Tomie (Rio Matsumoto) is the new girl at school. She is almost instantly resented by her female classmates due to her promiscuous ways and they proceed to bully her. Before long, Tomie casts a supernatural hold over the entire class and soon has them under her thumb. One of her classmates, Reiko (Asami Imajuku) befriends and even defends Tomie but she soon learns her new friend isn’t quite human.
I never saw the original Tomie. This one is the fifth in the series, and if you couldn’t tell by the title, it’s an origin story. That’s about as good of a place to start, I guess.
Although I am not exactly a fan of “J-Horror”, I have to admit, Tomie: Beginning had a few gnarly scenes. One squirmy moment finds Tomie feeding her bullies cockroaches and maggots. There’s also a memorable ear hacking, and the accompanying geyser of blood is so extreme that it would look right at home in a samurai movie. And that’s not even mentioning all the heart ripping and eviscerations.
I liked the way director Ataru Oikawa (who also directed the original) slowly doled out the supernatural elements. Some of these freaky moments work. (Like the ear that becomes a crab, in a scene reminiscent of The Thing.) Some of it doesn’t. (What is the deal with Japanese horror movies and hair? Hair isn’t scary in any language.) Still, I was surprised how effective the majority of the shocks were.
Since I’m not familiar with the original, I can’t exactly say if this one lines up with the first one or how it stacks up to the sequels. All I can say is that as its own self-contained horror flick, it works. The plotline doesn’t follow a typical horror trajectory, and because of that, there are a few surprises in store. (Then again, maybe not for someone who’s more familiar with the series). I will say the movie zigs when you think it’s gonna zag, and really pulls out all the stops when it comes to the gruesome stuff.
I dug it.
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