I'm just about to go see this week's film, so what better time to finally write about last week's? Uzumaki is a j-horror film based on a shoujo horror manga series, ie, a series for teen girls. Yes, there is an entire genre of horror comics in Japan written for teen girls. And some of them, Uzumaki included, are pretty creepy.

Uzumaki means spiral or vortex, and the film's story centers on a small, rural Japanese town cursed by a dark force associated with spirals of all kinds. The slumbering evil gradually awakens as the film goes on, transforming an ordinary community into a twisted netherworld. As horror goes, this is a pretty standard plot, but the details are what make Uzumaki worth watching.

The director's treatment of the story always hovers between true horror and a comical, "Army of Darkness" parody of genre's absurdities, but never goes too far in either direction. As a result, Uzumaki is full of dark humor, while at the same time also managing to achieve some truly scary moments.

A certain amount of gore is present, but the impact of much of it is softened due to its use as a comical prop. The characters are fun to watch, if also very stock: A school-girl, her love interest, his father (the crazy-guy-who-kills-himself-and-becomes-supernatural-evil), the hard-boiled reporter that's trying to unravel the town's secret. Ultimately though, it's the constant fluctuation between horror and comedy that keeps the film alive: too much of either and Uzumaki could easily become unwatchable, either through boredom or horror that's simply too over the top.

The cinematography is rich and pulsing, if a bit hokey. But again, with the emphasis on comedy, the often cheesy or hilariously overdone visuals fit the film just fine. It's also a good film for those with short attention spans. Japanese Cinema is often slow-moving with its story, but Uzumaki keeps up a steady, if not exactly frantic pace. I look forward to watching this one again, and/or reading the manga, which has a somewhat longer plot.

Image used under fair use.