Reincarnation (film)

Synopsis

Professor Norihasa Omori (Atsushi Haruta) visits a local hotel and films himself killing eleven of the hotel guests, employees, his own children before committing suicide, all as part of his wish to understand reincarnation. Since then, the footage of the murders disappears. Thirty-five years later, horror movie director Ikuo Matsumura (Kippei Shiina) decides to make a film about the massacre. As the date of the shoot draws near, Nagisa Sugiura (Yūka), the actress who is set to star as Omori's daughter Chisato (Mao Sasaki), is haunted by the ghosts of the victims. She begins hallucinating and is plagued by nightmares of the killings.

Yayoi Kinoshita (Karina Nose) wakes up in the middle of a psychology class, in which the professor publicly opposes the ideas of reincarnation and cryptomnesia. She decides to write an essay supporting cryptomnesia and meets Yuka Morita (Marika Matsumoto), an actress who auditioned for Ikuo's movie. Yuka says she remembers things in a "past life" of hers and shows Yayoi a birthmark that would appear to be evidence of strangulation, which reveals that she has the same vision as Nagisa." Yayoi and Yuka check out the college library, but mysterious forces drag Yuka away.

Meanwhile, Nagisa begins to believe that she is the reincarnation of Chisato Omori. However, during another hallucination, she discovers Yayoi in the cubby where the little girl was slain. Realizing that she is not the real reincarnation of Chisato, Nagisa witnesses the actors (who are appearing as their reincarnations, which they are to portray) being drawn back to the places where they died. With all the victims walking towards her, Nagisa becomes aware of the truth: she is the reincarnation of the homicidal professor. Pursued by the ghosts, Nagisa is forced to reenact the professor's suicide, but survives.

Sometime later, in a mental ward, Nagisa - bound in a full-body wrap - is still haunted by the souls of Omori's children. Ayumi Omori (Miki Sanjo), the professor's wife, gives Nagisa her children's favourite toys (which is a ball and a doll). Nagisa screams as they are shoved into her solitary confinement cell, but calms down with a sinister smile on her face as the ghosts of the children close in on her.

Cast

Release

The film was released as part of producer Takashige Ichise's J-Horror Theater series along with Infection, Premonition, and Retribution, among others.

Reincarnation premiered at the 18th Tokyo International Film Festival on October 27, 2005. It was theatrically released in the United States as one of the eight films in the nationwide film festival After Dark Horrorfest, which ran November 17 through 21, 2006.