Japanese Genre-Meister Miike Takashi: ‘I Don’t Really Like Bloody Horror’
Japanese director Miike Takashi, who is known for slasher film “Ichi The Killer” and stomach-churning “Audition,” Friday claimed that he does not like bloody horror scenes.
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“I’m not a fan of bloody scenes. But that’s what I’m known for. And it is what I get offered. It’s what I was offered by [Korean TV studio] Studio Dragon,” said Miike at a press event in Busan to launch his new genre series “Connect.” The show premieres in the Busan International Film Festival’s series section and will release as a Star Original on the Disney+ streaming service.
Miike was responding to a question about a scene in which blood pours from the eye of the protagonist, causing him to continue the rest of the show wearing a patch.
“A bloody scene like that needs to be carefully thought out. There has to be emotion and meaning, not just blood,” said Miike.
The show, which is derived from a Korean webtoon originally written by Shin Dae-sung, involves a man who is kidnapped by an organ-trafficking gang and finds that he can still see through his eye, even though it has been removed and implanted into the body of a serial killer.
Although “Connect” is Miike’s first long-form series and his first production in Korea, he appears to have made the transition from film to TV and has quickly picked up the concept of pitching future seasons.
“There are many hints in this series. It portrays part of a huge universe. I’m not how sure it will develop, but there are many things that could later be expanded on. For instance, how AI surpasses humans. Or how a mouse travels forward in time and influences today’s life,” he said.
Miike who is determinedly diverse as well as prolific, and has more than 100 films on his resume, said that he will continue to experiment, even if that means bewildering or disappointing his fans.
“The life of a movie director is a strange one. What one has done in the past determines the future. And I’m grateful to fans who enjoy my genre films,” he said. “But I try to focus on the things that I like in the present. I like new ventures There could be disappointments for fans. I like to be diverse. And I’ll keep on being diverse in future.”
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