UNEARTHLY TERROR The Unconventional Horror of Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Foreboding

Since first emerging on the Japanese horror scene in the 1980s, Kiyoshi Kurosawa has been an enduring name in film. While his style has evolved over the years, he has consistently created bold films and presented the unsettling side of genre – his early films such as The Excitement of the Do-Re-Mi-Fa Girl (1985) include arthouse sequences alongside explicit sexual content.

This defiance of convention continues into his work today, which blends distinct visuals and understated performances with his perspicuous brand of thriller. His latest film, Foreboding (2017) – a loose adaptation of a Tomohiro Maekawa stage play – depicts the period leading up to an alien invasion. This narrative formula may be oversold, but, here, it is reignited with Kurosawa’s filmmaking flair and ferocity.

Foreboding opens by introducing us to its two protagonists – Etsuko (Kaho), a seamstress, and