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August 15, 2024
 

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Mark Schilling
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 2, 2022
'Gensan Punch': It's the fights outside the ring that matter
Veteran character actor Shogen's soft-spoken and self-abnegating portrayal of the hero manages to exude a quiet grit that comes off as authentic.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 26, 2022
'Anime Supremacy!': An informative look at the business of anime stops short of getting real
Though charming, the film adaptation of a novel by Mizuki Tsujimura misses an opportunity to tackle the actual problems facing young animators.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 19, 2022
‘Wandering’: Questionable subject matter, handled with care
Zainichi Korean filmmaker Sang-il Lee's drama about the lasting effects of an unconventional attachment between a child and a grown adult reveals the brutal realities of Japanese society.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 12, 2022
‘My Small Land’: An intimate look at an uncertain future
Emma Kawawada's compelling drama about a family of Kurdish refugees in Japan lays bare the emotional toll of Japan's treatment of asylum seekers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 5, 2022
‘Lesson in Murder’: A masterclass in portraying evil
Sadawo Abe delivers a chilling performance as a murderous mastermind in Kazuya Shiraishi's psychological thriller.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 30, 2022
'Bldg. N’: Paranormal scares turn plain silly
Minori Hagiwara's commitment to portraying a college student terrorized by ghosts and cult members isn't enough to rescue Yosuke Goto's increasingly wacky horror film.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 21, 2022
‘xxxHolic’: Over-the-top camp casts a lackluster spell
Mika Ninagawa's film about a superpowered high schooler who is forced to repeat his birthday in a time loop is a visual spectacle that gets bogged down with pat philosophizing.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 14, 2022
‘Phoenix Goes On’: Buddy road trip offers fun hijinks
Arata Iura and Ryo Narita play off each other well as two friends on a bizarre quest in the follow-up to Kanata Wolf's 2018 film “Smokin' on the Moon.”
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 7, 2022
‘Kingdom of the Apes’: Corporate power games leave a bloody mess
Shugo Fujii tackles a familiar story line in his new film “Kingdom of the Apes”: An intrepid journalist investigates a coverup, incurring the wrath of the powers-that-be. It is a narrative that was injected with topical relevance in the 2019 hit “The Journalist,” directed by Michihito Fujii (no...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 31, 2022
‘Two Outs Bases Loaded’: Bonehead comedy strikes out
Hirokazu Fujisawa's film about the misadventures of two former high school athletes turned burnouts is silly and predictable.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 26, 2022
‘Mlabri in the Woods’ offers a rare look at former hunter-gatherers
Director Yu Kaneko's documentary about an ethnic group living in the hills of Laos and northern Thailand began with an encounter with a Japanese linguist fluent in the Mlabri language.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 24, 2022
‘To Be Killed by a High School Girl’: Hideo Jojo gives a lesson in ‘ick 101’
Hideo Jojo challenges taboos with black comedy in a twisted film about a teacher plotting his own death at the hands of a student.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 17, 2022
‘Straying’: The realities of a love quadrangle
Rikiya Imaizumi's comedy earns its R15 classification with sex scenes that reveal the honest and even humorous moments in intimate relationships.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 12, 2022
Glimpses of postwar Hayama through a father's eyes
'Hayama 1952-1953 Charles Junkerman,” a book of rare photographs, preserves the everyday lives of the seaside town's citizens in vivid color.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 11, 2022
‘Intimate Stranger’ is a psychological thriller for the pandemic age
Director Mayu Nakamura's background in documentary filmmaking played a part in making the feature, which explores the depths of desperation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 10, 2022
'Wedding High’: Nuptial chaos delivers big laughs
The ensemble comedy about a wedding gone wrong has some hilarious moments and digs into the ups and downs of Japanese weddings.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 3, 2022
‘Intimate Stranger’: Asuka Kurosawa makes a triumphant return
The actress delivers a layered performance as a desperate yet calculating woman searching for her lost child in Mayu Nakamura's psychological thriller.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 24, 2022
‘Love Nonetheless’: Sexy romp delivers solid laughs
Hideo Jojo's smart comedy attempts to revive the erotic subgenres of the 1970s with mindful updates for modern audiences.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 24, 2022
Hiroshi Okuhara's ‘Hotel Iris’ is a house of mirrors
The director's film adaptation of Yoko Ogawa's novel, in which Masatoshi Nagase plays a dangerously seductive translator, blurs the line between fantasy and reality.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 17, 2022
‘Ribbon’: Non unmasks pandemic frustrations in her first feature
The former “Amachan” actor's film was inspired by the frustration and anger of young people whose lives have come to a standstill because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

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