Ju-On/YMMV

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Alternate Character Interpretation: Is the child at the end of the fourth movie Kayako reincarnated, or Kyoko's original offspring possessed by the former while still in the womb?
  • Crowning Moment of Heartwarming: The moment in the fourth movie in which a haunting/past event depicts a touching mother/son moment between Kayako and Toshio is extremely sweet.
  • Crowning Music of Awesome: Pretty much the entire soundtrack of every movie, although special mention goes to the third movie's soundtrack.
  • Epileptic Trees: Oh boy. Where to start?
  • Hell Is That Noise: Kayako's death rattle. Enough said. Also, the sound of a cat's meow has never sounded as creepy as it does in this series.
    • The sound of Takeo's breathing, although barely audible and only heard for a few seconds, is utterly creepy.
    • An example from the fourth movie: don't think the sound of a newborn baby crying is scary? Think again.
    • "Okasan! Okasan! Okasan!"
    • That absolutely horrendous moan that Megumi emits after becoming a ghost.
    • The sound of the phone ringing in 4444444444 and Mizuho's vignette.
    • This trope is even featured on the official soundtrack for the first four films, Ju-on & Ju-on 2 ~The Series Perfect Edition~. The very last track on the CD? A 42-second sound clip of Kayako's death rattle, starting off as fairly quiet but steadily getting louder and louder. It... isn't advisable to listen to it with your headphones in and with the volume cranked up. The track is entitled The Moaning That Was Crushed, which is a pretty good indication of just what the track consists of.
      • You can even download Kayako's death rattle as a ringtone from the official Ju-on game website.
  • Moe: Kayako herself - albeit before her death.
  • Moral Event Horizon: Takeo crosses this when he murders both his wife, son, and son's cat in a jealous, paranoid rage. Not only that, but he also murdered Masami, the wife of Kobayashi, the man Takeo believed Kayako to be having an affair with, before cutting out her unborn child, shoving it in a sack and beating it against the walls and floor, and then telephoning Kobayashi to tell him what he'd done. Yikes.
  • Narm: Several moments in the second V-Cinema movie, which is one of the main reasons why it isn't looked upon as favourably as the other entries in the series.
    • The novel, too, mostly due to the awkward writing style (either that, or the awkward translation).
  • Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant / Fetish Fuel Station Attendant: Kayako is either one or the other or both, depending on who you ask.
  • Nightmare Retardant: Some view the fourth movie's "wig scene" as this, however, most agree that the climax of that scene is utterly, utterly terrifying (it is one of Kayako's more frightening appearances to date).
    • Not to mention the scene with Toshio's head on the floor in the fourth film.
    • Kayako pursuing Nobuyuki in the second film. The fact that her crawling in this scene is in stark contrast with her usual Marionette Motion is a big factor.
  • Paranoia Fuel: Kayako or Toshio can appear from any place at any time. Even from the most inconceivable of places such as body parts!
  • Sequelitis: The second TV movie is often looked down upon, although it does have its share of genuinely creepy moments. The two movies that came afterwards were much more well-received.
  • Squick: Several moments - the mutilated, sticky remains of Toshio's cat Mar in the first movie, the remains of the rabbits in the Katasumi short and Kanna's unfortunate demise are all notable examples, however, the moments that really turn up the squick factor are the scenes with Masami's foetus in the first movie, and the birth scene at the end of the fourth movie.
  • Tear Jerker: Izumi's dream/vision (Or Was It a Dream?) of Toyama is incredibly sad.
    • Chiharu's death scene is also extremely heart-wrenching.
    • A rare example of a Tear Jerker in the midst of a Nightmare Fuel moment: when Kayako crawls down the stairs towards Rika, she appears to be reaching out to the latter for help, and in one shot her eyes actually look as though they're filled with tears. This is the only scene in which Kayako is depicted with such a degree of sadness, and for some, it's difficult to not feel sorry for Kayako at that point.
  • Uncanny Valley: Kayako, and the way she moves.
  • What an Idiot!: Kyoko Suzuki's brother, who still sold the house in spite of his (clairvoyant) sister's obvious fear of the place.
  • The Woobie: Izumi. Also, Chiharu, by the time of the fourth movie.
  • Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: Kayako.

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