Japanese Horror: 8EXIT 8: Hell is an endless subway corridor

A Japanese horror film titled Exit 8 has drawn attention for its eerie premise and intense narrative, marking the directorial debut of Genki Kawamura, a filmmaker known for his success in both animation and live-action storytelling. The film, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the Midnight Screenings section, follows a young man who finds himself trapped in an endless underground subway tunnel after stepping off a crowded train. The story is based on the escape room-style video game of the same name, in which players must navigate through a looping corridor filled with anomalies to find an exit. Kawamura, who has previously produced and directed several critically acclaimed films, including Your Name, a coming-of-age anime that became one of the highest-grossing animated films worldwide, described himself as a storyteller rather than a filmmaker focused solely on genre conventions. In an interview during the festival, he emphasized that his choice of medium depends on the story itself. “If a story works best in animation, I work with an anime director,” he said. “If it needs to be told in book form, I write it as a novel. But when I direct, I want to push beyond just telling a story.” The film Exit 8 is set in Tokyo's underground metro system, a setting that has long been associated with urban isolation and psychological tension. The protagonist, played by actor Takumi Saitoh, steps off a packed train and immediately notices something wrong, there are no other passengers, and the environment feels unnaturally still. As he moves deeper into the tunnel, he begins to encounter strange occurrences that challenge his perception of reality. The film explores themes of existential dread, time loops, and the human response to extreme isolation. Kawamura’s career began in literature before transitioning into film production. His 2012 novel If All the Cats in the World Disappeared became a bestseller in Japan, selling over 1.2 million copies and being translated into multiple languages, including English and German. The novel, part of a post-disaster literary wave influenced by the Fukushima nuclear disaster, features a protagonist who makes deals with the devil to extend his life, only to lose things of increasing value in return. As a producer, Kawamura has worked on several high-profile projects, including Your Name, which earned over $382 million globally, and Mirai, The Girl from the Future, which premiered at Cannes in 2018. More recently, he produced Suzume, which competed in the main competition at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2023, and The Innocents, a drama by Hirokazu Koreeda that screened in the Cannes competition in 2024. With Exit 8, Kawamura shifts focus from the emotional and romantic narratives typical of his previous works to a more visceral and psychological exploration of fear and survival. The film’s setting, a confined, seemingly infinite subway tunnel, creates a claustrophobic atmosphere that intensifies as the protagonist uncovers clues about the nature of his predicament. The visual style of the film blends realism with surreal elements, reflecting the disorienting experience of being trapped in a space that defies logic. The release of Exit 8 marks a new phase in Kawamura’s career, one that ventures into the horror genre while maintaining the thematic depth and emotional resonance characteristic of his earlier works. The film has already generated interest among critics and audiences alike, with many noting its departure from the light-hearted tone of his previous productions. As the film prepares for wider theatrical distribution, anticipation continues to build around how Kawamura will balance suspense, psychological complexity, and cinematic innovation in this latest project.