Cure (1998)
90%RT Audience Score: 84%
Awards & Nominations: 4 wins & 5 nominations
Cure, a masterpiece of psychological horror, delves into the depths of the human mind and exposes the destructive and violent desires that lurk within. Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s direction creates a haunting atmosphere that lingers long after the credits roll, leaving the viewer with a sense of existential dread. The production design and cinematography emphasize the isolation of the characters, adding to the mounting sense of unease. While the film may not provide easy answers, it is a fascinating artifact and an engrossing thriller that deserves to be recognized as one of the most powerful works of the J-Horror canon.
Cure is like a slow-burning fever dream that infects your mind and refuses to let go. It’s not your typical horror movie with jump scares and monsters, but rather a psychological thriller that delves into the darkest corners of the human psyche. The cinematography and production design create an eerie atmosphere that adds to the mounting sense of dread. It’s a film that will leave you questioning your own sanity and the nature of evil. So, if you’re in the mood for a mind-bending, spine-tingling experience, Cure is the cure for what ails you.
Production Company(ies)
Daiei
Distributor
Cowboy Pictures, Criterion Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Castle Hohenzollern, Hechingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for disturbing violent content and images, sexual content including an assault, graphic nudity, and language
Year of Release
2017
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:NA
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Runtime:1h 50m
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Language(s):English, German
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Country of origin:Japan
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 7, 2001 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 9, 2005
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
Cure, horror, crime film, philosophical meditation, detective, identical murders, bizarre circumstances, psychological intrigue, mesmerizing, atmospheric, Japanese, Koji Yakusho, Tsuyoshi Ujiki, Anna Nakagawa, Masato Hagiwara, directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, written by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Tetsuya Ikeda, Satoshi Kanno, Tsutomu Tsuchikawa, Atsuyuki Shimoda, box office gross $94.6K, Cowboy Pictures, Criterion Pictures, reviewed by Anton Bitel, Jonathan Rosenbaum, David Rooney, Nick Schager, Chris Vognar, Roger Moore, Brian Eggert, Laura Clifford, Austen Goslin, Emma Wolfe, Pieter-Jan Van Haecke, Stephanie Monohan, MPAA rating not specified, producer Tetsuya Ikeda, Satoshi Kanno, Tsutomu Tsuchikawa, Atsuyuki Shimoda
Worldwide gross: $26,620,002
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $32,110,007
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,519
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 3,501,636
US/Canada gross: $8,106,986
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,778,939
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,621
US/Canada opening weekend: $4,356,941
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $5,255,499
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,093
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $40,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $48,249,443
Production budget ranking: 822
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $25,982,325
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$42,121,761
ROI to date (est.): -57%
ROI ranking: 1,728
Tsuyoshi Ujiki – Makoto Sakuma
Anna Nakagawa – Fumie Takabe
Masato Hagiwara – Kunio Mamiya
Kiyoshi Kurosawa – Director
Kiyoshi Kurosawa – Writer
Director(s)
Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Writer(s)
Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Producer(s)
Tetsuya Ikeda, Satoshi Kanno, Tsutomu Tsuchikawa, Atsuyuki Shimoda
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
4 wins & 5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (57) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (53) | Rotten (4)
an increasingly hallucinatory piece where murderousness is a disease spreading rapidly through the susceptible Japanese psyche.
April 23, 2018
Anton Bitel
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
It’s unsatisfying as a story precisely because it aspires to create a mounting sense of dread by enlarging questions rather than answering them.
October 17, 2011
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
Tone and atmosphere mirror subject to perfection in Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s hypnotic trip into the lower depths of the human mind.
March 26, 2009
David Rooney
Variety
TOP CRITIC
The single best horror film I’ve seen this century.
May 3, 2005 | Rating: A-
Nick Schager
Lessons of Darkness
TOP CRITIC
Tough to shake even when it feels more like an exercise than a movie.
June 6, 2002 | Rating: B
Chris Vognar
Dallas Morning News
TOP CRITIC
A fascinating artifact as well as a most engrossing thriller.
January 3, 2002
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Cure takes its time implanting itself in your mind before completely taking you over, not unlike the mysterious killer at the film’s center.
February 12, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
…leans more heavily into psychological horror and existential dread…emphasized by the isolation production designer Maruo and cinematographer Kikumura introduce with long shots of figures in sterile industrial locations and a windswept beach.
January 2, 2022 | Rating: A-
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews
There may not be demons or ghosts, but there is enough haunting existential dread to make Cure stick with you like an old nightmare.
October 20, 2021
Austen Goslin
Polygon
Lingers long after the credits roll.
April 14, 2021 | Rating: 7/10
Emma Wolfe
SpookyAstronauts
A magnificent horror-mystery narrative that reveals, in a pulsating way, the very truth that every subject hides a destructive drive and violent desire.
August 14, 2020
Pieter-Jan Van Haecke
Psychocinematography
Arguably overshadowed by other films in the turn-of-the-century J-Horror canon like Ringu (1998) and Audition (1999), Cure lives on as one of the more powerful works of the era.
January 14, 2020
Stephanie Monohan
Screen Slate…
Plot
An ambitious young executive is sent to retrieve his company’s CEO from an idyllic but mysterious “wellness center” at a remote location in the Swiss Alps. He soon suspects that the spa’s miraculous treatments are not what they seem. When he begins to unravel its terrifying secrets, his sanity is tested, as he finds himself diagnosed with the same curious illness that keeps all the guests here longing for the cure.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Nothing goofy, funny, or odd is mentioned about the film or its cast on Fresh Kernels.
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