Plot – High school student Ai (Anna Yamada) is already having a difficult time fitting in when a strange phenomenon begins spreading through her school. Students start forming human pyramids, with more and more people joining until the entire school appears to have lost its collective mind. Alongside transfer student Yu (Yuzu Aoki), Ai finds herself among the few people who haven’t fallen under the influence of this increasingly bizarre behaviour. Unfortunately, refusing to join the group isn’t exactly encouraged.
New Group is one seriously weird Japanese horror film, although calling it straight horror doesn’t really do it justice, as while there’s plenty of bizarre body horror imagery, this is much more of a dark comedy and social satire about conformity, peer pressure and the sheer stupidity of blindly following everyone else.
I mean, a bunch of people suddenly deciding that forming human pyramids is the most important thing in the world isn’t exactly what I’d call a conventional horror premise, but there’s clearly a method to the madness here, and if you’re familiar with director Yûta Shimotsu, having previously directed Best Wishes to All, you will know that he clearly has a thing for taking ordinary aspects of society and turning them into something completely fucking bonkers.
And he’s not exactly subtle about it.
The whole human pyramid business is essentially one enormous piss-take of groupthink. People stop thinking for themselves, individuality becomes a problem and anyone who refuses to participate is suddenly the enemy. It’s not difficult to see what Shimotsu is getting at, particularly when you consider how easily people can be swept up in collective behaviour these days. Whether that’s social media, school bullying or adults happily following whatever ridiculous nonsense is currently fashionable, there’s plenty here to have a dig at.
The film though doesn’t approach all this with a completely straight face. There’s a considerable amount of dark comedy running through it, and some of the situations are so absurd that it’s difficult not to laugh. Watching people contort themselves into increasingly ridiculous formations, while everyone around them behaves as though this is perfectly normal, is quite something. It’s not necessarily laugh-out-loud comedy every five minutes, but there’s an underlying silliness to the whole thing that I found rather entertaining.
In fact, I’d say New Group is considerably more satire and comedy than horror. That’s not to say there aren’t some unpleasant moments, because there are, but anyone expecting 82 minutes of relentless scares might be a little disappointed, as this film is all about Shimotsu making a point through strange imagery, bizarre behaviour and some wonderfully inventive physical sequences than he is in delivering a conventional horror experience.
The human pyramid formations for example are genuinely very strange to look at, particularly as they become increasingly elaborate and the number of people involved grows, and it actually becomes quite uncomfortable watching ordinary human bodies being used in such unnatural ways. Some of the imagery is almost comical, others are surprisingly grotesque, and the film manages to move between the two without making too much of a fuss about it.
It’s also refreshing to see a Japanese horror film having a bit of fun with its premise rather than constantly trying to convince us that everything is terribly serious, although that doesn’t mean Shimotsu has completely abandoned the darker side of things. The violence and body horror are there when needed, and the contrast between the ridiculous behaviour and its consequences gives the film some of its best moments.
As for the cast, Anna Yamada does a decent job as Ai, particularly as her character gradually becomes more willing to stand up for herself rather than simply going along with everybody else. Yuzu Aoki provides a useful contrast as Yu, although I did find myself wanting a little more development from the central characters outside of the social commentary, and while I understand that’s largely the point, it occasionally leaves the human side of the film feeling a little undercooked.
New Group certainly has a fantastic central idea and plenty of memorable imagery, but I don’t think the storytelling is quite as strong as the concept itself. There are stretches where the film seems happier throwing another bizarre situation at us than doing much with the characters or pushing things forward. I was certainly entertained by the madness, but I didn’t always feel as invested as I think the film wanted to be.
The satire can also be a little heavy-handed. There’s not much room for subtle interpretation when the film is practically waving its message around in front of your face, although I can’t say I particularly minded too much. Sometimes a film doesn’t need to spend half its running time explaining what it means, and Shimotsu certainly doesn’t seem worried about whether everyone is going to agree with him.
At just 82 minutes, it also gets away with quite a lot. There’s enough going on to keep things interesting, and even when the narrative starts to wander, there’s usually another ridiculous visual waiting around the corner – New Group certainly isn’t a masterpiece, and I wouldn’t put it among the year’s essential horror releases, but it’s certainly one of the more unusual things I’ve watched recently.
It’s funny at times, weird at others, and occasionally disturbing, a film that has absolutely no interest in behaving like a normal horror film. A few better-developed characters and a slightly stronger narrative would have pushed it higher, but there’s more than enough here to make it worth a look.
New Group is available to watch on Shudder – New Group on IMDb.
More Asian horror reviews.
- Colony (2026) Review: A Bloody Zombie Movie That Almost Gets Everything Right
- Noroi: The Curse Review: A Found Footage Horror That Gets Under Your Skin
- One Cut of the Dead Review: A Zombie Movie That Is Much More Than It First Appears
- The Medium (2021) Review: Creepy, Disturbing and Brutal
- Incantation (2022) Review: This Horror Film Wants You to Join the Curse
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