10 Movies That Were Nearly Lost Completely

A Page Of Madness is one of the oldest Japanese movies to ever exist. It was made in 1926 by Teinosuke Kinugasa, and was the product of an avant-garde group of artists known as the Shinkankakuha, who dedicated themselves to overcoming naturalistic representation. Because of its strange and otherworldly nature, this film is commonly called the first horror movie to emerge from Japan.

After it was first screened in Tokyo on 10 July 1926, it was considered lost for many, many years afterwards because of improper treatment of film print, earthquakes, and the bombing runs of World War II. Because of the chaos, Kinugasa had to bury the last known print during the war to stop it getting into the hands of American soldiers.

After World War II was over, Kinugasa simply forgot that A Page Of Madness existed. It wasn’t until 1970 that he realized the reels that were stored in his garden shed were actually the film he had made in 1926. Although a third of it was lost forever, Kinugasa nonetheless commissioned the film to be released worldwide.