Happy Weekend
I hope you are well
This is the second part of the trailer post. The first part is here. This week, I posted a review of Out of Tokyo 202x and an interview with Akinori Ikuse, its director. I also posted about the Chicago Japanese Film Collective and the films that can be streamed/watched there.
Currently underway are the Cannes Film Festival and the Korean Independent Animation Festival which is live in Japan and gives viewers the chance to stream films via Vimeo. A festival pass can be had for 2,000 yen. Cannes is totally in-person and totally for cool people ;_;
What was released today in Japan?
ZARD LIVE 2004「What a beautiful moment Tour」Full HD Edition 
Release Date: May 21st, 2022
Duration: 102 mins.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
Starring: ZARD
A film adaptation of a new rakugo story by rakugo storyteller Shinosuke Tachikawa, “The Road to the Great Rivers: The Story of Tadataka Ino. Starring Kiichi Nakai, Kenichi Matsuyama, Keiko d by Kenji Nakanishi of “After the Flowers” and written by Yoshiko Morishita of “Hana Sessa”.
Synopsis: This film shows ZARD, a music unit led by Izumi Sakai, on its first and only nationwide tour, the “What a Beautiful Moment Tour” in 2004. It will be screened in full HD to mark the anniversary of Izumi Sakai’s death.
Jinsei Drive 
人生ドライブ 「Jinsei Doraibu」
Release Date: May 21st, 2022
Duration: 93 mins.
Director: Ryoko Kido
Writer: N/A
Starring: N/A
A film adaptation of a new rakugo story by rakugo storyteller Shinosuke Tachikawa, “The Road to the Great Rivers: The Story of Tadataka Ino. Starring Kiichi Nakai, Kenichi Matsuyama, Keiko d by Kenji Nakanishi of “After the Flowers” and written by Yoshiko Morishita of “Hana Sessa”.
Synopsis: This is a re-edited version of a popular documentary program from Kumamoto Prefectural Television which featured a family from Fukuoka made up of parents Eiji and Nobuko Kishi who live with their seven sons and three daughters in Uto City. We watch 21 years of their lives, the ups and downs that include losing their house in a fire, the Kumamoto earthquake, and Nobuko’s hospitalization.
Tsujiura Renbo 
辻占恋慕 「Tsujiura Renbo」
Release Date: May 21st, 2022
Duration: 111 mins.
Director: Daisuke Ono
Writer: Daisuke Ono (Script),
Starring: Saori, Shogo Hama, Rena Kato, Akari Fukunaga, Shinzo Hotta, Nanami Kawakami, Hiraku,
Synopsis: Rock singer Nobuta finds himself cut adrift when his guitarist Naoya cancels their live concert but a chance encounter with struggling singer-songwriter Yubeshi leads them to collaborate in music, money, and love as he becomes her manager and paramour…
MAYONAKA 
Release Date: May 21st, 2022
Duration: 77 mins.
Director: Robert Capria
Writer: Robert Capria (Script)/Original Story),
Starring: Nanami Akatsuki, Antonio Angelov, Angelo Minoru Kawajiri, Eigi Kodaka, Masaki Naito, Shinichi Shirahata, Tsuyoshi Takashiro,
New Yorker Robert Capria makes his first feature film in Tokyo. It was shot guerrilla-style in Shinjuku and Kabukicho at night.
Synopsis: Kumi has failed to make it as a singer and now lives in an internet cafe. Depressed and without hope and with her birthday approaching, she settles on either losing her virginity or losing her life by killing herself on what should be her special day. Fate puts her with Akira, an overworked and miserable salaryman who will quit his job, but only after confronting the man whom he feels is the source of his humiliation. When the two meet at Shinjuku station, they embark on an intimate and emotional journey together to the end of midnight.
Watashi no hanashi, Buraku no hanashi 
私のはなし 部落のはなし 「Watashi no hanashi Buraku no hanashi」
Release Date: May 21st, 2022
Duration: 205 mins.
Director: Yusaku Mitsuwaka
Writer: N/A
Starring: N/A
Synopsis: Arata Oshima, the documentarian and son of famous director Nagisa Oshima, has produced this documentary that focuses on the persistent discrimination against the “Buraku” people in Japan. The film depicts the origins, evolution, and current status of Buraku discrimination, and unravels the history of discrimination.