Anime Blog Tracker

Mari and Mari (彼女来来, Tatsuya Yamanishi, 2021)

A self-involved casting director experiences romantic and existential crisis when his girlfriend is replaced by another woman in Yamanishi’s eerie indie drama

Windows on Worlds

Aug 30, 2021 • Subscribe

Mari and Mari (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“A beautiful narrative that seems to bear no relation to our romantic life at first, but ultimately hits close to home.”    

psycho-cinematography

Sep 12, 2021 • Subscribe

Robinson’s Garden (1988) [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Yamamoto is not able to create a composition that engages the spectator with its highly relevant message.”

psycho-cinematography

Feb 10, 2024 • Subscribe

Spaghetti Code Love (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Maruyama’s narrative speaks powerfully to the spectator’s subjectivity – his fears and hopes – and enables his evocation of a glimmer of hope that remains present in this…

psycho-cinematography

Oct 16, 2021 • Subscribe

Swallow 喰之女 Director: Mai Nakanishi (2021)

You are what you eat in “Swallow 喰之女”, the latest short from horror auteur Mai Nakanishi. This Taiwan-set story shows how coveting beauty and youth can warp alter…

Genkinahito

Jun 15, 2022 • Subscribe

Kubi 首 (2023) Director: Takeshi Kitano [Japan Cuts 2024]

Kubi 首 (2023), directed by Takeshi Kitano, is a historical epic that amps up the violence and sex for satire’s sake as Kitano takes aim at the absurd samurai social…

Genkinahito

Jul 17, 2024 • Subscribe

An Interview with Mayu Nakamura, Director of Among Four of Us [OAFF 2021/JAPAN CUTS 2021]

An Interview with Mayu Nakamura, Director of Among Four of Us [OAFF 2021/JAPAN CUTS 2021]

Genkinahito

Sep 23, 2021 • Subscribe

Kizumonogatari Staff Interview: Director Tatsuya Oishi

The final translation to celebrate Kizumonogatari’s 5th anniversary is with none other than director Tatsuya Oishi: his feelings after wrapping up such a monumental production, the reasoning …

Sakuga Blog

Mar 31, 2021 • Subscribe

Kiba: Fangs of Fiction (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Daihachi Yoshida succeeds in turning Shiota’s interesting story and fascinating world of publishing and bookstores into an engaging and pleasant filmic narrative.”

psycho-cinematography

Aug 31, 2021 • Subscribe

Kiba

Short Movie Time: Honeymoon (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“A pleasing narrative about the arbitrariness of language and culture.”

psycho-cinematography

Nov 9, 2021 • Subscribe

My Father’s Tracks (僕と彼女とラリーと, Renpei Tsukamoto, 2021)

A struggling actor rediscovers his sense of purpose on returning to his home town in the wake of his father’s death in Rempei Tsukamoto’s heartwarming drama

Windows on Worlds

Mar 27, 2022 • Subscribe

Japan Cuts Announces Lineup for 2021 Hybrid Edition

In-person & online Aug. 20 – Sept. 2

Windows on Worlds

Aug 17, 2021 • Subscribe

Talking The Pictures (2019) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Mayayuki’s celebration of cinematic history deeply satisfies the spectator’s desire to see cinema as an experience that can touch our being and the art of the benshi triumph.&#82…

psycho-cinematography

Sep 6, 2021 • Subscribe

Hiroku The Goblin (1991) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

‘A classic that offers an unforgettable experience that is as touchingly lighthearted as is it disturbingly horrifying.’

psycho-cinematography

Sep 3, 2021 • Subscribe

Town Without Sea (2020) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“A visually engaging narrative about the nature of happiness and the importance of desire that is highly relevant for Japanese youth.”

psycho-cinematography

Sep 15, 2021 • Subscribe

The Great Yokai War – Guardians (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“A pleasant and truly satisfying ride for the whole family.”

psycho-cinematography

Aug 28, 2021 • Subscribe

Kubi 首 (2023) Director: Takeshi Kitano, Shuta Takahata [Japan Cuts 2024]

Kubi 首 (2023), directed by Takeshi Kitano, is a historical epic that amps up the violence and sex for satire’s sake as Kitano takes aim at the absurd samurai social…

Genkinahito

Jul 17, 2024 • Subscribe

Short Movie Time: Go Seppukku Yourselves (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“An enthralling audiovisual experience and a powerful critique of the Japanese political system.”

psycho-cinematography

Oct 9, 2021 • Subscribe

The Goldfish Dreaming Of The Sea (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Ogawa’s thoughtful lyricism that gives the emotionality of the performances their power to touch the spectator and enables her exploration of the difficulty to separate from one’s mother…

psycho-cinematography

Sep 9, 2021 • Subscribe

What She Likes (彼女が好きなものは, Shogo Kusano, 2021)

A young guy struggling with his sexuality bonds with a young woman embarrassed beyond belief by her love for BL in Shogo Kusano’s high school drama

Windows on Worlds

May 28, 2022 • Subscribe

Whale Bones 鯨の骨 (2023) Director: Takamasa Oe [Japan Cuts 2024]

Takamasa Oe’s social media mystery turns into a satire of living life online as a hapless website worker tries to find a missing AR girl in his beautifully…

Genkinahito

Jul 13, 2024 • Subscribe

Short Movie Time: Born Pisces (2020) review [Japan Cuts 2021]

“Yamanaka does not only reaffirm that she has talent but also that she improved her compositional style and her storytelling.”

psycho-cinematography

Jan 14, 2022 • Subscribe

Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland

A Preview of Japan Cuts 2021 (August 20th – September 02nd)

Japan Cuts 2021 Line-up and ticketing details

Genkinahito

Aug 17, 2021 • Subscribe

Kiba

JAPAN CUTS Announces 2023 Lineup

At Japan Society New York July 26 to Aug. 6

Windows on Worlds

Jun 22, 2023 • Subscribe

JAPAN CUTS Announces 2024 Lineup

At Japan Society New York from July 10 to 21

Windows on Worlds

Jul 3, 2024 • Subscribe

Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest Interview: Director Tatsuya Ishihara (febri)

This is a translation for a set of two interviews that febri ran with director Tatsuya Ishihara regarding the theatrical OVA Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest.

Ultimatemegax's blog

Aug 14, 2023 • Subscribe

Sound! Euphonium

Kanata no Senko 彼方の閃光  (2023) Director: Yoshihiro Hanno [Japan Film Festival LA]

Playing as part of Japan Film Festival LA, LIGHTNING OVER THE WATER, is Yoshihiro Hanno’s earnestly-told anti-war pic buoyed up by crisp B&W visuals and brave performances from…

Genkinahito

Sep 13, 2024 • Subscribe

Blue Imagine ブルーイマジン Director: Urara Matsubayashi [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024 / Japan Cuts 2024]

Director Urara Matsubayashi makes a definitive #MeToo film for the Japanese film industry with her sincere and complex drama Blue Imagine ブルーイマジン [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024 / Japan…

Genkinahito

Jul 18, 2024 • Subscribe

Motion Picture: Choke 映画（窒息) (2023) Director: Gen Nagao [Japan Cuts 2024]

Gen Nagao’s Motion Picture: Choke 映画（窒息) (2023), is a complete surprise with its post-apocalyptic dialogue-free story centred on a cavewoman and sterling action set pieces [Japan Cuts 2024]…

Genkinahito

Jul 11, 2024 • Subscribe

The Legend and The Butterfly (2023) [Japan Cuts 2023]

The combination of historical anchor points, a phantasmatic romance to link those points together, and satisfying burst of action will surely be able to satisfy those who thirst…

psycho-cinematography

Aug 31, 2023 • Subscribe

Plastic (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]                

Miyazaki creates a moody narrative that highlights the equivocal functionality of music for the subject as well as the destructive impact of not being able to create an…

psycho-cinematography

Aug 19, 2023 • Subscribe

Winny (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]

Matsumoto offers a serene insight in how the Other of the law curtails a subject and, indirectly, sabotages the prospects of a new industry.

psycho-cinematography

Aug 5, 2023 • Subscribe

Kubi (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]

One of best period dramas in recent years.

psycho-cinematography

Jul 3, 2024 • Subscribe

Amiko (2022) review [Japan Cuts 2023]

A fabulous narrative that explores the destructive effects caused by the radical misunderstanding that marks the field of speech and the refusal to speak to one’s child as…

psycho-cinematography

Jan 23, 2024 • Subscribe

Hand (2022) review [Japan Cuts 2023]

Matsui avoids delivering an exploitative erotic piece merely to be enjoyed by male audiences.

psycho-cinematography

Aug 22, 2023 • Subscribe

Single8 (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]

Konaka offers the spectator a heartwarming invitation to re-find, within oneself, one’s (nearly extinguished) passion for creation.

psycho-cinematography

Aug 16, 2023 • Subscribe

Special - Japan Cuts Film Festival 2024

  Table of Contents Hello everyone, Once again this year, the Heroic Purgatory podcast is covering the Japan Cuts 2024 film…

Heroic Purgatory

Jul 21, 2024 • Subscribe

Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest Interview: Director Tatsuya Ishihara (Kyoto College)

This is a translation for a set of two interviews that Kyoto College’s online site ran with director Tatsuya Ishihara regarding the theatrical OVA Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest.

Ultimatemegax's blog

Aug 23, 2023 • Subscribe

Sound! Euphonium

Lightning Over the Beyond 彼方の閃光  (2023) Director: Yoshihiro Hanno [Japan Film Festival LA]

Playing as part of Japan Film Festival LA, LIGHTNING OVER THE WATER, is Yoshihiro Hanno’s earnestly-told anti-war pic buoyed up by crisp B&W visuals and brave performances from…

Genkinahito

Sep 13, 2024 • Subscribe

Along the Sea (海辺の彼女たち, Akio Fujimoto, 2020)

A migrant worker from Vietnam is faced with her lack of possibility after discovering she is pregnant while living undocumented in Fujimoto’s unflinching social drama

Windows on Worlds

Mar 9, 2021 • Subscribe

Japan Cuts 2018 Film Festival at the Japan Society

This past few weeks I  volunteered for the Japan Society Film Department’s annual Japan Cuts film festival, which screens a host of new Japanese blockbusters, avant-garde films, and…

踊る猿life is kyōgen

Aug 3, 2018 • Subscribe

Along the Sea 海辺の彼女たち Dir: Akio Fujimoto (2020) [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2021]

A riveting look at the migrant experience through the travails of three Vietnamese women in Japan who travel along the sea to where they hope will be a…

Genkinahito

Apr 30, 2021 • Subscribe

She is me, I am her (ワタシの中の彼女, Mayu Nakamura, 2022)

A gentle sense of haunting echoes through four tales of pandemic-era Tokyo in Mayu Nakamura’s ethereal anthology.

Windows on Worlds

Nov 13, 2022 • Subscribe

To Sleep So as to Dream 夢みるように眠りたい (1986) Director: Kaizo Hayashi [Japan Cuts 2021]

To Sleep So as to Dream 夢みるように眠りたい (1986) Director: Kaizo Hayashi [Japan Cuts 2021]

Genkinahito

Sep 14, 2021 • Subscribe

Inside Mari

Chelsea just spent like £1b on a lot of players to make like an amalgam of a...

Taiiku Podcast

Feb 6, 2023 • Subscribe

Inside Mari

Chelsea just spent like £1b on a lot of players to make like an amalgam of a...

Taiiku Podcast

Feb 6, 2023 • Subscribe

Six Singing Women (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]

A great narrative, yet one that stumbles over its own thematical fixation

psycho-cinematography

Aug 18, 2024 • Subscribe

Amiko Wins Obayashi Prize at 2023 JAPAN CUTS

Prize introduced in 2020 is awarded an independently produced narrative feature from an emerging filmmaker.

Windows on Worlds

Aug 8, 2023 • Subscribe

Director and Guests’ Comments: Ainu - Indigenous People of Japan

Dir. MIZOGUCHI Naomi 溝口尚美監督

News - Chicago Japan Film Collective

May 22, 2022 • Subscribe

School Radio to Major Tom こちら放送室よりトム少佐へ (2020) Director: Takuya Chisaka [Japan Cuts 2021]

School Radio to Major Tom こちら放送室よりトム少佐へ (2020) Director: Takuya Chisaka [Japan Cuts 2021]

Genkinahito

Sep 6, 2021 • Subscribe