A serial-murderer is on the loose who just so happens to also be removing the hearts of his victims and taking them with him. His victims however, are not merely random humans as thought by the police. They are in fact, the past and present guardians of the gateway of the afterlife.On the day he is to be married, Detective Kanzaki, who happens to be on the case, discovers that his fiancé Mina has been murdered with her heart also missing. He also learns that the killers are Kudo, a geneticist, and his evil secretary Rei. The two are trying to obtain six hearts from the guardians so that they may call forth a horde of demons from the Gate of Rage and have their every desire granted. Only problem is, once they open the gate the entire world will be covered in darkness.
Direction
Kitamura's signature hyperkinetic action staging
Practical Effects
Glorious practical demon effects and gore
Cinematography
Saturated neon-noir that screams early 2000s Japan
Director
Ryuhei Kitamura
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Sky High was part of Japan's early 2000s manga-to-film boom, riding the wave of Ringu and Ju-On but swapping psychological dread for maximalist action spectacle.
Director Ryuhei Kitamura made Versus (2000) with essentially the same cast and crew three years prior—Sky High is his 'sophisticated' studio follow-up that fans still debate as superior or sellout.
JP
