Katasumi and 4444444444
Encyclopedia
Katasumi and 4444444444 ' onMouseout='HidePop("45734")' href="/topics/English_language">en:
Ten Fours) are two 1998 Japanese horror short films directed by Takashi Shimizu
, related to the Ju-on
series.
, who was teaching a filmmaking class that Shimizu, then working as an assistant director, attended, was impressed by a three-minute short film Shimizu had written and directed.
When Kurosawa learned that a producer he knew had just commissioned a feature length horror film for Kansai Telecasting Corporation
, he recommended Shimizu for the job of directing one or more sections of the film. To complete this task, Shimizu wrote several scripts, each roughly thirty minutes in length, only to be asked to make two brief three minute segments (Katasumi and 4444444444), as the television movie
was intended to be an anthology
of short films. After being edited together, the collection of four shorts (one of which was helmed by Kurosawa) was titled Gakkô no kaidan G, which roughly translates to School Ghost Story G ("G" supposedly standing for "Great"). It was first broadcast on Kansai TV on September 27, 1998, and ran for around 70 minutes, meaning that Shimizu contributed to just under 10 percent of the finished product.
While it is often claimed that the subsequent feature length video films Ju-on and Ju-on 2
are remake
s of Katasumi and 4444444444, the two segments "are actually the foundations of Ju-on", according to Shimizu, and act "almost like the true prequel
of the story." Katasumi, in particular, is notable for marking the first appearance of actress Takako Fuji
(at this point anonymous) as Kayako Saeki
, a role that she would reprise for every Ju-on-related production thereafter, up to The Grudge 2
.
s. They are sweeping out the cages and feeding the animals when Kanna cuts her hand, and Hisayo leaves her to go into the school and fetch a bandage.
When she returns, Kanna is nowhere to be found. The rabbit cages are empty, and bits of blood and fur are strewn about. Hisayo then sees something that looks like a crawling woman (Kayako) begin to move towards her from the far side of the backyard. As she backs into a corner, she finds the body of Kanna amongst the debris from the damaged rabbit cages. She holds a trowel up defensively in front of herself while Kayako closes in upon her. Kanna then moves her bloody head, and looks on as the frightened Hisayo cowers in the corner and waits. The screen fades to black.
4444444444 opens with a young man (revealed to be named Tsuyoshi in the first Ju-On film) riding his bicycle home. As he rounds a corner in front of an apparently abandoned building, he begins to hear a cell phone ringing, though he cannot see it. He hunts through a garbage pile next to the darkened entrance to the building, finding the phone after several rings. Upon closer examination, the phone is displaying an incoming call from the number 4444444444 (the numeral "4" is symbolic of bad luck in many Asian cultures, a phenomenon that is known as tetraphobia
.). Tsuyoshi answers the phone to hear rasping, cat-like sounds issue from the earpiece. After unsuccessfully attempting to communicate with the unknown caller, he hangs up.
Seconds later, the phone rings again, and again he answers. Tsuyoshi is getting frustrated at this point, and begins to look a little worried, as though someone might be playing a joke on him. As he sits on the steps in front of the deserted building, he continues to try to identify the caller. Looking around nervously, he asks, "Are you... Watching me?" Suddenly, a voice replies, "I am," though it does not come from the phone. Tsuyoshi turns slowly to see a pale boy (Toshio) beside him, drumming white fingers on his knees. Tsuyoshi looks startled, and the camera lingers on Toshio for a moment before zooming in quickly while he opens his mouth in a cat-like scream as a black substance drips from it.
director's cut
DVD of The Grudge
. On this DVD, the short film Katasumi is retitled In a Corner.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
Ten Fours) are two 1998 Japanese horror short films directed by Takashi Shimizu
Takashi Shimizu
Takashi Shimizu is a Japanese film director, best known for the Ju-on series of horror films.-Filmography:...
, related to the Ju-on
Ju-on
is the title of a series of horror films by Japanese director Takashi Shimizu. Shimizu attended the Film School of Tokyo, where he studied under Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Kurosawa helped Shimizu shepherd the Ju-on projects to fruition.-History:...
series.
Creation of the Ju-on series
Takashi Shimizu first became involved with the Ju-on saga when writer and director Kiyoshi KurosawaKiyoshi Kurosawa
is a Japanese filmmaker. He is best known for his many contributions to the Japanese horror genre.-Biography:Born in Kobe on July 19, 1955, Kiyoshi Kurosawa is not related to director Akira Kurosawa...
, who was teaching a filmmaking class that Shimizu, then working as an assistant director, attended, was impressed by a three-minute short film Shimizu had written and directed.
When Kurosawa learned that a producer he knew had just commissioned a feature length horror film for Kansai Telecasting Corporation
Kansai Telecasting Corporation
, often called or , is a TV station affiliated with Fuji News Network and Fuji Network System in Osaka, serving the Kansai region of Japan...
, he recommended Shimizu for the job of directing one or more sections of the film. To complete this task, Shimizu wrote several scripts, each roughly thirty minutes in length, only to be asked to make two brief three minute segments (Katasumi and 4444444444), as the television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
was intended to be an anthology
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
of short films. After being edited together, the collection of four shorts (one of which was helmed by Kurosawa) was titled Gakkô no kaidan G, which roughly translates to School Ghost Story G ("G" supposedly standing for "Great"). It was first broadcast on Kansai TV on September 27, 1998, and ran for around 70 minutes, meaning that Shimizu contributed to just under 10 percent of the finished product.
While it is often claimed that the subsequent feature length video films Ju-on and Ju-on 2
Ju-on 2
Ju-on 2 is the second film in the Japanese Ju-on series. The film was released in Japan on March 25, 2000 and was later released onto video on April 14, 2000....
are remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
s of Katasumi and 4444444444, the two segments "are actually the foundations of Ju-on", according to Shimizu, and act "almost like the true prequel
Prequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
of the story." Katasumi, in particular, is notable for marking the first appearance of actress Takako Fuji
Takako Fuji
is a Japanese actress and seiyū with strong ties to theatre.-Biography:A native of Tokyo, Honshū Island, Japan who was born there in 1972, Fuji studied acting at the Aoyama Gakuin University, and subsequently joined the Ein Theatrical Company. Her work was usually on-stage or in voice-over studios,...
(at this point anonymous) as Kayako Saeki
Kayako Saeki
Kayako Saeki is a fictional character from the Ju-on series of Japanese-horror movies and The Grudge trilogy of American remakes. In all of the films, except for the third, she is played by actress Takako Fuji. In The Grudge 3, Kayako is played by Aiko Horiuchi, Fuji having turned down the role...
, a role that she would reprise for every Ju-on-related production thereafter, up to The Grudge 2
The Grudge 2
The Grudge 2 is the 2006 sequel to the 2004 American horror film remake The Grudge. The Grudge 2 is the second film in Sony's The Grudge series and is directed by Takashi Shimizu and written by Stephen Susco. The film is produced by Sam Raimi and stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Amber Tamblyn, Arielle...
.
Plots
Katasumi begins with two Japanese schoolgirls (revealed to be Kanna and Hisayo in the first Ju-On film) who are caring for their school's rabbitRabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
s. They are sweeping out the cages and feeding the animals when Kanna cuts her hand, and Hisayo leaves her to go into the school and fetch a bandage.
When she returns, Kanna is nowhere to be found. The rabbit cages are empty, and bits of blood and fur are strewn about. Hisayo then sees something that looks like a crawling woman (Kayako) begin to move towards her from the far side of the backyard. As she backs into a corner, she finds the body of Kanna amongst the debris from the damaged rabbit cages. She holds a trowel up defensively in front of herself while Kayako closes in upon her. Kanna then moves her bloody head, and looks on as the frightened Hisayo cowers in the corner and waits. The screen fades to black.
4444444444 opens with a young man (revealed to be named Tsuyoshi in the first Ju-On film) riding his bicycle home. As he rounds a corner in front of an apparently abandoned building, he begins to hear a cell phone ringing, though he cannot see it. He hunts through a garbage pile next to the darkened entrance to the building, finding the phone after several rings. Upon closer examination, the phone is displaying an incoming call from the number 4444444444 (the numeral "4" is symbolic of bad luck in many Asian cultures, a phenomenon that is known as tetraphobia
Tetraphobia
Tetraphobia is an aversion to or fear of the number . It is a superstition most common in East Asian regions such as Mainland China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and Vietnam....
.). Tsuyoshi answers the phone to hear rasping, cat-like sounds issue from the earpiece. After unsuccessfully attempting to communicate with the unknown caller, he hangs up.
Seconds later, the phone rings again, and again he answers. Tsuyoshi is getting frustrated at this point, and begins to look a little worried, as though someone might be playing a joke on him. As he sits on the steps in front of the deserted building, he continues to try to identify the caller. Looking around nervously, he asks, "Are you... Watching me?" Suddenly, a voice replies, "I am," though it does not come from the phone. Tsuyoshi turns slowly to see a pale boy (Toshio) beside him, drumming white fingers on his knees. Tsuyoshi looks startled, and the camera lingers on Toshio for a moment before zooming in quickly while he opens his mouth in a cat-like scream as a black substance drips from it.
US release
On May 17, 2005, Katasumi and 4444444444 were both released in the US for the first time, appearing as additional features on the unratedMPAA film rating system
The Motion Picture Association of America's film-rating system is used in the U.S. and its territories to rate a film's thematic and content suitability for certain audiences. The MPAA system applies only to motion pictures that are submitted for rating. Other media may be rated by other entities...
director's cut
Director's cut
A director's cut is a specially edited version of a film, and less often TV series, music video, commercials, comic book or video games, that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit...
DVD of The Grudge
The Grudge
The Grudge is the 2004 American remake of the Japanese film Ju-on: The Grudge, and the first horror film in the Ju-on series, Ju-on 1. The film is the first installment in the American horror film series The Grudge...
. On this DVD, the short film Katasumi is retitled In a Corner.