Thanks to all who participated in our Summer 2020 series! The discussion series is now concluded, but you can still watch the video-taped introductions by our film experts and the films on your own time. Throw a DIY watch party! For more information on the series: Virtual International Film Festival.
Video introduction by SHASS faculty for each film are available to the public. Links to the featured films are open to current MIT students, faculty and staff.
Introduction to the film
By Paul Roquet
Watch the film
Watch the film here: Creepy
About the film
Paul Roquet’s pick is: Creepy, directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa (2016).
A year after a botched hostage negotiation with a serial killer turned deadly, ex-detective Koichi (Hidetoshi Nishijima), and his wife move into a new house with a deeply strange new neighbor (Teruyuki Kagawa). His old cop colleagues come calling for his help on a mysterious case, which may be related to the strange goings-on next door, in this insidiously-constructed narrative that braids plot twists on top of plot twists and shock on top of shock. World premiere at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival.
“The movie is thoroughly and utterly creepy, partly because Mr. Kurosawa knows how to slither under your skin, but also because his movies transcend the classifications (and limits) valued by critics and content providers.” – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
“A slow-burning mystery that gets darker by the minute before reaching a lurid, queasy finale.” – Noel Murray, The Los Angeles Times
Country of Origin: Japan. Genre: Horror & Thriller. Detective.
Trigger Warning: this film has elements of horror and is definitively “creepy,” though it does not contain extreme violence.
Speakers
- Associate Professor of Media Studies and Japan Studies
Paul Roquet is Associate Professor of Media Studies and Japan Studies in MIT Comparative Media Studies/Writing. He is the author of Ambient Media (University of Minnesota Press, 2016). His classes at MIT include Digital Media in Japan and Korea, Cinema in Japan and Korea, and Introduction to Japanese Culture.