Premonition (2004 film)
| Premonition | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Norio Tsuruta |
| Written by | Norio Tsuruta |
| Starring |
Hiroshi Mikami Noriko Sakai |
| Release dates |
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| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Premonition (予言 Yogen) is a 2004 Japanese horror film directed by Tsuruta Norio. Yogen is based on the manga Kyoufu Shinbun ("Newspaper of Terror") by Jiro Tsunoda, published in "Shonen Champion" in 1973.[citation needed]
Plot
On a country road, Hideki tells his wife Ayaka that he needs to use a payphone. While his wife chats happily with their five-year-old daughter Nana in the car, he's fiddling with his laptop in the phone booth when a newspaper page flutters near him. He notices a photo on the front page, which shows Nana. Intrigued, he reads the article that says his daughter was killed at 8:00 PM. He glances at his wristwatch—it's almost 8:00 PM. He looks at his car. His wife climbs out of the car, calling out that she couldn't unlock their daughter's seat belt. As his wife takes another step towards him, a truck smashes into the car behind her, killing Nana. While the emergency servies and police swarm around the accident site, Hideki looks around for the newspaper page as Ayaka tearfully tries to stop him.
Three years later, Ayaka has long since divorced with Hideki. Ayaka meets a psychic to learn more about "the Newspaper of Terror". The psychic shows fear and hesitation before admitting a lawyer had contacted her about the newspaper, but disappeared shortly after. After the interview, Ayaka receives a phone call from the psychic, who warns her that Ayaka can no longer escape "it". Ayaka rushes to the psychic's house, and finds a library of journals and photos of the foreshadowing newspapers. Ayaka searches the house, and finds the psychic face-down, surrounded by more polaroids with one gripped in her hand. Ayaka tries to shake her to awake but realises she's dead. She pries the photo from the dead woman's hand and stares in shock. She calls Hideki, whom she divorced a couple years before, to meet with him, but he refuses to meet with her as he frantically believes she'll call him insane again.
As Hideki hangs up, a newspaper page slaps against his window. The article reveals that one of his students will be the latest victim of a serial killing that has been plaguing the city. Hideki rushes to save his student, but finds that he is too late. Hideki meets Ayaka the next morning, and they agree to team up to investigate the Newspaper of Terror and find a way to stop the madness.
Hideki admits he's been receiving premonitions, which increasingly frightens him. Ayaka takes Hideki to the house of Rei Kigata, whom she heard has been researching the Newspaper of Terror in the following years. When they arrive at the house, they find it abandoned with dust everywhere. In one room, they find a large stone water basin with shreds of paper on the floor. Some paper walls are written or partly burnt. They find and watch videotapes Kigata used to record his paranormal experiences.
In the first video, made 12 years before, Kigata states that he "received" a message about a family dying in a gas explosion, which prompted him to warn the family. Newspapers next day didn't mention an explosion. Kigata then wonders the strange grey marks on his arms were the price for changing the future. He'll continue to record what happens to him. In the last video, marked "number 32", Kigata, covered entirely in dark grey, simply waves despondently at the camera, and wanders out of the room. Hideki and Ayaka leave the room in Kigata's direction and in the next room, they find a figure-shaped ash shadow across a wall and floor—they realize that Kigata had literally turned to dust.
As his premonitions become more frequent, Hideki wonders if he should warn the potential victims. Ayaka begs him not to as she doesn't want him to suffer Kigata's fate. She admits the truth to why she researched the Newspaper of Terror. They affirm their feelings for each other, reconcile their long lost love, and then finally agree to continue investigating.
At end of her working day, Ayaka's car refuses to start, which prompts her to take a ride in the subway train with her colleague Misato. As she leaves the car, she doesn't realize she's left her mobile phone on the passenger seat. At the apartment, Hideki receives another newspaper front page, revealing a massive subway train derailment that will take 100 lives, and Ayaka is among the dead. Hideki calls her cell, which goes unanswered. He rushes to the train station and yanks Ayaka out of the train before the doors close. He hasn't the time to reach for Misato and he couldn't stop the train either. Hideki and Ayaka watches in despair as the train derails. At Misato's funeral, her mother mentions her daughter's face was torn off during the train accident.
Hideki and Ayaka decide to move in together again. While packing, she notices dark grey marks on Hideki's arm. While sleeping, Hideki is haunted by the ghosts of people killed in accidents as predicted by the Newspaper of Terror. Soon, he faces his worst nightmare he had 3 years ago: reliving the event that ends with his daughter Nana's death. His desperate desire to save Nana has him trying to manipulate the accident repeatedly until he figures out a way. He successfully unlocks Nana's seatbelt and pushes her out to Ayaka, and stays in Nana's place as a runaway truck hits the car. With Nana lying in daze nearby, Ayaka screams at the burning car with her husband stuck inside. Nana glances up as a newspaper page floats through the air. As it lands on the ground, we see a photo of Hideki on the front page.
Cast
- Hiroshi Mikami - Hideki Satomi
- Noriko Sakai - Ayaka Satomi
- Hana Inoue - Nana Satomi
- Maki Horikita - Sayuri Wakakubo
- Mayumi Ono - Misato Miyamoto
- Kei Yamamoto - Rei Kigata
- Kazuko Yoshiyuki - Satoko Mikoshiba
Release
The film was released as part of producer Takashige Ichise's J-Horror Theater series along with Infection, Reincarnation, and Retribution, among others.[1]
See also
- Premonition (2007 film) - a U.S. remake of the film
References
- ↑ Logboy (August 18, 2006). "Reminder : 'Reincarnation' Uncut R2 UK DVD August 21st 2006.". Twitch Film.
External links
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- Premonition at the Japanese Movie Database (Japanese)
- Premonition at the Internet Movie Database
- Premonition at allmovie
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