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July 17, 2024
 

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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
Sep 2, 2011
'Surviving Life'
Czech novelist Milan Kundera once said in an interview that Prague "is full of quirks and poetry, unlike any other city in the world." If that's true, then Czech filmmaker Jan Svankmajer has molded himself into Prague incarnate, embodying the essence of the city through himself and his work.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 26, 2011
Life from a global perspective, and into the past
It may not be a cinematic masterpiece, but "Life in a Day" is a prophetic example of where film may be headed. Everything that has surrounded and defined the film industry — studios, locations, directors, casts and theaters — all of these are condensed into two letters: PC. Flip open a laptop...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 22, 2011
Whose fault is the rise and fall of the Japanese ojisan?
The Japanese ojisan (おじさん, middle-aged and older male) hasn't been too genki (元気, full of cheer) or assertive lately. Just the other day, I witnessed a company nomikai (飲み会, drinking party) at a beer garden where the only persons swilling nama (ナマ, draft beer) by the tankload, pulling...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 19, 2011
'Kung Fu Panda 2'
So we've been told by news programs and eyewitnesses that the pandas at Ueno Zoo have been snacking and dining instead of diligently procreating, and now Tokyo's best-loved cubs from China are too hefty to do much more than lie around and chew. Bad.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 12, 2011
'In a Better World'
Woody Allen once said that it's easy to like people who make us laugh, but people who make us think don't get invited to a whole lot of parties.
CULTURE / Film
Aug 5, 2011
Iranian filmmaker seeks Japanese male in his 60s (but not like that)
Kiyoshiro Imawano is gone. Kiyoshi Kodama is gone. Yoshio Harada is gone. Some of the rockin'est, rollin'est, hottest/coolest older guys in the archipelago are no longer around to console us with their sizzling presences.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 5, 2011
'Let Me In'
If 12-year-old Owen in the sweetly horrific vampire movie "Let Me In" could travel forward through time three decades to 2011 and meet his own self at 42, what would he say? "Let Me In" is set in the early 1980s, when Ronald Reagan was U.S. President, Russia was the Soviet Union and the Western world...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 29, 2011
'Edge of Darkness'
Even vegetarians get blood lust sometimes, and if you're in that particular mood, look no further than "Edge of Darkness" for your carnivorous kicks.
CULTURE / Film
Jul 22, 2011
French film unveils the suffering child within
When it comes to wartime atrocities committed against civilians, burying that memory shouldn't be a historical option. Yet so many incidents have slipped through the net — either through deliberate political cover-ups or perhaps through a collective wish to part from the heavy burden of remembered...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 18, 2011
Goodbye summertime blues, hello summer proper
The late, great rock musician Kiyoshiro Imawano covered Eddie Cochran's classic "Summertime Blues" back in the 1980s, and the lyrics were prophetically brilliant.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 15, 2011
'Under the Hawthorn Tree'
One of my girlfriends in high school had super-strict parents. Not only was she required to be home by the ungodly hour of 8 p.m. every night, she was allowed no boys in her life, and her dad even forbade her to smile and say "thank you" to the delivery guy. On the other hand, this girl recognized the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 8, 2011
Asia's gay film scene opens Tokyo up to brave new experiences
Now in its fourth year, the Asian Queer Film Festival is an eye-opener for anyone who has thought that "queers" have a bad time in their quest for love and freedom in Asia.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 8, 2011
'Devil'
Either the devil is running out of ideas, or he needs some expert coaching from a certain Japanese power company (hint: headquarters in Tokyo). You get a movie with the one-word title "Devil" and almost all that happens is five people getting stuck in an elevator? Pfff.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 1, 2011
'Love and Other Impossible Pursuits'
One of the disconcerting aspects of movie-going is how — on more occasions than you're prepared for — you have to endure the sight of a favorite actor playing someone despicable. For me, that happens sometimes with Natalie Portman. Gorgeous and sizzling and talented, she's always lovely to...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 27, 2011
This summer the scent of Showa will linger in the heat
There's a distinct whiff of nostalgia in the air and it's coming from the general direction of the subway and JR stations. Also from the kaden ryōhanten (家電量販店 discount shops for consumer electronics) now doing excellent business with items like the senpūki (扇風機 electric fan)...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 24, 2011
'Biutiful'
Ninety percent of the time, it's too much to bear even for the audience, so imagine what those people up on the screen are going though. Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu revels in shoveling out far more than a fair share of atrocious luck and tremendous suffering to his characters, and...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 24, 2011
First Tohoku documentary captures tsunami aftermath
Japan will probably be seeing many more, but "Mujo Sobyo" beats all others as the first documentary on the aftermath of the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake and tsunami. A 75-minute film shot and made in 50 days and now playing at the Auditorium Shibuya theater in Tokyo (with screenings in Osaka and Nagoya...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 17, 2011
'13'
Being thrown in a cramped, damp room full of extremely muscular men may sound like an ideal way to spend an evening, but take it from me: There are issues. The air's so coated with testosterone it's hard to breathe, the conversation is far, far from anything resembling romantic and, worst of all, these...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 10, 2011
'X-Men: First Class'
After watching a movie such as "X-Men: First Class," you really don't want to sit down at some steel gray desk and write about it. Turning aerial somersaults while telepathically transmitting brilliant sentences into your laptop sounds more the thing to do.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 27, 2011
'Chloe'
Who would have thought that the Americans (and we're talking North Americans) could beat the French in the game of lust, infidelity and lacy lingerie? "Chloe" is a remake of "Nathalie," a 2003 film by French femme director extraordinaire Anne Fontaine; but in terms of sheer sexiness mileage, this U.S....
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.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

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

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