Latest news with #Exit8
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Business Mayor
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Mayor
'Exit 8' is an Exceptional Liminal Thriller and the Best Video Game Adaptation Ever Made [Cannes 2025 Review]
I've long been fascinated by what I call No Exit Horror , a term I've coined for a sub-genre rooted in existential dread, where characters are trapped in singular, oppressive spaces they cannot escape. Think of such liminal space thrillers as Cube , Dead End , Pontypool , or even The Shining . I took the name from French writer/philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, of course, and like his play No Exit , these films trap their characters not just in rooms but in loops of self-denial, regret, or moral indecision. Genki Kawamura's masterful Exit 8 , which just had its eerie and unforgettable premiere in the Cannes Midnight Screenings section, uses this trope so effectively that it might just be the most exceptional video game adaptation ever made. Adapted from a cult Japanese video game, Exit 8 follows 'The Lost Man,' played with raw and adorable restraint by Kazunari Ninomiya ( Letters from Iwo Jima , Gantz ). On a tedious underground commute home from his desk job, he quickly finds himself trapped in an endless underground subway corridor, forced to detect subtle anomalies, glitches in reality, that signal whether it's safe to proceed to the next exit, aka level. He loops back to the beginning if he misses something out of place. It's the perfect metaphor for the paralysis of modern professional life, trapped in the endless maze designed by the evils of capitalism: the hallway, sterile and endless, is less a location than a state of mind. He is, quite literally, going nowhere. And I'm sure most of us can find it relatable on some level . Exit 8 is more than just a stylish horror experiment or the astute staging of a unique and inexpensive IP. It's a tragic and intimate character study following a broken hero's journey where the monster isn't lurking around a corner. The Lost Man is on his way home from a job he clearly loathes. He's exhausted, emotionally disconnected, and stuck in the passive inertia of a life he never truly chose. And then, suddenly, fatherhood looms. Read More BioWare restructures around Mass Effect The great twist of Exit 8 is that its horror and drama are mostly emotional, not supernatural or sci-fi. Kawamura has crafted a film about the terror of becoming a parent before you're ready. About accepting love when you're not sure you're worthy. The anomaly in this man's life isn't a shadowy figure or an off-kilter passageway. Instead, it's the terrifying prospect of loving someone more than yourself. And being loved in return. The hallway becomes purgatory for a man who can't admit he's scared—scared of responsibility, commitment, and growing up. Ninomiya's performance is essential here. It's not flashy, but it's deep. He expertly plays emotional numbness, with shoulders sloped under decades of unspoken guilt and generational/gender expectation. There's a quiet beauty in how little he says and how much he shows. When change finally comes, it's not triumphant. It's terrifying. And it's earned. As The Lost Man repeats the corridor again and again, each loop becomes a step along a fractured, nonlinear path toward emotional accountability. He isn't trying to escape. He's trying to accept. He's trying to become someone capable of being loved, and of loving in return. And that might be the scariest journey a horror movie has ever asked of a man. And he's not alone. The eerie and quick introduction of 'The Walking Man' is frightening, then tragic. A perfect side quest during an already pristine mainline story. The atmosphere in Exit 8 draws on a similar liminal energy felt in brilliant liminal horror projects like P.T. and The Backrooms, but where those stories revel in abstract terror, Kawamura's film weaponises drama and character study with a teaspoon of hope. Ultimately, there isn't a clear resolution. But it does provide reflection. It asks what happens to those of us who live on autopilot. Those who accept careers we hate, relationships we don't nurture, and the futures we never chose. It's about how modern men inherit silence and mistake it for strength. And how love … real, scary, adult love … demands presence and vulnerability. It demands that you exit the loop. With Exit 8 , Genki Kawamura has crafted a haunting cautionary tale for the emotionally paralysed. It's a masterpiece of 'No Exit Horror': intimate, tragic, and impressively human. Forget boss battles, this is a video game adaptation where the final level is fatherhood, and like the process of being born, the only way out is through. Summary Genki Kawamura's masterful 'Exit 8' expertly draws on a liminal horror, character study, and realist drama to craft the best video game adaptation of all time. Tags: Cannes 2025 Exit 8 Featured Post Genki Kawamura Categorized:News Reviews
France 24
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- France 24
Cannes 2025: From Console to Croisette, viral game ‘Exit 8' hits Cannes Midnight Screenings
Culture 06:25 From the show Japanese director Genki Kawamura brings the cult video game "Exit 8" to the big screen in a chilling psychological thriller. Premiering in Cannes' Midnight Screenings section, the film follows a man trapped in a looping subway corridor, desperately searching for a way out. Adapted from a 2023 indie hit, it's a tense, mind-bending ride already thrilling both gamers and film fans. Also making waves on the Croisette is "Alpha", the much-anticipated new film from Titane director Julia Ducournau. Set during a fictional epidemic inspired by the AIDS crisis, it's a bold, visceral story featuring Golshifteh Farahani and Tahar Rahim. And it's a historic moment for Nigerian cinema as "My Father's Shadow" by Akinola Davies Jr. becomes the first Nigerian feature ever selected at Cannes. Premiering in Un Certain Regard, it's being hailed as one of the festival's most emotionally powerful films. Culture Editor Eve Jackson is on the ground with all the highlights.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Yahoo
New Haven man sentenced to 22 years in prison for gang activity
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — A New Haven man was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for his involvement in gang activities, including two murders and additional shootings. According to evidence and testimony, Tyjon 'TJ' Preston, 22, was a member of the Exit 8 street gang. According to police investigations, the Exit 8 gang was involved in drug trafficking, the use and sharing of firearms, and, since June 2018, at least three murders and 16 attempted murders. State police K9 helps apprehend home burglary suspect in Morris Preston was arrested on Sept. 9, 2021. On April 24, 2024, he pled guilty to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity. Preston specifically admitted to his involvement in several incidents, including on April 27, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members attempted to kill a rival gang member, shooting him in the leg; on May 19, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members conspired to kill rival gang members, and shot and killed an associate of a rival gang; on May 20, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members shot and attempted to kill rival gang members; and on July 5, 2021, he and another Exit 8 member shot and killed a 22-year-old woman after she made a rap song containing derogatory comments about Exit 8. Exit 8 members and associates also have allegedly promoted, coordinated, facilitated, and celebrated their narcotics distribution and acts of violence. Members would send text messages and use social media apps including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Construction underway on core Hendersonville intersection
HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Work has started in Hendersonville to improve traffic flow around the growing city. The TDOT-led project will eventually widen and redesign a core intersection in Hendersonville: Old Shackle Island Road and Walton Ferry Road. 'What you have right now, is you have two offsetting intersections; you pull out of one and you're immediately stopped at the other,' said Hendersonville Mayor Jamie Clary. 'You have two red lights, two traffic signals, within about 50 feet of each other.' In other words: the intersection of Old Shackle Island Road and Walton Ferry needs improvement, and has for a while. PREVIOUS | Hendersonville working on long-term transportation plan to improve traffic flow In fact, the city's initial public meeting to discuss changing the intersection was in June of 2004. 'It's going to be safer because right now… it's confusing,' said Clary. 'We get a lot of accidents right here, we get a lot of frustration, and we get a lot of back-ups.' The construction stretches several blocks down both sides of the intersection. The work has many layers, including the needed relocation of power and water lines, which is being done currently. Of course, businesses and homeowners along the road will be, or already are, impacted by the daily construction and lane closures. What's the Mayor's advice to them? 'Check out our website often, it's being updated by TDOT frequently. They're going to tell you what is coming up, what's happening right now, what the next phases are,' detailed Clary. When the intersection's transformation is finished, Clary believes it will invite more businesses and property owners to invest in that stretch of Hendersonville, given the improved flow of traffic. ⏩ Pedestrians will also get some perks when the work is completed. 'It's really not the best idea to be walking on both these roads for a good portion of it,' Clary said. 'We'll not only have added lanes and wider lanes, but we'll also have sidewalks going down the whole length of this, north and south.' This project is expected to be done by May of 2027. The next big traffic project on the docket for Hendersonville, according to Clary, will be the 'Exit 8' tunnel project, which will improve congestion leading onto Vietnam Veterans Boulevard. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
