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The film is about a strange woman who walks around at night singing an eerie melodic Japanese pop song. This woman enjoys stabbing people over and over again, creeping them out with her crazy white eyes, and occasionally taking off her mask to freak people out with her butchered mouth. A high school student, who wants to be a journalist, and her nerdy friend, who is the king of all things trivial, set about to solve the mysterious case of the serial-killing woman. In reality, it’s kind of like a Scooby Doo episode, and while the components may be cheap, there’s a certain quirky charm to the film that makes it worth watching.

Slit-mouthed Woman is a low-budget film in definition and quality. Director Toru Kikkawa does some nice things with this first effort. His shot selections are interesting, and he has a nice pacing to the film. The picture quality is somewhat cheap, but you can tell this is more a case of budget than skill. The nice thing about the film is that Kikkawa doesn’t add any filler to the movie; it’s exactly as long as it needs to be at 65 minutes. The director stays within his means and creates a never film that never over-reaches its budget. The end result is a completely watchable and enjoyable indie effort that hits with quickness and will leave your typical horror fan feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

The special effects of the film are something of a sticking point. It’s confusing how so much money can be spent on making the Slit-Mouthed Woman look cool, but when it comes to the kills, all they do is toss around some movie blood. I’m not like a forensic specialist or anything, but I’m pretty sure that when a dude gets repeatedly stabbed in the guts with a knife that it does more than leave a red puddle on his shirt. The bewildering part about this is that someone on this production clearly had some skill with prosthetic effects, because the mouth scars of the Slit-Mouthed Woman are actually pretty cool. I’m still not sure why they wouldn’t take the time apply some of the same quality to the kills in the film.

Slit-mouthed Woman isn’t a masterpiece or anything, but it will entertain die hard horror fans. For those that seek out the bizarre and the seldom seen, it’s a perfect little find. It’s not something that you’re going to watch over and over again, but it definitely has its moments and merits one viewing.

Final Synopsis: Slit-Mouthed Woman is a solid indie effort from Japan. Low-budget fans and quirky horror lovers can have a good time with this film. If you’re a mainstream horror fan, then you’ll probably be turned off by the visual quality and set designs of the film. Give it a rent depending on what type of horror fan you are.

Points Lost: -1 for a cheap look, -1 for some less than stellar special effects, -1 for cheap-looking sets

Lesson Learned: Girls are not interested in the King of Trivia.

Burning Question: Does anyone remember the PBS kids’ show Ghost Writer? Slit-Mouthed Woman kind of feels like an episode of that… only with killings and Japanese pop songs.

Slit-Mouthed Woman
7/10

Tags: 2008, asian, asian horror, ayumi onodera, horror, indie horror, japanese, japanese horror, latest independent film reviews, latest independent movie reviews, latest indie film reviews, latest indie movie reviews, latest movie reviews, low-budget, low-budget horror, New Independent Film Reviews, new independent movie reviews, new indie film reviews, new indie movie reviews, New Movie Reviews, switchblade pictures, toru kikkawa