The existence of the Yokai, demonic entities in Japanese folklore that are said to be found in everything related to society, have been around for decades but are mostly remembered for several productions from Daiei Studios in the late 1960s. While there have been several adaptations with the genre over the years, the most recent film centered on the creatures is this serialized take on the genre from director Yoji Unno, screening at Japan Filmfest Hamburg.
Attempting to keep her condition a secret, young Kirin (Nanae) and her companion Waramame travel the countryside doing battle with various Yokai that have grown tired or angry with humanity. After starting to cause mischief in their new state, the two arrive in several different communities and tackle the unruly creatures creating havoc and disrupting the balance between humanity and other yokai creatures.
Overall, “Yokai Girl Kirin” has a lot to like. Among the best aspects is the fun and engaging atmosphere. This atmosphere manages to incorporate both silly human characters and creepy horror vibes. The first story here focuses on the outright goofiness of Kirin's treatment for the spreading skin disease that includes confrontational exchanges to the treatments alongside the preparation and application of such treatments in the first place. As well, scenes including the various tricks the yokai are forced to pull on people that eventually draw Kirin's attention into the area are generally goofy and fun. Combined with the horror of the Yokai shown eating people and killing them, the contrast between these elements is quite enjoyable.
Alongside this fun setup, “Yokai Girl Kirin” offers up a lot of fun creature encounters, despite being kept to a brief confrontation. The initial Yokai in the forest eating her friends' father is a great starting point to this, with Kirin's creative means to dispatch it, a tactic that gets repeated throughout the confrontations elsewhere in the film that becomes quite enjoyable with its repeated use. With the later encounters bringing about a wilder variety of creatures and spirits for her to battle, there's enough keeping “Yokai Girl Kirin” going until it gets to her final battle that comes into play. Featuring some enjoyable starting points with the Yokai taunting his human target before Kirin gets involved to fight off the creature, this section is quite fun.
The film doesn't have too much wrong with it but there are some issues. The main drawback is the approach by writer/director Unno that treats the film as if it's a series of vignettes or television show episodes edited together into a feature-length adaptation. The interstitial title cards are another clue offered for this approach, with the film taking on the appearance of Kirin and Waramane traveling someplace new, meeting something strange, and doing battle with it to stop it from tormenting people. Since the cards are the changeover into a new location and a new creature to battle, the overall approach taken is one of a television show utilizing the standard monster-of-the-week formula. That leaves the film with little-to-no build-up of who Kirin is, her character, or motivations beyond stopping Yokai from pulling tricks on people. This storyline approach leaves the film quite disjointed as a result.
Featuring some likable qualities surrounded by a problematic, disjointed presentation, “Yokai Girl Kirin” is likable enough for what it is but the problems on display are enough to lower it quite significantly.
