Some things I liked some I did not.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

In Tokyo, when a young woman in a red dress is drowned in a hole with sea water by a stranger, Detective Noboru Yoshioka (Kôji Yakusho) is assigned to investigate the case; however he finds evidences that points out to him as the possible murderer. Then a doctor kills his son in the same way, and Noboru believes the man is a serial-killer. However, Noburo is haunted by a woman dressed in red that he believes is the first victim called F18 by the coroner and becomes obsessed to solve the case. Further he proposes his girlfriend Harue Nimura (Manami Konishi) to move with him to another city or country. Meanwhile a woman drowns her lover in a bathtub with sea water. When the body of the woman in red (F18) is identified, Noburo arrests the killer and believes the ghost will leave him. But when he meets Miyuki Yabe (Kaoru Okunuki), he finds that she was possessed by the emotions of the fiend when she murdered her lover and Noboru's psychiatric identifies that his problems are connected to events of fifteen years ago. Noboru asks Harue to travel alone and navigates in a boat to an abandoned asylum where he discovers the truth about the spirit."Sakebi" is an intriguing horror tale, supported by a complex plot that is open to interpretations. I saw this movie twice on DVD trying to understand the mystery, but it was not clear the connection among Noboru, Reiko (the first victim F18), the doctor Sakuma and Miyuki with the ghost in red. Something is missing to give full comprehension to the plot. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Vítima de uma Alucinação" ("Victim of an Hallucination")

A beleaguered detective, working a homicide case whose crime scene was disturbed by a flood which derived from an earthquake, is haunted by a mysterious lady in red, who might just be a victim he possibly murdered..he can not remember ever doing such a thing, which makes her creepy visits to him even more bewildering.The film opens with a man drowning a young woman, dressed in red, in a salt-water pot hole leaving her as he drives away. This case evokes distress in Detective Noboru Yoshioka(Kôji Yakusho, with quite an interesting face..it seems like his years of working these cases, among other things the film will eventually reveal, show in not only the face but his demeanor)who the film paints as the possible killer. A button and electrical wire, pointed out by the film in subtle sequences, allow us, at first, to believe he just might've been the one responsible, having selective amnesia in not remembering his involvement. I like how director Kiyoshi Kurosawa toys with me..like a puppet at his command, I was led to and fro. Then, Kurosawa startles me by showing other murders carried out by a killer towards one they possibly care for. The murders start out one way(..a father sticks his troublesome, wayward son with a hypodermic of poison, an adulteress bashes her employer with a hammer)then result with drowning in salt-water. I, at first, felt that the lady in red might've been a manifestation of guilt, but it seems later she might actually motivate others to kill! That's another aspect of this tale that startles me. Along the way, the film always returns to Yoshioka, the catlayst who explores the identity of the lady in red which never fails to return to him, often frightening him with accusations of his murdering her. Who is this woman, really? At first, Yoshioka believes she is the dead woman seen drowned at the opening of the film, but once her murderer is discovered, it still doesn't end. Through some digging, he finds out about a sanitarium which used corporal punishment towards unruly inmates involving heads being soaked in pans of salt-water.I found it amusing how the film will seem to let Yoshioki off the hook, regarding his possible involvement in a homicide only to bring the lady in red back to torment him. He has done something and this film cleverly shows us what. I will say that one must always keep Yoshioka's love interest Harue(Manami Konishi)in their minds throughout. If you can see, their relationship is missing something. It's distant, cold, empty..something just isn't quite right with this picture. And, another little toy at Kurosawa's disposal is Yoshioka's partner Toru Miyaji(Tsuyoshi Ihari)who suspects him of misconduct. The lady in red is quite a creation of Kurosawa's..she's not far removed from the others we often are accustomed to, but she resembles a corpse, just recently uninhabited rather than some spooky white with black eyeballs lunging from the darkness. Actually, she often appears in corners like those who perish to ash in Kurosawa's "Kairo". Mirrors, flight, a crack in the wall..the lady in red makes her presence known. I like how Kurosawa create's this depressing atmosphere, not unlike "Kairo", where the skies in Tokyo are mostly grey and sad. Kurosawa said in a Q&A session on the DVD I watched that he shot this film in Winter, and the film works, I think, because of that. While I did find it baffling at times, this film sure held me at it's grip and I found it quite challenging. The fate of Miyaji, and Yoshioki's reaction and response to his sins, only add to this film's strange aura.

I was fortunate enough to see this film at the Chicago International Film Festival last august. I am really fond of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's work (My favs are probably Doppelganger, Bright Future and Charisma). I did not know much about this film prior to seeing it other than it being the newest K. Kurosawa. I am not going to describe the film in that I wish not to ruin an aspect of it. What I will say is that I found it to be the best piece of work that K. Kurosawa has done to date. The film encompasses every area of cinema that K. Kurosawa has explored; from crime drama to j-horror. If you are fond of K. Kurosawa, you will absolutely enjoy this film and probably feel similar. Hope this was helpful, take care.

I saw this movie at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. The movie was announced as being "horror for those who did not like horror". I was afraid it would be a typical Japanese horror, with creepy sounds, dark colors and mean ghosts. Now, there was a ghost and annoying sounds (the title in Japanese means "the scream"). But there was more.The main character is a detective, who investigates murders in Tokyo. It seems like there is a serial killer out, because the murders have the same method of killing. But then he gets haunted by what seems to be the first victim.The movie evolves from solving a crime and catching a murderer to a search for mysterious connections. It may not all seem to make sense, there is an explanation in the end. Maybe not satisfying enough for some, but I don't think the explanation is the whole point of the movie.There remains a vibe of mystery. If you come in expecting a typical American horror, you surely will be disappointed. But if you like some dark, Japanese mystery, including some scares, you will certainly enjoy this one.