Happy Weekend!
I hope you are well.
This is the second of a two-part trailer post. You can find the first part here.
I suppose that the biggest news is that of the death of Jean-Luc Godard. I cannot claim to have watched many of his films or even enough to have understood him to any great extent but I do recognise that he was a massive figure in the world of cinema who fundamentally changed the game and inspired generations of filmmakers to play with the building blocks of film to create new experiences. With that being the case, RIP. I definitely need to watch more of his filmography.
This week I posted a preview of the Japanese films at the San Sebastian Film Festival and a review of the 2008 film All Around Us. Also, I took part in a Heroic Purgatory podcast discussion covering the Lee Chang-dong film Burning and that episode was released at the start of the week.
I watched the Hal Hartley films Simple Men and No Such Thing and I have started a re-watch of the TV anime Monster. I also watched Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s The Assassin for the next episode of Heroic Purgatory.
What are the other films released this weekend?
Umui Shishi: Nakasone Masahiro no Shishi-tsukuri 
うむい獅子 仲宗根正廣の獅子づくり 「Umui Shishi: Nakasone Masahiro no Shishi-tsukuri」
Release Date: September 16th, 2022
Duration: 58 mins.
Director: Asami Shiroma
Writer: Asami Shiroma (Script),
Starring: Masahiro Nakasone
Synopsis: This documentary covers Masahiro Nakasone, a wood carver based in Yaese Town, Okinawa Prefecture, who makes lion heads for lion dances that happen at the harvest festival. These lion dances have a history of about 300 years and the lion is seen as a guardian deity. The head has to be replaced and Masahiro, a Buddhist statue sculptor, is the person for the job. On top of that, he has been involved in the restoration work at Shuri Castle.
The Show Must Go On For Actors 
ある役者達の風景 「Aru Yakusha-tachi no Fuukei」
Release Date: September 17th, 2022
Duration: 102 mins.
Director: Masato Oki
Writer: Masato Oki, Ryota Nakanishi, Ryo Akiba (Script), Ryota Nakanishi (Original Novel),
Starring: Ryosuke Otani, Toru Kusano, Ryota Nakanishi, Midoriko Kimura, Kimiko Yo,
Synopsis: Covid-19 has left the artistic world in a shambles and actors are scrambling to stick to their profession in this film. Otani, a stage actor, rehearses a play on a riverbank with Kusano, a junior theatrical company member, and Nakanishi, a veteran actor. Comical conversations, anxious moments, and frustrations all spill out amidst the epidemic.
Nihonbara Ushi to Hito no Daichi 
日本原 牛と人の大地 「Nihonbara Ushi to Hito no Daichi」
Release Date: September 17th, 2022
Duration: 110 mins.
Director: Shunsuke Kurobe
Writer: N/A
Starring: Hideyuki Naito, Sanae Naito, Taichi Naito, Yo Naito,
Synopsis: This documentary follows the family of Hideyuki Naito, a former medical student who became a cow farmer running a farm in the Nihonbaru Training Area of the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force in Nagi Town, Okayama Prefecture. In years past, more people cultivated the land but now it us just the Naito family. Watch their struggle against the Self-Defence Forces and with farming.
One Sunny Day 
よく晴れた日のこと 「Yoku Hareta Hi no Koto」
Release Date: September 17th, 2022
Duration: 40 mins.
Director: Tomoyuki Ito
Writer: Tomoyuki Ito (Script),
Starring: Hiroaki Morooka, Yuki Sugawara, Soichiro Tanaka, Michi Ota, Kei Imai,
Synopsis: Daigo invites Kazumi and Shiro on a road trip where he plans to propose to his girl at the end. However, just as things are looking good, a mysterious man appears.
Song of a Dying Summer 
逝く夏の歌 「Yuku Natsu no Uta」
Release Date: September 18th, 2022
Duration: 71 mins.
Director: Kohei Sengen
Writer: Kohei Sengen (Script),
Starring: Takeshi Yoshida, Yohei Sakuragi, Hinata Sano, Kodai Ito, Miri Akiyama,
This is the feature debut of director Kohei Semmoto and he uses 8mm film. The project was inspired by Nakaya Nakahara’s poem “Song of the Dying Summer.”
Synopsis: Natsu and his friends Haru, Aki, and Fuyu are planning to stage a play to commemorate their time together. However, as time flows, the four face following their own path as they grow apart and so, with that in mind, they try to live their days to the fullest.