The 72nd Berlin International Film Festival will be taking place from February 15 to 25.
What are the Japanese films programmed so far?
Forum Section
夜明けのすべて 「Yoake no Subete」
Release Date: February 09th, 2024
Duration: 119 mins.
Director: Sho Miyake
Writer: Sho Miyake, Kiyoto Wada (Screenplay), Maiko Seo (Original Novel),
Starring: Mone Kamishiraishi, Hokuto Matsumura, Kiyohiko Shibukawa, Ken Mitsuishi Ryo, Haruka Imou, Sawako Fujima,
Website Twitter: @yoakenosubete IMDB
My first encounter with Sho Miyake was through the film Wild Tour (2018). He has since gone on to make And Your Bird Can Sing (2018), and Small, Slow But Steady (2022), the Japan Academy Award hit film. He also directed Ju-on: Origins but we won’t talk about that.
Synopsis: Misa Fujisawa experiences premenstrual syndrome and she is unable to control her irritability. During one particularly severe bout of PMS, she explodes with anger at a work colleague, a new hire named Takatoshi Yamazoe who seems unmotivated at work. His behaviour is because he has something going on inside himself, too. He suffers from panic disorder and has become withdrawn. The more time they spend together, the more they develop a mutual understanding and a bond forms as they see ways to support each other.
よみがえる声 「Yomigaeru Koe」
Release Date: N/A
Duration: 142 mins.
Director: Park Soo-nam, Park Maeui
Writer: N/A
Starring: Kim Seong-soo, Hirano Nobuto, Jeon Dong-rye, Lee Yong-im, Seo Jeong-woo
An international co-production between Korea and Japan, this was at the Busan International Film Festival 2023 where it won the best documentary award.
Synopsis: Park Soo-nam is a second-generation Zainichi Korean documentary filmmaker who has spent her life filming people from her community in Japan and documenting experiences of violence, from massacres to forced labour and comfort women and survivors of the atomic bombing. When she discovered that she was losing her eyesight, she worked with her daughter, Park Maeui, to digitally restore the films she had shot and preserve this history.
五香宮の猫 「Gokogu no Neko」
Release Date: N/A
Duration: 119 mins.
Director: Kazuhiro Soda
Writer: Akihito Izuhara, Ikuko Mizokamu (Screenplay),
Starring: N/A
Synopsis: After Kazuhiro Soda and his wife Kiyoko Kashiwagi moved from New York to Ushimado, they encountered the local cat population that was centred at the Gokogu shrine and the people who surrounded the cats, some who cared for them, others who disliked them. Soda shot this film over the course of a bout a year and his wife, Kiyoko, became a participant. Participant-observation documentary about the connections between humanity, cats, and nature!
Berlinale Special
箱男 「Hako Otoku」
Release Date: February 10th, 2024
Duration: 120 mins.
Director: Gakuryu Ishii
Writer: Gakuryu Ishii, Kiyotaka Inagaki (Screenplay), Kobo Abe (Original Story)
Starring: Masatoshi Nagase, Tadanobu Asano, Koichi Sato, Ayana Shiramoto, Yuko Nakamura
This is based on a novel by Kobo Abe that was published in 1973.
Synopsis: A photographer named “Myself” spots a man with a cardboard box over his head venturing around Tokyo and writing down what he sees through a peephole. Inspired to do the same thing, “Myself” dons a box himself but a variety of people try to tempt “Myself” from his new lifestyle…
Berlinale Special
Two titles from Japanese Digital Video Trading platform Roadstead have been programmed. Roadstead allows people to purchase and trade films.
オーガスト・マイ・ヘヴン 「O-gasuto Ma Hebun」
Release Date: N/A
Duration: 40 mins.
Director: Riho Kudo
Writer: Riho Kudo (Screenplay),
Starring: Yukino Murakami, Shuri Suwa, Takuma Fujie, Nako Hasegawa,
Director Riho Kudo followed Orphan’s Blues with Let Me Hear It Barefoot and that seemed to really impress critics.
Synopsis: Joe works as a proxy attendee, a rental actor who attends weddings, funerals, and other gatherings as the client’s relative, lover, or friend. Nanpei works in a Chinese restaurant. One day in August, Joe has a job at a funeral home and meets Kaoru, a stranger she had seen in a dream. Later that day, Joe catches Nanpei and Kaoru embracing at the Chinese restaurant. Kaoru had been Nanpei’s best friend before going missing for five years. A case of mistaken identity ensues as Kaoru thinks Joe is someone else and so they set off on their ephemeral journey…
Release Date: N/A
Duration: 45 mins.
Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Writer: Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Screenplay),
Starring: Mutsuo Yoshioka, Tomoko Tabata, Ikkei Watanabe, Koji Seki, Noa Kawazoe,
Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Cure) is back with a film that is not quite a thriller and not quite a suspense. It looks atmospheric based on pictures hosted by CINRA. You can read a Roadstead interview with Kiyoshi Kurosawa here.
Synopsis: Matsuoka’s class at a culinary school is disrupted by a student named Tashiro who says, “There’s a noise, it’s like a chime. Someone is sending me a message.” Tashiro’s strange behaviour escalates when he later announces that half of his brain has been replaced by a machine and tries to show it. Next comes Akemi who expresses discomfort at the way the sight of a whole chicken makes her feel. This is just the start as Matsuoka finds himself overtaken by a strange horror that creeps into his life…
Also, Nikkatsu put out a press release earlier today with details about Kurosawa’s next film. Due in September 2024, Cloud is a suspense thriller that stars Masaki Suda as a reseller who, in looking to get a competitive advantage over others, ends up earning the hatred of people and caught up in a fight for his life. Its themes include how the internet can create a chain of hatred and amplify grudges.
This will be Kurosawa’s first suspense thriller since Creepy (2016).
Berlinale Shorts 3
カワウソ 「Kawauso」
Release Date: N/A
Duration: 15 mins.
Director: Akihito Izuhara
Writer: Akihito Izuhara, Ikuko Mizokam (Screenplay),
Starring: N/A
Kawauso is Japanese for otter. Unfortunately, the creature has been considered extinct since 2012.
Synopsis from IMDB: A girl is walking when a Japanese river otter catches up with her. The two try to communicate while the world threatens to sink under the weight of its consumer goods.
Berlinale Classics
ゴジラ 「GOJIRA」
Running Time: 97 mins
Release Date: October 27th, 1954
Director: Ishiro Honda
Writer: Ishiro Honda, Takeo Murata (Script)
Starring: Akira Takarada, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hiata, Takashi Shimura,
Synopsis: After an atomic bomb test disturbs a prehistoric reptile, it starts becoming active and sinks ships, stomps on villages, and eventually makes its way to Tokyo, all the while humans try to stop it.
Here is past coverage I have offered on the festival:
Berlin Film Festival 2012 Competition Results