author

 
Menu
Search
 
July 17, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Kaori Shoji
Kaori Shoji writes about movies and movie-makers for the Film Page, plus takes a turn at the Bilingual Column. Biggest mistake of her career: taking the very dignified Nagisa Oshima to McDonald's for an iced coffee.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 12, 2013
'La Migliore Offerta'
"La Migliore Offerta" ("The Best Offer") was a showcase piece at Tokyo International Film Festival, and as such it's a bit showy. But with Giuseppe Tornatore (of "Cinema Paradiso") at the helm and starring Geoffrey Rush (whose roles include the Marquis de Sade and King George's vocal coach), a dose of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 12, 2013
'Man of Steel'
Director: Zack Snyder
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 5, 2013
'Good Ol' Freda'
In 1961 Freda Kelly was 16, working in an office in downtown Liverpool. One day, her boss invited her to lunch at The Cavern Club, a venue famed for showcasing local talent, and among them was an enormously popular young band called The Beatles.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 5, 2013
'Xue Di Zi'
During the Qing Dynasty, the Yongzheng Emperor was so suspicious of his courtiers and paranoid about dissenters that he established a secret squad that went about with portable guillotines — bladed wheels that could decapitate an opponent instantly. "Xue Di Zi" (released in the West as "The Guillotines")...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 5, 2013
'The Berlin File'
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
Japan Times
CULTURE
Dec 3, 2013
Well, she was just 17: How one girl got her dream job with The Beatles
...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 28, 2013
'Liv & Ingmar'
Like Icarus, who flew too close to the sun, some actresses can get too close to their directors and go up in flames. This was certainly the case with Liv Ullmann (she was born in Tokyo, by the way), who met Ingmar Bergman in the mid 1960s on the set of "Persona." Bibi Anderson was the lead — at...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 28, 2013
'The Call'
Halle Berry has one of the sharpest, most distinctive haircuts in Hollywood, but in her latest, "The Call," she has no-nonsense, low-maintenance do that serves her character Jordan Turner well. Jordan is a 911 operator whose job requires dealing with dire emergencies around the clock. No time to fool...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 28, 2013
'After Earth'
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2013
'Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry'
Ai Weiwei is a controversial troublemaker in his homeland of China, but his reputation abroad is that of a brilliant dissident artist. His latest protest against the government was a gesture: Unable to leave the country, Ai sent an empty chair to the Stockholm Film Festival in lieu of his imposing presence....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2013
Who says you're lonely just because you're alone?
...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2013
'The Perks of Being a Wallflower'
It's not often you run into a film that makes you feel 16 years old again — and kinda good about it. An ode to the awkward years (or to the people who went through them) when each day was a nerve-racking ordeal involving high school hierarchies, "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" softly takes your...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2013
'The Last Stand'
Director: Kim Jee-woon
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 17, 2013
We're not dating because we are too busy running
They say that the Japanese are no longer dating and everyone has become celibate (even The Observer newspaper had an article about that very subject.) The more popular term among us is "sexless." I hate to be the bearer of more bad tidings but it's actually true.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 14, 2013
'Stand Up Guys'
Picture a mobster in prison for 28 years, and then finally out on parole in the twilight years of his life. What's the first thing he'd want to do? In the case of Val (Al Pacino), it's "food, sex and drugs," not necessarily in that order. Fortunately, his best friend in the world, Doc (Christopher Walken),...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 14, 2013
'Lagerfeld Confidential (Japan title: Karl Lagerfeld: Fashion wo Tsukuru Otoko)'
Karl Lagerfeld's digs are gorgeous. Rodolphe Marconi's award-winning documentary "Lagerfeld Confidential" lingers on details in the top fashion designer's resplendent Paris apartment (a movie in itself), which is more art-installation sprawl of everything beautiful than an actual place to live.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 14, 2013
'Hunted Vol. 2 (Tsutaya exclusive)'
Language: English
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 7, 2013
'Everyday'
Michael Winterbottom doesn't have a signature style, nor even a favorite topic. His films can range from a close observation of a lesbian relationship in "Butterfly Kiss" to a slice off the Bosnian War in "Welcome to Sarajevo" to the sublime sci-fi antics of "Code 46." If there's a commonality to these,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 7, 2013
'The Iceman'
Michael Shannon plays real-life contract killer Richard Kuklinski in this crime drama/thriller. Known as "Iceman" or "Ice," Kuklinski allegedly committed hundreds of murders from the late 1940s until he was caught in 1986, many of them for the Mafia. Kuklinski gave numerous interviews out of his cell,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 7, 2013
'Los Ultimos Dias (The Last Days)'
Directors: David and Alex Pastor
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
China’s economic growth comes in worse than expected
Pedestrians in the Wangfujing shopping area in Beijing on July 11, 2024. China's economic growth in the second quarter was lower than forecast, adding pressure on Chinese leaders to lift confidence at the Chinese Communist Party's third plenum this week.
Kansai airports to increase takeoff and landing slots ahead of Osaka Expo
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture. The upper limit on the number of takeoff and landing slots at the airport as well as Kobe Airport in Hyogo Prefecture will be raised in spring next year ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID
Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER