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April 04, 2025
 

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Matt Schley
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 23, 2023
‘Shin Kamen Rider’: Superhero romp is fun but not much else
While Hideaki Anno’s third installment in his “Shin” series lacks substance, it packs in the camp and energy of its 1970s source material.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 16, 2023
‘Gridman Universe’: Multiverse monster mash falls flat
The recent revamp of the 1990s anime character Gridman delivered two entertaining series, but the theatrical follow-up fails to capture the fun and pacing of both shows.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 16, 2023
‘Blue Giant’ soundtrack steals the spotlight
The manga adaptation’s score, composed by jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara, hits all the right notes even if the animation fails to strike a chord.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 12, 2023
As anime continues its rise, animators eye opportunities afield in 2023
How big will Japanese animation be in 2023?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 22, 2022
‘Lonely Castle in the Mirror’: Compelling characters hold the key
The film's storyline, based on Mizuki Tsujimura's novel of the same name, touches on themes of bullying and social anxiety. The plot will transport you, even if the animation doesn't.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 10, 2022
‘Suzume’: Makoto Shinkai reigns supreme as master of visuals
'Suzume' is the anime director's most satisfying work yet, with more mature storytelling blended with stunning visuals.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 13, 2022
‘Break of Dawn’: Extraterrestrial adventures lack momentum
Tomoyuki Kurokawa's anime about a group of children's quest to help an alien return home is a nostalgia trip that takes on weighty themes but slogs toward the end.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 29, 2022
‘Tatami Time Machine Blues’: Kyoto slackers return for summer fun
Anime director Shingo Natsume seamlessly takes up the mantel to revisit the characters from 'The Tatami Galaxy' for new hijinks and a jaunt through time to retrieve a broken remote control.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 1, 2022
Step into the animated world of Mamoru Hosoda with 'The Man Who Leapt Through Film'
Charles Solomon's new book offers an inside look at the director's works such as “Summer Wars” and “Belle” via behind-the-scenes anecdotes, production art and exclusive interviews.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Jun 27, 2022
Facing redevelopment, Koenji rises up
Koenji residents claim the government's proposed Auxiliary Road 227 would spell the beginning of the end for their bohemian neighborhood.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 9, 2022
'Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island' returns with an upgraded look
Director Yoshikazu Yasuhiko rights past wrongs with this new interpretation of an infamous episode of the original “Mobile Suit Gundam” series that aired in 1979.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 19, 2022
‘Shin Ultraman’: No deeper messages, just a lot of fun
Otaku 'dream team' duo Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi join forces once again to revive another special-effects classic that's fun and camp but lacks some punch.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 7, 2022
‘Odd Taxi: In the Woods’: Tokyo joyride runs out of steam
Baku Kinoshita's theatrical version of an anime series about animal urbanites is leaner than the original but loses much of its charm.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 3, 2022
‘The Deer King’: No crown for Masashi Ando’s directorial debut
Despite an impressive roster of talent working on the film, “The Deer King” shares too many similarities with Masashi Ando's previous work and comes up short in comparison.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jan 26, 2022
From 'Spirited Away' to 'Demon Slayer': The meteoric rise of anime
Since 2002, Japan’s anime industry has doubled in size to become worth over ¥2.4 trillion annually.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jan 20, 2022
The push to go digital opens new doors for anime
Digitization and remote work will be a mixed blessing for studios and animators in 2022.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 17, 2021
Streaming heavyweights made big moves into the world of anime in 2021
Anime became even more accessible worldwide as streaming platforms such as Netflix, Crunchyroll and Disney+ made aggressive moves in 2021.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Oct 23, 2021
Tokyo International Film Festival’s animation section aims beyond hardcore fans
The 34th iteration of TIFF will feature a retrospective, recent and upcoming films, and a look at a live-action tokusatsu special effects franchise.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Sep 16, 2021
'Ghost in the Shell' goes big with Imax release
It has been 26 years since Mamoru Oshii's futuristic animated thriller “Ghost in the Shell” came into our lives and it still offers new surprises on renewed viewings.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Jul 22, 2021
Mamoru Hosoda called out Hayao Miyazaki, but was it deserved?
Anime director Mamoru Hosoda recently criticized famed animator Hayao Miyazaki for how he portrays women in his films, but the chiding isn't exactly warranted.
As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
Trump unveils 10% global tariff, with Japan levy set at 24%
Trump tosses a MAGA hat to the crowd during an event in which he unveiled new tariffs in the White House on Wednesday.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
Japan promises 'bold and speedy' response to Trump’s surprise 24% tariffs
U.S. President Donald Trump unveils new U.S. tariffs at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
A new human trafficking trend emerges from Myanmar scam centers
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar gather at a compound inside KK Park, a fraud center on the country's border with Thailand, after a multinational crackdown in February.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
On defense, Japan may avoid Trump's worst impulses — for now
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth chat after reviewing an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Sunday.

Podcast

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

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

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