Fantasia 2026: The Mouths

‘The Mouths’ Review: Takashi Shimizu’s Cursed Tree Horror Stumbles at the Finish

Director Takashi Shimizu’s latest, The Mouths, has a pretty straightforward premise: what if an enormous, threatening tree at the edge of a cemetery contained a killer curse? Touch it, make a wish, and let the horror begin. As fans of Shimizu’s work know, it’s never quite so straightforward. The Japanese director, best known for the Ju-on films, delights in non-linear narratives and haunting specters. In this capacity, The Mouths more or less ad…

Fantasia 2026 Review: VILLAGE OF EIGHT GRAVESTONES, Takashi Shimizu Proves Traditional Murder Mysteries Are Better With Ghosts

When Tatsuya’s estranged mom suddenly passes away, he is forced to head out to her old, isolated village and meet the family he has never known, the Tajimi Family. On the way there, he bumps into private detective Kosuke Kindaichi, who reveals he was actually hired by the mysterious family to track Tatsuya down. But it is definitely not a warm welcome. Once he arrives, Tatsuya finds out he is the unexpected heir to the Tajimi family line. Turns …

See No Evil, Hear No Evil… Where’s The Wisdom The Mouths Have To Speak Anyway?

Takashi Shimizu’s The Mouths transforms a cemetery legend into a nightmare involving a cursed tree, cicadas, and a ghoul? Spoiler Alert. You have been warned:

The Mouths (Fantasia International Film Festival 2026 Review)

In 2002, Takashi Shimizu helped shape modern J-horror with Ju-on: The Grudge. After the massive success of The Grudge, he continued exploring the genre with films such as Marebito, Reincarnation, Howling Village, and Suicide Forest Village. In his best work, a ghost doesn’t have to rush at the camera to be scary; sometimes, it just needs to sit in the wrong corner or show up where you least expect it. The Mouths returns Shimizu to this familiar …

The Mouths (口に関するアンケート, Takashi Shimizu, 2026)

“Do you think the mouth is the source of the trouble?”  A survey asks at the end of Takashi Shimizu’s haunting horror, The Mouths (口に関するアンケート, Kuchi ni Kansuru Anketo). Assuming for the moment that we’re talking about the human mouth, they can indeed get you into a lot of trouble, but at the same time that trouble starts somewhere much deeper down, so perhaps it isn’t really the mouth that’s to blame either, rather its owner who unwisely chose t…

The Mouths (Fantasia International Film Festival 2026) - A Waking Nightmare

Takashi Shimizu is showing two of his films at Fantasia International Film Festival this year as the iconic Ju-On director is honoured with the Cheval Noir…