What We Believe In
There is an entire universe of Japanese cinema that most English-language audiences never get to see. Not because the films are unavailable — though some certainly are — but because nobody is pointing the way. The blockbuster franchises get covered to death, while the genuine deep cuts from the 1960s through today sit in obscurity, waiting for someone to notice that they exist. (And they do exist, in staggering numbers.)
The Mission
SaruDama was built on a straightforward conviction: Japanese horror, folklore, and cinema history deserve serious, detailed coverage in English. Not the surface-level “top 10 scariest J-horror” listicles that populate every other corner of the internet, but actual analysis — the kind that talks about folklore origins, directorial choices, and why a particular 1968 ghost cat film still holds up better than most modern horror.
We cover the full spectrum, from golden-age classics by directors like Nakagawa Nobuo and Wakamatsu Koji to contemporary work by Miike Takashi and Sion Sono. Folklore entries trace the yokai and yurei traditions that inform so much of the horror canon. History pieces provide context — because you cannot fully appreciate a Japanese horror film without understanding the cultural soil it grew from.
Who We Are
A small team of obsessive cinephiles who have spent far too many late nights watching VHS rips of films that never received proper Western distribution. We are not affiliated with any studio, distributor, or production company. The opinions here are ours — sometimes enthusiastic, sometimes brutal, always honest.
Have a film we should review? A correction to flag? Reach out via our contact page. We read everything.
Last updated: March 2026