Dave Boyle’s latest film, “Never After Dark,” offers an atmospheric dive into Japanese ghost story traditions, combining eerie visuals with psychological suspense. The 1 hour 45 minute horror drama is currently in theaters, presenting viewers with a chilling narrative set against the backdrop of remote forestland and a fog-enshrouded lodge.

The story centers on Airi, portrayed by Moeka Hoshi, a seasoned psychic whose role is to guide restless spirits from the world of the living to the next realm. Hoshi, familiar to audiences from FX’s “Shojo,” embodies a character whose confidence is tested by a particularly formidable haunting. Airi’s current assignment comes from a flamboyant chalet owner, played by Tae Kimura, who reports sightings of a ghostly figure roaming her property. Despite the owner’s alarm, Airi approaches the job with marked nonchalance, although she receives whispered warnings from her deceased sister Miku, who appears in reflective surfaces and urges caution.

The tension escalates as Kento Kaku’s character, the skeptical son of the chalet owner, adds an element of intrigue and flirtatious skepticism by scrutinizing Airi’s methods. The psychic’s tools—a candle, a lock of her own hair, and a mirror embedded with a zoetrope—introduce a ritualistic element as she confronts both spectral and human uncertainties. Supernatural unease is further amplified by unsettling objects such as a tin filled with human teeth and a restless spirit bearing an uncanny resemblance to a visitor portrayed by Mutsuo Yoshioka.

Jonathan Snipes’s score, featuring glassy chimes and haunting vocals, enhances the film’s ominous atmosphere. The narrative unfolds gradually with deliberate pacing, recalling the cerebral horror of Japanese filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s works like “Creepy” (2016) and the more recent “Chime” (2024), which also stars Yoshioka. However, Boyle’s film distinguishes itself with its climactic energy, blending art-house suspense with a crowd-pleasing finale that evokes elements of Hollywood horror.

Overall, “Never After Dark” marries traditional ghost story motifs with contemporary cinematic techniques, crafting an unsettling yet accessible experience for fans of supernatural thrillers. The film’s visual and auditory details work in concert to immerse audiences in a ghostly realm where the boundary between the living and the dead blurs, challenging both protagonist and viewer to confront what lurks just beyond perception.