6 months ago 14th May 09:31
Masayuki Ochiai previously directed Infection and Hypnosis. Shutter marks his directing debut on an American film.
The director sat down for the following interview in Los Angeles.
It is about the idea that if people do something wrong or bad, they cannot escape from their action or get away with it.
It tells the story of Ben and Jane, a young newly married couple who are in Tokyo. Jane is young and pure and innocent with a lot of hope for the future. Ben, who is a very talented photographer, has an assignment in Tokyo so they view the trip as a kind of honeymoon. Jane expects Japan to be a romantic experience. It does not turn out that way though. It turns out to be a horror story. The story goes on from there.
We wanted Americans coming to Japan because that creates an element of mystery right from the start, as the country is strange to them. They are in a kind of ‘twilight zone’. The story is told through the eyes of Jane. Because they are foreigners, that adds to the tension and sense of isolation and gives the film another dimension.
It is a deep, multi-layered horror story with many perplexing questions. The couple finds their photos have ghostly auras or images. But why are these images appearing? Who is haunting them and what does she want?
It also worked having the film in Japan because in the Asian culture, people who are haunted have always done something bad or wrong. That is why they are followed by an evil spirit (and that is part of the story in this movie). But in America and the West, there is a different depiction of ghosts and spirits.
The original Thai movie was really well made with a very interesting structure, I loved it. It is not just about ghosts.
The story has a plot with great twists and suspense. And that is what attracted me to the film in the first place. The difference with this one is that the original was made for the Asian market. This version aims to appeal to the international market and I had to keep that in mind. It could not have just an Asian sensitivity but had to appeal to a broader audience. So there are some subtle differences.
We see a lot of spirit photographs in Japan. They are everywhere. People are very interested in the subject.
They learn about it as children and usually children are afraid of the spirits. By adulthood, people have often overcome that fear but are still fascinated and really believe that this is a genuine, inexplicable, supernatural phenomenon.
Most people believe that we see the world as the brain processes it, that we see everything through images our eyes can actually see but that is very limited because we don’t know everything about the functions of the brain.
In Asia, we are interested in what we cannot see with our eyes but could still exist, such as ghosts. In the film we use spirit photography so that the audience can ask, is this just in Ben’s mind or is there really a ghost haunting him?
Both stars were perfectly cast in the their roles. Rachael’s pureness and freshness was perfect for Jane, who starts out with an innocence, which works well in this world, which deals with the paranormal. Rachael was very naturalistic and her characterization was wonderful.
During the course of the film, her character grows up and learns a lot. Joshua was great too. He has a lot of depth, which he used to portray this man who has a deep secret, actually layers and layers of secrets.
Joshua was very skilled at starting out the film one way and then revealing more and more about his dark side who he really is. The characters are newly married and even when things start to go very wrong, they try to keep the air of romance.
They try to be positive and both actors conveyed that effectively. One of the important things that I wanted them both to do was to keep a positive thread throughout the film, even though dark things are happening that are very frightening, we did not want to make it too negative.
Before I started shooting, I was having nightmares and was in a ‘twilight zone’ myself worrying about working with English-speaking actors and dealing with English dialogue. (he laughs) But once we started shooting, the communication was actually good between us and we had a very capable interpreter.
To be honest, there were many times when I suddenly realized I was making a movie in English and I would think to myself: ‘Oh God, what am I doing here?’ But we found a way to connect with each other. Also, I did speak a little English, I actually had an English teacher while I was shooting the film and I am continuing to learn the language. I am very excited and inspired about working in different environments, not just American movies but other non-Japanese films.
I love horror films and there is a big demand for this genre I think because people are so stressed in their normal lives and they can relieve this stress with another form of stress by watching these films. (he laughs) It is the same idea as going on a rollercoaster ride. So I will keep on doing these movies but I would like to do other films too. I have directed dramas for Japanese TV. And I would like to romantic comedies sometime.
I think humans do gravitate towards fear, particularly other peoples’ fear. They don’t want bad things to happen to them.
I read an interesting book recently, explaining how a monkey stood on two feet for a long time (that is not usual for monkeys) but this monkey was watching a weak animal being attacked and the monkey was so riveted that it stayed upright to watch the drama.
So I think the same applies to humans. We just find that kind of thing strangely fascinating. In horror films, you watch terrible things escalating as the story progresses and you find that audiences want more and more because it is not happening to them.
If you think about it, people do not want to fight in wars or survive earthquakes but they want to know what the experience would feel like. They want to imagine it and they get all that from movies. It is human nature.
In Japan, people believe that everything, even a tiny little bug has a spirit or a soul. We tell children: ‘if you do something horrible to a dog, that dog will come back to haunt you.’ It is a kind of discipline. So the idea of spirits is used to raise children. Ghosts and spirits are embedded in Japanese culture.
Well interestingly, it is ironic that I have been most influenced by a film that is not Asian. It was The Exorcist. I loved that film.
I don’t think Asian directors are necessarily better at making these films at all but the way they see ghosts and spirits is just different from Western perceptions. American ghosts wreak havoc and destruction. They might destroy houses but Asian ghosts are very quiet.
Just by their very presence, just by being there, Japanese ghosts are scary. They often don’t have legs, they are floating in the air and people find them frightening. Perhaps that sensitivity is appealing to audiences who are used to the traditional Western ghosts who cause chaos.
Beauty, the distinctly visual aspect of the film, is very important for me. When I started directing films more than ten years ago, there were not many Japanese directors paying the kind of attention that I like towards fine visual details such as using elements as color.
Color is extremely important to me, natural color and lighting. In one of my films, Infection, set in a hospital, everyone was wearing white coats so I used grayish white, yellowish white and bluish white.
These were subtle differences and variations on the pure white. I think those things have a huge impact on the atmosphere and quality of a film. I am very detail minded.
I am in between, I want to believe in ghosts. Ghosts might be just in our mind but could be real. I definitely want to become a ghost after I die!
Shutter is released 16th May
Your Comments:
Be the first to comment!