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February 21, 2025
 

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Mark Schilling
“Yasuko, Songs of Days Past” centers on a real-life love triangle between poet Chuya Nakahara (Taisei Kido, left), actor Yasuko Hasegawa (Suzu Hirose, center) and literary critic Hideo Kobayashi (Masaki Okada).
CULTURE / Film
Feb 20, 2025
‘Yasuko, Songs of Days Past’ puts overlooked star in the spotlight
Kichitaro Negishi’s drama, based on a real-life love triangle among notable figures of the Japanese literati, captures the flavor of a bygone era.
In “Kanasando,” when Mika (Ruka Matsuda, left) returns to her hometown in Okinawa Prefecture, she starts to see her estranged father (Tadanobu Asano) in a new light as his health deteriorates.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 13, 2025
‘Kanasando’: Heartwarming homecoming inspires a change of heart
Tadanobu Asano shows a vulnerable side of his tough-guy image while playing a dementia-afflicted father reconnecting with his daughter in Toshiyuki Teruya’s film.
Although she’s unlucky in love, Shigusa (Kirara Inori, left) finds strength in expressing herself through art in “Kisspeptin Chronicles.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 8, 2025
‘Kisspeptin Chronicles’: Quirky rom-com dances through the pain of heartache
Shiika Okada’s debut feature has an autobiographical feel and a hopeful message about self-discovery despite romantic disappointments.
A young couple (Ryuya Wakaba and Mai Fukagawa) fulfill a lifelong dream of moving to the countryside, only to find their new community may have sinister intentions toward them in “Welcome to the Village.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 30, 2025
‘Welcome to the Village’: Tradition takes a twisted turn in the countryside
The ancient tradition of “murahachibu,” ostracizing community members as punishment, gets a contemporary twist in Hideo Jojo’s slow-burn thriller.
Reality and dreams begin to blur for a former French literature professor (Kyozo Nagatsuka, front) after he receives a cryptic message in “Teki Cometh.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 23, 2025
‘Teki Cometh’ slides in and out of a hypnotic dreamworld
Kyozo Nagatsuka gives a finessed performance as an elderly gentleman who is not as gentle as he seems in Daihachi Yoshida’s drama.
A keen fisherman from Tokyo (Masaki Suda) moves to a tight-knit community in Miyagi Prefecture during the COVID-19 pandemic in “Sunset Sunrise.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 21, 2025
‘Sunset Sunrise’: Rom-com finds pathos in peak pandemic setting
Yoshiyuki Kishi’s film delivers a deliciously uplifting story with humor and heart in a tight-knit community impacted by disasters.
NHK’s latest taiga period drama, “Unbound,” centers on Tsutaya Juzaburo (Ryusei Yokohama), a commoner who becomes a successful bookseller and publisher.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jan 10, 2025
‘Unbound’ breaks NHK period drama tradition with a hero of the common folk
Public broadcaster NHK marks its 100th anniversary by flipping the script on its long-running period drama series.
Hisao Kurozumi (left) and Kazuki Nagaya (the film’s director) play brothers with a strained relationship in “Mending Cracks.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 9, 2025
‘Mending Cracks’: A muddled drama about brotherly discord
Kazuki Nagaya’s directorial debut has its charms, but doesn’t offer enough substance to engage the audience.
Tomoko Tabata brings verve and emotion as 11-year-old Renko in “Moving,” Shinji Somai’s forgotten classic from 1993.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 26, 2024
‘Moving’: A profound, poetic coming-of-age masterpiece restored in 4K
The 1993 film by Shinji Somai is rekindling interest in the late director as a generational talent.
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
CULTURE / Film / 2024 in Review
Dec 20, 2024
A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity
International collaborations and indie risk-takers steered the film industry in a fresh direction in 2024.
An entanglement between club hostess Rie (Sakurako Konishi, left) and TV writer Takuya (Kou Maehara) lies at the center of Takashi Watanabe’s “More Than Words.”
CULTURE / Film
Dec 19, 2024
‘More Than Words’: A morally gray melodrama about sexual assault
Takashi Watanabe’s film concerns the plight of a bumbling TV writer whose entanglement with a club hostess leads to his downfall.
“Ainu Puri” is a nuanced portrait of Shigeki Amanai (left), a modern Ainu man who strives to uphold his culture and heritage in daily life.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 12, 2024
‘Ainu Puri’: A vital portrait of indigenous culture in contemporary Japan
Takeshi Fukunaga’s documentary is an engaging examination of the life and community of a Hokkaido man devoted to his Ainu heritage.
Director Ema Ryan Yamazaki wanted to show situations that everyone, non-Japanese included, could relate to in “The Making of a Japanese,” her documentary about Japan’s schoolchildren. 
CULTURE / Film
Dec 9, 2024
Documentarian praises the positives of stricter schooling
"The Making of a Japanese" director Ema Ryan Yamazaki reflects on the role of the Japanese educational system in creating empathetic children.
“A Big Home” offers a sincere portrait of the vulnerable youth who live in more than 600 group homes across Japan.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 5, 2024
Vulnerable youth look for sense of belonging in ‘A Big Home’
Ryo Takebayashi’s documentary profiles the residents of a group home, but shies away from making emphatic statements about the circumstances that brought them there.
Hiroshi Kurosaki’s Netflix series “Beyond Goodbye” centers on a woman (Kasumi Arimura, left) who discovers her dead lover’s heart saved the life of a quiet pianist (Kentaro Sakaguchi).
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Nov 29, 2024
Hiroshi Kurosaki looks beyond Japan for heart-wrenching drama
The director’s Netflix series relies on lush visuals and truths about love and loss to appeal to an overseas audience.
Eriko Nakamura (left) and Ryo Narita play star-crossed lovers in Shinzo Katayama’s hallucinatory romp through past and present, dreams and reality.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 28, 2024
The mind-bending melancholy of ‘Lust in the Rain’
Shinzo Katayama’s hallucinatory film boldly explores both the absurdities of wartime violence and the erotic psyche.
A failed actor (Koji Seki, left) revisits memories of his ex-wife (Kano Ichiki) after learning about her unexpected death in “Performing Kaoru's Funeral.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2024
‘Performing Kaoru's Funeral’: Ambitious drama reflects on love that doesn’t die
Koji Seki brings gravitas to his role as a man tasked with serving as chief mourner for his dead ex-wife in Noriko Yuasa’s drama.
A socially awkward janitor (Haruka Ayase, left) hits the road to pick up a dying woman’s daughter (Kana Osawa) in “Route 29.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 18, 2024
‘Route 29’: Misfits come together in touching road movie
Though the protagonists spend more time on their feet than in a car, Yusuke Morii’s feature about two strangers hitting the road is picaresque and borderline precious.
Daihachi Yoshida receives the Tokyo Grand Prix award for his film, “Teki Cometh,” at the closing ceremony of the Tokyo International Film Festival on Nov. 6.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 8, 2024
Festival glory for a dark Japanese comedy
With sold-out screenings, international stars and an increase in guests, this year's Tokyo International Film Festival revived its rep as a global cinematic gathering.
Sakuya Ishikawa (Sosuke Ikematsu) wakes up from a coma to find his mother gone and decides to virtually re-create her with harvested data in “The Real You.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 7, 2024
‘The Real You’: Provocative dystopia combines sci-fi concerns with melodrama
In Yuya Ishii’s drama, a young man’s existential crisis amid the rise of artificial entities feels very much of the present moment.
Japan release of Shiori Ito's documentary in limbo
Shiori Ito, who won a civil suit over a rape case against a TV reporter, in 2018. Her former lawyers claim her documentary includes footage used without the consent of sources.
IPhone parts maker Murata eyes supply chain shift toward India
Murata Manufacturing President Norio Nakajima
Monthly number of visitors to Japan hit record high in January
A visitor feeds the deer at Nara Park in Nara on Jan. 27. The monthly number of foreign visitors to Japan hit a record high in January.
What is the ceiling for sumo’s newest yokozuna?
Newly promoted grand champion Hoshoryu (center) performs a dedication ceremony at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo on Jan. 31.
Arsenal defender Tomiyasu undergoes knee surgery
Arsenal's Takehiro Tomiyasu celebrates scoring against Everton on May 19, 2024.
Japan release of Shiori Ito's documentary in limbo
Shiori Ito, who won a civil suit over a rape case against a TV reporter, in 2018. Her former lawyers claim her documentary includes footage used without the consent of sources.
Abdul Hakim Sani Brown ready to sprint past Paris disappointment
Abdul Hakim Sani Brown (center) runs during a 100-meter heat at the Paris Olympics on Aug. 3, 2024.
What is the ceiling for sumo’s newest yokozuna?
Newly promoted grand champion Hoshoryu (center) performs a dedication ceremony at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo on Jan. 31.
‘Yasuko, Songs of Days Past’ puts overlooked star in the spotlight
“Yasuko, Songs of Days Past” centers on a real-life love triangle between poet Chuya Nakahara (Taisei Kido, left), actor Yasuko Hasegawa (Suzu Hirose, center) and literary critic Hideo Kobayashi (Masaki Okada).
Japan’s English-language education doesn’t pass the test
One-third of elementary school students in Japan do not like learning English, according to a 2021 poll, an 8% rise since 2013. The pressure of taking proficiency tests is eroding children's engagement with studying English and its benefits.

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