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Samurai Spirit in the Stands: A Look at Japanese Football (Soccer) Culture
It’s only a few months since the FIFA World Cup wrapped up in Brazil, though for Japanese fans it may well seem like an eternity since thei...
Takashi Miike - A "Bloody" Good Director
Takashi Miike is a truly one-of-a-kind film director, not only in terms of the outrageous and freaky films that he makes, but also the asto...
Dancing in the moonlight with Tsukiyoi
For many "gaijin" like me who have fallen under the spell of Japan, a big part of the attraction is the mish-mash of cutting-edge modernity...
Shuichi Okita - Japan's Rising Star Behind the Camera
He may have only made four films so far in his fledgling career, but director and screenwriter Shuichi Okita is well on his way to being one...
Review: "The Wind Rises" (風立ちぬ) Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Hayao Miyazaki, the founder of “Ghibli” film studios, is the undisputed king of Japanese animation. As the medium increasingly becomes domi...
Review: "Colorless Tsukuru Tasaki and His Years of Pilgrimage" by Haruki Murakami
The growing popularity of Haruki Murakami, Japan’s most famous, and some would say greatest, living writer, was confirmed last month with t...
AKB48 Theater - Heart of Cuteness
In the world of Japanese popular culture, AKB48 are a pop behemoth of Godzilla-like proportions. They are not only huge in terms of actual s...
The Bewitching Beats of Toe
On a baking afternoon in July, chilling with a beer in a field in Niigata, I was roused from my slightly drunken reverie by a sweet sweet so...
Red Ronin's Selection: Recent Japanese Films
If you're a foreigner in Japan with a desire to improve in the local lingo, as well as broaden your cultural knowledge, then one of the most...
Mr. Children come of age at 20
While I try to stay more or less in the loop when it comes to Japanese popular culture - it helps with writing a blog like this for…
Japanese moviegoers getting left behind
This summer promises to be a exciting time for movie lovers, with a slew of big releases on the horizon. "The Avengers" has already kicked t...
Surreal Star Power - Hollywood Actors in Japanese TV Commercials
I'm not much of a fan of Japanese TV, with the majority of its prime-time programs consisting of annoying "variety" shows populated by a rot...
Yakushima - Japan's Natural Treasure
Away from the bustling crowds and flashing neon of the big city, Japan is blessed with an abundance of stunning natural beauty, from the ...
Battle of the Mascots
Japan has a well-earned reputation as Land of the Cute, and nothing underlines this more than the bewildering range of cute and cuddly masco...
Vagabond - Miyamoto Musashi Missing in Action
Though I occasionally enjoy reading manga, I've never been a particularly big fan of any one title - with one exception. "Vagabond," by the ...
"From up on Poppy Hill" (Kokuriko-zaka kara) - Review
Studio Ghibli is, in my opinion, the Japanese equivalent of Pixar, in that any film it releases comes with a virtually guaranteed seal of q...
"1Q84" by Haruki Murakami - Review
The king of modern Japanese literature, Haruki Murakami, is back at last! The millions of Murakami fans outside Japan have been enduring a ...