THE YOMIGAERI TUNNEL

If you could bring someone back to life, who would it be?

For Japanese American Monika, a recent high school graduate, the choice is obvious. Her classmate Shun died of an overdose in January, and his death still weighs on her mind. At the graduation brunch for her school’s Japanese Club, Monika overhears a conversation about the Yomigaeri Tunnel. A local urban legend says that anyone who can walk the tunnel’s full length will be granted the power to resurrect someone. Some internet searching and a bus ride later, Monika arrives at the tunnel, where she finds Shiori, who was also at the brunch and intends to bring her mother back. The girls enter the tunnel together, and as they walk through the darkness, they’re plunged into a series of visions from their pasts. Curiously, aside from one childhood memory, Monika’s visions don’t include Shun. Instead, she’s forced to relive moments that remind her of personal regrets and the pain of loss. When Monika is suddenly thrown into Shiori’s memories, she begins to wonder if there’s more to passing the tunnel’s test than mere endurance. Generational trauma and the complexity of grief form the thematic core of this introspective story, which handles its weighty topics with care and empathy. Suspense builds from the secrets that obscure Monika’s and Shiori’s motivations and their questions about the tunnel’s true nature as it alters in unpredictable ways.

Thought-provoking and original.