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July 17, 2024
 

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Mark Schilling
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2014
'Watashi no Otoko (My Man)'
Based on a novel by Kazuki Sakuraba, Kazuyoshi Kumakiri's "Watashi no Otoko (My Man)" is described as a film about forbidden love, which immediately raises the question of what, if anything, is "forbidden" in this day and age.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2014
'Gatchaman'
Director: Toya Sato
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 14, 2014
Happy endings: foreigners working in Japan's film industry
Film is supposed to be a universal language, but the film business in any given country is usually run by the locals for the locals. The one great exception is Hollywood, which has been making films for the world since the silent days and is open to talent, preferably English speaking, from around the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 12, 2014
'Sweet Poolside'
Puberty is a time of physical changes that range from the wondrous to the excruciating, but once accomplished are soon forgotten. The beard that greets you in the mirror, which once seemed miraculous and strange, is now just one more morning chore.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 12, 2014
T'ora! Tora! Tora!'
Director: Richard Fleischer
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 5, 2014
'Sad Tea'
Ensemble dramas about the ups and downs of love, and its various substitutes, are popular now — at least with indie filmmakers. (A contrast to Japan's commercial romantic dramas, which still focus on star-crossed couples, one of whom is usually dead by the closing credits.)
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 5, 2014
'Koroshi no Rakuin (Branded to Kill)'
Director: Seijun Suzuki
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 30, 2014
Photo series charts the family unit in changing Japan
Family photos in Japan, especially ones taken for formal occasions such as shichi-go-san (seven-five-three) ceremonies, are often as stiffly posed as 19th-century tintypes, with Mom, Dad and Junior never cracking a smile.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 29, 2014
Short-film festival offers flicks for free
Short films are today both everywhere but nowhere, even for many who consider themselves film fans.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 28, 2014
Godfather of J-horror escapes from genre's grip
Hideo Nakata could be called the godfather of contemporary Japanese horror, but he would probably hate the label. Regardless, this 52-year-old director of such genre classics as "Ring," "Ring 2" and "Honogurai Mizu no Soko kara (Dark Water)" has made J-horror — a combination of present-day settings...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 28, 2014
'Monsterz'
Hollywood has been remaking Asian films for a long time now, but over the past decade Korean movies have become the focus of remakers attention. One reason is that hit Korean films are often based on the sort of "high concepts" (easy-to-grasp premises) that fuel Hollywood's own sure-thing projects. They...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 28, 2014
'Gojira, Ebirah, Mothra: Nankai no Daiketto' (Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster)
Director: Jun Fukuda
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 22, 2014
Godzilla: the monster with multiple personalities
"Godzilla" was the first Japanese movie I saw. It was also the first for many other American baby boomers, though we did not view Ishiro Honda's 1954 original, but a version that had been heavily edited and dubbed for the U.S. market, with additional footage featuring Raymond Burr as an intrepid American...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 22, 2014
'Oh! Father'
Japanese mystery writers have long supplied fodder for TV shows and films, but mysteries of the puzzle-plot sort have reached a saturation point. Or maybe it's just me, fed up with stories that turn on such vital questions as — in the immortal words of Raymond Chandler — "who trampled the jolly old...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 22, 2014
'Yume to Kyoki no Ohkoku (The Kingdom of Dreams & Madness)'
Director: Mami Sunada
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 15, 2014
'Wood Job!'
Shinobu Yaguchi has become a consistent hit maker by following a simple formula: generate laughs from the stumbles and mistakes of heroes learning a new job, art or sport. This formula usually results in audience cheers and tears when triumph finally arrives after many ups and downs. Examples include...
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
May 15, 2014
'Arcana'
Director: Yoshitaka YamaguchiLanguage: Japanese (subtitled in English)
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 9, 2014
Asia's myriad film genres celebrated at Udine festival
Why go to a film festival that specializes in the sort of popular Asian genres — from Hong Kong actioners to South Korean comedies — that the other "better" sort of festivals have traditionally sniffed at?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 8, 2014
Young Japanese filmmaker's dystopian dream
Several years ago, a film project of mine was selected for J-Pitch, a government-backed initiative that introduces new filmmakers to veteran producers outside Japan, in the hope (in my case, a faint hope) that they will co-produce an original film. At a J-Pitch seminar where new filmmakers delivered...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 8, 2014
'Momose, Kocchi wo Muite (My Pretend Girlfriend)'
First love, or hatsukoi, is a big topic in Japanese teen films, as well as almost everywhere else in popular culture. It's attractive because of its innocence and purity, as well as the almost inevitable fleetingness of the relationship — if indeed, it is one; someone is often far more besotted than...
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.
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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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