Pulse (2001)

When a Tokyo man dies after claiming to see a ghost through his computer, his friends begin to encounter strange phenomena linked to a mysterious website. At the same time, a student notices people around her disappearing without explanation, leaving only dark stains behind. Something from the digital world is seeping into reality… Pulse explores themes of human isolation, technological anxiety and emotional disconnection. Set during the early internet age, the film presents a society increasingly connected through machines but more alone than ever. Modern technology becomes a vessel for age-old fears of death and spiritual disconnection, echoing the aesthetics of traditional Japanese ghost tales. Kurosawa uses the ghost story to question what it means to be human in a world where virtual contact takes over real connection. With its eerie visuals and haunting story, Pulse has been a crowd favourite as an essential entry of the J-Horror wave that became a cultural phenomenon at the turn of the millennium, with Kurosawa’s vision continuing to resonate in today’s hyperconnected but emotionally fragmented world.