Ah, I was very emotional on Wednesday. Since I had the day off work I went to see Belle in a cinema and I was bowled over by the film, the way it merged the issues of slavery together with a well-mounted costume drama and romance. It was a reminder that British film can hit so many right notes and so I will review it – it has been a few years since I have reviewed a British film here.
A few hours after that I completed Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and 
the ending bowled me over. If it could have ended with Zack and Cloud fleeing Shinra manor and riding off into the sunset with Aerith, I would have been happy but then there would be no Final Fantasy VII. Ah, there was that last set of battles and the way the digital mind wave was breaking down and the memories played… Then the final cut scenes… Tear fuel.
I don’t really have the time to play video games on home consoles but I do with my handheld consoles which I take on my daily commute to work or switch on if I wake up early in the morning. Next up is The 3rd Birthday, although I may want to try something funnier like Disgaea.
I did have a lot of time to watch films and so I watched the Korean 
con-artist thriller The Thieves (2012) and the Hong Kong film Unbeatable (2013), which was silly in parts but amusing and well-shot and had some great action. For some odd reason, took the best film award at the Terracotta Far East Film Festival. I also saw Godzilla (finally) and Edge of Tomorrow (lots of fun!) on Thursday at my favourite cinema.
In terms of blogging, I posted about the release of the South Korean classroom thriller Pluto via Third Window Films and I posted a season review for Ping Pong: The Animation, the first brilliant anime of 2014!
What’s released in Tokyo cinemas this weekend?
The World of Kanako 
Japanese Title:渇き
Romaji: Kawaki
Running Time: 113 mins
Release Date: June 27th, 2014 (Japan)
Director: Tetsuya Nakashima
Writer: Tetsuya Nakashima (Screenplay), Akio Fukamachi (Novel),
Starring: Koji Yakusho, Nana Komatsu, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Joe Odagiri, Fumi Nikaido, Ai Hashimoto, Miki Nakatani, Jun Kunimura, Asuka Kurosawa,
When the trailer for this title was released, the internet went wild. By the internet I mean Asian cinema bloggers like Nihon Eiga, Okawa Shintaro, and me. There were probably more but those were the guys I was reblogging and retweeting from. There’s a reason for the hype-train picking up speed.
The guy in the director’s chair is Tetsuya Nakashima who was the director of school-drama Confessions.
The film stars awesome actors:
Koji Yakusho (Cure, The Woodsman & the Rain, Shall we Dance?)
Satoshi Tsumabuk (Judge!, For Love’s Sake)
Fumi Nikaido (Himizu, Why Don’t You Play in Hell?)
Ai Hashimoto (The Kirishima Thing, Another)
Miki Nakatani (Loft, Ringu 2)
Asuka Kurosawa (A Snake of June, Cold Fish)
Jun Kunimura (Vital, Outrage)
Joe Odagiri (Bright Future, The Great Passage)
I mean, whoa! Look at that talent!
The trailer also looks awesome, so action packed, colourful and exciting. It’s also very, very spoilery so I have only watched it twice since it premiered on the internet and haven’t been back since. I’m also keeping the plot synopsis vague to avoid giving anything away.
This is getting a release in the west thanks to Third Window Films!
All aboard the hype train!
Ex-detective Showa Fujishima (Yakusho) investigates the disappearance of his daughter Kanako (Komatsu), a girl who seemed to be a model student. What he finds leads him into a disturbing situation…
Me & 23 Slaves 
Japanese Title: 奴隷区 僕と23人の奴隷
Romaji: Doreiku: Boku to 23 nin no Dorei
Running Time: 100 mins
Release Date: June 28th, 2014 (Japan)
Director: Sakichi Sato
Writer: Sakichi Sato (Screenplay), Shinichi Okada (Novel),
Starring: Sayaka Akimoto, Kanata Hongo, Hikaru OSawa, Yuki Kubota, Miyuki Torii, Yuki Yamada,
24 people are engaged in a death game. Kanata Hongo (Gantz) and Sayaka Akimoto (AKB48) take the lead in the live-action adaptation of a manga/light novel.
The Hole of a Woman 
Japanese Title:女の穴
Romaji: Onna no Ana
Running Time: 95 mins
Release Date: June 28th, 2014 (Japan)
Director: Kota Yoshida
Writer: Kota Yoshida (Screenplay), Fumiko Fumi (Manga),
Starring: Yumi Ishikawa, Naoho Ichihashi, Yukichi Kobayashi, Toshiya Sakai, Keito Aoki
High school student Sachiko Suzuki (Ichihashi) claims to be an alien whose mission on Earth is to conceive a child with a man and so she seduces her teacher Mr. Fukuda (Kobayashi). After their encounter, Fukuda becomes convinced that Sachiko really isn’t human…
Another student, Kobato Hagimoto (Ishikawa) finds out that Mr. Murata (Sakai) likes high school boys and so she blackmails and abuses Murata…
A Peephole 
Japanese Title:ノ・ゾ・キ・ア・ナ
Romaji: Nozoki no Ana
Running Time: 120 mins
Release Date: June 28th, 2014 (Japan)
Director: Ataru Ueda
Writer: Manabu Fujita (Screenplay), Wakou Honna (Manga),
Starring: Chocolat Ikeda, Atsumi Kanno, Beni Ito, Su Suzuki, Ayumi Nijima,
Eeeh, based on some 13 volume hentai manga which has sold 300 million copies, this is a movie where a guy spies on a girl who spies on him through a peephole. The erotic implications are manifold which is probably why an anime was made.
My favourite peephole story is a Junji Ito one where a girl moves into a dirt cheap apartment after an irritating neighbour flees it. Why did he flee it? Could it be connected to the three silent women of different heights who always wear hats, sunglasses and trench coats regardless of the weather?
Tatsuhiko (Kanno) has moved from the country to Tokyo to study at a vocational school. He finds a peephole on the wall of his apartment and informs his neighbour Emiru (Ikeda). She proceeds to blow his mind by suggesting that they reveal themselves through the peephole and the two enter each other’s private lives through the hole… They both fall in love through this act of voyeurism.
Blue Ray 
Japanese Title: 青の光線
Romaji: Ao no Kousen
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 70 mins.
Director: Takashi Nishihara
Writer: Takashi Nishihara (Screenplay)
Starring: Ryu Morioka, Mei Kurokawa, Asuka Morino, Tokio Emoto
Ryu Morioka is a Japanese actor and director who has appeared in films like Mitsuko Delivers, The Tale of Iya and The Great Passage. He takes the lead alongside Mei Kurokawa who starred in The Story of Yonosuke and will soon be seen in Fuku-chan of FukuFuku Flats. They play Sanji and Yoko, two people with difficult circumstances. Sanji lives with his mother and has lost a son. Yoko has a hikikomori for a sister. They meet by chance and through each other, they feel hope for the future.
Gaki☆Rock 
Japanese Title: ガキ☆ロック
Romaji: Gaki☆Rokku
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 90 mins.
Director: Yuuji Nakamae
Writer: Kouki Yamamoto (Screenplay), Daiju Yanauchi (Original Work)
Starring: Taiko Katoono (Gen Shimura), Kouki Maeda (Makoto), Yosuke Kawamura (Jimmy), Ryouji Nakamura (Mattsun),
This is the live-action adaptation of Daiju Yanauchi’s manga and the film’s story sounds like some ludicrous male fantasy.
Gen is a Asakusa lad who, with his friends Makoto, Jimmy, and Mattsun, helps out at his family’s strip club which operates under the name “England Theater” . One night, Gen is told by his father to pick up a woman at the train station. He finds a beautiful woman named Chōcho (lit. butterfly) waiting for him, and falls in love with her at first sight. Not only is she beautiful, she is the #1 strip girl in Osaka, and she’ll be living in “England Theater”. Alas, the poor girl is sad because she sees the happiness of Gen’s family and misses the feeling not least because her brother is missing. Turns out he is a yakuza and this is revealed when Gen saves him from a beating from a rival gang. Can Gen win Chocho’s favour by saving her brother and revealing his feelings to her?
Ghost in the Shell ARISE border: 3 Ghost Tears 
Japanese Title: 攻殻機動隊
Romaji: Kōkaku Kidōtai
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 59 mins.
Director: Kazuchika Kise
Writer: Tow Ubukata (Screenplay), Masamune Shirow (Original Work)
Starring: Maaya Sakamoto (Motoko Kusanagi), Kenichirou Matsuda (Batou), Tarusuke Shingaki (Togusa), Ai Kayano (Emma), Ikkyuu Juku (Daisuke Aramaki),
The third episode of the GitS reboot sees a contract killer fall in love with his target, a cyborg while the Section 9 team assemble to deal with a terrorist bombing at a dam and a secretive “ultra-wizard-level hacker” known only as Fire Starter. The bombing may be linked to “Scylla,” the hero of the Carudisu War of Independence in the Republic of Kuzan.
Hana no Okudo e 
Japanese Title: 花の億土へ
Romaji: Hana no Okudo e
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 113 mins.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
Starring: Michiko Ishimura
Michiko Ishimura is a poet/writer who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. She has won awards for publicising Minamata disease, a neurological syndrome caused by mercury poisoning which results in the loss of control in muscles. This film is about her and her work.
Taiyou Kara Purancha 
Japanese Title: 太陽からプランチャ
Romaji: Taiyou Kara Purancha
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 96 mins.
Director: Shoji Kubota
Writer: Shoji Kubota (Screenplay)
Starring: Ryoma Baba, Shiro Arai, Saree, Tsukasa Fujimoto, Masahiro Kuranuki, Kota Kusano, Hikaru Shida, Anna Tachibana,
Shoji Kubota has a lot of films to his name but little exposure in the west. His latest film is about a photographer who finds inspiration in getting to know and photographing some women who want to be wrestlers. In getting to know female pro-wrestling, he gets to understand a little about himself.
Shōwa Gokudō Kai Ibun Jingaira Jin ga Inu Nishi 
Japanese Title: 昭和極道怪異聞ジンガイラ 仁我狗螺
Romaji: Shōwa Gokudō Kai Ibun Jingaira Jin ga Inu Nishi
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: 80 mins.
Director: Keiji Kondo
Writer: Keiji Kondo (Screenplay)
Starring: Soji Masaki, Go Ibusuki, Aya Mizusawa, Katsumi Yamato
In what could be the greatest film ever known to man, gangsters, zombies and magic users clash in a dense forest! Actually, this reminds me of Versus.
Sugisawa Mura Toshi Densetsu Gekijouban 
Japanese Title: 杉沢村都市伝説 劇場版
Romaji: Sugisawa Mura Toshi Densetsu Gekijouban
Release Date: June 28th, 2014
Running Time: N/A
Director: Torii Yasutake
Writer: Torii Yasutake (Screenplay)
Starring: Ito Nene, Soejim Shingo, Akitoshi Otaki
Nogizaki 46 x Horror movies… This is the third of a string of horror movies featuring the girls from the idol group Nogizaki 46. A woman heads to Aomori Prefecture to search for Sugisawa Village, a dark legend that she intends to prove is real by uploading a video to the internet. Bad things happen.
Ju-on: The Beginning of the End 
Japanese Title: 呪怨―終わり の 始まり
Romaji: Juon – Owari no Hajimari
Running Time: 91 mins.
Director: Masayuki Ochiai
Writer: Masayuki Ochiai (Screenplay)
Starring: Nozomi Sasaki, Kai Kobayashi Sho Aoyagi, Miho Kanazawa, Haruo Takahashi,
Masayuki Ochiai, director of “Infection” takes on the Ju-On franchise in this decent looking attempt. I’m a big fan of the series and I expect this to be decent. Warning, lots of cute screaming girls in this trailer. LOL at the guy at 20 with his girlfriend. When the girls shriek, he just raises his eyebrows and smiles.
The story follows Yui (Nozomi Sasaki, lead actress in “Afro-Tanaka”), an elementary school teacher who visits the house of one of her students, Toshio Saeki, who has refused to go to school. As usually happens in the “Ju-On” series, she gets cursed and mysterious things start happening around her. She slowly uncovers the truth, the house is actually cursed due to a tragedy and that curse means that anyone who steps inside must die!
