Hello, KinderTrauma!
There are two episodes that I can't get out of my head. Both of them are fragments from some animated film (or films??). Could be anime. It was about 15 years ago, and I was very young at that time, so it's more of describing my impression the fragment has left than describing the actual fragment. Anyway, the first scene takes place in some kind of a cave or a high-ceilinged underground hall with walls of dark grey stone. One of the characters is standing on the floor (he or she is unimportant), along with the spectator's POV, looking up, at the other character, a woman wearing some kind of khaki coveralls, who is hanging high under the ceiling with no visible ropes or straps around her – something or someone is holding her there. And then she says – I don't remember the exact wording, but the idea is that, uh… "Invisible pincers are tearing her apart" – she is squirming and groaning and then she bursts apart and her intestines fall down, towards the spectator.
The other fragment is preceded by a short scene in an ordinary apartment. A girl and a guy are chatting, and then the girl goes to the bathroom and starts undressing, because she's going to take a shower. And in the mirror there appears a silhouette of some pale, dragon-like creature, which the girl does not notice. The traumatic part is the fragment of a fight between a guy with black hair and dark eyes (the one from the apartment, I guess), and a creature (could be the one from the mirror) with very pale, bluish white skin. The creature is anthropomorphic and looks effeminate and somewhat artificial – as if it was made of rubber. They fight either on the roof of a multistory building or in the air. And I think it is night time. At some point during the fight the creature tears the black-haired guy's hand off. This moment is depicted with relish, I mean, it's grotesquely vivid – the bones crunch, the blood is gushing from the wound, and the guy's writhing with pain… In addition, this image is contrasted by another one that either precedes or follows it (memory fails me here) – the black-haired guy hacks the bluish creature's hand off with some sharp tool – and the stump doesn't bleed – the cut (also bluish) looks nice and clean, and tastefully raw, like a piece of fish in a sushi roll. And the creature looks… nonchalant, really, utterly unimpressed.
I didn't wake up at night after seeing this, I had no bad dreams connected with these episodes, and I don't even remember being actually scared. But I do remember the feeling of, so to say, temporary emotional numbness – like it happens when you see something very disturbing and fall into a stupor for some time.
Also, since it's been a long time, I wonder if these episodes are exactly the way I remember them. Probably not. I guess it would be quite a surprise to find out how much my memory and imagination have distorted them.
So if anyone, by any chance, recognizes these fragments, I would be very glad to know, because they have been bothering me for many years.
Thank you!
— Anna
UPDATE: NAME THAT TRAUMA SOLVED! Thanks to Reader RedDevil for solving it with Devilman.
Anna,
I have a friend who is really into anime, I'm going to forward this to him and see if it rings a bell. I wish I could help with this one but I haven't a clue. It certainly does sound like something I want to see though. Good luck!
Not sure if this rings a bell, but the first one reminds me of a scene from the anime "Urotsukidoji", released as "Legend of the Overfiend" in the states. It was one of the first ultra-violent animes released in the early '90's so the timeframe is about right. About halfway through the movie a woman is torn apart very much like in the manner described, spewing viscera upon a hapless watcher.
Animated fun for the whole family!
Darn it! At first I was positive your first memory was of the climactic tank battle from Ghost in the Shell (the museum is abandoned, and it has high ceilings, and the tank, which has pincers, is briefly invisible), but I just rewatched it and now I'm not so sure. Pretty grisly scene, but the similarities stop there, I guess. I don't know. Your description sounds so familiar, but maybe a lot of mid-90s anime (yeesh) has invisibility and/or pincers and/or people being ripped in twain.
I asked my main dude Derek about the second memory you have, and he said it sounded like, uh, something called Legend of the Overfiend, but that it was super duper not for kids. I'm trying to look it up online–it looks like there are rooftop fights with dragon-things, at least. Maybe?
Man, I agree that i think the first one is Ghost in the Shell. The other, I don't know, maybe Vampire Wars? Or possibly Wicked City?
OK, I'm new here so i don't know all the rules but i had to chime in as one sounds like one of my favorite animes. the scene in the first description sounds like Devilman where he is forced to watch his mothers death as it occured in the past while he is fighting Jinmen. here is a youtube link. start watching at about the 2:20 mark for the scene. the other one sounds very devilman also. ohh and good to finally meet all of my fellow horror fans. link below::
yea the second part is where his girlfriend Miki gets attacked in the bathroom by gelmer who turns invisible to attack her in her bath. he is sort of a dragon looking water deamon…
here is a clip for the second part. it starts around the 5:50 mark on this youtube clip. i've been watching your site for many months but finally got the itch to sign in with you.
Ghost in the shell? IT's one of my favorite 😀
RedDevil,
yes, it’s the one! I can't believe it… Finally! Thank you very much.
Doesn't look as terrifying as it did in childhood, though)
It’s funny how the second memory I described as one indivisible fragment appears to be composed from many remote shots of the anime… Memory is a tricky thing))
Aiiieee! I just remembered to check back on this thread to see if Anna got answers! (I also didn't see Sardonicus's post before mine, haha. Well, we were both wrong, anyway.) 🙂
Anyway, I wanted to say yay! and that Anna has a darn sharp memory. High five, RedDevil.