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November 22, 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
Nov 16, 2016
'The Girl on the Train' charts a rough ride
Why does modern society assume that all women want the same three things: love, sex and babies? The short answer is, because pop culture has decreed it so.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Nov 16, 2016
'Nuclear Nation' offers a long, hard look at Fukushima refugees' plight
'Nuclear Nation 2016' re-examines the situation facing Fukushima refugees forced to abandon their homes and evacuate from their hometowns after the Fukushima disaster.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 9, 2016
Jack Reacher returns for mindless action
Tom Cruise probably needs another franchise like he needs a third foot. Nevertheless, here he is in "Jack Reacher: Never Go Back," the sequel to the 2012 movie that was so awful it hurt.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 7, 2016
Strength and tradition draw women back to sumo world
Let's face it, where else are we going to watch a lot of large, near-naked men wrestle each other in a tiny dirt arena?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 2, 2016
The 'uncool' girl can still get the guy, or two
It's a fantasy that many women like to give into sometimes: That you can be somewhat older, a little disheveled, not exactly fit, but still get the man of your dreams. Or make that two, or even three if you count a perfect baby son on the way.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 2, 2016
'Inferno': Tom Hanks can hold up a franchise
Times will change and tides will always turn, but there's one thing you can count on: movies starring Tom Hanks.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 26, 2016
The digital age of relationships and filmmaking
Shunji Iwai has long stood on ambivalent terrain. To Western audiences he's known as a prolific and brilliant auteur, but without the overseas cachet of others such as Takeshi Kitano. To his fans in Japan, he's viewed as the spokesman for the socially conscious hipster — the one director who manages...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 26, 2016
'Remember': Some things can never be forgotten
The 2000s have not been kind to filmmaker Atom Egoyan, once hailed as a visionary who could do no wrong (particularly at the Cannes Film Festivals of the mid-1990s). Egoyan's career took an unexpected downward turn once the millennium kicked it, and from there on it's been a slippery slope. Try as he...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 19, 2016
There's always drama at home
The most intriguing titles at this year's TIFF celebrate geographical diversity while homing in on social issues of modern life. Whether the characters are in Brazil or Croatia or Japan, or the filmmakers are from Romania, India or China, their stories feature the struggles of everyday people, some of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 15, 2016
Murakami may never win the Nobel Prize — and that's OK
In early 2015, Haruki Murakami began an advice column on his blog called "Murakami-san no Tokoro" ("Mr. Murakami's Place"). In it, the famed author replied to questions sent in by his readers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 12, 2016
'Hungry Hearts' to broken hearts
For many people, a conversation about what foods are good for you opposed to what isn't is as familiar as a pair of socks that's been through the washer too often. By my calculations, a loving couple can argue just as much over food as over their finances, and the arguing can even escalate to a screaming...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2016
Tsukiji: Still a fish in troubled waters
Director Naotaro Endo first started filming "Tsukiji Wonderland" in 2014, and it had been partly intended as a farewell to Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market, which faces a makeover and move after serving sellers and buyers for 80 years. When the film was made, the market was slated to move to Toyosu on Nov....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2016
'Genius': The wordsmith who shaped Wolfe
Once upon a time, the word "genius" made us think not the help counter in an Apple Store but of people of incredible intellect who accomplished amazing things and relied on nothing more than their brains and bare hands. This "Genius" transports us back to such a time: 1929, when in New York City, the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Oct 5, 2016
Swedish silent movies worth talking about
The National Film Center has collaborated with the Swedish Film Institute to put together a silent-film festival, which kicks off on Oct. 11 and runs until Oct. 16. Screening seven re-mastered classics, "Silent Film Renaissance 2016: Treasures From the Archive of the Swedish Film Institute" is a showcase...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 28, 2016
'Sully': Ditching the plane to save lives
For a while I thought Harrison Ford should run for U.S. president, but now I'm convinced Tom Hanks is the one, with Clint Eastwood as secretary of state. The two have teamed up for "Sully" (Eastwood directing and Hanks as the titular character), the true-to-life story of an airplane accident that happened...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 21, 2016
'Seymour: An Introduction': For the love of music and its craft
Watching the quiet, classical-music-infused "Seymour: An Introduction" made me recall another film about a musician: the jazz drama "Whiplash," which made a lot of splashes and won three Oscars. The two may be completely different experiences, yet the films seem to play off each other, like paths of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 14, 2016
Love beyond the laws of physics and nature
"Correspondence" (also known as "La Corrispondenza") is the kind of romance the Japanese have traditionally loved to love — two people locked in a relationship that barely exists.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 14, 2016
'The BFG': With an emphasis on the friendly
The Japanese have never really warmed to the stories of Roald Dahl, with the exception of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Even then, they're probably not thinking of Dahl, it's more about Johnny Depp and the Wonka Chocolate bars sold at most high-end supermarkets around Valentine's and Christmas....
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 10, 2016
Asakusa: in the glow of Nippon kitsch
Every once in a while, the Japanese have to remind themselves that they're Japanese. We feel the need to reconfirm that we are part of a long and enduring traditional culture — one which includes kimono, samurai, ninja, eels on rice, and other weird items. Many like to pretend that these particular...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 7, 2016
'Bittersweet': A Henry Higgins of vegetarianism
The idea of "love" in Japan used to be defined by literature until manga came along and changed the scenery. Now, almost everyone dips into manga to learn the ropes, and often that process starts as early as the first grade. My niece was just 6 years old when she was poring through "Detective Conan"...
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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