In the year of its 20th anniversary, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme will grace the screens of arthouse cinemas across the UK from February 02. During that time audiences in many region will be able to see a selection of films connected by the theme of memories.
Here are trailers for the films:
FILMS
Release Date: March 10th, 2023
Duration: 127 mins.
Director: Yusaku Matsumoto
Writer: Yusaku Matsumoto, Kentaro Kishi (Screenplay), Junki Watanabe (Original Novel),
Starring: Masahiro Higashide, Takahiro Miura, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Mai Kiryu, Kiyohiko Shibukawa, Yo Yoshida,
Masahiro Higashide has had a career resurgence thanks to the indie scene as can be seen from his performance in The Sound of Grass (2021). He’s working with Yusaku Matsumoto (Noise, Bagmati River) in this film based on a real person. He’s supported by a great cast like Mitsuru Fukikoshi (Cold Fish), Takahiro Miura and Kiyohiko Shibukawa. The DoP and co-scriptwriter is Kentaro Kishi (The Sower) who is secretly one of the best people making serious dramas in the Japanese film industry.
Synopsis: In 2002, software developed Isamu Kaneko created a file-sharing application called Winny. This programme became the software of choice for online piracy in Japan. Pirates were arrested but prosecutors decided to make an example of Kaneko and scooped him up for copyright infringement, too. A trial took place and it is dramatised here!
エゴイスト「Egoisuto」
Release Date: February 10th, 2023
Duration: 120 mins.
Director: Daishi Matsunaga
Writer: Daishi Matsunaga, Kyoko Inukai (Screenplay), Makoto Takayama (Autobiographical Novel),
Starring: Ryohei Suzuki, Hio Miyazawa, Yuuko Nakamura, Iori Wada, Akira Emoto, Durian Lollobrigida, Sawako Agawa,
Here’s my review.
Synopsis: When Kosuke was 14 years old, his mother died and he spent his adolescence in a country town where he suppressed his gay identity. As an adult, he lives a freewheeling lifestyle of a fashion magazine editor and takes up a relationship with Ryuta, a personal trainer. Ryuta’s mother joins them to spend quality time together and Kosuke is reminded of his own feelings for his late mother. One day, Ryuta disappears…
波紋 「Hamon」
Duration: 120 mins.
Director: Naoko Ogigami
Writer: Naoko Ogigami (Screenplay),
Starring: Mariko Tsutsui, Ken Mitsuishi, Hayato Isomura, Tamae Ando, Noriko Eguchi, Akira Emoto, Midoriko Kimura,
Naoko Ogigami (Close-Knit) is one of Japan’s more famous filmmakers and she has a great humanist streak to her works. The cast she has assembled for this one is incredible and they are anchored by Mariko Tsutsui in the lead role. She is easily one of Japan’s best actors!
Synopsis: Yoriko Sudo (Mariko Tsutsui) is interested in a cult religion called “Midorimono-kai” and she spends her days in prayer and study groups when not caring for her elderly father, moody son Takuya (Hayato Isomura), and Osamu, her loafer of a husband (Ken Mitsuishi). When Osamu disappears, Yoriko becomes heavily invested in the cult. When he returns more than ten years later and seeking help for his cancer, more trouble follows as Takuya brings his girlfriend home with intentions to marry her and she gets harassed by customers at her part-time job. Yoriko goes all in on the cult as she tries to deal with her mounting anger!
658km、陽子の旅 「658km, Yoko no Tabi」
Duration: 113 mins.
Director: Kazuyoshi Kumakiri
Writer: Kosuke Muroi, So Namiko (Screenplay), Kosuke Muroi (Original Story)
Starring: Rinko Kikuchi, Pistol Takehara, Asuka Kurosawa, Atsushi Shinohara, Ai Mikami, Joe Odagiri, Jun Fubuki, Ken Yoshizawa, Sawa Nimura,
Kazuyoshi Kumakiri reunites with his leading lady from Hole in the Sky (2001), Rinko Kikuchi, for this drama which won Best Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Actress at the Shanghai International Film Festival 2023.
The other stars include Joe Odagiri (Bright Future, Mushishi), Jun Fubuki (Seance), and Asuka Kurosawa (Cold Fish).
Synopsis: Yoko is 42, single, and a freeter. She is one of many in the ice age generation who has struggled to find stability ever since leaving her hometown of Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, following an argument with her father. 20 years later, she is returning because she has received word that he has died. After meeting up with her cousin Shigeru, they hit the road but Yoko is soon accidentally left behind in a rest area with no transport and no money. She decides to hitchhike and meets people along the way.
記憶にございません！ 「Kioku no Gozaimasen」
Release Date: September 13th, 2019
Duration: 127 mins.
Director: Koki Mitani
Writer: Koki Mitani (Screenplay) Yutaka Kono (Novel)
Starring: Kiichi Nakai, Dean Fujioka, Yuriko Ishida, Koichi Sao, Yuki Saito, Yo Yoshida, Eiko Koike, Masao Kusakari, Yoshino Kimura,
Japan’s premiere comedy writer Koki Mitani comes up with a political comedy that stars solid actor Kiichi Nakai who is a regular player for Mitani’s works.
Synopsis: Keisuke Kuroda (Kiichi Nakai) is the most unpopular prime minister of Japan in history and during one of his speeches he is struck by a rock. After waking up in a hospital bed he discovers he has lost his memory. The only people aware that he has lost his memory are his secretaries. Not even his family and certainly nor the electorate knows. With all of his memories gone, he thinks about making changes to the country.
千夜、一夜 「Chiya, Ichiya」
Release Date: October 07th, 2022
Duration: 126 mins.
Director: Nao Kubota
Writer: Kenji Aoki (Script),
Starring: Yuko Tanaka, Machiko Ono, Dankan, Masanobu Ando, Yoji Tanaka,
Director Nao Kubota usually makes documentaries but has turned to fiction for this feature which is based on the “missing persons list.” It was screened at the Busan International Film Festival 2022.
Synopsis: Tomiko is a middle-aged woman who lives in a beautiful but declining fishing village on a remote island in the north of Japan. She has been waiting for her husband to return after he suddenly disappeared 30 years ago. A fisherman named Haruo pines for her. Then, Tomiko meets Nami, whose husband Yoji disappeared two years ago. The younger woman wants to move on with her life, something that stands in contrast to Tomiko whose life has been at a standstill. And then Tomiko sees Yoji…
残穢–住んではいけない部屋–「 Zange – Sunde wa Ikenai Heya」
Release Date: January 30th, 2016
Running Time: 107 mins.
Director: Yoshihiro Nakamura
Writer: Kenichi Suzuki (Screenplay), Fuyumi Ono (Original Novel)
Starring: Yuko Takeuchi, Ai Hashimoto, Kuranosuke Sasaki, Kentaro Sakaguchi, Kenichi Takito, Erika Shumoto,
We get a horror/mystery film from Yoshihiro Nakamura (The Snow White Murder Case) which is based on an award-winning novel. Both the film and novel are told in the first person as the main character investigates a haunted apartment and all the people involved in previous investigations, deaths and hauntings.
Synopsis from IMDB: An author of mystery-novels (Yuko Takeuchi) helps a student (Ai Hashimoto) to uncover the tragic story of the people who lived in her apartment before which is filled with anger, hatred, murder and suicide.
サバカン SABAKAN 「SABAKAN」
Release Date: August 19th, 2022
Duration: 96 mins.
Director: Tomoki Kanazawa
Writer: Tomoki Kanazawa, Jun Hagimori (Script),
Starring: Ichiro Banka, Kounosuke Harada, Machiko Ono, Pistol Takehara, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Shihori Kanjiya, Momoko Fukuchi, Ryo Iwamatsu, Eri Murakawa,
Synopsis: A coming-of-age drama set in Nagasaki in 1986 about a boy named Hisada who lives with his affectionate parents, who always bicker with one another, and his younger brother. One day, Hisada goes to Boomerang Island to see the dolphins with Takemoto, a classmate who is shunned by others because he is poor. The two become friends as their journey turns into an adventure.
アンダーカレント 「Anda-karento」
Release Date: October 06th, 2023
Duration: 144 mins.
Director: Rikiya Imaizumi
Writer: Rikiya Imaizumi, Kaori Sawai (Screenplay), Tetsuya Toyoda (Original Manga)
Starring: Yoko Maki, Arata Iura, Lily Franky, Noriko Eguchi, Eita Nagayama, Rio Uchida, Kumi Nakamura,
Rikiya Imaizumi (Just Only Love?, Over the Town) has adapted Tetsuya Toyoda’s same-named manga, a work praised for its rich characterisation and emotions.
Synopsis: Kanae reopens her family’s bathhouse to the public following the disappearance of her husband, Satoru. A mysterious man named Hori appears looking for work and ends up getting a position as a live-in employee. A bond forms between the two and Kanae recovers something of a peaceful life, just as a smelly private detective named Yamazaki investigates Satoru.
あつい胸さわぎ 「Atsui Munasawagi」
Release Date: January 27th, 2023
Duration: 93 mins.
Direction: Shingo Matsumura
Writer: Izumi Takahashi (Screenplay),
Starring: Mizuki Yoshida, Takako Tokiwa, Daiken Okudaira, Atsuko Maeda, Himi Sato,
This film is an adaptation of a stageplay of the same name by playwright Takuya Yokoyama’s theatrical unit iaku, with a screenplay by Izumi Takahashi and directed by Shingo Matsumura (Love, Goodbye and Hawaii).
Synopsis: Chinatsu and her mother Akiko live in an old house in a port city. Chinatsu has been accepted to an art university and has to complete an essay about her first love. She is focussed on writing about Mitsuki, the boy who broke her heart in junior high, but events take a tremendous turn when Akiko finds a notice in her room asking Chinatsu to get retested for breast cancer. Akiko becomes very worried while Chinatsu seems to be in no mood to go to the hospital for the re-examination, but…
世界の終わりから 「Sekai no Owarikara」
Release Date: April 07th, 2023
Duration: 135 mins.
Director: Kazuaki Kiriya
Writer: Kazuaki Kiriya (Screenplay),
Starring: Ai Ito, Katsuya Maiguma, Aya Asahina, Shunji Iwai, Ai Tominaga,
Synopsis: After losing her parents, high school girl Hana has struggled to find a place for herself in the world. The world needs her to save it and this all gets set in motion after a man claiming to be from a special government agency appears before her and requests that Hana tell him about a dream she had…
銀平町シネマブルース「Ginpeicho Shinema Buru-su」
Release Date: February 10th, 2023
Duration: 99 mins.
Director: Hideo Jojo
Writer: Shinji Imaoka (Screenplay),
Starring: Keisuke Koide, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Shohei Uno, Sakura Fujiwara, Nanami Hidaka,
Just north of Tokyo is the city of Kawagoe and there’s a mini-theatre there that serves as the location for this film. I’ve had my picture taken outside of the mini theatre.
Synopsis: A tragicomedy about the collapse of a mini theatre, we watch Kondo, a penniless young man, return to Ginpei-cho, the town where he spent his youth, and get to know the manager of the theatre. He ends up working there and has encounters with various people who work and visit there. Through these encounters, he begins to confront his former self.
ほかげ 「Hokage」
Release Date: November 25th, 2023
Duration: 95 mins.
Director: Shinya Tsukamoto
Writer: Shinya Tsukamoto (Screenplay),
Starring: Shuri, Ouga Tsukao, Hiroki Kono, Go Riju, Tatsushi Omori, Mirai Moriyama,
Shinya Tsukamoto (Tokyo Fist, Vital) gives audiences a tale of broken people in the black markets of post-war Japan. It stars Shuri (Love at Least), Mirai Moriyama (The Drudgery Train), and Hiroki Kono, director of the Pia Film Festival Grand Prix award-winning film J005311. This is apparently part of Tsukamoto’s war trilogy, which includes Fires On the Plain and Killing.
Synopsis: As Japan rebuilds itself from the ruins of war, one person, a woman living alone in a half-burnt ramen restaurant, looks after a boy who lost his family in an air raid. The two survive by her selling her body and the occasional stealing of food from the black market. When a former soldier comes seeking her services, he gets close to both the woman and the little boy but violence soon erupts between the adults who cannot escape their traumas and the boy finds himself on the road with a man who is haunted by nightmares of his past. The man’s reason for travelling with the boy are soon revealed to be connected to taking revenge on the person who left him with those nightmares.
ロストケア 「Rosuto Kea」
Release Date: March 24th, 2023
Duration: 114 mins.
Director: Tetsu Maeda
Writer: Tetsu Maeda, Yukari Tatsui (Screenplay), Aki Hamanaka (Original Novel),
Starring: Kenichi Matsuyama, Masami Nagasawa, Oji Suzuka, Rie Minemura, Akira Emoto, Chie Ayada, Maki Sakai,
Synopsis: When the dead bodies of an old man and a the director of a home-care centre are found, suspicions fall on Munenori Shiba, a carer. Prosecutor Hidemi Otomo begins digging and finds that the death rate at the care centre is high and that behind Shiba’s kind-hearted façade is a potential serial killer. When interrogated, he says he gave salvation to those he killed…
断捨離パラダイス 「Danshari Paradaisu」
Duration: 101 mins.
Director: Takayuki Kayano
Writer: Takayuki Kayano (Screenplay),
Starring: Ryo Shinoda, Masayasu Kitayama, Tomu Muto, Yumiko Nakamura, Mac Sekioka,
Synopsis: Ritsuki Shirataka had a promising career as a pianist but hand tremors cut that short. Not even able to teach the piano, his musical career is at an end. Looking to start anew, he joins a cleaning company that specialises in clearing out houses stuffed with old items hoarded by people. While doing his job, he discovers more about his co-workers, the clients, and the objects he is disposing of.
風の電話 「Kaze no Denwa」
Release Date: January 24th, 2020
Duration: 139 mins.
Director: Nobuhiro Suwa
Writer: Nobuhiro Suwa, Kyoko Inukai (Script)
Starring: Serena Motola, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Tomokazu Miura, Toshiyuki Nshida, Makiko Watanabe, Shoko Ikezu,
The review for this one at the Japan Times website makes the drama sound powerful. It was selected for last year’s Berlinale where it garnered a Special Mention as part of the Generation 14plus Competition.
Synopsis: Haru is 17 years old and has lived in Hiroshima with her aunt ever since losing her family in the Great East Japan Earthquake. When her aunt (Makiko Watanabe) falls ill, Haru is left with nobody to take care of her and so she decides to travel back to her hometown of Otsuchi in Iwate Prefecture. It is there she hears of the “Wind Telephone” It is a white phone booth with a disconnected black telephone inside. With it, the living can contact the dead. As Haru journeys to the phone, she encounters various people and discovers others who have lost something or someone…
ある男 「Aru Otoko」
Release Date: November 18th, 2022
Duration: 121 mins.
Director: Kei Ishikawa
Writer: Kosuke Mukai (Script), Keiichiro Hirano (Original Novel),
Starring: Satoshi Tsumabuki, Sakura Ando, Masataka Kubota, Nana Seino, Akira Emoto, Yuumi Kawai, Yoko Maki, Miyako Yamaguchi,
Director Kei Ishikawa re-unites with two forces behind his critically acclaimed crime drama Gukoroku – Traces of Sin (2016), writer Kosuke Mukai and actor Satoshi Tsumabuki (Rage, Villain) and pairs the latter up with Sakura Ando (Shoplifters, 100 Yen Love) and throws in Masataka Kubota (First Love). Great cast, but what about the film??? The Japan Times review gives it a great write-up.
Synopsis: Akira Kido (Tsumabuki) is a troubled lawyer who is hired by a former client named Rie (Sakura Ando) to look into the background of her late husband Daisuke (Masataka Kubota). Rie is concerned that a man had assumed Daisuke’s identity before marrying Rie. Her concerns have come about because, during his funeral, Daisuke’s estranged brother showed up only to dispute the identity of the person in the funeral photo. During Kido’s investigations, revelations occur!
アイスクリームフィーバー 「Aisukuri-mu Fi-ba-」
Release Date: July 14th, 2023
Duration: 103 mins.
Director: Tetsuya Chihara
Writer: Masashi Shimizu (Screenplay), Mieko Kawakami (Original Story)
Starring: Riho Yoshioka, Serena Motola, Utaha, Marika Matsumoto, Yumi Adachi, KOM_I, MEGUMI, Momo,
Famous writer Mieko Kawakami’s original short story gets adapted for the screen and it has the former and current singer for Wednesday Campanella in the cast.
Synopsis: The titular ice cream fever finds it locus point at an ice cream shop where four particular female customers from different generations find their lives meeting.
Natsumi completed art college and scored a job at a design company but she gave it up to work in the ice cream parlour. It is there that she meets Saho, a shy writer who is a regular at the shop. Menawhile, a teen named Takako works part time at the shop and watches Natsumi with mixed emotions. Then there is Yuu, a woman who visits the store since it is in the neighbourhood of her estranged sibling’s house.
手 「Te 」
Release Date: September 16th, 2022
Duration: 99 mins.
Director: Daigo Matsui
Writer: Sorami Date (Script), Nao-cola Yamazaki (Original Novel),
Starring: Akari Fukunaga, Daichi Kaneko, Kanji Tsuda, Akio Kaneda,
Akari Fukunaga, who appeared in The Real Thing, is the leading lady in this latest chapter of the Roman Porno franchise. Called “ROMAN PORNO NOW,” the project has three directors each working on a film to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Nikkatsu Roman Porno. It’s directed by Daigo Matsui (How Selfish I Am!, Ice Cream and the Sound of Raindrops, Japanese Girls Never Die).
You’ll have to watch the trailer on YouTube.
Synopsis: Sawako is an office worker with a difficult relationship with her father. For some reason, her hobby is to take pictures of middle-aged men. Her feelings on these issues become clearer as she grows closer to Mori, a co-worker of the same age.
MONDAYS このタイムループ、上司に気づかせないと終わらない 「MONDAYS Kono Taimu Ru-pu, Joushi ni Kizuka Senai to Owaranai」
Release Date: October 14th, 2022
Duration: 82 mins.
Director: Ryo Takebayashi
Writer: Ryo Takebayashi, Saeri Natsuo (Script),
Starring: Wan Marui, Makita Sport, Koki Osamura, Yuugo Mikawa, Kotaro Yagi, Harumi Shuhama,
Following on from yesterday where we had a time-loop horror, we get a time-look comedy that stars Wan Marui (Kontora) and Makita Sports (All Esper Dayo!).
Synopsis: Yoshikawa is an ambitious young woman seeking to leave a small advertising agency to go to a major firm but, one Monday morning, she is informed by two junior staff members that they are repeating the same week over and over again. Soon the rest of the staff notice. Well, everyone except that manager and it seems like he holds the power to break the loop but first he has to notice what is going on!
さかなのこ 「Sakana no Ko」
Release Date:September 01st, 2022
Duration: 139 mins.
Director:Shuichi Okita
Writer: Shuichi Okita, Shiro Maeda (Script), Sakana-kun (Original Autobiography),
Starring: Non, Yuya Yagira, Kaho, Hayato Isomura, Amane Okayama, Hiroki Miyake, Haruka Igawa,
Shuichi Okita of The Woodsman and the Rain (2012) has adapted the autobiography of Sakana-kun, a fish expert who regularly shows up on those fish documentaries that get screened in cinemas.
It was co-adapted by Shiro Maeda who is worked with on A Story of Yonosuke (2013). Maeda also wrote and directed Kako: My Sullen Past (2016), and wrote Isn’t Anyone Alive? (2012).
It looks like it has the potential to be funny, not least since it has the stunt casting of Non in the lead role after she has put in stellar work in Hold Me Back(2020) and Ribbon(2022).
Other cast members include Kaho (Red), Yuya Yagira (Pink and Gray, Destruction Babies, Nobody Knows), and Amane Okayama (Poetry Angel).
Synopsis: Ever since elementary school, Mibou’s life is all about fish. He loves looking at them, drawing them, eating, them, and thinking about them. His father worries that he is different from other kids, but his mother watches over him warmly and gives her support. Even in high school, Mibou is all about fish and somehow, he gets on well with the delinquents around him. This ability to connect with others continues as he begins to live on his own and meets a myriad of people, all while being obsessed with fish.
土を喰らう十二月 「Tsuchi o Kurau Junikagetsu」
Release Date:November 11th, 2022
Duration: 111 mins.
Director: Yuji Nakae
Writer: Yuji Nakae (Script), Tsutomu Mizukami (Original Essay),
Starring: Kenji Sawada, Takako Matsu, Naomi Nishida, Fumi Dan, Shohei Hino, Tomoko Naraoka, Toshinori Omi,
Yuji Nakae of Hotel Hibiscus fame has super stars in the line-up of his film, as pop maestro Kenji Sawada (his filmography has bangers such as Samurai Reincarnation, The Man Who Stole the Sun, Yumeji, Hiroko the Goblin and The Happiness of the Katakuri’s fame teams up with Takako Matsu, famous for her roles in April Story, Dreams for Sale, and Confessions. It looks like a film about food, love, and mourning, all explored over four seasons.
Synopsis: Tsutomu is a writer who specialises in essays on growing and cooking zen food. He does this while living alone in a mountain cabin in Nagano. His organic-fantastic routine is sometimes complimented with the presence of his editor/lover Machiko who joins in with his daily life. Tsutomu seems happy but he has yet to bury his dead wife’s ashes despite the fact that she died 13 years ago…
風花 「Kazehana」
Release Date: January 03rd, 1959
Duration: 78 mins.
Director: Keisuke Kinoshita
Writer: Keisuke Kinoshita (Screenplay),
Starring: Keiko Kishi, Yoshiko Kuga, Yusuke Kawazu, Masanao Kawakane, Ineko Arima,
Synopsis: Hideo (KAWAKANE Masanao), the youngest son of the NAGURA family, defies his father’s disapproval and plans a double suicide with Haruko (KISHI Keiko). However, only Haruko survives, and the act brings shame to the NAGURA family, who refuse to forgive her. Impregnated, Haruko gives birth to Suteo (KAWAZU Yusuke) and lives in the shadow of her past, feeling outcast.
Suteo finds solace in Sakura (KUGA Yoshiko), his 7-year-older cousin with whom he has fallen in love. However, Suteo’s forbidden love echoes his mother’s tragic story…
This deeply moving melodrama skilfully critiques family traditions and societal barriers in a post-war village with its non-linear storytelling. KINOSHITA Keisuke (1912-1998), a celebrated Japanese director, is known for a wide range of films, including The Ballad of Narayama and Army. He often explores the suffering, responsibilities, and moral dilemmas of individuals. Despite his significant contributions to Japanese cinema, he has remained somewhat overshadowed by other masters like KUROSAWA Akira, with many of his films yet to gain more international recognition.
かがみの孤城 「Kagami no Kojou」
Release Date: December 23rd, 2022
Duration: 52 mins
Director: Keiichi Hara
Writer: Miho Maruo (Screenplay), Mizuki Tsujimura (Original Creator)
Starring: Ami Toma (Kokoro), Aoi Miyazaki (Kitajima-sensei), Karen Takizawa (School Nurse), Kumiko Aso (Kokoro’s Mother), Mana Ashida (Okami-sama),
Animation Production: A-1 Pictures, Graphinica
This film comes from Keiichi Hara (Colorful, Miss Hokusai, Birthday Wonderland) and it is an adaptation of a same-named best-selling novel.
Synopsis: Kokoro has become a hikikomori and has not attended junior high school in a while. Her lonely days spent in her room are disrupted when the mirror in her room begins to glow. After touching said mirror, Kokoro finds herself pulled into a castle where she stands alongside six other teenagers. In this fairy tale environment they embark upon an adventure to find a secret key that will lead to a room where they can have their wishes granted. However, they must leave the castle by five o’clock or be punished…
To keep up to date with the Japan Foundation, you can check out their website, Facebook page, and Twitter account.