So creepy that it will make you hyperventilate to make sure you're alive, Kiyoshi Kurosawa's PULSE has the potential to damage your nervous system.
First unleashed upon Japanese audiences nearly five years ago, PULSE made its belated US theatrical bow in New York a couple of weeks ago (frightening otherwise hard-bitten critics), expanded to Los Angeles this past Friday, November 18, and will spread outward throughout the States in limited engagements for the next few weeks (playdates here) in advance of its release on R1 DVD, not to mention an American theatrical remake next spring. Even for those who've already seen the film on R2 or R3 DVD, this is definitely one to catch on the big screen.
Co-workers Michi (Kumiko Aso), Junko (Kurume Arisaka) and Yabe (Masatoshi Matsuo) worry about their friend Taguchi, who hasn't been seen in a week. Michi visits him at his apartment, where he unexpectedly commits suicide. Reviewing a disk Taguchi was compiling for a work project, Yabe discovers odd, disturbing photos of Taguchi, which baffle the friends.
University student Ryosuke (Haruhiko Kato) decides to join the Internet age, but when he signs on for the first time he's directed to a web site with odd, disturbing photos. When the site asks, "Would you like to meet a ghost?" Ryosuke is freaked out. It doesn't help when the computer powers up by itself during the night and returns to the apparently deranged site. Ryosuke receives help from Harue (Koyuki), a tutor in his school's computer lab, but even she cannot explain what happens next in his apartment.
From there things take a steady downward slide into horror. This is not a horror movie that goes "boo!" -- though there were a few moments that made me jump. Rather, Kurosawa creates an atmosphere of dread by tapping into the bone-aching despair borne from extreme alienation, isolation, and loneliness, emotions that can lead to suicide.
He achieves the effect by his use of barren city locations devoid of people (notice even the trips on public transportation); somber photography courtesy of Tsutomo Takano; and a piercing sound design. The latter element is a finely-tuned combination of Makio Ika's musical score, reminiscent at times of Bernard Hermann's attacking strings for Hitchcock, wailing female voices, and otherworldly sounds that scratch and irritate like nails on a blackboard.
PULSE strikes a distressingly familiar chord for anyone who's dealt with the loss of a friend or family member. And for anyone who's ever felt "hollow inside," as Pete Shelley once sang for the Buzzcocks, PULSE strikes disturbingly close to home. PULSE is not a feel good movie, but you will feel better once it's over because, after all, it's only a movie.
Trailer (choose high or low resolution streaming Flash or QuickTime).