Onibaba (1964)

Director:

Kaneto Shindô

Writer:

Kaneto Shindô (written by)

Release Date:

4 February 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

After being forcefully inducted as a soldier into war in 14th century Japan, his wife and mother remain living in a swamp...

Plot Keywords:

Japan | Mask | Samurai | Hut | Revenge

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Nobuko Otowa	...	Kichi's Mother
Jitsuko Yoshimura	...	Kichi's Wife
Kei Satô	...	Hachi
Jûkichi Uno	...	Samurai General
Taiji Tonoyama	...	Ushi
Senshô Matsumoto	...	Runaway Warrior A
Kentaro Kaji	...	Runaway Warrior B (as Kentarô Kaji)
Hosui Araya	...	Ushi's Follower
Fudeko Tanaka	...	Old Woman
Michinori Yoshida	...	Samurai with Blood
Hiroyoshi Yamaguchi	...	Horse Riding Samurai A
Hiroshi Tanaka	...	Horse Riding Samurai B
Kanzô Uni	...	Horse Riding Samurai C
Nobuko Shimakage	...	Child

Also Known As:

Devil Woman
The Demon
The Hole
The Ogress
The Witch
Gropen (Sweden) [sv]
Kobieta diabel (Poland) [pl]
La femme diabolique (Canada: French title) [fr]
Onibaba (Spain) [es]
Onibaba (Greece) [el]
Onibaba - Die Töterinnen (West Germany) [de]
Onibaba - tappajat (Finland) [fi]
Onibaba, el mito del sexo (Argentina) [es]

Runtime:

103 min | Argentina:105 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated | UK:15 (video rating, uncut) (1994) | UK:(Banned) (1965-1968) | UK:X (original rating, cut version) (1968)

Company:

Kindai Eiga Kyokai

Trivia:

The demon mask used in the movie inspired William Friedkin to use a similar design for the makeup in subliminal shots of a white-faced demon in The Exorcist (1973).

Quotes:

Woman: I'm not a demon! I'm a human being!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Atman (1975)

Highly recommended

In the 1400s raging wars between two emperors is being fought. This is not about the wars, but about the poor people struck by it. In a rural location camouflaged by a huge field of tall reeds are two huts. In one of them a young woman lives with her stepmother, her husband went to war. Having had failed crops three times that year they are stricken by poverty. The only way for them to survive is to steal, and the only things to steal are uniforms and swords from dead soldiers or heavily wounded soldiers and then sell them to the underworld. Which by the way is funny, I never thought of the underworld in rural medieval setting before.

This story is just as grim as the demon on the cover. The wind howling in the reeds make for very creepy atmosphere. The music consisting of drums and brassy wind instruments really intensifies the drama.

Just as in sand in Teshigaharas equally excellent 'Suna no Onna' serves as symbol, metaphor and is very important in creating atmosphere we have in 'Onibaba' the tall reeds.

The theme in this, the basic needs and emotions of people, will never be dated. The psychology is thick and real. They are victims of their leaders actions. With all the wars being fought today this is still happening today, please remember that.