"Real" Japanese Theatrical Poster
Kiyoshi Kurosawa was once one of the foremost genre filmmakers in Japan, thanks to his unique brand of unsettling horror as witnessed in films like Kairo (AKA Pulse) and Curse. To this day, Kairo remains arguably the finest example of ‘J-horror.’ In 2008, Kurosawa took a break from scaring audiences with the acclaimed drama Tokyo Sonata, which even won accolades at Cannes.
After that Kurosawa dabbled in the world of Japanese television to direct the 5-episode mini-series Penance, which would explain why we haven’t heard from the director in North America for awhile. That changes with the impending release of Real. While this film isn’t a return to horror for Kurosawa, the film appears to be a psychologically gripping, sci-fi influenced story.
In Real, a young woman is sent into a coma after a failed suicide attempt. Her devoted boyfriend utilizes an experimental form of technology to dive into her comatose mind and try to uncover the reasons for her depression, which stem from an event during childhood. Could this be Inception by way of The Cell, with a uniquely Kiyoshi Kurosawa twist?
Check out the first trailer for Real here. The film is slated for theatrical release in Japan on June 1st, 2013.
