CURE screens in conjunction with the release of Michael Tully’s new film, DON’T LEAVE HOME, opening September 14 at AFS Cinema.

There really is no other way to say it: Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s CURE is a masterpiece of dream logic art horror. Police detective Takabe (Kōji Yakusho) is investigating a recent rash of bizarre murders, in which the victims are all killed by having an X slashed into their necks. Unfortunately, it appears that a lone serial killer is not to blame, as distinct murderers are found near the scene of each crime, caught red-handed yet with no memory of what transpired. Enter Mamiya (Masato Hagiwara), an enigmatic figure who appears to be the only link to the killings. As Takabe and psychologist Sakuma (Tsuyoshi Ujiki) become convinced that Mamiya is practicing a deviant form of hypnosis, Takabe is also grappling with the mental deterioration of his wife at home. Mamiya senses Takabe’s frailty and tries to exploit it, as Takabe struggles to keep his life—and mind—from falling apart. With CURE, Kurosawa casts the type of deeply hypnotic spell that only master filmmakers can, resulting in an experience that is deliciously inscrutable and wholly mesmerizing. (Michael Tully)