Movie Review: Never After Dark (Nebâ Afutâ Dâku)

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

A superior Japanese haunted house movie.

In this movie, a young psychic who (along with the ghost of her dead sister) helps ghosts cross to the other side is hired by some new homeowners to get rid of a ghost in their house. At first this seems like a rather routine case, but she soon finds herself in over her head as this is a much more dangerous case than she has ever faced before. 

The haunted house film is almost as old as cinema itself, yet this movie makes it feel new and fresh. There are plenty of twists to this story that keep making you guess what is going to happen next. Not only do these twists take you by surprise but they also change our perception of what came before. There are no twists here that simply exist to have a twist. Rather they are here to advance the story. 

Of course, the most important element of any haunted house film (even more than being scary) is the sense of atmosphere. This film is dripping over with atmosphere. Unlike many modern scary movies, this film doesn't simply give you one scare after another. Instead, it takes its time between scares. There are even decent size stretches here without any traditional scares. This works fantastically as it actually pulls us into why this house is so scary and just how much danger our hero is in. The setting doesn't feel like just another haunted house but rather something that has its own personality. There is also much time setting up how the rules of this world work. This not only makes the world feel more real but also sets up the finale to be as intense as it is. 

The scares themselves are fantastic. While they may not be constant, they are no less effective. The ghost, himself is truly terrifying. This is captured perfectly by his look, his demeanor and his horrifying motives. With how much time the film uses building up this villain, he does not disappoint when he is actually on screen. I usually don't find jump scares all that effective but there are a few that got me here. They are very well done and effective. Part of the reason for this is that they are less frequent than in other horror movies, making you not constantly except them. 

This is a truly great horror movie that I hope gets the love it deserves.