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Beautiful, moving film.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

After watching many J-horrors that capitalized more on gore-shock and FX-laden terror, it's a really nice treat to find a little Japanese folk horror gem like Inugami.The pacing is slow, but it's typical for many Japanese drama. In fact, it's truly befitting for the movie to be patient in its storytelling. The camera works and cinematography, along with the pacing, help to reign you in to the world of the Omine village. A village and people seemed to be locked in world between the traditional and the modern.Time seems to work at a different tangent there, where a feudal family's life is tainted by an ancient curse; its members torn between traditional duty and self liberation.The acting is top notch, the setting is near perfect and the music blends in with the luscious mountain forest in a mystical way. The horror element is so subtle and sparse, that this could have been a purely drama film without the supernatural element. In fact, the most horrific things are the cruelty and twisted bondage of tradition and paranoia that envelop the Bonomiya family and the Omine townsfolk.Shikoku, considered a spiritual haven by many Japanese, plays the silent witness and a sort of mystical catalyst to the spiraling tragedy that unfolds through the movie. Its natural presence seems to reverberate with a disturbing presence and foreboding doom in the director's hand.The editing is choppy at times, and it seems Masato Harada didn't really want to make a horror movie, or could have done a better job with a bigger budget.Overall, I really enjoyed Inugami and it's a nice treat if you love Japanese countryside and folktales. It is not your typical J-horror film, and there is a disturbing taboo that plays as a central part of the narration. Beware!

The natural images of forests, mountains, and lotus ponds were breathtaking, as were the interior shots of the traditional Japanese houses and workshops.To call the story childish, however, would be an insult to children. To call the story eye-rolling, and bone-headed, stupid would be more accurate.They should not rent or show this movie without asking for IDs to make sure no adults view it for fear that they may come down with regressive brain damage.Think about it for half a second: "I don't care if she is a thousand years old and my mother, I love her and want to marry her." Black humor? Nah, it's not even remotely funny. None of the movie is. With such an inane and brain-dead story line what else could it have possibly been aiming for but humor? It utterly fails even in that.

This is a drama-fantasy about two Bonomiya families in the computer age, shunned by villagers because of the legendary curse of the Inugami (wild dog deities), supposedly borne by the women. It focuses on gentle spinster Miki Bonomiya (Yuki Amami). Her mother Tomiè (Shiho Fujimura) quietly/firmly rules the 'lower home'. She and surly/Internet-wise brother Takanao (Kazuhiro Yamaji) are strong believers of the curse. Miki and her younger sister Rika (Myu Watase) refute the curse. Takanao's oft-battered wife Sonoko (Shion Machida) and their children are innocent bystanders. Seiji Doi (Eugene Harada), from the 'main home', firmly sides with Miki. Dramatic changes occur after a new teacher Akira Nutahara (Atsuro Watabe) meets Miki. He is entranced by her skill in fine paper-making (for calligraphy) and her placid beauty. Miki becomes suddenly youthful and sensuous as they begin a passionate affair. Villagers begin to gossip about their affair. Then, tension mounts as tragedies in the village are blamed on the curse of Inugami and long-hidden secrets, involving Miki and Takanao, are slowly revealed. The culmination is the annual ancestral Shinto rites in which Takanao decides on Miki as the human sacrifice to appease the dog deities.Yuki Amami played the male roles in the decades-famous all-women Takarazuka Revue.

The summary could seem right hadn't I seen 12 movies this weekend at the Fantasporto film festival. And Inugami was quite frankly the most odd, slow, and incomprehensible of all. Don't ask me why, I came out like I stared at a wall for two hours. Even when I tried to make some sense of it, nothing worked. In its essence, the movie talks about a family whose women are cursed. But perhaps it's me, the story is quite difficult to follow. The people seem to wander around, I didn't understand any of it. But I respect it, afterall there are people who liked it. Anyway, luckily they won't catch me seeing this one again.