Welcome to the weekend
I hope you are well
Japanese film fans on Twitter will be aware that for the last month an actor, a producer, and a couple of directors have been outed as sexual predators and power harassers. Among that scandalous cade are a few directors, the most prominent being Sion Sono, once a favourite director of mine but one I moved away from in recent years – I didn’t really glance at Red Post at Escher Street despite the hype.
Time spent writing about Japanese films has removed my naivete and I have a nascent but growing awareness of the exploitation that goes on in the Japanese film industry and society at large but I was still caught off-guard and left saddened. Needless to say, I hope the victims of exploitation and attack get some justice and more people come out to challenge a corrupt system by exposing more predators.
What with the horrors going on in the Ukraine and the anti-democratic and inhumane politics of conservatives worldwide, it just makes life that bit more depressing. Let’s all aim for a more equitable society for everyone.
This is the first of a two-part trailer post.
What are the first batch of films released this weekend?
Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!: The Movie 
チェリまほ THE MOVIE 〜30 歳まで童貞だと魔法使いになれるらしい〜 「Cheri Maho The Movie: 30sai made Dotei dato Mahotsukai ni Narerurashii」
Release Date: April 08th, 2022
Duration: 104 mins.
Director: Hiroki Kazama
Writer: Riko Sakaguchi (Script) You Toyota (Original Manga),
Starring: Eiji Akaso, Keita Machida, Kodai Asaka, Ryo Sato, Shingo Tsurumi, Yuki Matsushita,
Synopsis: The TV show continues in movie form as office worker Kiyoshi Adachi has hooking up with fellow office drone Yuichi Kurosawa and lost his magical mindreading ability as they start a cohabiting life. It would useful to be able to read minds for Adachi when he is offered a transfer all the way down south in Nagasaki and that causes problems for the couple.
Tonbi 
とんび 「Tonbi」
Release Date: April 08th, 2022
Duration: 139 mins.
Director: Takahisa Zeze
Writer: Takehiko Minato (Script), Kiyoshi Shigematsu (Original Novel),
Starring: Hiroshi Abe, Takumi Kitamura, Kumiko Aso, Ann Watanab, Yuko Oshima, Shohei Uno, Ken Yasuda,
Synopsis: A movie continuation of a TV show of the same name about a guy named Yasuo who grew up as an orphan thanks to WWII. He managed to make a happy family of his own after marrying and having a son Akira but happiness ended when his wife dies in an accident. As Akira grows older, he starts asking questions about how his mother died and… look at the trailer and you can guess ;_:
Once Hit the Bottom 
今はちょっと、ついてないだけ 「Kyou wa Chotto, Tsutenai Dake」
Release Date: April 08th, 2022
Duration: 128 mins.
Director: Kenji Shibayama
Writer: Kenji Shibayama (Script), Yuki Ibuki (Original Novel),
Starring: Tetsuji Tamayama, Mai Fukagawa, Takuma Otoo, Michi Yamamura, Yoshie Okuyama,
Synopsis: Hiroki Tachibana had to abandon a successful career as a nature photographer but when the bubble economy burst, he was left paying off the massive debts of his manager. 15 years later and in his 40s, he rediscovers the joys of photography after taking a picture of a friend of his mother and decides to start over again by opening up a share house in Tokyo. The people who stay there have also lost their way in life like Tachibana once had.
Kyuu Guggenhaimutei Uranagaya 
旧グッゲンハイム邸裏長屋 「Kyuu Guggenhaimutei Uranagaya」
Release Date: April 08th, 2022
Duration: 62 mins.
Director: Mika Maeda
Writer: Mika Maeda (Script),
Starring: Rieko Seizo, Toshiko Katoda, Hazuki Kawase, Aki Fujiwara, Takuya Hirano,
An all-Kobe film shot and acted with people from the prefecture.
Synopsis: The Guggenheim residence is one of Kobe’s famous Western-style houses. Surrounding it are Japanese-style homes and this film depicts the lives of people who live together in an old tenement building behind the Guggenheim house. Their lives change when an uninvited guest enters their building.
Clematis no Madobe 
クレマチスの窓辺 「Kuremachisu no madobe」
Release Date: April 08th, 2022
Duration: 62 mins.
Director: Toshiyuki Nagaoka
Writer: Toshiyuki Nagaoka, Yuuto Kishima (Script),
Starring: Kaho Seto, Kana Satouchi, Syunsaku Fukuba, Rina Koyama, Sho Mineo, Yutaka Hoshino,
A film set in Shimane and acted/made by people from the prefecture.
Synopsis: Eri was born and raised in Tokyo. She escapes her city life to spend her vacation time in an old house in Shimane where her late grandmother lived. The people she encounters include her architect cousin and fiancé, her college student cousin, a shoemaker, an ancient tomb researcher, and a backpacker. Surrounded by local people and her grandmother’s house and objects, Eri begins to change…