The Birth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGe

Gou Koga's 2023 Japanese animation is set in 1955 and builds an origin point for a long-running series. Mizuki, who works at a blood bank, travels to a village on a secret errand; a creature searching for his missing wife comes to the same village and both strike the same secret. The film departs entirely from the tone of the series as children know it. The narrative is built on industrial families, exploitation and a buried past in postwar Japan; the violence is open and the conclusion dark. The animation is largely hand-drawn and the palette deliberately airless. The war experience of the series' creator is felt behind the telling. It became an unexpected box office success in Japan. Who it's for: those who like Japanese folklore and animation for adults. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a family film; it contains blood, torture and abuse and is far from the familiar form of the series.