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Cure
Kiyoshi Kurosawa's 1997 psychological horror, Cure, follows a detective (played by Koji Yakusho) as he investigates a string of gruesome murders in Tokyo, where each victim has an 'X' carved into their neck.
Dominic Lash provides an in-depth analysis of Cure's themes, generic conventions, cinematography, editing, mise-en-scène, sound, and legacy. In examining the film's aesthetics he highlights the unique way in which it balances meticulous precision with a persistent and purposeful ambiguity. Lash goes on to situate Cure within its various contexts; firstly, as Kurosawa's 'breakthrough' film following a decade of mostly straight-to-video work and then its position in relation to the J-Horror boom of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Through a close reading of Cure's key scenes, particularly its final scene, Lash analyses the motivations behind Kurosawa's resistance to a definitive resolution. He argues that, just like its hypnotist antagonist, Mamiya, Cure unsettles some of our basic psychological assumptions. In doing so, he attempts to understand what it is about the film that lingers so disturbingly, long after the credits have rolled.
Dominic Lash provides an in-depth analysis of Cure's themes, generic conventions, cinematography, editing, mise-en-scène, sound, and legacy. In examining the film's aesthetics he highlights the unique way in which it balances meticulous precision with a persistent and purposeful ambiguity. Lash goes on to situate Cure within its various contexts; firstly, as Kurosawa's 'breakthrough' film following a decade of mostly straight-to-video work and then its position in relation to the J-Horror boom of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Through a close reading of Cure's key scenes, particularly its final scene, Lash analyses the motivations behind Kurosawa's resistance to a definitive resolution. He argues that, just like its hypnotist antagonist, Mamiya, Cure unsettles some of our basic psychological assumptions. In doing so, he attempts to understand what it is about the film that lingers so disturbingly, long after the credits have rolled.
- GenresFilm
104 pages, Paperback
Published October 3, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 18, 2026
‘Cure’ is one of a select group of films that get stranger the more one watches them.
So asserts Dominic Lash in this excellent BFI guide of a film so dark, so complex that it also belongs to that group of films that massively influenced what followed, even if it’s own reputation remains tucked away with ‘those in the know’. ‘Cure’ is not as renowned as ‘Ring’, ‘Grudge’ or other J-Horror films, but it never was going to be – it’s too complex, too ambiguous for the mass market, and yet, as one review on Letterboxd summed it up, the film has “The ability to make a large sheet of paper, wafting through the wind, one of the most horrifying things you’ve ever seen in a movie”.
Like the film, this book offers no answers, but points in directions to follow, things to consider, and cinematically, beautiful additions to the filmcraft that are easily missed on first viewing. I’ve said before that the mark of a great BFI Guide, is that it makes you want to watch the film again – which is exactly what I’m about to do, because “…Cure [is] one of the most compelling – and profoundly un-reassuring – films ever made”
So asserts Dominic Lash in this excellent BFI guide of a film so dark, so complex that it also belongs to that group of films that massively influenced what followed, even if it’s own reputation remains tucked away with ‘those in the know’. ‘Cure’ is not as renowned as ‘Ring’, ‘Grudge’ or other J-Horror films, but it never was going to be – it’s too complex, too ambiguous for the mass market, and yet, as one review on Letterboxd summed it up, the film has “The ability to make a large sheet of paper, wafting through the wind, one of the most horrifying things you’ve ever seen in a movie”.
Like the film, this book offers no answers, but points in directions to follow, things to consider, and cinematically, beautiful additions to the filmcraft that are easily missed on first viewing. I’ve said before that the mark of a great BFI Guide, is that it makes you want to watch the film again – which is exactly what I’m about to do, because “…Cure [is] one of the most compelling – and profoundly un-reassuring – films ever made”
September 10, 2025
I am very happy there is a BFI book about Cure, but I am put off by the minority of argumentation and theorizing in this book that’s not very good.
It’s still a great, essential read for anyone who wants to think deeper about the film. But I wouldn’t take everything here to the bank.
It’s still a great, essential read for anyone who wants to think deeper about the film. But I wouldn’t take everything here to the bank.
November 16, 2024
A good close reading of the film with the bonus of promising footnotes for further research.
January 8, 2025
Opens up the film's spaciousness and ambiguities by presenting multiple readings of it. Excellent film, excellent text. More people need to be on the Kurosawa Train
January 13, 2025
Thanks Barn! These are always good.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews