Why so much hype?

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

The TOMIE series of Japanese 'horror' films have been a real chore to sit through. The first one was at least novel but hardly a classic in the same way as RING or THE GRUDGE. The second, a horrendous shot-on-video anthology under the name of TOMIE: ANOTHER FACE, is best forgotten. The third, TOMIE: REPLAY, was instantly forgettable, telling exactly the same story as the original film with little to no variation. The fourth, TOMIE: REBIRTH, is another re-run of the same themes, and has exactly the same problems as its predecessor: it goes nowhere we haven't seen before, it doesn't explain any of Tomie's origins or behaviour, and it's way too familiar given what's come previously.The film begins with a resurrected Tomie the girlfriend of an art student. It's fair to say that their relationship doesn't end well, and from that point in the film follows the established route: Tomie can't die, and also seems to be able to multiply in some strange way. The storyline is an excuse for some ghoulish japes involving animated severed heads and some grisly body disposal sequences, but aside from that it's largely boring. What's particularly annoying is the way lots of scenes seem to be drawn out to a ridiculous degree; two characters will have a conversation but leave long spaces between words and utterances. It doesn't add atmosphere, it just feels like the slim story is being stretched out to fill the running time.The man who directed this, Takashi Shimuzu, also handled the two excellent GRUDGE movies, not that you'd realise. Tomie: Rebirth looks and feels cheap, and the picture quality on the DVD I watched was particularly fuzzy. The acting is poor, with Miki Sakai probably the least impressive of the actresses who've played Tomie so far. The film relies far too much on her supposedly creepy giggle for effect, when in fact it just sounds silly. Inevitably, a sequel (TOMIE: FORBIDDEN FRUIT) follows.

Tomie: Re-Birth mainly focuses on the characters affected by Tomie. I enjoyed the changes in characters' nature: particularly for Shunichi and Hitomi. At first, Shunichi (Mazasaya Kikawada) comes off as a confident guy who likes to have a good time with his friends. Gradually, he becomes more unsure, paranoid, and even obsessed in a most manic way. On the flipside, Hitomi (Kumiko Endou) has an innocent, yet subdued nature. Questions and uncertainty beckon Hitomi down a road from which she may regret walking down upon.Don't get me wrong..Miki Sakai does well as Tomie and is equally adept at producing an ominous stare; one enabling her to peer deep into the depths of inner souls. Although there are CG effects used, I thought the use of close-ups and different angle shots were more effective at establishing a mood of fear. Despite slow pacing and a few sappy (yet amusing) scenes, Tomie: Rebirth is darkly entertaining.

After seeing the first Tomie movie i lost all interest in seeing what the sequels in the serial would bring. For a horror movie, there wasn't a single chill or climax in it, which can only leave a horror fan like me very disappointed. But then i saw that Tomie: Re-birth was directed by no other than Takashi Shimizu (The man behind the four Ju-on movies), and i thought, and (i guess) expected, that he would add a lot of his creepy imagination from his former horror movies (i cant praise them enough) to this sleeping pill of a weird love story. I was, again, VERY disappointed. Though, i have 2 good things to say about this movie. First of all, this one IS better than the first. Second, there actually was one scene in Re-birth that made my hair on the neck to stand up, and that is where a girl is sitting in her bedroom in front of a mirror and suddenly sees a girl, white as snow, peeking out of her closet. Uuhhhhhh Mufasa!! It smelled a little like Ju-on, but then the girl turns away from the mirror and the ghostly lurker is gone. BUUUUUUH!! But besides this minor chill that lasts about 3 seconds, its really hard to see that this is a Shimizu creation. Instead of taking Tomie to a new level and making it to a real creep fest, it seems more like he just goes along with the dull and not THAT fascinating theme from the other Tomie movies. And on top of that, i saw interviews with the cast and the director himself describing this movie as a blend of horror and humor? Now, without sounding like a dumb racist, but do you have to be Japanese to notice the humor? It went over my head thats for sure. But maybe some of the moments that i found laughable and not creepy, like the crawling head, wasn't meant to be scary but fun? I guess i never find out and its not important anyway. I mean, Tomie IS a horror movie right? At least, thats what it says on the movie description. But how on earth is it possible to make a horror movie where the so called "monster" dies all the time, killed by all its "victims", and not the other way around? So far Tomie hasn't convinced me that it can be done... Please Shimizu, stick to the creepy stuff. Thats what you do best.I gave it 5 out of 10

This is the story of Tomie, a young japanese woman, who gets stabbed to death by her boy-friend in the beginning of the film. Don't ask why, because the two really seem to be in love. While he's painting a picture of her, she slightly whispers that she loves him. And suddenly he seems to lose control. When two of his friends appear, they find him holding her dead body in his arms. The three decide to keep this homicide as a secret and bury her somewhere in the woods. But a few days later she's back and looking for revenge. Strange things begin to happen.Not the right choice if you're looking for a gory splatterflick. Almost no blood at all. But if you're a friend of films like "The Ring", "Uzumaki" or "Parasite Eve" this one could be the right choice. Can be compared with the first two but is not as brilliant as "Parasite Eve", although the end looked pretty similar.So while the gorehounds among you might call this boring, i would say it was slow but entertaining and rate it 6/10.