An original liminal horror with psychological themes and creepy disturbing encounters that intrigue. 

• Entertainment factor: ★★★★★
• Creepy factor: ★★★★☆
• Liminal horror factor: ★★★★★
• Psychological factor: ★★★★★

Exit 8 is an original Japanese liminal horror that knows how to intrigue and scare while exploring psychological themes in a game-like environment. Set in one location with a few characters this film creates a big effect with minimum means. It is based on the video game with the same name. It stars Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Nary Asanuma. Directed by Genki Kawamura. Written by Kotake Create, Kentaro Hirase, Genki Kawamura. 

Duration: 1h 35m

Plot

A Man who is in the subway station has a conversation with his ex-girlfriend. She is at the hospital and is pregnant and asks him what to do. Before he can answer or make up his mind he finds himself in a strange corridor in the subway station. The sign points him to Exit 8, only to end up walking in a circle, back to the sign again, except now it says 0 instead of 8. There’s an information plaque beside it that says that he has to look for anomalies. If there isn’t one he can walk on, and move forward to level 1 and so on. If there is an anomaly, he has to turn back. Then he will get back at the sign again, that also has gone up one number. 

Some anomalies are hard to spot and he has to start over again, but when he spots them he finds himself nearer to the exit. During his journey he encounters a strange Walking Man, and many creepy things and a Boy who also seems lost. He has to keep his wits together and not fall into desperation if he wants to make it out. 

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Short Review

The film starts with a first person perspective, which is a fun nod and ode to the video game this film is based on. I haven’t played this game myself, so I don’t know how much the film is similar to the game, but the first scene sets high expectations. When The Lost Man gets off the train, and walks into the corridor, we still see it all from his perspective, that shifts in a very fluid way into a third person perspective. From thereon the movie is shot with a normal perspective. But what is about to happen is anything but normal. 

Though the film isn’t scary per se, it has some very disturbingly weird scenes, like the Walking Man who grins in a very creepy way and the first time we see him, he gives off a very creepy vibe. Interestingly we also get to know his story and how he became part of this strange liminal game. 

The film has an interesting set up. First we follow The Lost Man into the corridor who encounters The Walking Man. After we have witnessed the struggles of The Lost Man, we follow The Walking Man and how he became like this. Both meet a young boy inside the corridor who first seems an anomaly, than lost himself but might be something else entirely. Slowly the corridor becomes a symbol for the struggle the men are dealing with and a tool that can either help them move forward or being stuck forever. 

The things The Lost Man encounters in his trip through the corridor are mostly the things he was looking at on his phone earlier. Like the rats that were experimented on and grew an ear on their backs. Or the flood that washed away a house and most importantly the conversation he just had with his ex-girlfriend and the interaction he just witnessed in the train when a man started to shout at a woman and her baby. These two experiences form the basis on which his journey is centered. 

While it seems like a boring premise, just walking through a corridor over and over again, it’s actually quite a creepy story, with strange encounters, but also an interesting psychological story about his decision to become a father or not. He wonders that if he was cowardly enough to not stand up for that poor woman on the train, he isn’t fit to be a father either. He feels guilty and ashamed, maybe for both decisions. Either he doesn’t feel fit to be a father or he feels ashamed to refuse to be a father. This theme is also being more clarified by the story of The Walking Man. He also feels guilty. At some point he says he has to go see his kid, but instead is trapped in the corridor. 

Both men, however get help from a young Boy. Either a real boy or a representation for their personal lives, the child The Walking Man desperately wants to see, and the unborn child of The Lost Man. The Boy is a guide who helps them find anomalies and helps them find themself, their motivations, strength and bewares them from making a mistake. 

The Walking Man pays no heed, or too little to the Boy, and is more concerned with himself and the way out, which ultimately leads to his demise. The Lost Man however grows from an insecure young man into a responsible adult who saves the Boy, who in turn saves him. Not only to find his way out, but also to find his way to make the right decision. Which we don’t explicitly see, but is implied heavily by The Lost Man taking the first step to stand up for the woman who is screamed at in the train. 

The film has few conversations and is set in mostly one place, the corridor and with very few characters, and therefore feels very introverted. Nothing is explicitly said or explained, but implied and therein lies the strength of the film. It’s a perfect example of show don’t tell. With few words, or explanations, this film has a strong theme and intrigues. Not only by letting the audience spot the anomalies themselves, making you feel you’re right there beside him, but also by combining emotion with psychology, resulting in a journey to self growth. It makes the corridor not just a liminal horror element, but also a tool for self actualization, by turning it into a game that is both creepy and exciting. 

Exit 8 is a very entertaining, creepy film that creates a great psychological and scary effect with minimal means.