Anime Blog Tracker

Sin And Evil (2024) review [Japannual 2024]

Saito shows that the Other always bears some responsibility for the subjective outcomes of dysfunctional familial dynamics and the criminal excesses that plague its mendacious image of peaceful…

psycho-cinematography

Dec 10, 2024 • Subscribe

Desert of Namibia (2024) review [Japannual 2024]

Yoko Yamanaka delivers a cinematic masterpiece of subjectivity.

psycho-cinematography

Nov 14, 2024 • Subscribe

Roleless (2022) review [Japannual 2023]

Masahiko Sato, Yutarō Seki and Kentarō Hirase offer the spectator a revealing glance at the dynamic that underpins the dissociative fugue.

psycho-cinematography

Nov 8, 2023 • Subscribe

Hijacked Youth – Dare To Stop Us 2 (2024) [Japannual 2024]

Inoue delivers a heartfelt ode to the mini-cinema and subjective failure.   

psycho-cinematography

Oct 18, 2024 • Subscribe

Belonging (とりつくしま, Kahori Higashi, 2024)

The recently deceased watch over their loved ones from the vantage point of a familiar object in Kahori Higashi’s wistful drama.

Windows on Worlds

Jun 1, 2024 • Subscribe

In The Distance (2022) review [Japannual 2022]

“A very pleasant slice-of-life narrative that elegantly shows that bonds between subjects are that much more genuine if they are grounded in the acceptance of the other’s radical…

psycho-cinematography

Dec 4, 2022 • Subscribe

Ice Cream Fever (2023) review [Japannual 2023]

A gorgeous stylish exploration of the subjective struggles and the solutions subjects invent within the field of love and desire.

psycho-cinematography

Oct 19, 2023 • Subscribe

Goodbye Cruel World (2022) review [Japannual 2022]

“A stylish exploration of the cruel call for destruction that structures the perverse criminal field.”

psycho-cinematography

Dec 7, 2022 • Subscribe

Two On The Edge (2022) review [Japannual 2022]

“A touching experience that highlights that the desire to be loved, for better or worse, is the ulitmate guide the neurotic subject within the societal field.”

psycho-cinematography

Nov 22, 2022 • Subscribe

Okiku and the World (2023) review [Japannual 2023]

Introduction Junji Sakamoto (Another World (2019), I Never Shot Anyone (2020), My Brother, The Android and Me (2022)) might not be as well-known by international audiences as other…

psycho-cinematography

Oct 24, 2023 • Subscribe

Protected: [REVIEW] Immigrant Japan: Mobility and Belonging in an Ethno-Nationalist Society

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

New Voices in Japanese Studies

Aug 28, 2021 • Subscribe

Peach Boy Riverside (Episode 7) – Species and Belonging

Having witnessed the destruction of the entire city, Sally and Frau soon find themselves face to face with the ogre responsible. He’s about to attack, but then a…

The Otaku Author

May 24, 2022 • Subscribe

Peach Boy Riverside

Withdrawal and Belonging: Ethnographic Insights from a Hikikomori Rehabilitation Center in Japan

The post Withdrawal and Belonging: Ethnographic Insights from a Hikikomori Rehabilitation Center in Japan appeared first on Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus.

Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

19 days ago • Subscribe

Amalock (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

A narrative that fluidly combines comedy and tragedy to deliver an experience of smiles and tears.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 17, 2024 • Subscribe

Snowdrop (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

A complex character portrait that touchingly illustrates how easy it is to misrecognize the logic of the subject-supposed-to-be-in-need.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 29, 2024 • Subscribe

Suton (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

Rikako Watanabe’s narrative succeeds to echo the unvocalized ‘pandemic’ truth of many.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 2, 2024 • Subscribe

Blue Imagine (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

A powerful reminder of the sexual transgressions that structurally plague the Japanese film industry

psycho-cinematography

Apr 1, 2024 • Subscribe

Wash Away (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

A pleasant narrative that offers a fresh but familiar exploration of the subject’s fundamental desire for recognition/love and the problematic yet medicative function of consumption.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 23, 2024 • Subscribe

Sumiko 22 (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

A subtle but playful narrative about a subject who slowly tries to crawl out the hole of emptiness and diminished self-worth.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 14, 2024 • Subscribe

Sumiko

Review: YOLO (2024)

YOLO 热辣滚烫 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 128 mins. Director: Jia Ling 贾玲. Rating: 7/10. Mainland comedienne Jia Ling’s second feature as writer-director-star hits the bell again, if not…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

May 27, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Upstream (2024)

Upstream 逆行人生 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 120 mins. Director: Xu Zheng 徐峥. Rating: 6/10. A black but ultimately warm comedy, set among Shanghai’s community of food deliverers, shows…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Nov 1, 2024 • Subscribe

Jinsei - Life Consulting

Review: Untouchable (2024)

Untouchable 逆鳞 China, 2024, colour/b&w, 2.35:1, 111 mins. Director: Da Qing 大庆 [Wang Daqing 王大庆]. Rating: 8/10. Cat-and-mouse gangster drama, set in 1990s pre-handover Macau, is stylishly written…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Dec 21, 2024 • Subscribe

2024 in Review

A year of retreads and repeats, none of them good: War in Ukraine. War in the Middle East. Famine in Sudan. Famine in Gaza. Covid and…

Collectr's Blog

Jan 1, 2025 • Subscribe

Blue Flames, Chalk-iro no People, Gakkou no Yuurei, The Apothecary Diaries, Dance Till Tomorrow

Review: Yuanyanglou (2024)

Yuanyanglou 鸳鸯楼•惊魂 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 94 mins. Director: Wang Shenghe 王晟赫. Rating: 6/10. Surprisingly effective horror film, anchored by undervalued actress Li Meng, simmers for an hour…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Mar 5, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Decoded (2024)

Decoded 解密 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 155 mins. Director: Chen Sicheng 陈思诚. Rating: 8/10. Belated return to form by film-maker Chen Sicheng is a strongly written, subtly played…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Oct 13, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Successor (2024)

Successor 抓娃娃 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 133 mins. Directors: Yan Fei 闫非, Peng Damo 彭大魔. Rating: 7/10. Comedian Shen Teng and the Ma Hua FunAge gang come up…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Feb 6, 2026 • Subscribe

Penalty Loop (2024) review [Nippon Connection 2024]

The way Araki resolves the narrative’s thematical questions concerning vengeance and the working-through of trauma will divide spectators

psycho-cinematography

Jun 17, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Life Hotel (2024)

Life Hotel 来福大酒店 China, 2024, colour, 1.85:1, 118 mins. Director: Liu Bowen 刘博文. Rating: 7/10. A strong, characterful cast, led by Huang Xuan and Liu Yan, make this…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Sep 20, 2024 • Subscribe

2024 Year in Review

At this point I just can’t be bothered to rank things and I honestly don’t know if I could, at least with movies, so here are a bunch…

Adventures in (Post) Gradland

Dec 31, 2024 • Subscribe

Movie Review: Abigail (2024)

While browsing Peacock’s catalog for something to watch, Abigail (2024) caught my eye. I wasn’t searching for anything specific, but the film’s horror and comedy labels and the…

Dragonas Talk

Jul 26, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Bureau 749 (2024)

Bureau 749 749局 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 123 mins. Director: Lu Chuan 陆川. Rating: 4/10. Sci-fi monster movie is a wannabe blockbuster holed by a shapeless script, colourless…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Dec 11, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: The Victims (2024)

The Victims 黄雀在后！ China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 98 mins. Directors: Xu Wei 徐伟, He Wenchao 何文超. Rating: 7/10. Richly cast, this well-mounted whodunit is 100% plot and procedure…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jun 3, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Burning Stars (2024)

Burning Stars 孤星计划 China, 2024, colour/b&w, 2.35:1, 104 mins. Director: Xu Zhanxiong 徐展雄. Rating: 7/10. Smoothly assembled, suitably twisty package centred on CPC/KMT shenanigans in 1920s Shanghai. STORY…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Mar 26, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: The Wig (2024)

The Wig 戴假发的人 China/Hong Kong, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 119 mins. Director: Dong Yue 董越. Rating: 6/10. Huang Xiaoming gives a strong, atypical performance as a lawyer-with-a-secret, but his…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jan 4, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Pegasus 2 (2024)

Pegasus 2 飞驰人生2 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 120 mins. Director: Han Han 韩寒. Rating: 6/10. More of the same and with knobs on, plus another effortless lead by…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

May 20, 2024 • Subscribe

Jinsei - Life Consulting

Review: Remember Me (2024)

Remember Me 灿烂的她 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 115 mins. Director: Xu Wei 徐伟. Rating: 5/10. Light drama between a selfless fisherwoman and her grand-daughter who went missing has…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jun 6, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Keep Rolling (2024)

Keep Rolling 大场面 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 99 mins. Director: Li Ji 李季. Rating: 7/10. Modestly produced black comedy on the film industry and human selfishness doesn’t run…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Apr 7, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Cesium Fallout (2024)

Cesium Fallout 焚城 Hong Kong/China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 135 mins. Director: Pan Yaoming 潘耀明 [Anthony Pun]. Rating: 6/10. Technically polished disaster movie doesn’t reach down very far in…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Feb 9, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Reversed Destiny (2024)

Reversed Destiny 沙漏 China, 2024, colour, 1.85:1, 109 mins. Director: Wen Jing 温婧. Rating: 7/10. Good-looking, well-played story of two high-school BFFs would have been even better with…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Aug 15, 2024 • Subscribe

City Hunter (2024) review

A fun but very forgettable experience.

psycho-cinematography

Jun 30, 2024 • Subscribe

City Hunter

Review: Article 20 (2024)

Article 20 第二十条 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 139 mins. Director: Zhang Yimou 张艺谋. Rating: 6/10. Comedy-drama, set among a city’s public prosecutors, is entertaining enough due to its…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

May 12, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Super Villain (2024)

Super Villain 大“反”派 China, 2024, colour, 2.35/1.85/1.33:1, 97 mins. Director: Bao Bei’er 包贝尔. Associate director: Zhang Zuofeng 张作峰. Rating: 4/10. Painfully unfunny comedy about an ambitious actor who…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jun 14, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Crisis Negotiators (2024)

Crisis Negotiators 谈判专家 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 119 mins. Director: Qiu Litao 邱礼涛 [Herman Yau]. Rating: 8/10. A cracking, Hong Kong-set re-make of US drama-thriller The Negotiator  that’s…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Aug 4, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: All Suspects (2024)

All Suspects 全员嫌疑人 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 95 mins. Director: Fu Dong 傅鸫. Rating: 5/10. An okay period whodunit with two good leads but let down by a…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jan 13, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Enjoy Yourself (2024)

Enjoy Yourself 祝你幸福 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 111 mins. Director: Kang Bo 康博. Rating: 6/10. Relationship-cum-legal drama sports some good performances but is hampered by a messily constructed…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Nov 17, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Black Dog (2024)

Black Dog 狗阵 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 115 mins. Director: Guan Hu 管虎. Rating: 8/10. Elemental story of re-birth and renewal in a run-down town in northwest China…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Aug 31, 2024 • Subscribe

Review: Big World (2024)

Big World 小小的我 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 130 mins. Director: Yang Li’na 杨荔钠. Rating: 5/10. Over-long drama centred on a son with cerebral palsy is a great opportunity…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Mar 17, 2025 • Subscribe

Review: Panda Plan (2024)

Panda Plan 熊猫计划 China, 2024, colour, 2.35:1, 98 mins. Director: Zhang Luan 张栾. Rating: 3/10. A lazy, throwaway attempt at a comic action movie, with an aged-looking Cheng…

Sino-Cinema 《神州电影》

Jan 27, 2025 • Subscribe

Memories of this Scent (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

An endearing and fragrance rich tale of subjective change.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 8, 2024 • Subscribe

Short Movie Time: Perfect・Nervous (2024) review [OAFF 2024]

An exquisitely crafted narrative that touchingly shows that a simple encounter, a simple exchange of signifiers, can turn a wish to die into a desire to life.

psycho-cinematography

Mar 26, 2024 • Subscribe