2009 SGM Month of Halloween Horror Movie for October 10

"Suicide Club" (2003)

Phobia: Thanatophobia (Fear of dying)

Quote: “Death: the one appointment we all must keep, and for which no time is set.” – Charlie Chan

Synopsis: A wave of unexplainable suicides sweeps across Tokyo after 54 smiling high school girls join hands and throw themselves from a subway platform into an oncoming train. Detective Kuroda and the rest of the police force are baffled as the bloodbath triggers a wave of suicides across the city. When a cryptic phone call tips off police to a strange website that appears to be tracking the suicides before they happen, the question becomes, are they really suicides at all? This outrageously bizarre, wicked social critique in the form of a creepy and enigmatic detective mystery examines the despair of the disaffected Japanese youth and the influence of pop culture on their lives. From international film festival favorite to cult sensation, Suicide Club is a study of contemporary morality that is gruesome, darkly comic and vividly original.

Fear creeps in at 00:03:51: "One ... two ... and three!" And fifty-four Japanese schoolgirls join hands and leap into the path of a full-speed subway train. This scene sets the palpable tone of dread that permeates "Suicide Club," a film about contemporary views of society, culture, and the specter & stigma of death by suicide ... with decidedly strong horror film overtones.

See also: Wristcutters: A Love Story; Leaving Las Vegas; It’s a Wonderful Life