Onibaba
Before I made the choice to view Onibaba:> I was afraid of the horror genre, thus procrastinated for a long time> Willem Dafoe recommended Onibaba in the Criterion closet video, introducing this to the watchlist> Spookober is the encouragement to see Onibaba> My curiosity for Japanese cinema have grown
These are the major catalysts I had with deciding whether I should watch Onibaba. So at 12am last night, I got a push force from the gut, telling me to put the movie on.
Let’s begin by indulging into this scrumptious Halloween treat.
First of all, Onibaba is a gorgeous movie that redefines my take on horror. Most of the movie revolves around developing bonds between characters, especially the love triangle. I had to check if I was watching the correct movie because I was so impressed that a horror movie could look this stunning. Even when the unsettling images of Onibaba kicked in towards the end, I enjoyed them to my own amusement rather than experiencing them in fear & fright. As a whole, I strongly believe the visuals and aesthetics in Onibaba’s cinematography could overtake the beauty of Days Of Heaven.
Onibaba is a folk horror erotica that feels exceptionally coded with The Witch & The Lighthouse. After this viewing, I don’t feel so terrified anymore. Classics like Onibaba divides the boundaries between peak horror and lazy horror. I’m hyped to explore more of Kaneto Shindo.
The fanatical nature of Onibaba is actually the sexual desires within each character. The nudity caught me off guard. I did not foresee the movie’s themes but I’m glad I found the staggering amounts of topless women to be perfectly non-sexual. At brief moments, the characters are fully naked, embracing love in the tall grass reeds. And these daring scenes exhibit casualness, no matter the context (if characters are having sex, Kaneto Shindo does not emphasize on the process), allowing me to dictate that the lust is hammered deep into the art.
Onibaba fulfills every criteria, reminding me that the genre or the medium is not the obstacle if a director has the capability to make a master-fucking-piece.