Hello dear readers!
Right, down to business. I’ll be taking a bit of a break from the blog because I am about to embark upon a teaching course. I have film reviews stacked up but the trailer posts might thin out since they take up time and I want to spend as much time as possible studying. I’ll try and keep them going but I need to hit the books. I hope everything works out. There are film festival screeners possibly winging their way to me over the next month or so and I have a couple of film festival posts to write and publish amidst the reviews but I will go dark for some time. I will respond if you comment on a post because I really do appreciate everyone who reads my writing. Thank you to all my regular commenters. I hope to see you guys soon!
I also want to wish Adam Torel, owner of Third Window Films, a speedy recovery. He’s a great guy and brings life to the Asian film scene in the West.
What did I post this week? A review for the wonderful film Our Little Sister (2015).
What’s released this weekend?
Evergreen Love
植物図鑑 「Shokubutsu Zukan」
Release Date: June 04th, 2016
Running Time: 112 mins.
Director: Koichiro Miki
Writer: Chiho Watanabe (Screenplay), Hiro Arikawa (Original Novel)
Starring: Takanori Iwata, Mitsuki Takahata,
Synopsis: Sayaka (Mitsuki Takahata) is an office lady looking for love. She finds it in the form of a man who has collapsed in front of her home. His name is Itsuki (Takanori Iwata) and she takes him inside and they begin to live together. Itsuki teaches Sayaka about cooking and she begins to grow as a person but he has a secret…
The Kodai Family
高台家の人々「Kodaike no Hitobito」
Release Date: June 04th, 2016
Running Time: 116 mins.
Director: Masato Hijikata
Writer: Arisa Kaneko (Screenplay), Kozueko Morimoto (Original Manga),
Starring: Haruka Ayase, Takumi Saito, Kiko Mizuhara, Shotaro Mamiya, Mao Daichi, Masachika Ichimura, Kaho, Charlotte Kate Fox,
Synopsis: Kie Hirano (Haruka Ayase) is an office lady who often daydreams. She works with Mitsumasa Kodai (Takumi Saito), an elite salaryman and the eldest son in the Kodai family. He is telepathic, having inherited his special ability to read other people’s mind from his British grandmother. He falls in love with Kie and the two begin to date which is when Mitsumasa introduces her to his very unique family…
Detective Mitarai’s Casebook: The Clockwork Current
探偵ミタライの事件簿 星籠の海 「Tantei Mitarai no Jikenbo Seiro no Umi」
Release Date: May 04th, 2016
Running Time: 107 mins.
Director: Seiji Izumi
Writer: Kenji Nakanishi, Yasuo Hasegawa (Screenplay), Soji Shimada (Original Novel)
Starring: Hiroshi Tamaki, Alice Hirose, Hikari Ishida, Jun Kaname, Eisaku Yoshida, Mitsuki Tanimura,
Synopsis: Private Detective Kiyoshi Mitarai (Hiroshi Tamaki) and his assistant Miyuki Ogawa (Alice Hirose) travel to Fukuyama to investigate a case which involves bodies which were found drifting in the Seto Inland Sea…
A Rain Woman
雨女「Ame Onna」
Release Date: June 04th, 2016
Running Time: 35 mins.
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Writer: Takashi Shimizu (Screenplay)
Starring: Nana Seino, Tomorowo Taguchi, Shuntaro Yanagi, Yu Takahashi, Nao, Hono Miyabe,
Takashi Shimizu is the horror auteur behind the Ju-On films but he has been working on more mainstream films like the live-action Kiki’s Delivery Service lately. He makes his horror comeback with this short that stars Tomorowo Taguchi (Tetsuo: The Iron Man).
Synopsis: Rika (Nana Seino) has dreams of seeing a girl in a heavy rain, at a railroad crossing meeting a mysterious woman wearing black clothes. The woman embraces the girl as a train approaches… The dream leaves Rika feeling depressed especially when the anniversary of the death of her mother approaches….
FAKE
Release Date: June 04th, 2016
Running Time: 109 mins.
Director: Tatsuya Mori
Writer: N/A
Starring: Mamoru Samuragochi
Synopsis: A couple of years ago the deaf musician and composer Mamoru Samuragochi made the headlines when it was revealed that he wasn’t as deaf as he claimed after a series of articles drew doubts about his deafness and it was revealed that a man named Takashi Aragaki had served as a ghost writer for 18 years. This documentary looks at the man at the centre of the uproar and how he dealt with the press coverage. Here’s a fascinating article on the Japan Times website in which the director talks about the film.
Danchi
団地 「Danchi」
Release Date: May 04th, 2016
Running Time: 103 mins.
Director: Junji Sakamoto
Writer: Junji Sakamoto (Screenplay),
Starring: Naomi Fujiyama, Ittoku Kishibe, Mari Hamada, Mayu Harada, Hikaru Horiguchi, Renji Ishibashi,
Synopsis: Hinako (Naomi Fujiyama) and Seiji Yamashita (Ittoku Kishibe) once owned a store that sold traditional Chinese herbal medicine but retired and moved into the local housing complex after selling their store. Old customers come calling and it provides something for Seiji to do until he runs in an election to select the next president of the housing complex. He shuts himself away under the floorboards of the apartment out of embarrassment and soon rumours spread that he has been killed by Hinako! Here’s a review at the Japan Times.
Ninkyo Yaro
任侠野郎 「Ninkyo Yaro」
Release Date: May 04th, 2016
Running Time: 69 mins.
Director: Kiyotaka Tokunaga
Writer: Yuichi Fukuda (Screenplay),
Starring: Yoshikazu Ebisu, Yuya Yagira, Reina Triendl, Ken Yasuda, Manami Hashimoto, Jiro Sato,
Synopsis: Genji Shibata (Yoshikazu Ebisu) is an ex-yakuza fresh out of prison after serving a sentence connected to him avenging the murder of his boss. He heads home to lead a quiet life but former colleagues tell him that the real culprit for the murder of Genji’s boss is still alive and actually sent him up! Genji comes out of retirement for revenge…
Tetsuya Kumakawa K-Ballet Company “Don Quixote” in Cinema
熊川哲也 Kバレエ カンパニー 「ドン・キホーテ」 in Cinema「 Kumakawa Tetsuya K-Bare Kanbani- “Don Kiho-te” in Cinema」
Release Date: June 04th, 2016
Running Time: N/A
Artistic Director: Tetsuya Kumakawa
Writer: N/A
Starring: Stuart Cassidy (Don Quixote), Ayumi Shiraishi (Kitri), Isaka Fuzuki (Basilio), Ryo Izawa (Gamache),
No trailer
Synopsis: Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Shibuya played host to an adaptation of Don Quixote where the titular old knight encounters young lovers Kitri and Basilio and potential love rival, the foppish aristocrat Gamache who wants to wed Kitri. Don Quixote also falls in love with Kitri and a chase ensues when the young lovers flee…
Tokyo Sunrise
走れ、絶望に追いつかれない速さで 「Hashire, zetsubo ni oitsuka renai hayasa de」
Release Date: May 04th, 2016
Running Time: 83 mins.
Director: Ryutaro Nakagawa
Writer: Ryutaro Nakagawa (Screenplay),
Starring: Taiga (Nakano), Takashi Fujimura, Reiko Fujiwara, Mei Kurokawa, Manami Takahashi, Moeki Tsuruoka, Ryuju Kobayashi,
Tokyo Sunrise comes from Tokyo New Cinema, a talented group of indie filmmakers who have two other titles to their name, Plastic Love Story (which I helped promote) and August in Tokyo. Their films are usually visually stunning and this one looks like a solid drama.
Synopsis from IMDB: ‘Tokyo Sunrise’ presents a young man’s journey to face an incomprehensible death of his best friend.
Here’s a Q&A the director took part in during last year’s Tokyo International Film Festival where he discusses the film which was programmed for the event.
Japanese Movie Box Office Results for this Week:
Zootopia (2016/04/23)
Wolf Girl and Black Prince (2016/05/28)
Snow White and the Huntsman Winter’s War (2016/05/27)
If Cats Disappeared From the World (2016/05/14)
The Magnificent Nine (2016/05/28)
Detective Conan: The Darkest Nightmare (2016/04/16)
64: Part 1 Prequel (2016/05/07)
After the Storm (2016/05/21)
Crayon Shin-chan Movie 24: Bakusui! Yumemi World Dai Totsugeki (2016/04/16)
Captain America Civil War (2016/04/29)
