Kwaidan
Directed by Masaki Kobayashi • 1965 • Japan
Starring Rentaro Mikuni, Keiko Kishi, Katsuo Nakamura
After more than a decade of sober political dramas and socially minded period pieces, the great Japanese director Masaki Kobayashi shifted gears dramatically for this rapturously stylized quartet of ghost stories. Featuring colorfully surreal sets and luminous cinematography, these haunting tales of demonic comeuppance and spiritual trials, adapted from writer Lafcadio Hearn’s collections of Japanese folklore, are existentially frightening and meticulously crafted. This version of KWAIDAN is the original three-hour cut, never before released in the United States.
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Kwaidan
Directed by Masaki Kobayashi • 1965 • Japan
Starring Rentaro Mikuni, Keiko Kishi, Katsuo NakamuraAfter more than a decade of sober political dramas and socially minded period pieces, the great Japanese director Masaki Kobayashi shifted gears dramatically for this rapturously stylized quartet of...
Extras
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KWAIDAN Commentary
Recorded in 2015, this audio commentary features film scholar Stephen Prince, author of “The Warrior’s Camera.”
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Kiyoshi Ogasawara on KWAIDAN
In this interview, shot in 2015, KWAIDAN assistant director Kiyoshi Ogasawara discusses working with director Masaki Kobayashi and the original, 183-minute version of the film.
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Guillermo del Toro on KWAIDAN
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Lafcadio Hearn on KWAIDAN
In the nineteenth century, writer Lafcadio Hearn played a crucial role in popularizing Japanese folklore for Western audiences. Four of his stories provided the basis for Masaki Kobayashi’s KWAIDAN. In this piece, made in 2015, English literature scholar Christopher Benfey, editor of “Lafcadio He...
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KWAIDAN Black-and-White Trailer
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KWAIDAN Color Trailer 2
