Catching a Screening of 'Reiko'!

The "ghost helmet" from Reiko. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Sunday, May 14, I attended a screening of Reiko, the Psyche Resurrected (1991) in 35mm. It was my first time to see the film, so I was quite curious to see it. (I suppose it was one of the rare Toho tokusatsu films that I still hadn't seen.) 

Takao Okawara and Ken Osawa. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The guests of the event were the film's writer-director Takao Okawara, as well as actor Ken Osawa, who played Shiro Ogata. Osawa-san watched the film with the audience. After the film, the "ghost helmet" from the film's climax was also on display.

As for the film itself, I enjoyed it, although it was certainly not a major tokusatsu film. I actually knew very little of the movie going into it and wondered if it would be similar to Cross Fire (2000) and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was completely different. There are some nifty scenes, and one jump scare caused the person next to me to jump in his seat.

The inclusion of clips from Sayonara Jupiter (1984) was quite amusing. It sure made me wish I went to a high school where you could get to see screenings of movies like that!

I also got a definite "early '90s Toho" vibe from the film, so, if you enjoy Okawara-san's other works, you'd probably like this one.

Takao Okawara. Photo by Brett Homenick.

During his Q&A, director Okawara clarified that Reiko is not a horror film. He said that it was more like suspense or a supernatural drama. ("Supernatural" is my word for the Japanese he used.) In any case, I can see his point. While there are horror elements, and some of the visuals can get rather gruesome, it really isn't structured like a horror film intended to deliver scares to the audience. 

He also talked about wanting to use the explosion scene from Sayonara Jupiter in the background for the scene involving Reiko during the climax. Osawa-san said that he had seen and enjoyed The Imperial Navy (1981), on which Okawara-san had worked as an assistant director.

Okawara-san remembered me and our previous conversations about director Shiro Moritani and continued them. He also talked about his career as an assistant director, including The Longest Tunnel (1982), starring Ken Takakura and directed by Moritani. 

Okawara-san also spent a lot of time discussing cinematographer Daisaku Kimura and his shooting style with the other attendees. One attendee was surprised to hear Okawara-san reveal that a shot of a lake from a different movie was actually a composite shot, as he had never noticed that before. (I haven't seen that particular film, so I can't say.) 

And that's a wrap! It's always fun to get to spend time with Okawara-san and hear stories about Toho's past.