When You're Feeling Dead Inside, Watch a Scary Movie Part 1

J-Horror & K-Horror

Ju-on: The Grudge (2002)

It’s Halloween month and the best time to watch scary movies. Kun paralantaw ikaw ka horror, tuig mo gid ang 2020... hulat-hulat lang kita ka zombie apocalypse sa December. But if home quarantine gets you down, horror movies could be good for you. Pahadlok-hadlok man kita ginagmay ah. Whenever I feel demotivated about life and living, galantaw ako haradlokan agudto ang kuba-kuba nga mabatyagan ko makapahanumdum ka nakon nga buhi pa ako... and that I also have a heart. Gani kun feeling lonely (para ibigin) ikaw tulad nga pandemic time, watch a scary movie (at night!) and you’ll never feel alone, ever again 👻😈💀

Sa mga horror movies, mas kasaho ako sa Asian horror... mainly because most of them (or the ones I prefer to watch) are adaptations of the country's folklore and folk characters. Interesado ako maman-an ang anda version of "monsters" nga indi man magrayu sa aton mga ginakahadlokan. For the past 20+ years, Asian horror has emerged as a major force in the genre. Hambal gani ka mga horror junkies, you haven't seen horror until you've seen iconic flicks from Asian cinema. So for this post, I’ll focus on Japanese & Korean horror films anay. Part 2 will be on Thai & Pinoy horror. Amo lang dya ang range kang mga nalantawan ko ha bukon man gid takon horror junkie ah, casual viewer lang 😉😁 Ang Part 3 of this post will be on other Asian horror films (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, etc), pay ma consult anay ako sa babaylan nga maka-isrot mag binge-watch ka horror movies bilog nga adlaw.

Here are some scary movies that have comforted me (and stayed rent-free in my head):

J-Horror (Japanese Horror)

Amo gid dya ang nag-umpisa ka akon huyog sa horror... Ang gusto ko bi sa horror something psychological, dan balang balunon mo mag-uli ikaw kag imaw kamo magpulaw... or perhaps I just enjoyed female onryo (vengeful ghost) a little too much. These are the cult classics kang Japanese horror nga nagpahadlok kang international fans in the late 1990s to early 2000s kag nag establish kay Sadako, in her dirty white bestida & long hair, as Halloween icon.

Ju-on: The Grudge (2002)

The film is about a ghost named Kayako who basically kills anyone she comes into contact with, and a woman named Rika Nishina who is trying to uncover the origin of the curse.

I remember watching this with my cousins, on a Friday the 13th. Biesperas ka fiesta sa Cabilauan kag may ayapon sa balay. Ginlantaw namon una ang CD1 before dinner. Anay nga ma CD2 run kami, ginbayaan nanda ako hay mauli dun tanda kuno kag indi run magpadayon lantaw. So I ended up watching this movie alone, at night, on a Friday the 13th. Te kundi nagpulaw dlang ako movie marathon hay basi maghulid kami ni Kayako kun magturog ako temprano.

Ringu: The Ring (1998)

Adapted from a novel based on a Japanese legend known as Banchō Sarayashiki, The Ring is the story of a cursed videotape that kills anyone who watches it exactly one week after viewing. The film follows reporter Reiko Asakawa as she investigates these terrifying and mysterious deaths, while trying to save her loved ones from its fatal curse.

Una ko nalantawan ang American remake ka dya sa sinehan. Nasadyahan ako nga gatig-ik tig-ik gid kami gani nag download ako ka original Japanese film. Kag kada gani may new version ang Ringu, nagalantaw gid ako. Matyagan ko migahay dun tamon ni Sadako.Hagadun pa namon pangape si Kayako.

Dark Water (2002)

This Japanese film is based on a novel written by Koji Suzuki, author of the The Ring series of books and directed by Hideo Nakata, the same man who directed Ringu. The story is about a divorced mother who moves into a modest apartment with her little girl, Newly divorced Yoshimi Matsubara and the daughter she is trying to keep custody of are forced to move into an old apartment. She notices a dark spot on the ceiling where water appears to be getting in. Strange things start occurring; meanwhile, Yoshimi is struggling to balance work and single motherhood.

Ang dya nga movie ginpalantaw ka miga ko nga mahilig sa horror kapin pa kun broken-hearted kuno tana.

And more J-Horror movie recommendations:

(Mga ralantawon ko pa ang iban ka dya gi but I’ve read good reviews about them... and NO I did not look them up in the list of The Scariest Asian Horror Films of All Time or Asian Horror Movies You Should Watch If You're A Serious Scary Movie Junkie.. or did I? 🤭)

Audition (1999) - It tells the story of a man who, after becoming a widower, is encouraged by his son to find a new wife, so he decides to set up a casting call to choose his next partner. Kun imo hilig mga slasher movies, well this one is torture porn...

Carved: The Slit-Mouthed Woman (2007) - A suburb is tormented by a vengeful spirit who murders people, primarily children.

Cure (1997) - The story focuses on a detective who investigates a series of murders that have been taking place in Japan, where the victims are found with an "X" carved on their throats.

Noroi: The Curse (2005) - When a paranormal expert goes missing after researching a mythical Japanese demon called the kagubata, his footage is recovered and pieced together.

Suicide Club (2001) - A series of suicides have been taking place in Japan, and apparently, they're not related, but the police is investigating nonetheless. It's an independent movie packed with lots of gore, and Sion Sono's brand of weird.

K-Horror (Korean Horror)

Wishing Stairs (2003)

Lain man nga sahi ka horror ang dara kang Korean cinema. Lately, daw sanda gani ang nagapamayagpag sa international scenes. South Korea, has emerged as a major force in the genre by practically inventing a new sub-genre of revenge-themed psychological thrillers. May distinctive darkness tanda that lingers. Ang anda brand of horror doesn't feel like they are "scaring" you, they instill despair instead... because, why not? May tendency nga malagyo ang nahadlokan... pay ang nasubu-an, ang nagabakho? Ahay... husto dlang dan mag nguyngoy kag magpakaon sa kun ano nga impakto ang starring sa pelikula.

Train to Busan (2016)

It shows the moment in which an epidemic breaks out and a father and his daughter must travel by train in order to reach Busan, the only place where they'll be safe. Who doesn’t love a zombie apocalypse movie in pandemic time?

Amo lang dya nga horror nga gahiribi-on kami samtang galantaw. Sa sinehan pa dya namon ginlantaw imaw sa mga cousins ko kag irimaw man kami hibi-hibi kay Gong Yoo.

Sa To-Watch List ko pa dya nga mga K-Horror... which only means, waay man tanda it "proper" viewing but nalantawan ko ang mga umpisa, skimmed through the scenes (spoiled myself), dason na distract ako ka iban nga kurutihon kag waay ko dun nabalikan lantaw 🤣🤣🤣

Ghost School Horror: is a supernatural horror film series that uses an all-girls high school as the backdrop. Every film features a different plot, characters and settings. Sanda ka dya ang akon introduction into K-Horror. Hambal ni Wiki, ang series nga dya (especially the first three installments) "is notable for helping generate the explosion of the New Korean Wave cinematic movement."

• Whispering Corridors (1998) - A former student returns to start a new job as a teacher and strikes up a friendship with two very different students. Eun-yung receives a call from a fellow teacher, Mrs. Park, telling her that her deceased friend Jin-jiu is back. The next morning Mrs. Park is found dead and Eun-yung investigates whether her friend has really returned.

• Memento Mori (1999) - a student finds a diary—shared by two seniors at her school (one of which committed suicide)—that not only contains unknown drugs, but creates a psychic connection between her and the other senior. As she and her friends try to uncover what happened, the paranormal activity rises. 

• Wishing Stairs (2003) - this film follows best friends who are both dancers. One is considered the best while the other is often seen as the worst in this competitive arts school. However, there are a set of stairs that, if the extra step appears, grants the climber a wish.

• Voice (2005) - This installment follows the story of Young-Eun, a timid high school student who dies mysteriously while singing in the school's music room. But even in death, Young-Eun's voice continues to be heard by her best friend, Sun-Min. Although startled by this supernatural development, Sun-Min adapts rather quickly to the situation and tries to uncover the reasons for her friend's untimely demise.

• A Blood Pledge (2009) - After her sister Eun-ju commits suicide, Jeong-eun investigates and was told that her sister's friends had previously made a suicide pact but only Eun-ju fully committed. Now that the other girls have abandoned their friend and cheated the pledge, Eun-ju has come back to make them pay.

• The Humming (2020) - Ha-young hear humming in the empty washroom, and believe that Eun-hee, whom hired as a vice principal at her old high school is somehow linked to the mystery, where strange things take place in the closed down washroom.

A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)

The film follows two sisters who, after returning home from a mental institution, find themselves surrounded by a cruel stepmother, vengeful ghosts, and unexpected revelations about their family's dark past.

The Red Shoes (2005)

After Sun-Jae discovers a pair of gorgeous red high heels on the subway, she takes them with herself back home, only to find out that they have a very, very dark secret. Based on the old fairy tale from Hans Christian Andersen, it's a dark and twisted modern story about vanity and beauty, which turns into a classic haunting.

Thirst (2009)

The film tells the story of a Catholic priest—who is in love with his friend's wife—turning into a vampire through a failed medical experiment. Despite being a solid horror film, Thirst has been labeled as one of the sexiest horror movies of all time (for those who are into blending sexy times and gore).

Bedevilled (2010)

A brutal and beautiful psychological horror film about a woman who’s subjected to mental, physical, and sexual abuse on a remote island. But this is more than just a story of a woman scorned, it’s about women’s constant struggle to find a place in the world and what happens when it is taken away from her.

The Wailing (2016)

The residents of a South Korean mountain village get hit with a deadly and mysterious disease, and it's up to a local policeman to get to the bottom of it with the help of a powerful shaman.

Amo lang dya anay ang ma recommend ko to jump start your hearts.

References:

https://www.buzzfeed.com/gretaalvarez/suddenly-scared-of-dumplings-now; https://screenrant.com/korean-horror-movies-best/ ; https://www.ranker.com/list/scary-asian-horror-movies/christopher-myers ; https://screenrant.com/best-asian-horror-movies/ ; https://hk.asiatatler.com/life/scariest-asian-horror-films-to-watch-this-halloween ; https://says.com/my/entertainment/asian-horror-movies-to-watch

Pics from https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3599441/horror-queers-lost-isolated-queer-metaphor-grudge-2004/ ; https://thisisanothercastle.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/wishingstairs1.jpg?w=600&h=400&crop=1