The Great Yokai War DVD R1

Jenkkilevy ja vaatii aluevapaan soittimen.

Best known for grisly, intriguing horror epics and ultra-violent crime pix, Japanese director Takashi Miike has lately been making high-budget fantasies aimed at the family market. Not unlike American directors obsessed with earlier genres and styles, Miike turned to 70's superhero worship for his 2004 film Zebraman, about a middle-aged comic fan that 'revives' the hero of a cancelled TV show from the past.

The Great Yokai War is a titular remake of a 1968 fantasy about Yokai: Traditional Japanese spirit creatures that can resemble people, monsters and even inanimate objects. Yokai can be scary or cute, but they're basically good. Normally invisible, the Yokai correlate roughly to our poltergeists, except they're not ghosts and they don't want to haunt anybody. When Yokai get together, their main intention seems to be to have a good time. The successful Anime feature Spirited Away is packed with dozens of Yokai characters.

Miike's film is too intense for small children -- it has some very disturbing imagery. But it's a highly entertaining, thick slice of Japanese pop traditions, bursting with fantastic visuals and amusing characters.