Uzumaki (Spiral)

October 31st, 2006

Author: Junji Ito
Publisher: Shogakukan Inc. Tokyo

When it comes to Japanese horror culture, I am always tempted to make connection. Why is that?
I remember some years ago, having read an interview of Shinji Mikami, the creator of the Resident Evil videogame series, and he was telling that he was really inspired by the work of a middle of the 20th century writer, Edogawa Rampo. Edogawa Rampo wrote some great fantastic and horror stories and was inspired on his side by Edgar Allan Poe and also Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
So, I wonder if Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of Uzumaki Naruto was eventually influenced by Junji Ito. The dark part of Naruto is for me definitely related to this Japanese horror culture.

Uzumaki on his side could be easily connected to Japanese horror movies like the Ring or Kairo. It is a succession of short stories about a small town, Kurozu-cho where people get infected by strange syndromes related to spirals. Quiet scary, don’t you think?

Entry Filed under: Critics