Never After Dark (2026)

          After its recent run on the festival circuit, Toho Pictures’ new Japanese ghost movie (from writer and director Dave Boyle) is getting a digital release in the UK from Blue Finch.

The title refers to the practice of ghost hunter-cum psychic Airi (Moeka Hoshi), who specialises in helping ghosts ‘caught in a loop’ to cross over to the other side of the thin veil that separates our world from the afterlife. She doesn’t work at night because the supernatural forces she interacts with are too powerful after dark.

Called to a remote hotel by the two people who have just purchased it, Airi’s job is to deal with a ghost that has been observed wandering the corridors. It’s a memorable apparition, seen mainly in shadow, and is a variation on the Japanese myth of the ‘slit-mouthed woman’ only in this case it’s a man and his entire jaw appears to be hanging off.

But that’s not all Airi has to deal with, as it turns out things aren’t as straightforward as she has been led to believe. Other people visit the hotel while she’s there and the discovery of a tin full of teeth leads to the uncovering of a further mystery. Then there’s Airi’s sister, who is dead but whose ghost follows Airi around. Eventually all of these elements culminate and are resolved in a satisfying finale.

Having had a good reception at festivals, NEVER AFTER DARK is nevertheless not without its problems. The premise is intriguing and the plot is clever, but the execution could be described as measured (if you like this sort of thing) and seriously plodding if you don’t. In fact if you belong to the latter group you will be looking at your watch halfway through and wondering where the meandering series of events is taking you and whether things are ever actually going to shift up a gear. That said if you’re a fan of movies like Ti West’s THE INNKEEPERS, where a significant part of the running time is taken up by people sitting around talking, it’s likely you will consider NEVER AFTER DARK a potential classic, too. Here’s the trailer:

Dave Boyle’s NEVER AFTER DARK is out on Digital from Blue Finch Releasing on Monday 2nd November 2026