IMPRINT

The American Christopher returns to Japan after many years of exile to reunite with his beloved Komomo, a prostitute to whom he had promised eternal love. Komomo, however, is dead, and it will be another prostitute, with her face horribly disfigured, with whom Christopher has chosen to entertain himself, who will tell her story. "Masters of Horror" is a unique project born from the mind of Mick Garris, a director known in the horror realm especially for the adaptations of Stephen King's novels. Garris thought of gathering the most representative horror film directors in a project destined for cable TV Showtime and home video, the result being "Masters of Horror", a series of 13 half-hour films of 60 minutes each, each directed by a great name in the genre; each episode has a budget of 1.8 million dollars, the location set in the Canadian city of Vancouver, and total creative freedom was granted to each director. The names involved in the project are: Don Coscarelli, Tobe Hooper, Dario Argento, Lucky McKee, Stuart Gordon, Joe Dante, John McNaughton, Larry Cohen, Takashi Miike, John Carpenter, William Malone, John Landis, and Mick Garris himself. Based on the story "Bokkee Kyoutee" by writer Shimako Iwai (who also acts in the film), "Imprint" is the thirteenth and final episode of the first season of "Masters of Horror", as well as the most controversial. In fact, the work signed by Takashi Miike in the USA had some problems for broadcasting and, despite the "Masters of Horror" operation having set itself the obligation to leave maximum creative freedom to the authors and not to carry out censorship, the episode directed by Miike is the only one that did not find visibility on cable TV Showtime, for which "Masters of Horror" was produced. But why did "Imprint" scare those at Showtime and the mind behind the entire project, Mick Garris? Simple: "Imprint" is a punch in the stomach, period! The splendid photography of Toyomichi Kurita, the suggestive natural sets of a land almost like a fairy tale, the ethereal beauty of the prostitutes who crowd the brothel where the film takes place, all these elements, so delicate and soft, serve as an antithesis to the horror that lurks behind any corner. A physical, carnal horror, supported by human suffering. The fetuses that, torn from the uteruses of the parturients, are thrown into the river; the violence and rape of which the disfigured prostitute was a victim when she was only a child; the terrible and indescribable torture to which Komomo is subjected for having stolen a jewel; the meanness of the human soul that materializes in the form of obscene strident protuberances not far from the mutant horrors of a Cronenberg of yesteryear. "Imprint" is all this: it is poetry but it is also horror, a horror never suggested, but served to the viewer on the proverbial silver platter. The central theme of the entire half-hour film is the search for truth, which drives the protagonist to want to know anything that can give him a minimum of hope to be able to embrace his beloved again, a truth that, however, will turn into an introspective look at the violence perpetrated and the most hidden guilt. The ending, deliberately ambiguous and contradictory, leaves the viewer with a sense of disorientation, now a characteristic of so many works of the Japanese director. In the role of the protagonist Christopher, we find an excellent - and perfect for the role - Billy Drago ("The Untouchables"; "The Hills Have Eyes"), now perfectly entered into the world of horror film character actors. Miike's direction is, as usual, impeccable and in this case, more than in others, very inspired. In conclusion, "Imprint" presents itself as one of the most beautiful and successful episodes of the first season of "Masters of Horror", capable of fascinating but also disgusting the viewer, subjected to a real psychological challenge. A must-see.