Welcome to the second trailer post of the week.
You can find the first trailer post here and the third trailer post gets published tomorrow.
I’m back writing while having re-runs of The X-Files on in the background. It seems like it has become a yearly thing since I first started in 2022. Season 3 remains the sweet spot. On a related supernatural note, It Comes (2018) by Tetsuya Nakashima is phenomenal and I’m still puzzled as to why it isn’t better known in the west. So far, this week, that’s my movie recommendation.
What are the next bunch of films released this weekend?
Shinpei uta koso subete 
シンペイ 歌こそすべて 「Shinpei uta koso subete」
Release Date: January 10th, 2024
Duration: 127 mins.
Director: Seijiro Koyama
Writer: Seijiro Koyama, Masato Kato (Screenplay),
Starring: Hashinosuke Nakamura, Mirai Shida, Dai Watanabe, Toshiyuki Someya, Takahiro Miura, Noriko Nakagoshi,
Website Twitter: @shinpei_film
This is a biographical drama dedicated to Shinpei Nakayama, a composer who was born in the Meiji era, lived through the Taisho and Showa eras. During his career, he wrote many songs, including folk and children’s songs. One example is Tokyo ondo,” which has been adopted by a baseball team. Nakayama is portrayed by kabuki actor Hashinosuke Nakamura,
Synopsis: Shinpei Nakayama moves from his native Shinshu (Nagano Prefecture) to Tokyo to attend the Tokyo School of Music (now the Faculty of Music of Tokyo University of the Arts). When it comes to the piano, his practical skills aren’t so good but his musical theory is excellent and he catches the attention of staff at the university who support him. This support lasted throughout his career, during which he learned that music is for the people and he dedicated his life to making music as such. Meanwhile, he got married and had two adopted children.
Akogare doll 
憧れdoll 「Akogare doll」
Release Date: January 10th, 2024
Duration: 127 mins.
Director: Miyabi
Writer: Miyabi (Screenplay),
Starring: Miyabi, Yoko Akita, Takashi Okado, Mizuki Watanabe, Yukiko Asamori,
Website Twitter: @doll33189947
Actor Miyabi makes her directorial debut with this psycho-thriller, which she also wrote and starred in. She plays a character who is a “Highly Sensitive Person (HSP),” a condition that means a person has strong reactions to a highly sensitive temperament. This is a condition that Miyabi has herself.
This one played at Yubari Fantastic Film Fest 2024 where it won the Grand Prix.
Synopsis: Akane is an assistant at a flower shop who has just broken up with her boyfriend. Her days are spent at work or disposing of her ex-boyfriend’s mementos on a flea market app but things get complicated again when she meets a woman named Naomi at her workplace and becomes the focus of her attention. While things start off well between the two since they have a lot in common, Akane gradually becomes suspicious of Naomi’s words and actions.
INTER::FACE Chino kikai hanzai koso-bu persona 
INTER::FACE 知能機械犯罪公訴部 ペルソナ 「INTER::FACE Chino kikai hanzai koso-bu perusona」
Release Date: January 10th, 2024
Duration: 77 mins.
Director: Takumi Shimomukai
Writer: Takumi Shimomukai (Screenplay),
Starring: Marina Yoshimi, Maeko Oyama, Takashi Irie, Kanji Tsuda, Kazuki Sawatani,
Website Twitter: @CenterLine2027
Takumi Shimomukai, a software engineer, has an interest in AI and has made a film about it before called Center Line. This film is a sequel and a continuation of an exploration of the same themes and features Marina Yoshimi, the lead actress in Center Line. Part 1 of the INTER::FACE Intelligent Machine Crime Prosecution Department trilogy, it depicts the course of a trial to prove an AI’s intent to kill.
Synopsis: In the near future, there exists AI that can learn the personal tastes and preferences of a user to such an extent that they become an alter ego. This “digital twin,” technology has become so widespread laws that allows AI to be prosecuted as a defendant in a crime have come into effect. Yoneko is a prosecutor who investigates cases of crimes involving AI. Her first case involves an AI that imitates the appearance of a woman who committed suicide, but the AI states during interrogation, “I was murdered.”
Welcome Back 
Release Date: January 10th, 2024
Duration: 119 mins.
Director: Naoto Kawashima
Writer: Naoto Kawashima, Rei Tsuruga (Screenplay),
Starring: Kaito Yoshimura, Yugo Mikawa, Yuya Endo, Yoshinori Miyata, Shinichiro Matsuura,
Website Twitter: @WelcomeBack0110
Synopsis: Teruhiko (Teru) and Ben (Ben) are childhood friends who are both boxers. Teru was supposed to be the champ until he was beaten in the ring by a guy named Kitazawa. Ben idolises Teru and knows that, while Teru is pretending to shrug off his loss, his life is deteriorating. Tired of seeing his friend failing, Ben takes out Teru’s gloves and vows to take revenge on Kitazawa. Thus begins a road movie full of boxing scenes.