Kwaidan (1964)

VHS CASE/SIDE

Length of film:  183 Minutes (Edited 161 Minutes)

Rated: X

Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Horror

Director: Masaki Kobayashi

Starring: Rentarô Mikuni, Tatsuya Nakadai, Katsuo Nakamura, Tetsurō Tamba, Keiko Kishi, Michiyo Aratama, Takashi Shimura 

IMDB Rank: 7.9/10

***The VHS version splits at 86 minutes within the ‘Hoichi the Earless’ folktale. The run-times below are based on the official intermission following the second folktale story ‘The Woman of the Snow.’

***The United States release has a runtime of 125 minutes and can be viewed without an intermission. The difference between this version and the edited version is the removal of the ‘The Woman of the Snow’ folktale. Thus the United States version has only three folktales.

Part 1 Time:  82 Minutes (Edited: 74 Minutes)

Part 2 Time:  101 Minutes (Edited: 87 Minutes)

Where does the first part end? The conclusion of the second folktale story ‘The Woman of the Snow.’

Final line of dialogue on the first part: “If they ever have even the slightest reason to complain of you…I’ll treat you as you deserve.” Yuki-Onna (Keiko Kishi) states to Minokichi (Tatsuya Nakadai). 

First line of dialogue on the second part: Beginning of the ‘Hoichi the Earless’ folktale. Hoichi (Katsuo Nakamura) plays the biwa, while singing the chant of The Tale of the Heike. “I was early in the morning of March 24th in the second year of the Genryaku era.”

How jarring is it when the first part ends? Jarring, the ‘The Woman of the Snow’ folktale story concludes with a surprising ending, showing that you should always keep your promises, especially with ghosts.

Which part is better? This anthology film comprises four non related supernatural stories. Both parts include two stories exploring different moral themes. Each folktale has its redeeming qualities making this a difficult choice. Part one takes a more emotional route with its storytelling whereas part two is more shocking and dark. Part one, is given a tiny advantage due to ‘The Woman of the Snow’ folktale, which is by far the best of the four stories.

Academy Awards: 1966 Best Foreign Language Film (Nominated)