REEL JAPAN

Score: 7/10

Director Kurosawa Kiroshi has worked in horror for decades, though not exclusively. He directed PULSE and PENANCE (also reviewed here). Based on a novel by Maekawa Yutaka, CREEPY is beautifully photographed by Ashizawa Akiko, with an old fashioned score by Habuka Yuri that is reminiscent of Hollywood’s golden age. The story concerns a sidelined police detective, Takakura (Nishijima Hidetoshi), who finds himself teaching criminology to university students after his failure to contain a crisis at the precinct. In his new neighborhood, he starts looking into a local unsolved missing persons case. Gradually his investigation collides with his own research on the psychology of sociopaths.

CREEPY makes great use of its stellar cast. Nishijima is always a capable actor and leading man. Here he reunites with his old MOZU cast mate Kagawa Teruyuki. Kagawa plays his unsettling neighbor, Nishino. Kagawa, excellent as always, revels in every twist and turn of awkwardness Nishino’s personality necessitates. Kagawa often plays the villain or foil, memorably in HANZAWA NAOKI as a corrupt company exec, and in the first ROURONI KENSHIN film (2012). When Kagawa is given eccentricities to sink his teeth into, he always contributes unforgettable performances. Higashide Masahiro (LAST SAMURAI STANDING, SATOSHI: A MOVE FOR TOMORROW) plays Takakura’s young detective assistant with his usual charm and intensity. Even the dog, Max, is full of character and steals a few scenes.

However, without the three female costars, most of the dramatic developments in this unusual story of mayhem and trauma would fall flat. Kawaguchi Haruna (SCANDAL EVE, WAITING FOR KIRIN) is believable as the reluctant witness orphaned by destiny. The young Fujino Ryoko (SOLOMON’S PERJURY) plays Nishino’s daughter Mio, and she embraces the character’s twisted journey with gusto. Her performance hits every beat necessary to communicate Mio’s fear and anguish. Takeuchi Yuko (THE RING, THE MAGNIFICENT NINE, SANADA MARU) plays Takakura’s wife Yasuko, and her performance anchors the film perfectly. Takeuchi was surely one of the top two or three actresses of her generation. Her tragic death at age 40 in 2020 cut short a brilliant career, but her dramatic genius lives on in over fifty films and television serials. There are moments when CREEPY’s plot veers from suspenseful into the preposterous, and only Takeuchi’s performance keeps it from spinning out of control. 

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