Takashi Miike is easily the most recognizable horror name to come out of Asia in the past few decades. His visions are disturbing even if his films perilously straddle the line between gratuitously gory and pointless. Occasionally I enjoy his work, but all too often I find it to be much too long. I've always believed that if he were to direct a shorter film it would be more entertaining and more shocking. Imprint is proof positive of my theory.

Filmed as part of Showtime's Masters of Horror anthology, it never saw airtime. I can only guess that the reason was not because of lack of quality or "scare." In fact, Imprint is one of a handful of the most terrifying of the bunch. It is disgusting and disturbing, twisted and terrible. I loved watching every moment of the short film and highly recommend it to all horror fans (in particular splatterpunk fans) not to mention Takashi Miike fans. The topic is usual for the director. We have incest, prostitution, torture, abortion, and love. Oh yes, there is love in Imprint.

Imprint is set in Japan in the early 1900s. American Christopher (over dramatically portrayed by Billy Drago) has returned to Japan to save the woman he loves. She, Komono (Michie Ito), is a flame haired prostitute with a heart of gold. He promised to return and has finally lived up to his words. Christopher stumbles on to an island of caged prostitutes and chooses to converse with a strange and deformed courtesan (Youki Kudoh). Along the way he learns the dark story of Komono's fate and this physically and emotionally twisted woman's life.

I am truly disturbed by Imprint but I think that because of its length it is much more shocking than the droll Audition. The torture is truly disarming. There's nothing like seeing a beautiful young woman being used as a pincushion. Takashi Miike is a master at S&M as demonstrated by these long and unnerving scenes. It's like some sort of tragic car accident you've stumbled upon. The damage is done yet you can't stop yourself from watching the carnage. I feel uncomfortable saying I enjoyed Imprint, but I did. It was well shot and well acted (save for a few reprehensible yowls from Drago). This is textbook Takashi Miike. No visual is "too much" in his world.

Don't mistake what I'm saying. Imprint is no horror classic. I can't say I'm horrified by what I'm seeing. I won't have nightmares about what Takashi Miike filmed. Rather it is disturbing for the sake of being disturbing. It was also beautiful. Think for a moment about the gorgeous costumes in Memoirs of a Geisha. It was pretty but it was dull. The director takes that element and injects a lot of gratuitous nastiness. It works well and, in a way, is a parable. What I took out of this story was that evil begets evil begets evil. There is no good to come out of a soulless birth.

If you enjoy Miike and think this film may be your kind of thing, I highly encourage you to check it out. Some of the language (all English) is difficult to understand, but you can pause and rewind if necessary. If you happen to be in the majority and are offended by aborted fetuses, incest, and crazy amounts of torture please do not rent or buy Imprint.

Related Takashi Miike Review:

Audition (1999)
http://www.epinions.com/content_183735783044

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age