A proud mountain man goes to great lengths to hold back the tides of modernity in Mitsuo Yanagimachi’s poetic fable
Dec 16, 2021 • Subscribe
More like this
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.
Raging Fire (怒火, Benny Chan, 2021)
A righteous cop finds himself in a battle of wits with a former colleague gone rogue in a searing high octane action thriller from the late Benny Chan
川のほとりに立つ者は
A young woman named Kiyose was recently promoted to the position of manager at an independent café. She devotes her love and attention to the business, but all…
House on Fire (火宅の人, Kinji Fukasaku, 1986)
An anxious writer fears collapse under the weight of fatherhood in Kinji Fuksaku’s adaptation of the autobiographical novel of Kazuo Dan.
Maria Naganawa as Platelets 長縄 まりあ
'Cells At Work' Seiyuu cosplay as their 'Cells At Work' characters. Credits: TikTok @aniplex_official
Alone Again in Fukushima ナオト、いまもひとりっきり Dir: Mayu Nakamura (2021) [Yamagata International Film Festival 2021]
Alone Again in Fukushima sees director Mayu Nakamura visit an interesting samaritan who remained behind to look after abandoned animals. Alone Again in Fukushima ナオト、いまもひとりっきり Dir: Mayu Nakamura…
Angel’s Egg (天使のたまご, Mamoru Oshii, 1985)
A solitary girl and a nihilistic soldier find themselves on opposite sides of an ideological divide in Mamoru Oshii’s surrealist animation.
Dreams of Fire (2021) review [Fantasia Film festival]
“McKie’s film is not only the best dance-film of recent years but might very well be one of the best Japanese films to be released this year.”
Nomad 烈火青春 (1982) Director: Patrick Tam [New York Asian Film Festival 2023]
Nomad 烈火青春 (1982), by director Patrick Tam, is a sensuous story of youth looking for themselves through love and culture. [New York Asian Film Festival 2023]
Break Out (行き止まりの挽歌 ブレイクアウト, Toru Murakawa, 1988)
A maverick cop realises he can only enforce the law by breaking it in Toru Murakawa’s hardboiled ’80s noir.
Angel Egg (1985)
Type: Brilliant! Synopsis: I have absolutely no idea what’s going on. Pros: Angel Egg is an incredibly beautiful and though provoking anime film. It was created by Mamoru…
My Name is Yours (君が世界のはじまり, Momoko Fukuda, 2020)
A collection of Osaka teens begin to find a sense of solidarity in the wake of a violent crime in Momoko Fukuda’s nostalgic teen drama
Vampire Hunter D (1985)
Type: It’s a “dark future science-fiction romance.” Synopsis: In this story set in the dark future, humanity now lives in a science-fiction like post-apocalypse setting, where vam…
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 15
Okay, time for G.U.I.S. and TSHS to kick off the second half of Stepsisters with our subtitled version of episode 15: “Two Delinquent Girls.” Get the softsubbed mkv…
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 12
I’m sure regular viewers of this show have noticed how fast the plot has started moving in the last few episodes. Well, this episode is no exception… Get…
Bobby ni Kubittake (1985)
https://nyaa.si/view/1648251 Fansub credits can be found in the link above. So, a lot of you might be shocked at the fact that I went and ...
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 09
Chizuko’s latest plan to get Shinobu out of the Daimaru house involves framing her for the theft of Chizuko’s jewelry box. But the plan backfires spectacularly, and Chizuko…
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 11
In order to get Shinobu to return home to the Daimaru mansion, Pastor Wakayama convinces Gozo that it’s finally tell her the full truth about the kidnapping, and…
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 10
Chizuko is unable to get a straight answer out of her father’s personal assistant Teshima about the circumstances of her kidnapping 18 years ago, and Michio still only…
Stepsisters (1985) – Episode 08
Shinobu and Taeko have returned to the Daimaru mansion, but have been moved to a spartan room in the attic like the other housemaids. Now they must work…
Will I Be Single Forever? (ずっと独身でいるつもり?, Momoko Fukuda, 2021)
A series of young women find themselves contemplating the meaning of a modern marriage in Momoko Fukuda’s empathetic social drama
Manga Kodomo Bunko (まんがこども文庫) July ED (7月の歌) - Lullaby of the Zoo (どうぶつえんのこもりうた)
Sung by (歌): Kumiko Kaori (かおりくみこ) Lyrics (作詞): Tomoko Koike (小池知子) Composition and Arrangement (作曲・編曲): Nobuyoshi Koshibe (越部信義) Very special thanks to PopKorn Kat for transferring and scanning this record!
Toshiyuki Inoue discusses three decades of Mitsuo Iso – Interview
Legendary animator Toshiyuki Inoue discusses his relationship to animator and director Mitsuo Iso for The Orbital Children's release.
A Light Never Goes Out 灯火阑珊 (2022) Director: Anastasia Tsang [New York Asian Film Festival 2023]
A Light Never Goes Out 灯火阑珊 (2022), by director Anastasia Tsang, is a solid drama about the art of making neon signage and what it means to Hong…
Be-Bop High School (1985)
https://nyaa.si/view/1550217 Fansub credits can be found in the link above. Here's an incredibly funny story as to how this project came t...
Episode 1 -- Police Story (1985)
Hello everyone, We hope you're all well and safe in these troubled times. In the first actual episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason talk about Jackie Chan's seminal action-comedy,…
Tera Senshi PSI BOY (1985)
https://nyaa.si/view/1406108 Credits for the fansub can be found in the link above. Just in time for the movie's 36th anniversary!! This i...
The Dagger of Kamui (1985)
Ever want to watch a ninja anime which includes an epic journey to the United States of America where the hero meets Mark Twain before returning to Japan…
Tokyo Melody (1985) [Documentary Review]
Tokyo Melody; or, Multicoloured Polyphonia I’m working on things that will only be understood by the grand-children of the 20th century...
Four Sister (1985) [Film Review]
Four Sisters; or, Bildungsroman: The Movie My dear sister. You've done nothing wrong. Not wanting to let her go shows that you've reall...
Kimagure Orange Road (1985) v2
Déjà vu? Yes, we've done this one before. However, being our second-ever non-Galvion release, it was a little, uh... rough around the edges....
Nomad (烈火青春, Patrick Tam, 1982)
Aimless youth longs for exile in pre-Handover Hong Kong in Patrick Tam’s New Wave classic.
The Phoenix (火の鳥, Kon Ichikawa, 1978)
The people of early Japan contemplate different visions of immortality in Kon Ichikawa’s sprawling adaptation of the first chapter in Osamu Tezuka’s manga series.
Melting Sounds ほとぼりメルトサウンズ Director: Kahori Higashi [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2022]
Melting Sounds is a wonderfully incisive yet offbeat MOOSIC LAB film concerned with mortality and human connections. Higashi’s light touch delivers a profound, cute, and deeply humanistic pae…
Eternally Younger Than Those Idiots (君は永遠にそいつらより若い, Ryuhei Yoshino, 2021)
An insecure young woman struggles to assume her place in the world while preparing to leave the aimless security of college life for an uncertain adulthood in Ryuhei…
What to Do With the Dead Kaiju? (大怪獣のあとしまつ, Satoshi Miki, 2022) [Fantasia 2022]
A fallen kaiju presents a new problem for the governing authorities in Satoshi Miki’s satirical comedy.
Maitsuki Niwatsuki Ooyatsuki – Monthly With Ooya (毎月庭つき大家つき)
Suga Asako finds herself alone quite suddenly when her partner decides their relationship is just not working. But her friend Hato isn’t listening because she’s more upset that…
The Blue Danube (きまじめ楽隊のぼんやり戦争, Akira Ikeda, 2021)
An earnest soldier begins to question everything he’s been told thanks to musical intervention and a curious young man in Akira Ikeda’s absurdist anti-war drama
Back To That Day (幕が下りたら会いましょう, Seira Maeda, 2021)
A young woman facing a life crisis is forced to reevaluate her relationships with art, friends, and family after learning that her estranged younger sister has suddenly passed…
お湯割り
In the newsletter this month I wrote about 角ハイ (kakuhai). This is a combination of 角瓶 (kakubin), Suntory’s flagship whiskey, and ハイボール (highball), a mixed drink made from…
まとめる
Bringing things together - How to Japanese - February 2024
Melting Sounds ほとぼりメルトサウンズ Director: Kahori Higashi [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2022] Rewrite
Melting Sounds is a wonderfully incisive yet offbeat MOOSIC LAB film concerned with mortality and human connections. Higashi’s light touch delivers a profound, cute, and deeply humanistic pae…
A 1985 Otaku Salad: Fruity Five
From the pages of Model Graphix comes Fruity Five, a photo novel and manga series that was half Sentai, half Gerry Anderson show. 9,800 yen garage kits not…
Episode #69 (S9E7) – Tampopo [タンポポ] (1985)
Ray Chmielecki of the Spoon Mob podcast makes his debut appearance. He joins Perry to discuss Juzo Itami’s ramen western, Tampopo. We discuss the film’s influence on food…
Momoko Kikuchi in: Sotsugyou -GRADUATION- (1985)
https://nyaa.si/view/1507962 English fansub credits can be found in the link above. English fansubbed version of a 1985 TV drama starring ...
Paradise View (パラダイスビュー, Go Takamine, 1985)
A listless young man finds himself spirited away in the liminal space of Okinawa on the brink of transition in Go Takamine’s lyrical drama.
Maitsuki Niwatsuki Ooyatsuki – Monthly With Ooya, Volume 2 (毎月庭つき大家つき)
In Volume 1, we met Suga Asako, who was starting a new life after her relationship ended, and her new landlady, former idol Miyako, who lives in her…