Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown - Caitlin R Kiernan clip

getting back to lovecraftian elements in non Lovecraft fiction.

I have always thought that the original Japanese Ring movie, had lovecraftian undertones.

Sadako's powers are more telepathic and psionic, than demonic.
Coupled with growing up on an isolated fishing island, and the mystery regarding her father, her obvious (but slight) deformity, as well as the references to goblins in the sea.

I think there is a strong case for Sadako being a deep one hybrid, a japanese "Innsmouth" type.

What did you think of the traditional Japanese abortion cemetery where unwanted babies are exposed to the tides, and mothers come and leave cute presents there for them ? I thought that was the most disturbing thing in the Ring movie.

Yeah that was interesting, but again it is the kind of thing that a japanese Innsmouth would do.

There are supposed to be cities of the deep ones all over the world (Obed Marsh learned about Dagon in Polynesia I think) and so its not hard to imagine that what happened to Innsmouth has happened in other remote coastal towns, and the goblins in the sea that are mentioned in ring are deep ones.

Maybe putting unwanted babies by the sea is a legacy of much older practices..sacrifices.

Lol, you're right of course Giradius. I always thought Minamata would make a good Japanese Innsmouth.

Regarding Polynesia, are you aware of the Federation of Micronesia's island of Ponape with the amazing ruins ? Apparently when the Japanese occupied the island they went diving and recovered platinum bullion from the watery caves, which is said to be in the vaults of Tokyo museum. Ponape has an interesting history.

Meh, get your point but Lovecraft's views on race were odd and changed a lot. Also for a long time he proudly considered himself an ultra-reactionary, and had little time for anyone not WASP and upper-class. I mean the group he most consistently belittles is white 'farming-types', comparing his numerous redneck (inbred) characters to mere animals half the time. so yeah common racial view, add an element of pseudo racial science popular at the time with some and then just plain snobbery to boot.

Absolutely!

During the 1920s eugenics was quite fasionable (and state endorsed in the USA), Lovecrafts views regarding race etc, were quite standard for his day.

You find this kind of thing if you read pulp of the era, for instance there are similar remarks made in Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu stories.

People forget that moral and social viewpoints change, the zeitgeist changes, and what people think today will be viewed differenty tommorow.

its a matter of historical context.

Its actually quite a good point!
There are quite a few non Lovecraft movies which are quite Lovecraftian.

omg cloverfield

There were rumors before Cloverfield came out (and nobody had seen the monster) that it was going to be a Lovecraftian film and the Cloverfield monster was going to be Cthulhu.

To be honest, even though the Cloverfield monster was not a traditional lovecraft monster, it still has undertones.
The buglike parasites which cling to it make it even more so.