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August 15, 2024
 

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James Hadfield
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 28, 2020
‘Dancing in Her Dreams’: Falling under the seductive spell of a bygone era
Hideyuki Tokigawa's film romanticizes the heyday of Hiroshima's strip theaters and the dancers who brought late-night fantasies to life.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 22, 2020
Veteran Koji Yakusho brings his movie star clout to the Tokyo International Film Festival
This year's TIFF ambassador discusses the festival experience, the effects of COVID-19 on the film industry, and discovering his inner Marie Kondo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 21, 2020
‘True Mothers’: An intimate look at two sides of adoption
Naomi Kawase's drama tackles child adoption and teenage pregnancy with seriousness and compassion, while drawing a stand-out performance from Aju Makita.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 16, 2020
In ‘True Mothers,’ Naomi Kawase examines what makes a family
Naomi Kawase draws on personal experience in her new film, an intimate look at adoption that blurs the line between documentary and fiction.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 30, 2020
‘All the Things We Never Said’: Life is bleak, so find a friend to lean on
Yuya Ishii draws some raw performances from his cast in a low-budget, self-produced drama about alienation and unraveling relationships.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 17, 2020
‘The Cornered Mouse Dreams of Cheese’: Looking for love in the wrong places
Isao Yukisada's gay romance offers refreshing scenes of domestic intimacy, but can't resolve the underlying problems of its manga source material.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 3, 2020
‘The Brightest Roof in the Universe’: Looks nice, lacks sparkle
Michihito Fujii changes pace but can't quite find the right tempo on this lightweight follow-up to gritty award winner “The Journalist.”
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 27, 2020
‘Soiree’: Melancholy drama casts a beautiful spell
Bunji Sotoyama's intimate late-summer drama about a couple who take flight from their hometown is evocative and emotional.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 20, 2020
‘Crazy Samurai Musashi’: One-cut carnage is bloody exhausting
Yuji Shimomura's “Crazy Samurai Musashi” boasts a 77-minute continuous shot in which Tak Sakaguchi slashes his way through nearly 600 adversaries.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 6, 2020
‘Dos Siki’: Dos Monos cuts the fat and ups the ante
Tokyo-based trio Dos Monos' second album is an EP-length explosion of energy and confidence.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 30, 2020
‘My Name Is Yours’: The kids are not alright in this already dated drama
Momoko Fukuda's film about teenage ennui seems out of step during a time in which the coronavirus pandemic has put many rites of passage on hold.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 16, 2020
‘Theatre: A Love Story’: No sparks in this tortured romance
Based on a novel by comedian-turned-author Naoki Matayoshi, “Theatre: A Love Story” centers on a narcissistic playwright and his long-suffering girlfriend.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 9, 2020
‘The Gun 2020’: Locked, loaded and nowhere to go
“The Gun 2020” revisits the story of Masaharu Take's 2018 film, “The Gun,” this time with a woman as the weapon-wielding protagonist. A feminist thriller it is not.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 2, 2020
‘I Never Shot Anyone’: This nostalgic neo-noir misses its mark
Junji Sakamoto's neo-noir film about a writer leading a shadowy double life has a cast laden with heavyweight talents, but it doesn't quite hit the spot.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 11, 2020
‘Why You Can’t Be Prime Minister’: A Sisyphean slog toward the top office
Shinzo Abe has been with us for so long now, it’s easy to forget that there was a time when Japan’s premiership seemed to rotate as frequently as the membership of AKB48.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 5, 2020
South Korea-born rapper Moment Joon details immigrant experience in Japan on debut album
On his formidable debut album, “Passport & Garcon,” South Korea-born rapper Moment Joon lays claim to his present home in suburban Osaka with unusual specificity.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 29, 2020
Live-house culture won't cede the stage to COVID-19
Seiichi Yamamoto, founder of Osaka live music venue Namba Bears, is employing a range of methods to keep his stage open to touring musicians.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 29, 2020
As coronavirus restrictions are relaxed, the future of live music in Japan looks rocky
Despite Japan having lifted its state of emergency, gig-goers may have to wait for live music to get back to normal across the country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 28, 2020
Tokyo joins world film festivals for 10-day YouTube event
Tokyo International Film Festival's competition programmer says that We Are One is just the start of a more digital-friendly future for festivals.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 21, 2020
Think you streamed everything? Dig deeper on Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime
Cinemas have cautiously started to reopen in parts of Japan, but many of us are still having to sit tight and do all our movie-viewing at home. If, by now, you’re feeling like you’ve reached the bottom of the streaming barrel, fret not: There are still choice morsels of domestic and overseas offerings...
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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