Jigoku

Nakagawa doesn't mind leaving incomplete questions in this nightmarish and free-associative fever dream. Why is the essentially innocent Shiro condemned? Who or what is the strange Mephistophelean character Tamura? What sets all these people, some guilty and some innocent, on the path to Hell? An uncompromising and unrepentant achievement, not only for its notorious orgy of gore and dread, but for Nakagawa's refusal to portend logic and reason to questions unable to be answered.

I liked the hell orgy of gore and suffering and condemnation the most. But really, I had no idea why the universe was so persistent in sending this Shiro guy straight to hell. What'd he do? He sat in the car while his friend ran over some guy. It wasn't Shiro's fault. It was the friend's fault. Guilty by association, I guess? Then the universe decides to kill his pregnant wife, and then more people die, and then he descends into hell, because the Japanese gods are assholes, muahauhaah....(???)

Why was this so weird? The visuals are amazing, and the last third of the film is pure eye candy. Unfortunately, the plot leading up to that stellar portion is a bit muddled.

Dante by way of Japan by way of... Ed Wood? Don't be fooled by it's inclusion in the Criterion collection - this is pure lab-grade camp. The plot is a soap opera melodrama. The editing is bizzare. The acting is hilariously overdramatic - Tamura in particular chews up scenes like a rabid Pac-Man. With the right mindset, those don't have to be bad things - just know what you're getting into.

A really fine piece of existential dementia. The first two acts are more interesting than the gore-infused third (which is still fun on its own merits, but mostly exists for its own sake and not to further any semblance of 'plot'). The sins of the father/redemption caught in limbo is masterfully depicted.

Best known for its finale in Hell, but I preferred the build-up, as Shiro's life gets bleaker and bleaker, and the death and debauchery around him intensifies. Hell is a bit silly. I might have been more shocked if the effects and makeup weren't so unconvincing. The Hell sequence does have some pretty amazing stuff, though: the wheel of fire, the tangible sense of despair, and the chaotic jump cuts. I also loved the final scene, which evoked an odd sensation of comfort and sadness.

It's an incredibly silly film, but I'm assuming that nobody, myself included, is expecting much depth from a Japanese horror film titled 'THE SINNERS OF HELL'. The last act is pretty creepy and memorable, but the actual plot leading up to it is barely serviceable. Judging it as a whole, I'd say it's a pretty substandard horror film that would have benefited from some editing and a more consistently surreal tone.

Nakagawa creates some great horror imagery, but the hell in the last act might have been much more satisfying if the plot leading up to that point wasn't so muddled and incoherent. For this reason I thought The Ghost of Yotsuya was better than this.

Very theatric in the way everything is staged and acted out. The darkness that encompasses everything offscreen is part of the horror. The last third might be hell but I was in cinema heaven, whew.

The real life bits were surprisingly more compelling than the scenes in Hell. Not bad.

The first two-thirds are better. Got an absurdist noir thing going on.

Moral of the story: if you sin in any way, don't bother taking care of your teeth or going to the dentist, because they're all getting smashed by a demon with a hammer the second you turn up in Hell. A full blown meth addiction is, in this case, totally advisable.

Unfortunately I found this film to be pretty boring. Plus the soundtrack was completely out of whack with what was going on in the movie. Too Jazzy.

the middle bits drag on and make less sense than the hell scenes, but when it takes off you're in for one hell of a ride, no pun intended. the surrealist hell scenes are so effectively frightening i didn't know what to do with myself. it would not be unreasonable to say that this movie has had an influence upon some modern horror (namely splatterpunk), and it is not surprising one bit that it was remade...twice.

Actually very impressively made for a horror film in 1960. Some of the visuals were outstanding despite it also being filmed with hardly any budget. Unfortunately, as someone who isn't a Japanese Buddhist in 1960, a lot of it just came off as really silly and the plot before hell made almost no sense.

The middle seemed a bit difficult to follow to me, but I think I wasn't feeling well at the time, so I'll have to give it another spin for objectivity's sake. There was payoff though, it wasn't exactly meandering. The Hell portions really were well done. Downright haunting. The screaming baby motif added some serious emotional baggage that I needed, but didn't really have until that point in the film (again, probably my fault. Your mileage may vary).

A great melodrama that literally goes to hell.

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A fiery fever dream accentuated by actually having a fever while I watched it.

An unorthodox and unique film in the annals of cinema. The nearly tangible, suffocating aura of the film coupled with the astounding brutality of its effects combine for an unforgettable experience, for better or worse. I should like this movie more than I do, but the handling of the religious or, hell, let's just call 'em supernatural elements, seemed a bit too literal and not all-encompassing enough to leave lasting distress (which, by the way, is something I treasure in a movie).

I kept watching waiting for something to happen, the premise sounding so good that I just kept watching despite being bored shitless. Gave up eventually

The actual Hell sequence drags a bit, but Jigoku is inventive and unique, with dark, moody cinematography filled with beautifully framed shots.

I agree with FFD; the best parts of this movie happen before any of the shocking gore, when everything is falling apart around the protagonist's world. Very interesting look at Buddhist hell.