It has been a while since Ju-On, Marebito and The Grudge director Shimizu Takashi has managed to make much of an impact with international audiences but for those of us who remember the raw power and impact of his early work there is a continuing hope that he may yet have a little bit left in the tank. Will Little Nightmares be the film to vault Shimizu back on to the international horror A list? Realistically, probably not given how rooted in a specifically Japanese pop culture aesthetic quite a lot of this imagery seems but there's quite a lot here to like for fans.
With a story line that reads something like the bastard child of The Ring and The Pied Piper, Little Nightmares is set in a small town where children have been vanishing with the adults around the missing children dying suspiciously three days after the disappearance and an investigation into the disappearances falling to a newspaper reporter and preschool worker.
There are no English subtitels available just yet but the first teaser has arrived and you can take a look below. Yep, expect every unused Toshio scare from the Ju-On franchise to play out times ten here.