Ghost Theater review [LFF 2015]: “Has very little going for it”

Ghost Theater review: Watch a once loved, and very influential director fumble about in his career choices.

It’s frustrating and sad to watch a once loved, and very influential director fumble about in his career choices. Hideo Nakata was once a name that could be listed alongside fellow Japanese auteurs as Takashi Miike, Takeshi Kitano, Shion Sono, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Now he seems to be stuck making pale imitations of his own classic Ringu. After Ringu, Nakata managed to give us another fantastic Koji Suzuki adaptation in Dark Water, as well as the wonderful thriller Chaos. Now each decision seems worse than the last, culminating in the often unintentionally funny Ghost Theater.

With even the title seeming lazy, we find ourselves following young actress Sara (Haruka Shimizaki) as she becomes part of a new play. Unfortunately a possessed lifesized doll is also included in the production, and the doll’s jealousy soon turns to murderous intent. From there the film follows all the horror tropes, particularly the investigative elements that Nakata made famous himself.

The irritating thing is that such investigative elements are not needed here. In Ringu the power of the videotape was seemingly unstoppable. It was an incredible force that drove us into madness and fits of fear because it was so otherworldly. Once viewed you were already dead, but facing a time limit. It played into our fears of mortality and aging. Here, there’s a lifesize doll that comically chases people. This would be fine as a slasher, but the script is hooked on creating some grand mystery.

It would be fine if the film was consistent, but it even fails at following its own rules. At times the doll seems to possess those it chases, while other times characters just stand there in fear instead of running. In one very comical scene a whole room of characters stand still pulling contorted faces of fear instead of just running away. Very few times do characters take the initiative and push the flimsy looking antagonist over, and earlier scenes where violent kills are left to the imagination are undermined in the finale where we see the porcelain villain as weak and incompetent as any sane person would have imagined.

The majority of the performers have nothing much to do, which is a shame as there is a somewhat interesting plot of three actresses vying for the lead. Of course, this is a tale that is just as worn and tired as the rest of the tricks Ghost Theater has up its sleeves. Even reminded me of Showgirls at times. The only impression any actors made in this film was there scared face, a compilation of which would make a wonderful supercut online.

As infuriating at it may be, Ghost Theater does at least hint at the brilliance that once was. Certain scare scenes, as ludicrous and inconsistent as they may be, are very enjoyable to watch unfold. They do have a certain degree of tension, and earlier sequences, before too much is revealed, can be quite scary and powerful. This proves that Nakata’s strength lies in composing a scene, but that is absolutely worthless with the script he’s working on. Once again teaming up with screenwriters Jun’ya Kato and Ryuta Miyake, whom delivered the equally derivative and unimpressive The Complex, really does suggest that Nikata needs to find an original and well-scripted tale of horror.

Aside from a few visual treats and a competent lead actress in Shimizaki, Ghost Theater has very little going for it. The play within the film is more interesting than the film itself, and when an investigative horror is this bored itself, you must wonder about why it was even made. Once the creator of the doll shows up, he has no explanation for how the possession took place and when quizzed about the motive of the doll he simply answers “I don’t know, perhaps she’s…”, a very noncommittal line that I’m not glad to have stuck around for. I won’t be looking forward to Nikata’s future works, but I do cross my fingers that he can prove me wrong.

Ghost Theater review by Luke Ryan Baldock, October, 2015.

Ghost Theater screened at the BFI London Film Festival on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th October.