Japan Society is pleased to announce Love Letters: Four Films by Shunji Iwai, a weekend series celebrating the defining early works of filmmaker Shunji Iwai. One of the most original talents to emerge from Japan in the ’90s, Iwai tapped into the dreams and lives of Japan’s youth with his lyrical meditations on the hardships of young adulthood, capturing pivotal and unforgettable moments of life. Balancing popular entertainment with arthouse predilection, Iwai’s exhilarating takes on the youth film provided a much-needed voice for the younger generation, offering delicate portraits of adolescence, ripe with poetic yearnings of grief, friendship, and young love. Iwai’s sumptuous visual style, coupled with his affecting and underground appeal, opened a world of new possibilities in the ’90s cinescape—marking him as one of the most accomplished and unique filmmakers of his generation.
A primer on the director’s essential works, Love...
A primer on the director’s essential works, Love...
- 11/16/2022
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Stars: Kaori Fuji, Takako Matsu, Seiichi Tanabe | Written and Directed by Shunji Iwai
Even though I’d call myself a fan of Asian cinema, the reality is, if it isn’t horror or animated, I probably haven’t seen it. So I was thrilled to get the chance to watch 1998’s April Story at this year’s Fantasia Fest.
On the face of things, April Story is a very simple movie and not a whole lot happens. In Spring a girl, Uzuki Nireno, leaves the island of Hikkaido and her home town to attend University in Tokyo. And that’s kinda the whole story. We follow her as she struggles a little with being out of her comfort zone and the city not being quite as fantastic as she hoped.
But this is not a sad story, far from it. We see her loneliness and anxiety in new situations but...
Even though I’d call myself a fan of Asian cinema, the reality is, if it isn’t horror or animated, I probably haven’t seen it. So I was thrilled to get the chance to watch 1998’s April Story at this year’s Fantasia Fest.
On the face of things, April Story is a very simple movie and not a whole lot happens. In Spring a girl, Uzuki Nireno, leaves the island of Hikkaido and her home town to attend University in Tokyo. And that’s kinda the whole story. We follow her as she struggles a little with being out of her comfort zone and the city not being quite as fantastic as she hoped.
But this is not a sad story, far from it. We see her loneliness and anxiety in new situations but...
- 8/26/2021
- by Alain Elliott
- Nerdly
While cinephiles mostly associate Kazuo Hara with documentaries such as “The Emperor’s Naked Army Marches On”, the director has also made a feature film in 2005, together with his long-term partner producer and screenwriter Sachiko Kobayashi. However, “The Many Faces of Chika”, which follows the story of a woman through four stages in her life, contains similar qualities, especially a sharp eye for human relationships and flaws, along with a critical view on Japan’s society and politics. Given the background of the tumultuous 1960s, with a specific allusion to the student protests, “The Many Faces of Chika” tells a story of a women’s journey into uncertainty and her many facets, which mirror the social and political changes of the times.
The Many Faces of Chika is screening at Japan Society
In her youth, Chika (Takami Yoshimoto) was a talented gymnast who even participated in the Tokyo Olympics, but...
The Many Faces of Chika is screening at Japan Society
In her youth, Chika (Takami Yoshimoto) was a talented gymnast who even participated in the Tokyo Olympics, but...
- 6/27/2021
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
A home isn’t just four walls and a roof, but a building that has with it many years’ worth of memories for its inhabitants. And for some of the elderly, the home isn’t just where they live, but their life itself. This is the theme of first-time director Yoshihiko Ueda’s loosely-plotted “A Garden of Camelias”.
“A Garden of Camellias” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Kinuko (Sumiko Fuji) is recently widowed and taking guests as part of the important forty-ninth day memorial for her late husband. Since the death of her estranged daughter, her granddaughter Nagisa (Korean actress Shim Eun-kyung) has lived with her as she tries to acclimatise herself to Japanese language and culture after her mother left the country. Kinuko now spends her days tending to her generous garden of natural beauty and helping Nagisa with her Japanese. But with problems regarding inheritance tax on the horizon,...
“A Garden of Camellias” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Kinuko (Sumiko Fuji) is recently widowed and taking guests as part of the important forty-ninth day memorial for her late husband. Since the death of her estranged daughter, her granddaughter Nagisa (Korean actress Shim Eun-kyung) has lived with her as she tries to acclimatise herself to Japanese language and culture after her mother left the country. Kinuko now spends her days tending to her generous garden of natural beauty and helping Nagisa with her Japanese. But with problems regarding inheritance tax on the horizon,...
- 6/8/2021
- by Andrew Thayne
- AsianMoviePulse
Ryosuke Hashiguchi’s career parallels that of certain other directors who look at unconventional family scenarios as we moved into the new millennium. Though Hashiguchi’s unconventional is always a little more unconventional than others, and 2001’s “Hush!” is no exception.
Hush is screening at Japan Society
Katsuhiro (Seiichi Tanabe) and Naoya (Kazuya Takahashi) are a gay couple in the early stages of their relationship and have just moved in together. One day, while having lunch at a restaurant, Katsuhiro offers his umbrella to Asako (Reiko Kataoka) who has just had hers stolen. This small act leads to Katsuhiro and Naoya’s lives and relationship to take an unusual turn. Asako is a troubled woman with a history of mental health problems. She counters this by drinking heavily alone and having meaningless sexual encounters. Having already had two abortions as a result, a doctor suggests she maybe has surgery to stop this becoming a problem.
Hush is screening at Japan Society
Katsuhiro (Seiichi Tanabe) and Naoya (Kazuya Takahashi) are a gay couple in the early stages of their relationship and have just moved in together. One day, while having lunch at a restaurant, Katsuhiro offers his umbrella to Asako (Reiko Kataoka) who has just had hers stolen. This small act leads to Katsuhiro and Naoya’s lives and relationship to take an unusual turn. Asako is a troubled woman with a history of mental health problems. She counters this by drinking heavily alone and having meaningless sexual encounters. Having already had two abortions as a result, a doctor suggests she maybe has surgery to stop this becoming a problem.
- 2/10/2021
- by Andrew Thayne
- AsianMoviePulse
Neo Ultra Q, The Complete 12-episode series is available on Blu-ray From Mill Creek Entertainment. Ordering Info can be found Here.
Check out this crazy trailer:
Based on the fan-favorite classic Ultra Q, this 12-episode series tells the story of three brave friends who risk their lives investigating bizarre monster appearances, strange ecological catastrophes and paranormal events.
Neo Ultra Q stars Seiichi Tanabe, Rin Takanashi, and Hiroyuki Onoue
The post Neo Ultra Q The Complete Series on Blu-ray From Mill Creek Entertainment appeared first on We Are Movie Geeks.
Check out this crazy trailer:
Based on the fan-favorite classic Ultra Q, this 12-episode series tells the story of three brave friends who risk their lives investigating bizarre monster appearances, strange ecological catastrophes and paranormal events.
Neo Ultra Q stars Seiichi Tanabe, Rin Takanashi, and Hiroyuki Onoue
The post Neo Ultra Q The Complete Series on Blu-ray From Mill Creek Entertainment appeared first on We Are Movie Geeks.
- 8/4/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
If one believes one of the leading experts on Asian, especially Japanese cinema, Blues Harp by Takashi Miike is “the film that will shed much-needed light on the hidden sides of that genuine filmmaker Takashi Miike”. In a year which can be regarded as one of the quieter years in the career of the director in terms of the film made, “Blues Harp”, together with “The Bird People in China” and “Young Thugs: Nostalgia”, defines indeed an emotional, even melancholic side of Miike, a name many film-goers and critics rather associate with excess, violence and and the ludicrous.
Buy This Title
As with his “Black Society Trilogy”, especially “Rainy Dog” and “Ley Lines”, Miike has proven himself to be a director of many facets, even though his themes – the outsider, masculinity, violence and family units – have stayed at the core of most of his films. It is interesting that a...
Buy This Title
As with his “Black Society Trilogy”, especially “Rainy Dog” and “Ley Lines”, Miike has proven himself to be a director of many facets, even though his themes – the outsider, masculinity, violence and family units – have stayed at the core of most of his films. It is interesting that a...
- 4/30/2018
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
The official website for Kentaro Otani’s Gene Waltz has been updated with a longer trailer.
The film is an adaptation of a novel by Takeru Kaido, the real-life pathologist who also wrote the novels that inspired “The Glorious Team Batista” and its sequel “The Triumphant General Rouge”.
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies, even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also wants to see the system change.
Surrogacy is highly controversial in Japan, and while it’s technically legal, there are very few obstetricians willing to go through with it. There is...
The film is an adaptation of a novel by Takeru Kaido, the real-life pathologist who also wrote the novels that inspired “The Glorious Team Batista” and its sequel “The Triumphant General Rouge”.
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies, even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also wants to see the system change.
Surrogacy is highly controversial in Japan, and while it’s technically legal, there are very few obstetricians willing to go through with it. There is...
- 1/1/2011
- Nippon Cinema
An official website has finally been launched for Kentaro Otani‘s Gene Waltz, a film adaptation of a novel by Takeru Kaido, the real-life pathologist who also wrote the novels that inspired “The Glorious Team Batista” and its sequel “The Triumphant General Rouge”. This project was first announced last November with a release planned for Fall 2010, but its promotion was put on the back burner for a while due to its release window being pushed back a few months.
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies—even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also...
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies—even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also...
- 10/4/2010
- Nippon Cinema
An official website has finally been launched for Kentaro Otani‘s Gene Waltz, a film adaptation of a novel by Takeru Kaido, the real-life pathologist who also wrote the novels that inspired “The Glorious Team Batista” and its sequel “The Triumphant General Rouge”. This project was first announced last November with a release planned for Fall 2010, but its promotion was put on the back burner for a while due to its release window being pushed back a few months.
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies—even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also...
Plot: Doctor Rie Sonezaki (Miho Kanno) is a fertility specialist who has earned the moniker “Obstetrics Joan of Arc” for her willingness to do whatever it takes to help women have babies—even if it means risking her career by violating the policy most Japanese obstetricians have long held against assisting with the use of surrogate mothers. However, she has an ally in her superior Goro Kyokawa (Seiichi Tanabe), who also...
- 10/4/2010
- Nippon Cinema
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