Picture this: there are two video game movies available to watch in theaters right now. One is a boldly stylized, meticulously faithful celebration of a highly acclaimed gaming franchise and the other is “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.” While an undeniably smaller film, the Japanese horror film “Exit 8” is nonetheless one of the best video game movie adaptations made in recent memory and was released in American cinemas on April 10.
The film, which is based on the indie adventure game “The Exit 8,” centers on The Lost Man (Kazunari Ninomiya). Whilst commuting on the Tokyo subway, he receives a call from his ex-girlfriend informing him that she’s pregnant. It’s a shocking reveal, both for The Lost Man and audiences alike, that is quickly cut short after he gets trapped in a mysterious, never-ending liminal space nestled deep within the metro station.
What follows in the 95 minute long film largely resembles “The Exit 8” gameplay, with various anomalies appearing as The Lost Man walks through a looping metro corridor. Similar to the end goal of the game, he must correctly walk eight laps without missing any anomalies in order to escape through the titular Exit 8. During this, the Lost Man encounters the sinister Walking Man (Yamato Kôchi) and a child known as The Boy (Naru Asanuma), who are also trapped in this puzzling simulation.
The repetitive nature of “The Exit 8” game — an attribute that limits its long-term replay value — is a surprising advantage here. Director Genki Kawamura maximizes the potential of his single corridor setting by scattering unique anomalies throughout each lap. An example of this is a scene where oodles of blood gush through the ceiling tiles or another where a pair of eyes on a poster move to follow The Lost Man.
Moreover, fundamental changes to The Lost Man himself transform him from an unseen protagonist in the game to a highly nuanced character in the film. The incorporation of a pregnancy subplot — an allusion to the modern debate on women’s abortion rights in Japan — clearly defines an internal conflict and faults within his character that the game does not provide. Using the game as a medium to contemplate these issues, Kawamura and his co-writer Kentaro Hirase add subjectivity to The Lost Man story.
Beyond “The Exit 8” lore, the movie is a plain good psychological horror flick in its own right. Kawamura’s slick direction is both imaginative and engrossingly suspenseful. He sustains a dreadful elegance throughout without ever entering into schlocky territory. And just as his plot begins to go stale, he pivots the story in delightfully unexpected ways. Without spoiling it, a switchup midway through not only reinvigorates the film, but stands out as the singular high point of an already well crafted film.
While it is no doubt a best case scenario for an adaptation of “The Exit 8,” the film is not without its flaws. Its short, focused horror experience loses steam occasionally, especially during scenes where The Lost Man stalls solving the puzzles. Despite his careful deliberation being warranted, the film is stopped in its tracks whenever The Lost Man waits around long enough for an anomaly to occur or for a plot contrivance to move the story forward.
This is a common critique of the film that has made many American viewers disengage with it. While it received praise at large film festivals such as Cannes and was a box office success when it was released in Japan last year, the film received a more polarized response in the United States. It currently holds a decent 3.1 average score on Letterboxd after receiving a limited release in only 510 theaters nationwide.
Nonetheless, “Exit 8” is a thrilling Japanese horror flick that is worth seeking out. It’s an example of the simplest approach being the most effective. Its single spooky subway setting and limited cast of characters make for a delightfully quick yet deeply character driven story. It’s a sensual treat for both fans of “The Exit 8” game and horror aficionados alike; it is a rare example of a video game adaptation done right.
Jacob Bernardino is an Arts & Entertainment Staff Writer. He can be reached at bernarj2@uci.edu
Edited by June Min and Geneses Navarro.
