Tag - godzilla

 
 

GODZILLA

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.
Japanese creatives, athletes and activists saw their efforts recognized on the world stage in various ways this year. At the Oscars (left) Takashi Yamazaki and his team took a prize for “Godzilla Minus One,” while later in the year Anna Sawai and Hiroyuki Sanada (center) took Emmys for their work in “Shogun.” Shohei Ohtani (right) was arguably the biggest Japanese star of the year.
CULTURE / 2024 in Review
Dec 4, 2024
Japan's soft power soared to new heights in 2024
From Oscars and Emmys to a Nobel Peace Prize, it was a year of awards and triumphs in key cultural fields.
The film character Godzilla poses on the red carpet during a ceremony to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California, in November 2004.  
COMMENTARY
Nov 6, 2024
After nearly three-quarters of a century, Godzilla’s monstrous empire is thriving
The famed Japanese monster went from serious metaphor for nuclear destruction to a kitschy pop culture icon.
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus One,” which won an Academy Award for best visual effects, was made for a reported $15 million — a small fraction of the budgets used by its Hollywood competitors.
CULTURE / Film
Jul 6, 2024
Japanese cinema is having a stand-out year. Here are some films to watch.
The success of "Godzilla Minus One" gave Japan's film industry a confidence boost, but we haven't been short on must-see hits in 2024.
Both Godzilla and Kong have a rich screen history to draw on, but “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” feels like a desperate attempt for the crossover franchise to justify both its existence and its continuation.
CULTURE / Film
Apr 4, 2024
‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’: Running out of steam
The latest in the Warner Bros. Monsterverse franchise shows signs of an anemic imagination.
People dressed as King Kong and Godzilla attend the world premiere of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood last month.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Apr 2, 2024
'Godzilla x Kong' tops North American box office with $80 million haul
Japan's favorite monster seems to be on a roll this year, winning an Oscar and topping the box office in a prized market.
EDITORIALS
Mar 15, 2024
The night Godzilla trampled Hollywood
The humanity behind visual effects and animation won in the end, and Japan should be proud.
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus One,” which won an Academy Award for best visual effects earlier this week, was made for a reported $15 million — a small fraction of the budgets used by its Hollywood competitors.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 14, 2024
'Godzilla Minus One' fought the odds and won big at the Oscars
Once mocked, the long-running monster franchise took on Hollywood's behemoths — and won.
Masaki Takahashi, Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya and Tatsuji Nojima celebrated winning the Oscar for best visual effects on the Dolby Theatre stage in Los Angeles, California, on Sunday.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 11, 2024
Oscars 2024: A night to remember for Japanese cinema
Filmmaking peers in Hollywood honor the excellence of two Japanese titans: Studio Ghibli and Godzilla
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Feb 15, 2024
Giants' new Godzilla Yuto Akihiro taps into Hideki Matsui's teachings to level up
Akihiro is the latest player to try and walk in Matsui's footsteps.
The title monster in “Godzilla Minus One” is a threat, of course, but the real story is about finding community in the wake of destruction.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 3, 2024
‘Godzilla Minus One’ stomps into ‘Oppenheimer’ territory
Those movies, along with “The Boy and the Heron,” are essentially in conversation about the moral weight of American and Japanese actions in World War II.
From movies, anime, manga and even to sports stars, 2023 was a year where global audiences demonstrated their increasing fondness for Japanese soft power.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 27, 2023
From Godzilla to Shohei: Japan's soft power had a big year
Little by little, Japan is getting better at pitching its copious wares overseas, and 2023 proved that.
Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” received Golden Globes nominations for best animated motion picture and best original score for a motion picture this week.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 12, 2023
'The Boy and the Heron' and 'Godzilla Minus One' win over U.S.
While both Japanese films broke records at the North American box office, Hayao Miyazaki's latest also received two Golden Globes nominations.
Godzilla is presented with a certificate after being selected for Hollywood's Walk of Fame during a news conference in Tokyo in October 2004.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 6, 2023
New 'Godzilla' flick deftly tackles postwar Japan in cinematic triumph
Godzilla strikes again: New 'Minus One' movie is a visual spectacle that challenges Hollywood's big budget norms.
Director Wim Wenders served as president of the competition jury at this year's Tokyo International Film Festival. Wenders' "Perfect Days," which opened the festival and features Koji Yakusho as a toilet cleaner in Tokyo, is Japan’s nominee for the Academy Awards’ best international feature film category.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 11, 2023
'Perfect Days' and '(Ab)normal Desire' turn heads at Tokyo International Film Festival
Wim Wenders' film opened the event, while Yoshiyuki Kishi’s multilayered drama made a splash, taking both the Audience Award and the best director prize.
Japan’s most famous monster attacks Tokyo just as the city is rebuilding itself from the destruction of World War II in “Godzilla Minus One.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 9, 2023
‘Godzilla Minus One’: Legendary monster levels up visually
Admirable visual effects bring the beast to life in the franchise’s newest entry, which looks more like the 1954 original than anything in decades.
From convenience stores and pizza franchises to makers of mattresses and whisky, businesses are looking to cash in on the popularity of "Godzilla Minus One."
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 8, 2023
Latest Godzilla movie is a beast at the Japan box office
Boosted by mammoth marketing campaign, "Godzilla Minus One" racks up over ¥1 billion in opening weekend.
“Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again” fully articulates the intentions behind the creation of Japan’s most infamous "kaijū" (monster) before Toho Studios releases the newest chapter in the “Godzilla” saga.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 29, 2023
‘Godzilla’ novellas expand on infamous monster’s origins
Shigeru Kayama’s entertaining and informative stories delve deep into the underlying pacifist beliefs of the entire “Godzilla” franchise.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 26, 2021
A look behind the scenes with Godzilla, the ‘king of monsters’
Norman England's new book, 'Behind the Kaiju Curtain,' gives an insider's take on Japan's kaiju016b craftsmanship and monster movie-making.

Longform

Visitors to Kyoto walk along a street near Kiyomizu Temple in April. A popular tourist spot, Kyoto has seen what locals feel to be an overwhelming amount of tourists in 2024.
Is Japan ready for 60 million tourists?