, paranoid, and even obsessed in a most manic way. On the flipside, Hitomi (Kumiko Endou) has an innocent, yet subdued nature. Questions and uncertainty beckon Hitomi down a road from which she may regret walking down upon.

Don't get me wrong..Miki Sakai does well as Tomie and is equally adept at producing an ominous stare; one enabling her to peer deep into the depths of inner souls. Although there are CG effects used, I thought the use of close-ups and different angle shots were more effective at establishing a mood of fear. Despite slow pacing and a few sappy (yet amusing) scenes, Tomie: Rebirth is darkly entertaining.

One step forwards for the series, then two steps back...

[paul_haakonsen · 4/10 · 14 April 2013]

This installment of the "Tomie" series is, well in lack of better words, unnecessary. Why? Well, the story offered nothing new to the series that hadn't already been seen in "Tomie" or "Tomie: Replay". In fact, if you have seen the first "Tomie" movie, you can just as well skip this installment, as it is basically the exact same story, just with different characters and set in a different place.

The "Tomie" series was starting to rise up with "Tomie: Replay", and then this one, "Tomie: Re-Birth", comes along and pushes it right back down the ladder.

There was nothing scary about this movie, just like the previous ones. And the storyline, well basically it is about the undying Tomie girl who comes to torment those who love and kill her. Same old, same old.

The people in the movie did good enough jobs with their given roles, though there was nothing outstanding here.

The only outstanding part of the entire movie, was the crawling head with the weird arm-like appendages. And that was hardly enough to make up for the rest of the movie.

"Tomie: Re-Birth" was plain and rather uneventful at best, and it wasn't really a movie that was necessary in any way to the "Tomie" storyline. After having seen this installment to the series, I am starting to dread how the last ones in the series will turn out to be...

"Tomie: Re-Birth"- Another step in the right direction for the troubled franchise. Mildly creepy and atmospheric.

[TedStixonAKAMaximumMadness · 6/10 · 25 October 2016]

If there's one thing that can and should be said for the popular cult- franchise "Tomie", it's this: despite an extremely shaky and underwhelming start, the series does make a noted improvement each time with its first round of sequels. It's a franchise that can be well-worth investing in as a result, despite also being one that has the most extremes of up's and down's throughout it's numerous entries.

Yes, despite being a massive fan of the horror genre and particularly of Japanese creep-shows, I've never been particularly taken with the original "Tomie" movie. Based on a popular ongoing manga of the same name by author Junji Ito, the first entry in the film franchise was a messy swarm of under-developed ideas, sloppy attempts at atmosphere building, trite and hackneyed writing and direction and poorly established rules. It was a fundamental failure both as an example of horror and as a film in general. Thankfully, it's first sequel in "Tomie: Replay" was a marked improvement in virtually every capacity, with fun direction, decent writing and generally strong performances.

And I do think that this third entry, "Tomie: Re-Birth", is another step in the right direction for the franchise. With a nice, slow sense of pacing and a great sense of direction from famed director Takashi Shimizu, this entry has a lot going for it. It stands as one of the better early entries in the series, and can be a great deal of fun.

A young woman named Tomie is modeling for a painting by an artist named Hideo. After she defaces the painting in a jealous fit, Hideo kills her. But, as any fan of the series will know... Tomie will not die. And thus she returns to torment the artist and his friends, leading to an intense and disturbing story filled with twists, turns and subversion of expectation...

I firmly believe the main strength that sets this entry apart is the wonderful direction of Takashi Shimizu, who is best known for creating the very popular haunted-house series "Ju-On" and for also directing the first two entries in its American remake series "The Grudge." Shimizu is a fine director when it comes to slow-build, atmospheric horror, and he excels here with some great, creepy sequences of bodily terror. It's arguably the most disturbing of the first three films, and Shimizu it helps to give it a grand sense of dread and intrigue. Especially in some of the very trippy-yet-grounded visuals that he relishes in. We also have one of the best Tomie's of the series here thanks to actress Miki Sakai, who excels in the role in a way not many of the other actresses to portray the character have.

The film does have some faults to it, however. Much as many entries in the series do. I found that while it is a good time, it can often move a bit slowly. To the point it can be boring even. Some scenes feel a tad out of place and wonkilly inserted into the narrative. And much like virtually every other film in the series, it wrongfully assumes that the viewer is intimately familiar with the source material, causing some confusion with those who aren't. And it is a serious problem- adaptations should be able to stand on their own without knowledge of what came before. The films should try and explain the rules and goings on more than they have been to this point. It causes an unnecessary level of confusion for the viewer, and not in an intentional way.

That being said, I'd rank this one right about on par with the previous entry- the very enjoyable but mildly flawed "Replay." It's a lot of fun. It's very watchable. It runs laps around the sub-par original. But it still has a few faults holding it just shy of being a "great" movie. As it stands, it's merely decent. Worth watching for fans of horror and Asian cinema... but probably not for general movie-goers.

I give "Tomie: Re-Birth" a slightly above average 6 out of 10. Another step in the right direction for the series. But not enough of an improvement for me to call it a great film.

Seen it all before...

[Leofwine_draca · 3/10 · 30 September 2012]

The TOMIE series of Japanese 'horror' films have been a real chore to sit through. The first one was at least novel but hardly a classic in the same way as RING or THE GRUDGE. The second, a horrendous shot-on-video anthology under the name of TOMIE: ANOTHER FACE, is best forgotten. The third, TOMIE: REPLAY, was instantly forgettable, telling exactly the same story as the original film with little to no variation. The fourth, TOMIE: REBIRTH, is another re-run of the same themes, and has exactly the same problems as its predecessor: it goes nowhere we haven't seen before, it doesn't explain any of Tomie's origins or behaviour, and it's way too familiar given what's come previously.

The film begins with a resurrected Tomie the girlfriend of an art student. It's fair to say that their relationship doesn't end well, and from that point in the film follows the established route: Tomie can't die, and also seems to be able to multiply in some strange way. The storyline is an excuse for some ghoulish japes involving animated severed heads and some grisly body disposal sequences, but aside from that it's largely boring. What's particularly annoying is the way lots of scenes seem to be drawn out to a ridiculous degree; two characters will have a conversation but leave long spaces between words and utterances. It doesn't add atmosphere, it just feels like the slim story is being stretched out to fill the running time.

The man who directed this, Takashi Shimuzu, also handled the two excellent GRUDGE movies, not that you'd realise. Tomie: Rebirth looks and feels cheap, and the picture quality on the DVD I watched was particularly fuzzy. The acting is poor, with Miki Sakai probably the least impressive of the actresses who've played Tomie so far. The film relies far too much on her supposedly creepy giggle for effect, when in fact it just sounds silly. Inevitably, a sequel (TOMIE: FORBIDDEN FRUIT) follows.

Disappointed

[ashfordofficial · 2/10 · 5 September 2022]

1. The third installment of the Tomie film series and directed by none other than Takashi Shimizu. The film had potential but the slow pacing and lackluster direction ruined it. Not Shimizu's best or decent work.

I didn't liked this version of Tomie, or the actress (Miki Sakai) who portrayed her. But I loved Kumiko Endô's performance.

2. The third installment of the Tomie film series and directed by none other than Takashi Shimizu. The film had potential but the slow pacing and lackluster direction ruined it. Not Shimizu's best or decent work.

I didn't liked this version of Tomie, or the actress (Miki Sakai) who portrayed her. But I loved Kumiko Endô's performance.

Second best of the series

[the_headless_cross · 9/10 · 16 September 2007]

Ever have a movie you need to see more than once to appreciate? This is what the movie is to me. The first time I saw it I wasn't really impressed by it for some reason. Despite this, I felt the urge to buy this movie and view it again. And I'm really glad I did decide to give it another chance. Again, like Replay this follows the manga closely and gives us creepy moments (Tomie's head crawling, brrrrrrrrrr). This also has a cool subplot to it that the first two hinted at but never really expanded upon. What is that you say? Tomie infecting another girl and that girl becoming her! In the first it was hinted at the end an the second one there was just a small snippet of that. But this movie dedicates the entire second half to that storyline and I was pleased.

More Tomie

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 6 January 2021]

An artist named Hideo is painting his girlfriend. Just by reading the title of this film, you know that it's Tomie. He flips out when she tells him that his art isn't good, so he kills her and two of his friends help him bury the body. And if we know anything else about these movies, you know that this can't end well.

Everything Tomie can be reborn, from her head, which grows limbs, to even the paint used to make her portrait and outright possession. Even suicide can't stop Tomie, as one of the girls possessed by her tries to jump off some cliffs and she survives. Basically, Tomie is the mistake that you should have never made, but you can't stop her once it all begins.

This version of her story was directed by Takashi Shimizu, who would go on to make Ju-on: The Grudge and - rare for American remakes - even get the chance to helm his own Western version with 2004's Sarah Michelle Gellar-starring movie.

There is one great part in this one: a mother and a son bond while slicing a young girl to bits and hiding her body. Family togetherness. Get it wherever you can.

Best of the Tomies

[absinthe_minded13 · 11 July 2004]

The above reviewer obviously doesn't know the history of Tomie, and why any man who loves her winds up killing her. As in the other Tomie installments, Tomie is forever doomed to being murdered, only to return from the grave. This time, she's done in four times. This is the best of the Tomies by far, and the only one that the girl who plays Tomie is more beautiful than the heroine. Takashi Shimizu (Ju-on) did a fantastic job directing this movie, and blending a unique balance of comedy, horror and surrealism into this chapter. Tomie's character is the most 'human' in this one, as opposed to the other movies that attempt to make her out to be more of the true monster she is. As for gore, this one most definitely has more gore than the other Tomie's, but by comparison isn't a lot since the story of Tomie really doesn't rely much on gore to begin with. 7/10

Best of the series and required viewing.

[Caustic Pulp · 9/10 · 20 July 2004]

Having watched the first three films (Tomie, Tomie: Replay, and this, Tomie: Re-birth), I can say this is far and away the most accessible and interesting of the group.

For sure, this movie is, like the others, almost glacially paced, but those with the attention spans for it will be rewarded.

It's hard to describe the plot, but it essentially revolves around the effect that the title character - Tomie, the girl who can't die - has on the people around her. Tomie "enchants" men in so much as they become powerless, madly in love with her, to the point where they kill her, and she is reborn.

But the character is so much more complex than that, and this iteration of the series makes her the most accessible and expands her well beyond what the previous films had.

For sure, this is horror, but it's more psychological than anything. There are gruesome scenes, but the whole film is effective because the characters are rich and deep and interesting. While the first two films focused almost entirely on the effects Tomie had on the men she encountered, this one expands beyond that, touching on family and friends, and even deigns to show us what happens when a man resists her charms.

It isn't enough that it's a solid horror film, but the quality of writing on display is outstanding and puts it on par with other classics like Ring and Kairo. This is a matured Tomie film - not dull like the first or overtly Americanized like the second - but raw and intelligent.

Absolute must see.