THE TALE OF OIWA'S GHOST (1961)
Label: Radiance
Region Code: A,B
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 94 Minutes
Audio: Japanese PCM 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.39:1)
Director: Tai Kato
Cast: Tomisaburo Wakayama, Ayuko Fujishiro, Atsushi Watanabe, Sentarô Fushimi, Jûshirô Konoe, Yumiko Mihara, Kikugorô Onoe, Hiroko Sakuramachi, Tosshô Sawamura
The Tale of Oiwa's Ghost (1961), directed Tai Kato (I, the Executioner), is one of over 30 adaptations of the ever-enduring Japanese ghost story Yotsuya Kaidan, a Onryō tale, that of a vengeful female spirit. We not that log ago reviewed an earlier adaptation, 1959's The Ghost of Yatsuya, which was part of Radiance's Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories box set, and which is now available as its own standalone. Anyway, back to this adaptation, in it we have a dishonorable ronin named Tamiya Iemon (Tomisaburo Wakayama, Big Time Gambling Boss) who is married to the very pleasant Oiwa (Yoshiko Fujishiro), but she comes from a poor family and he yearns for more power and prosperity. That opportunity arrives when he encounters Oume (Yumiko Mihara), the daughter of the wealthy Lord Ito, who she has fallen madly in love lemon. What transpires is a conspiracy to rid lemon of his wife, which involves poisoning her, which causes hideous boils, hair loss and deformation of her once pretty face, and then forcing his servant Takuetsu (Atsushi Watanabe, Bored Hatamoto: The Cave of the Vampire Bats) to seduce his wife, giving him cause to divorce her. Things don't go quite as planned, and OIwa ends up dying accidentally, with the diabolical lemon dumping her body in the swamp, telling everyone that she was an adulterer who ran off with her lover. lemon does indeed indeed marry Oume, but Oiwa's spirit is out for revenge, coming back to haunt her husband and the other conspirators on his wedding night, all find themselves frequented by her hideous visage. The first two thirds of this one is pretty heavy on the melodrama, it's setting up the entanglements before the ghost story proper kicks in, so expect a bit of a slow-burn going in, but does it ever pick up in the final third! Oiwa's agonizing poisoning and subsequent death is cruel and brutal, and her haunting afterward is hellbent and blood soaked, with plenty of phantasmagoric carnage.
While it does take a while to get going the finale more than makes up for it, its earned it, plus we get some really gorgeous shots of the nearby river and a mist-shrouded swamp at night where lemon and his diabolical pal ambush and murder Iwa's father, and that finale of lemon driven into a homicidal rage that is pretty breathtaking, offering some carnage filled swordplay that really takes this out on a high note. I thought that this was a terrific adaptation of a classic vengeful ghost story, it took a little bit to get going but once it builds up a head of steam that final third was pretty fantastic.
Audio/Video: The Blu-ray from Radiance looks terrific, we get a black and white image framed 2.39:1 widescreen, the source is clean and looks terrific, contrast and grayscale is strong throughout, grain appears filmic and unmolested by untoward digital tinkering. Audio comes by way of English PCM 2.0 dual-mono, the track is clean and free of his or distortion, a nicely crisp and well-balanced presentation.
Extras include a 9-min Introduction with Mari Asato as well as an additional 9-min Interview with Mari Asato (2025), plus a 7-min Visual Essay on tormented female ghosts by Lindsay Nelson (2025) that highlights the similar imagery used in several of the adaptations pointing out how the film was influential on the later j-horror films, including The Ring.
The single-disc release arrives in a clear, full-height keepcase with a Reversible Sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow, inside there's a 24-Page Limited Edition Booklet featuring new writing by Tom Mes, plus cast and crew credits and notes about the transfer.
Special Features:
- Introduction with Mari Asato (9:19)
- Interview with Mari Asato (2025) (9:00)
- Visual essay on tormented female ghosts by Lindsay Nelson (2025) (6:57)
- Reversible Sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Time Tomorrow
- 24-Page Limited Edition Booklet featuring new writing by Tom Mes
Buy it!
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