Howling Village (2019) - A Quick Review

 

Howling Village is directed by Takashi Shimizu, so you know it'll be an experience!

Howling Village (also known as Inunaki Village) is a Japanese horror movie released in 2019 that stars Ayaka Miyoshi, Ryota Bando, Hinata Kaizu, Masanobu Takashima, Reiko Takashima, and Rinka Otani. It was directed by Takashi Shimizu (director of Ju-On: The Curse, Marebito, and Tomie:Rebirth among many other movies) and is a part of his Village Trilogy.

Ayaka Miyoshi as Kanade Morita. She has special abilities...

In Howling Village, Ayaka Miyoshi plays Kanade Morita, a clinical psychologist who can see supernatural things that others cannot (and she has other abilities). She gets a new patient, a little boy, who is having bad dreams. He does not want to talk to her about his bad dreams, because his "other Mama" will get mad... Before all this happened, though, Kanade's brother Yuma (played by Ryota Bando) and his wife Akina (played by Rinka Otani) went exploring a mysterious village and after coming back, Akina's behavior has drastically changed. Yuma wants Kanade's help with dealing with her. Of course, something tragic occurs, and Yuma decides to go back to the village to find out what is happening.

Kanade and Yuma's little brother, Kota (played by Hinata Kaizu) is interested in an urban legend about a mysterious village, so he sneaks into Yuma's car when he goes back there. When Yuma and Kota don't come back after a while, Kanade has to find out what is going on, and find a way to get to that village. She soon finds out everything is connected, and is determined to get her brothers back.

The truth hurts.

Howling Village is a very interesting horror mystery film. Throughout the movie, you wonder what exactly is going on. There is a lot of spooky, supernatural events going on along with some family drama within the Morita family. I must say, the child actors in this movie are really good, especially Hinata Kaizu as Kota. Ayaka Miyoshi as Kanade is great as well. You really empathize with what she's going through in the movie. The ghost effects are cool (reminds me of how the ghosts disappear/fade away in Fatal Frame: Maiden Of Black Water), and the makeup effects are good, too. The story is really engaging, and everything makes sense (for the most part, I mean it is a horror movie). Once again, you just have to pay attention, as the clues and information are given to you in the movie.  I would say the movie is more spooky than scary, though.

You see ghosts, you run!

Howling Village is a well made horror movie that is good, but it does not quite live up to the classic Japanese horror movies of the past. Still, it's an enjoyable movie that never gets boring. I do recommend it, or at least giving it a chance.

Reviewed by David Williams