Onibaba (folklore)

Onibaba (鬼婆, lit. demon hag) is an Oni from Japanese folklore that has the appearance of an old woman but is a yōkai that feasts on humans. Variously known as the "Demon-Hag," "Old Hag," "Mountain Woman," "the Goblin of Adachigahara," and "Kurozuka," the Onibaba has many stories behind her name.

Characteristics

The Onibaba has the appearance of a shriveled old woman. Some of her more distinctive features include having a disheveled, maniacal appearance, wild-looking hair, and an oversized mouth. She is sometimes depicted with a kitchen knife or sitting with a spool of thread. She often conceals her demonic appearance in order to put visitors into a false sense of security.

The woman from whom the Onibaba originated is said to have lived in a cave or small house in Adachi-ga-hara (安達が原, lit. the moor of Adachi) and died close-by, in a place called Kurozuka (黒塚). There is a small museum in Adachigahara that is said to hold her remains as well as the cooking pot and knife that she used on her victims.

Onibaba (film)

Onibaba (鬼婆, literally Demon Hag) is a 1964 Japanese historical drama horror film. It was written and directed by Kaneto Shindo. The film is set during a civil war in the fourteenth century. Nobuko Otowa and Jitsuko Yoshimura play two women who kill soldiers to steal their possessions.

Plot

The film is set somewhere in Japan, in the mid-fourteenth century (Hachi tells of an attack from general Takauji Ashikaga, who came to power in the 1330s). Two wounded soldiers flee from pursuers on horse in thick reeds which are taller than a man. Suddenly the soldiers are killed with spears by unseen assailants. Two women appear, take the armour and weapons, and drop the bodies in a hole. The women return to a small hut. The next day they take the armor and weapons to a merchant named Ushi (Taiji Tonoyama) and trade them for food. The merchant tells them news of a war. Ushi tries to seduce the older woman in vain. A neighbor named Hachi (Kei Satō), who has been at war, returns. The older woman (Nobuko Otowa) asks Hachi about her son, who was forced to be a soldier along with Hachi. The son is the husband of the younger woman (Jitsuko Yoshimura). Hachi tells about his experience in two fights, where general Takauji Ashikaga attacked his division. He says that the younger woman's husband had been killed in the fighting three days earlier when surrounded at the Battle of Minatogawa.