THE GHOST OF YOTSUYA
Color, 1959, 83 mins. 29 secs.
Directed by Kenji Misumi
Starring Kazuo Hasegawa, Yasuko Nakada, Yôko Uraji, Mieko Kondô
Radiance Films (Blu-ray) (US/UK RA/B HD) / WS (2.35:1) (16:9)

THE BRIDE FROM HADES
Color, 1968, 88 mins. 35 secs.
Directed by Satsuo Yamamoto
Starring Kôjirô Hongô, Miyoko Akaza, Mayumi Ogawa, Michiko Ôtsuka, Takashi Shimura
Radiance Films (Blu-ray) (US/UK RA/B HD), Kadokawa (DVD) (Japan R1 NTSC) / WS (2.35:1) (16:9)

THE SNOW WOMAN
Color, 1968, 79 mins. 32 secs.
Directed by Tokuzō Tanaka
Starring Shiho Fujimura, Akira Ishihama, Machiko Hasegawa, Tatsuo Hananuno
Radiance Films (Blu-ray) (US/UK RA/B HD), Kadokawa (DVD) (Japan R1 NTSC) / WS (2.35:1) (16:9)


On the international THE GHOST OF YOTSUYAart house scene, Japanese ghost stories broke through heavily starting in the 1950s with a string of beautifully mounted productions like 1953's Ugetsu and two 1964 THE GHOST OF YOTSUYAclassics, Onibaba and Kwaidan. Numerous other productions didn't get quite the same level of exposure outside of Japan at the time but have since earned a wider audience, and the advent of Blu-ray has meant a chance to appraise them in quality that really lets them shine. Case in point: Radiance Films' 2024 boxed set for the U.S. and U.K. markets, Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories, dedicated to a trio of titles from the busy studio in its heyday scattered among series with Zatoichi, Gamera, and Daimajin.

Often referred to as Yotsuya Ghost Story to avoid confusion with another film by Nabuo Nakagawa the same year, 1959's The Ghost of Yotsuya is a stylish scope version of a familiar supernatural tale here directed by Kenji Misumi (who helmed multiple Zatoichi, Lone Wolf and Cub, and Sleepy Eyes of Death entries). The oft-filmed tale originated as a popular theatrical kabuki production in 1825, Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan by Tsuruya Nanboku IV, with film adaptations starting in the silent era with dozens of contributions over the years including Keisuke Kinoshita's epic two-parter in 1949, 1961's The Ghost Story of Oiwa's Spirit and Kinji Fukasaku's 1994 mash-up, Crest of Betrayal. Misumi's take injects a heavy THE GHOST OF YOTSUYAdose of Othello into the story of impoverished ronin THE GHOST OF YOTSUYATamiya Iemon (Hasegawa), far from the hot-tempered murderer in the source material, whose lack of motivation extends to his listless marriage to the hard-working Oiwa (Nakada). One day he intercedes in an altercation involving a young woman, Oume (Uraji), who falls in love with him and refuses to marry anyone else. That complicated scenario soon leads to tampering with Oiwa's medication following a miscarriage, lots of scheming and swordplay, and a chilling revenge exacted from beyond the grave.

Volumes have been written about the various permutations of this story and how it applies to the eras in which it's interpreted, with this one being singled out for presenting the noblest version of Iemon thanks to the casting of a movie star known for his heroic roles. That leads to some fascinating narrative turns in the final stretch with a lively climax in which the grotesque supernatural elements finally come into full play. As with the other features in the set, the Radiance Blu-ray features a strong 4K restoration of the film that looks pretty much faultless; the darker and more colorful sequences in the final stretch look especially impressive. The LPCM 2.0 Japanese mono audio is also in perfect shape and comes with excellent English optional subtitles, as do the other two titles. The extras start off with a new interview (15m50s) with legendary modern horror filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa (19m33s) about this film and its directors' impact on genre cinema, with this being Kurosawa's favorite version of the oft-told tale. "The Endless Curse of Oiwa" (22m8s) is a thorough visual essay by Kyoko Hirano on the source story's long history and adaptations including its interpretations via THE BRIDE FROM HADESstage performances and artwork as well. A subtitled trailer is also THE BRIDE FROM HADESincluded.

Then we skip ahead to the late '60s for The Bride from Hades, an atmospheric bit of creepiness with a romantic flavor. Again we're in feudal times during the mid-year Obon festival when the dead have a five-day opening to mingle among the living at night. Young samurai Hagiwara Shinzaburo (Hongô) throws the plans for his arranged marriage into disarray when he meets and falls for an alluring courtesan, Otsuyu (Akaza), who is always accompanied by her older attendant, Oyone (Ôtsuka). However, both of the women are dead and have come haunting the village looking for vulnerable souls, which causes a ripple effect throughout the community trying to keep a barrier between the living and the dead.

Featuring a solid roster of character actors including the always wonderful Takashi Shimura (star of Ikiru), this is another familiar ghost story that had THE BRIDE FROM HADESpreviously been filmed multiple times (including a 1955 variant). The two ghosts are the THE BRIDE FROM HADESmain attraction here, with their nocturnal appearances gliding across the screen in a subdued and spooky effect aided by skilled lighting and wire effects. It's the perfect movie to throw on late at night, and though this one hasn't had a lot of English-language exposure outside of the gray market, the Blu-ray should make more than a few converts. Again the presentation here is impressive courtesy of a new 2024 restoration, and this time the always expert Jaspar Sharp makes for a welcome tour guide on an audio commentary covering the history of the story including its kabuki variations, the history of the talent in front of and behind the camera, and the social conventions involving courtesans, education, and social classes being addressed in the story. You also get the subtitled trailer and a new interview with Ring screenwriter Hiroshi Takahashi (17m39s) about the stir the film caused among his network when they discovered it before the advent of J-horror, the kabuki techniques used here for simple visual effects, and the folklore aspects that THE SNOW WOMANstill resonate with modern THE SNOW WOMANviewers.

Finally we get to another 1968 film, The Snow Woman, an absolutely gorgeous version of the ghost story adapted as a segment of the 1964 Lafcadio Hearn-based anthology classic, Kwaidan (and initially cut from the U.S. release version). The same story was later modernized as the third story in Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, albeit with a gorier and more downbeat ending. This particular version is an absolute stunner crammed with beautiful imagery, chilling makeup, and a deeply felt emotional core that pays off in a haunting finale, regardless of how familiar you are with the story. Here the tale begins with two wood sculptors, master Shigetomo (Hananuno) and apprentice Yosaku (Harakiri's Ishihama), whose search for the ideal tree material is waylaid when they're trapped in a snowstorm. They manage to spend the night in an empty cabin only to be visited by a spectral snow witch who kills Shigetomo but spares the younger man on the condition that he never tell a soul THE SNOW WOMANabout the encounter, under penalty of death. As time passes, Yosaku THE SNOW WOMANdetermines to finish his master's work just as a woman named Yuki (Fujimura) enters his life and, after demonstrating her healing powers, is urged to marry him. However, the past has a strange way of catching up with people...

Running a tight 79 minutes, The Snow Woman introduces a human villain here and makes some other embellishments without compromising the core effectiveness of the story. The result never feels stretched out at all, with director Tokuzô Tanaka (an AD for some of Japan's greatest filmmakers and helmer of a couple of Sleepy Eyes of Death films) showing a real poetic flair here before he went to mostly working in television. The legendary composer Akira Ifukube contributes a very effective score here as well, and the actors -- Fujimura in particular -- are all excellent. Another title mostly stuck in gray market limbo outside of Japan, The Snow Woman is a spectacular way to close out the set and should deservedly become a much bigger cult item if enough people watch it. The extras for this one include a new interview (15m50s) with filmmaker Masayuki Ochiai (Hypnosis, Shutter) about the film's memorable depiction of a long-haired female ghost that would become the central scare element of J-horror down the line, as well as the conventions of ghost stories in 20th-century Japan that made them so enduring. The very informative video essay "The Haunted Mind of Lafcadio Hearn" (6m47s) by Paul Murray provides a great deal of background about the European writer, his affinity for Japanese culture and eventual relocation there, and his impact on local horror literature with his story collections in the early 1900s that still linger today. A subtitled trailer is also included, and the limited edition set comes with an 80-page book featuring new essays by Tom Mes, Zack Davisson and Murray, newly translated archival reviews (which are fascinating for their takes on these films pointing out flaws that most would take as attributes), and two Hearn ghost stories including his version of The Snow Woman.

Reviewed on October 23, 2024.