This year’s Overlook Film Festival featured the Japanese horror thriller, Best Wishes to All. Based on a short film of the same name, this is director Yûta Shimotsu’s feature film debut and the screenplay was written by Rumi Kakuta (Anoko wa Daare?). The film follows a caring young nursing student as she travels to visit her grandparents in their small town. Once there, old memories resurface, revealing a dark family secret.

From the moment Best Wishes to All begins, Shimotsu creates a sense of mystery and dread around the grandparent’s house. We see the protagonist visiting her grandparents as a child and experiencing something traumatic. Years later, as an adult, she returns. While she tries to enjoy her time there, her subconscious constantly reminds her there is something off about her relatives and their home. While the mystery is a compelling one, it’s once the mystery is revealed that things really take a dramatic turn. It’s like everyone is in on some sick joke, leaving the granddaughter to feel like the naive fool. This helps to put the audience in the same position as the character, feeling like either she’s insane or everyone around her is. The plot is quite twisted, forcing the audience to confront their own quest for happiness and wonder just how far they would be willing to go for guaranteed bliss and success. While it’s a fascinating premise with some truly disturbing moments, there are quite a few unexplained elements. This is most evident in the strange behavior of the grandparents, which adds to the unease of the film yet all leads to confusion. Best Wishes to All is certainly a disturbing and thought-provoking film, but the script leaves a few too many gaps.

What makes the performances in Best Wishes to All interesting is how some are more realistic and understated while others are more strange and even lean into camp. Kotone Furukawa (Cloud, 12 Suicidal Teens) stars as the granddaughter. Furukawa is wonderful at embodying the kind-hearted, innocent nature of the character. It’s easy to believe she was oblivious to the horrors hidden in the upstairs room of her grandparents’ house, which also allows for Furukawa to shine in the more suspenseful moments. While there are many great performances throughout Best Wishes to All, most adding to the bizarre occurrences, it’s clear that Furukawa is the heart and soul of the film.

There is no shortage of disturbing imagery in this film. Best Wishes to All has plenty of beautiful scenery and locations, but it’s the more horrific elements that really stand out. While I won’t get into what this imagery entails, as it will inevitably lead to spoilers, most of this is achieved with striking practical effects. It gives the film a healthy dose of horror, reminiscent of films such as Audition and The Wicker Man. These practical effects are all very well done, creating images that are sure to remain imprinted on the audience’s minds.

Best Wishes to All is a slice of modern folk horror contemplating how far people will go for their own happiness. Shimotsu and Kakuta craft a disturbing story, but the mythos feels a bit incomplete, leaving lingering questions. Most of those questions are related to the shocking imagery, which looks great, but is never fully explained. Some of this could be explained away by cultural differences, which makes it easier to overlook. Luckily the film is brought to life by a wonderful performance from Furukawa. This is quite a feature film debut for Shimotsu, sure to make horror fans take notice of his work.

OVERALL RATING: 7/10