"Hitori Kakurenbo Gekijô-ban (Hide and Seek)" promises thrills and chills this summer

by Chris MaGee

While North American audiences get ready for the onslaught of summer action blockbusters like "Stark Trek", "G.I. Joe", and "Terminator 4" Japanese audiences are getting ready to beat the summer heat by getting chilled, not by by air-conditioning, but by horror films. Traditionally summer is the time of year for scary movies to hit Japanese theatres and this year is no different. Opening May 23rd in Shibuya is Masashi Yamada's "Hitori Kakurenbo Gekijô-ban (Hide and Seek)", another in the long line of horror films featuring Japanerse teenagers getting into supernatural trouble online.

Ryoko (Yukie Kawamura) must search for her classmate Ritsuko (Mayuko Kawakita) after she mysteriously disappears. The only clue that Ryoko has as to what may have happened to her friend is a strange game of hide and seek that kids have been indulging in online and a strange set of instructions that she finds in Ritsuko's room involving tearing apart dolls and invoking demons. Could something supernatual have happended to Ritsuko? And how can Ryoko stop the smae thing from happening to her?

"Hitori Kakurenbo Gekijô-ban" is actually a sequel to a straight-to-DVD film that was released in Japan last year, but if the theatrical run in Shibuya goes well then look to see this one pop up around Japan as well as possibly having its own straight-to-DVD release here in North America.

Check out the trailer for "Hitori Kakurenbo Gekijô-ban (Hide and Seek)" below and then if you still feel like getting spooked then head over to the film's official site here.