Onibaba 1964
- JDramaMama
- Mar 26, 2015
- 1 min read
In the midst of the 14th century, Japan has been ravaged by war and people begin preying on one another to survive. An old woman and her daughter-in-law earn money by murdering samurai unlucky enough to get lost in an expanse of tall reeds near their hut. One day, a neighbor named Hachi returns from the war with the news that the daughter’s husband has died, and soon begins having an affair with her. The mother is consumed with jealousy, and after murdering a demon-masked samurai on her own, she decides to don the mask herself in order to scare her daughter away from Hachi.
The story was inspired by the Shin Buddhist parable "Yome odoshi no oni no men", about a woman who wore a demon mask to scare her daughter-in-law away from the temple, only to have the mask become stuck to her face and eventually tear off her skin.
Director: Kaneto Shindo
Stars: Otowa Nobuko, Yoshimura Jitsuko, Sato Kei
JDramaMama's Rating: B-
This story is creepy, to say the least. Murdering wounded samurai and stealing from them during war ravaged Japan is bad enough. But to then have a demon mask stick to your face that you can't remove? I'm done! Nevertheless, great storytelling.
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