Ring VS Ringu

RINGU> This japanese movie has had so much attention that it was recreated in Hollywood, yet one of the biggest and well known industry's for making movies in the world is "HOLLYWOOD" thus recreated a hring blockbuster of their own.

Midnight...

^^^^^
From this link and directors opinions and exeprience we can gather that, japanese blockbusters in horror as well as other movies have made a huge impact on the hollywood scene also.

Japanese Horror

LADY SNOWBLOOD

The early 1970's seems to have spawned a flood of female/heroine films in Japan, and some of these are remarkably good. Lady Snowblood, the film currently under review is certainly one of the exemplars and presents a wholly satisfactory and coherent tale of revenge and violence.

The director here is Fujita Toshiya (藤田敏八) who has directed 33 other films including this film's sequel, Lady Snowblood 2: Love Song of Vengeance (1974) and the original and one sequel of Stray Cat Rock.

The lead role here is played by Kaji Meiko (梶芽衣子), an actress used for several key tough girl/heroine roles during this period. She played the role of Mako, the lead femme fatale in Stray Cat Rock: Sex Hunter (1970). And a year prior to Lady Snowblood played the hard-as-nails female prisoner Matshushima Nami in both Female Prisoner 701: Scorpion (1972) and Female Convict Scorpion Jailhouse 41 (1972). She will also appear again as Yuki in the sequel to the current film Lady Snowblood 2: Love Song of Vengeance (1974). Kaji is a very convincing tough girl and easily conveys the steely-eyed countenance you'd expect from an old-school female assassin(esse).

The historical setting of the film is quite detailed and unique. The plot revolves around historical realities emerging immediately after the establishment of the Meiji Era. Though very many films are set in the chaos of the years leading up to the Meiji Era, I don't recall seeing any which base themselves in the confusion following Japan's turn toward modernity. The film is careful to provide accurate dates and historical events to buttress the backdrop for the tragedy of this tale. (I discuss this historical setting in depth in my review of this film's sequel.) The characters depicted here range from beggar villages to Westernized elitists. In the midst of these historically transitional figures, the intensely vengeance-driven character of Yuki stands out like a bushido pearl among pebbles.

For some reason, I've recently been watching alot of these 1970s heroine films and it is clear that a few stand far above the rest. The two exemplars which come to mind are this film and director Suzuki Norifumi's 1973 Sex and Fury. These two films both excel due to their having a wholly convincing and compelling narrative wherein audiences realize the motivations of revenge by the lead female characters. Likewise, both stories are self-contained, providing a fully explored beginning, an emotionally compelling development of the heroine, and a intellectually and emotionally satisfying conclusion to the tale.

Where these films significantly differ, however, is in the amount of skin the two directors put into their scenes. Whereas Sex and Fury undeniably deserves a "pink" categorization, no such elements of nudity or explicit female exploitation exist in Lady Snowblood. In other words, the success and popularity of the latter can be attributed wholly to its compelling character and narrative (rather than merely the libidinous gawking of male audience members).

Thus, this comes across as a very solid and entertaining female yakuza/samurai tale in which audience members can find themselves emotionally invested.

story

Kashima Yuki knows nothing of her parents except the tale handed down to her from her caretaker Okiku, a fellow female prisoner present at the time her mother gave birth to Yuki and soon thereafter died. The tale her mother wished Yuki to know is indeed a tragic one of murder, rape and vengeance. Following her release from prison Okiku told a local priest of Yuki's family history. The priest, understanding the purpose for which Yuki had been born, thrust her into an austere and strict regimen of training until she would be able to exact the revenge wished for in her mother's dying breath.

Many years later, Yuki, now a young woman, has come close to locating the four individuals responsible for the murder of her father and the rape of her mother. Though some of the four are now destitute and weak, the others remain formidably rich and well-protected.

Only her single-minded resolution and formidable skills will provide the chance to complete her life-long goal of exacting her mother's revenge.