- Release year: 2024
- Director: Masaki Nishiyama.
- Producer: Atsushi Sakamoto.
- Screenplay by: Masaki Nishiyama.
- Cinematography by: Shuhei Yamamoto.
- Music by: Riku Horimoto.
Synopsis: a girl is cursed with a mummified humanoid creature that follows her with ill intent, but can only be seen or heard when she has her phone in her hand and headphones on.
Shotgun Commentary: It Follows (2014) meets The Mummy (1999).
Review
The Invisible Half is, in principle, the Japanese version of It Follows with a dash of Oddity (2024). Like tons of Japanese horror films, high school bullying is a very relevant theme in this story. However, this piece pushes the subject a step further, making it stand out amongst all others.
Context
The story follows a girl, Elena (Lisa Siera), who is British on her father’s side and Japanese on her mother’s. As such, she finds it hard to fully adapt to her life in Japan. Especially high school, where all her classmates find entertainment in messing with each other. The main target of their bullying is a quiet girl who seems awfully attached to her phone.
What at first seems to be like a girl trying to escape the bullying she suffers by isolating herself with her phone and headphones, soon turns out to be a much more sinister situation. A reality that Elena is forced to face after the girl’s phone ends up in her bag the same day its owner kills herself.
Elena then realises that there is an evil entity that follows you around once you get “infected” by it. Kinda like It Follows’ evil STD, only passed through contact with the phone. Additionally, you can only see it if you have your phone in your hand and charged. And you can only hear it with the headphones on. These particularities not only set this evil being apart, but also gives the change for audiences to experience the unheard of: flawless sound editing in a horror film.
Listen in
In a genre known for quiet conversations and booming sound effects that annoy even more than they scare, this film is a breath of fresh air. Few films are as well edited to feature music, conversations and sound effects quite like this one. Every time the protagonist wears her headphones, you are right there with her, listening to the same muted universe you would with your own headphones in your ears. Not to mention the slow and agonic approach of the creature that shows up as a chilling constant.
A great way to describe the ever-approaching creature in the story would be a mummy with attachment issues. It doesn’t seem to do much other than walk towards you until it kills you. However, the big reveal, which obviously won’t be featured in this review, sets it apart from the It Follows creature.
This being actually has a reason to be and a permanent way to defeat it, or so it seems. The ending is somewhat cryptic but seems to offer a full circle closure for the story if you don’t think too much about it. If you do, you might find that tons of other darker explanations come to mind, which is only testament to how the feature is.
Ending on a high note
Balancing the bullying and trauma featured in the story, there is one of the most wholesome friendships/potential romance featured in a horror movie over the last few years. Elena is lucky enough to make a friend at school that is set on helping her feel like she belongs, despite what other people seem to think. A friendship that is not only realistic but also incredibly nourishing, both for the protagonist who is in it and for the audience watching.
All in all, The Invisible Half is a film that utilises elements of the supernatural to dig deeper into the effects of bullying, isolation, and one of the most harmful dangers: self-hatred. It is a feature that balances out light and darkness to share a beautiful story that will chill you to the bone and leave you with a full heart. A huge recommend for all those of you who are tired of the whole “they won…or did they” that the genre seems so fond of.
The Invisible Half is part of the Raindance Film Festival 2025 programme, taking place in London now. Find all the info here!
Advice to take from this movie:
- Don’t steal phones, you might get more than you bargained for.
- The right friendship can save you in a lot of ways.
- Sometimes your own prejudice keeps you from seeing a much nicer reality.
What’s your take? Have you watched The Invisible Half? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀