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July 16, 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
Mar 10, 2004
Apply Botox before viewing
Gothika Rating: * * (out of 5) Director: Mathieu Kassovitz Running time: 97 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] It was sad, but it had to be done. After a steady diet of horror films throughout my, uh, youth, I went through a voluntary detox/rehab...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 3, 2004
Hard to the theater, landlubbers
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World Rating: * * * * (out of 5) Director: Peter Weir Running time: 135 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] In these days of cinematic sensitivity, men just aren't afforded the opportunity to run the...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 26, 2004
Getting underneath the language of skin
"Obsessed" is probably the right word to describe the Japanese's woman's relationship with her hada (skin). From her earliest years, she is exhorted by her elders to look after her skin -- scrub, cleanse, moisturize -- to achieve that tsuru-tsuru (polished) texture and shittori (moist) feel. If a young...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 25, 2004
Funny how things work out
Uptown Girls Rating: * * 1/2(out of 5) Director: Boaz Yakin Running time: 92 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] "Living isn't worth it if you're not gonna have fun!" declares bubbly 22-year-old Molly. "Fundamentals are the building blocks of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 18, 2004
Don't get stung by this one
Confidence Rating: * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: James Foley Running time: 97 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] "Confidence" is the cinematic equivalent of a dream date that's really a nightmare: gorgeous, stylish and utterly insincere. You know...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Feb 17, 2004
Enduring life in the Japanese company
It's probably just as difficult to find a happily employed Westerner in a Japanese company as it is to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 12, 2004
'Iyashi': relief for tired Japanese salarywomen
It's widely assumed that whatever their station in life, most Japanese women over the age of 24 are tsukarete iru (tired). This has less to do with modern living than something ingrained in the Japanese tradition that tires women out before their time -- namely, the emphasis on shigoto (work). Women...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 11, 2004
Ah, that's Dogma amore
Italian for Beginners Rating: * * * * (out of 5) Japanese title: Shiawase ni naru tame Itariagokoza Director: Lone Scherfig Running time: 97 minutes Language: Danish, Italian Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] "Italian for Beginners" is a sweet, unpretentious love story...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 4, 2004
My unlikely valentine
Love Actually Rating: * * * (out of 5) Director: Richard Curtis Running time: 135 minutes Language: English Opens Feb. 7 [See Japan Times movie listings] Love, love, love. Given how movies are pretty indiscriminating when it comes to strewing that word around, there's a positive recklessness...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 28, 2004
A lesson on how to waste one's life
Pinero Rating: * * (out of 5) Director: Leon Ichaso Running time: 103 minutes Language: English Opens Jan. 31 [See Japan Times movie listings] One pitfall of artist biopics is the genre's tendency to select those artists whose lives were of the wrecked and splashy variety. It's extremely...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 22, 2004
The 'shitagidorobo': from criminal to fashion critic
It's not something that's widely advertised, but Japan is home to a massive shitagi-bunka (underwear culture). The most demure and modest of women will often be the owners of a collection that would put Frederick's of Hollywood to abject shame. And it's no secret that lan-pabu ("lingerie pubs," in which...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 21, 2004
Hong Kong action ends up on the wrong flight
Bulletproof Monk Rating: * * (out of 5) Director: Paul Hunter Running time: 104 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Hollywood takes a shot at B-grade Hong Kong action in "Bulletproof Monk." The difference between this picture and the hundreds...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 20, 2004
Don't mention the L-word
There you go again. That trick of saying "I love you!" just before hanging up the phone.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 14, 2004
A fail-safe genre that rarely misfires
Hollywood Homicide Rating: * * * (out of 5) Director: Ron Shelton Running time: 111 minutes Language: English Opens Jan. 24 [See Japan Times movie listings] It's interesting to see the different fates allotted to those stars who've entered what used to be termed their "twilight years."...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 7, 2004
Enrolled in the Pacino Academy
The Recruit Rating: * * * (out of 5) Director: Roger Ronaldson Running time: 105 minutes Language: English Opens Jan. 17 [See Japan Times movie listings] The Next Big Thing meets with the Last Big Thing in "The Recruit." The former is Colin Farrell, Hollywood's hottest wonder-boy and...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 25, 2003
Be good to your rice and your rice will be good
"Aaaaah. Nihonjin dana . . . (Ahh, isn't this what being Japanese is all about?)"
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 23, 2003
At home in japan without the kinks
So is this what they mean by globalization?
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 4, 2003
Learning the finer points of this, that and 'nani'
Like the Japanese economy, the Japanese conversation has dwindled. Our words have lost their luxurious sheen, our sentences have been reduced to short strings of blah. We no longer need the metaphors of Osamu Dazai to convey our emotions, since a handful of familiar phrases have been encoded to cover...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 13, 2003
The indispensable vagueness of 'domo-domo'
It's when I'm away from Japan and forced to speak in another language (in this case English) that I realize just how vague Japanese can get. At home, it's possible to go through a whole day without uttering one coherent sentence built on spontaneous thought and logic.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 23, 2003
Forget Starbucks, we're doing the ocha thing
Do you have a little time? If so, then "ocha shimasho (Let's do tea, or take a break over something to drink)." This is one of Japan's most favored phrases and oldest customs. A breaking of the ice and shortening of the distance between people, the little ritual of ocha is to the Japanese what mealtimes...
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
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.
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.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
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.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

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

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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