The area of research set for me in line with the first film project of the semester is eastern ghost folklore and visual motifs of eastern horrors.

As part of the research for the pitch of our film, I began looking up specific examples within Japanese folklore and art in particular that include ghouls similar to those seen in The Grudge and Shutter.

Here are a three of my favorites summarized

“Known as yūrei, these mostly female ghosts won’t let their male wrongdoers rest until they’ve received a proper comeuppance (Gotthardt, 2019)

I’m not going to lie. A lot of this has very sexist undertones and I’d argue the sheer amount of demons and spirits who are women reflect men’s attitudes toward women such that they are often a man’s downfall and are untrustworthy. WHICH IS A LOAD OF SHIT I want to make very clear but having said that it’s interesting to read about how these folktales have evolved over time as part of traditional culture

Oiwa

A woman who suffered severe facially deformity after being poisoned by her husband so he could marry a rich neighbor’s granddaughter. She died of shock and a broken heart, going on to haunt her backstabbing husband who would see her melting face in paper lanterns

 

Nukekubi & Rokurkubi (No Neck & Pulley Neck)

Human’s who’ve sinned at the cost of their families or god and are punished for their evil deeds. Women may be punished as scape goats for their husbands or father’s sins also (which seems very unfair to me) Nukekubi are women whose heads and souls have detached from their bodies in their sleep (bit worse than waking up with a hangover I’d imagine). They are supposed to have a thirst for blood like that of a vampire. Rokurokubi are women whose necks stretch to incredible lengths. They supposedly attack small animals and consume oil from lamps and like to scare people for the sake of it.

 

Hone-onna, Skeleton Spectre

Arguably the coolest looking of the lot, this female skeleton lures men into her cavern by changing form (back into a normal looking person I’d assume) Once the victims realize what’s going on, the Hone-onna sucks the life force out of them until they become skeletons themselves. Sounds like most relationships to me 😉

 

In all seriousness though, that last joke there reflects the true nature of most folklore demons I’d argue. Monsters demons and spirits that are immortalized in this way are all just reflections of the inner demons inside ourselves and our own reactions to the world and others.

 

Gotthardt, A. (2019). These Vengeful Female Ghosts in Japanese Prints Will Haunt You. [online] Artsy. Available at: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-vengeful-female-ghosts-japanese-ukiyo-e-prints-will-haunt [Accessed 27 Aug. 2019].