A recently divorced writer is reunited with the ghosts of his parents who died when he was a boy. However, every time he sees them he loses more life energy. Now, he must choose between starting a new life or staying forever in the past.
Ijintachi to no natsu, Summer with Strangers, Summer Among the Zombies, 이인들과의 여름, 幽异仲夏, Les Désincarnés, 이방인과 보낸 여름, Verão Com Estranhos, 幽異仲夏
Japan Japan 
A really beautiful, picturesque fantasy drama about a divorced screenwriter being reunited with the ghosts of his dead parents until suddenly it's not and things get very dark and very sad. In comparison to the experimental work I've seen from Obayashi this has a notably slower, more controlled build-up to it that's really well done and leaves a lot of room to weave in feeling and detail that will eventually emotionally accentuate the genre thrills. And, obviously, when he eventually lets those genre elements unleash he doesn't disappoint either. Has the most rotting flesh, floating women and blood spurting you'll ever see in what's otherwise a fairly romantic drama.
An all-consuming pain. The overwhelming intent to draw oneself into their own past, which was the time when they experienced the most joy. When life consistently lets you down but you have the choice to relieve simpler times, wouldn't you? The personal failures of a grown man leads him back to the past; to the warmth of his parents. Even as his life gets sucked out of him, he continues to seek an escape to the past. The past is his friend, but that's not how life works.
Nobuhiko Ōbayashi's brand of sentimentalism blends beautifully with horror. The Discarnates is, above all, a longing for the past so great that it turns into an escape from the present altogether. Escapism…
ACTION! - THREE AUTEURS: OBAYASHI'S SURREAL HOUSE
I'm feeling a little overwhelmed right now to write some wordy, thoughtful piece like many of those here on the profile page, all of which capture incredibly well my thoughts on the movie as well, I guess, in a more poetic manner.
All I am going to say is I was kind of hyped, as this happened to be the only film a certain LB pal here loves from the director so that had me more intrigued, and I can see why. This is Obayashi operating at his most serene yet without losing grip of his own sensibilities as a filmmaker, as reality and the world of dreams collide in this tale of…
for the next couple weeks i'll be pretty sure this is Obayashi's best film, before i watch or rewatch another one and change my mind again
There are plenty of stories these days that play on society's terminal nostalgia and the restrictions that obsessing over the culture of the past places on the creation of something new and relevant. The Discarnates traces that idea back to more personal roots, of a man retreating into memories made manifest when his current life slips out of any sense of meaning. But what can comfort can also consume, and slowly but insistently, Harada's fantasy turns to horror as his stasis is manifested in a draining, deathly appearance. I wonder if Miike Takashi or Kurosawa Kiyoshi saw this at a formative moment; here is the seed of their most mature horrors.
The blurring lines between Harada's life and fantasy are…
Like so many Obayashi films, primarily concerned with memory. But rather than something like The Deserted City, where the protagonist strolls without issue through the streets of his past, Harada's memories and regrets are literally sapping his life away. One of Obayashi's most moving films, and a great return to the horror genre.
I haven't been on here logging these last few weeks even as I have been watching a lot of horror films. Part of the reason is my anxiety around social media and the expectations that come with being in a job that requires such engagement. I have dealt with some wild ass parasocial fuckshit from people recently who think they know me well because of the more personal writing about my mental health struggles I published in my late twenties. But a movie like The Discarnates is a reminder that we don't know people -- especially those closest to us -- as well as we'd like to believe. People have hidden depths and secrets they themselves struggle to give voice to.…
A very strange feeling movie, not quite as dynamic as any of the other Obayashi movies I've seen but haunting still. Something a little bit Amarcord-y/Cinema Paradiso about it. Memories as poison, nostalgia is a vampire. I ended up thinking about it a lot when I visited my hometown recently. So much is the same but slightly more haunted. When I go back it sometimes feels like I'm a ghost on a dark ride passing through my own memories. Getting older, reconciling with the passing of time, it can make you feel prematurely enghosted. The Discarnates are both the memories and the man who remembers. The past wants to keep you in it. There's a reason we're so forgetful.
Like pale ashes in a still room: emanations left to linger behind in the realm of the living. He who suffers seeks reconciliation and respite in familiar shelters; to be cradled in the arms of relief.
Deathly truths reveal themselves only in the company of mirrors and the stillness of faded photographs. A rekindling of spirit—plucked from the belly of limbo—reaching out to find some sense of expiation.
To wade too long in the waters of the past can prove parasitic to the lifeblood within you. In an attempt to accept and/or replace, you became blind to the impossibility of an existence that is gone forever; and it is tearing at the seams of your framework.
Behind the argent drapery…
An extraordinarily odd film, but perhaps not in the way you might expect. With The Discarnates, Obayashi strips away much of his usual chaos. The editing is restrained. There's no overlay footage frantically sprayed over the screen. No one moves about in stop-frame animation. Still, it definitely has the Obayashi touch. It transitions between scenes with the colours dropping out and the screen shrinking into a box. The cinematography from Obayashi regular Yoshitaka Sakamoto is gorgeous, especially in scenes shot around Asakusa. It has hints of the dreamy, orange-tinted visuals from their previous collaborations. But ultimately, it is not the style that makes this stand out as odd. Rather, it is the unique approach it takes to what could have…
👻😱🕯️🩸✍️🍨
586th log of the year (last one too)
only found out through reading reviews that Nobuhiko Obayashi passed away in 2020 and that honestly made me really sad 😢
I’ve seen four of his films so far
and I’ve loved all of them.
Most of them have this fantasy like quality and his filmmaking always feels so creative and sincere
Found out about this film thanks to @filmymohit
This one felt haunting, nostalgic and deeply moody
"It is not too late to regain yourself."
Another memory fantasy from the master - a warm (yet, at times, potently chilling), life-affirming rumination on our past, our relationships and the life we choose to lead, complete with a spooky train station, a magic act and Puccini's opera.
This also might be Ôbayashi's most loving ode to food and drink and their essential part in forming connections throughout our lives; a bowl of home-made ice cream with your family, a plate of cheese with a lover, a farewell meal of sukiyaki in a peaceful temple and sharing Sapporo beers with a friend - all some of Ôbayashi's most moving moments, and moments that stay with you forever.
