Arthi Vasudevan reviews Keisuke Yoshida’s boxing drama Blue.
Feb 19, 2022 • Subscribe
More like this
Dark Blue Forest (2021) review [JFFH 2022]
A great experimental thriller-mystery narrative about borders and the destructive nature of prejudice.
Melting Sounds (Japan, 2021) [OAFF 2022]
Jason Maher reviews Kahori Higashi's debut feature Melting Sounds.
Blue (2021) review
“A very emotional journey about the difficulties of dealing with loss and lack.”
Blue (BLUE/ブルー, Keisuke Yoshida, 2021)
A trio of dejected boxers contemplate their place inside and outside of the ring in Keisuke Yoshida’s unconventional boxing drama
Mari and Mari (Japan, 2021) [JAPAN CUTS 2021]
Jason Maher reviews Tatsuya Yamanishi's romantic mystery Mari and Mari.
Films: Japan 2021
by Jeremy Clarke. So, Scotland Loves Anime is over (save a few stragglers at the Film House) and you’re wondering where you can see more Japanese movies. Today,…
Ito (Japan, 2021) [OAFF 2021]
Jason Maher reviews Satoko Yokohama's comedy-drama Ito.
School Radio to Major Tom (Japan, 2021) [JAPAN CUTS 2021]
Jason Maher reviews Takuya Chisaka's short film School Radio to Major Tom.
Review: My Blue Summer (2022)
My Blue Summer 暗恋 橘生淮南 China, 2022, colour, 2.35:1, 100 mins. Director: Huang Bin 黄斌. Associate director: Qiu Sheng 仇晟 (Xiamen unit). Rating: 6/10. Generic Gen-90 romance has…
Ninja Girl (Japan, 2021) [NYAFF 2021]
Rowena Santos Aquino reviews Yu Irie's subversive comedy Ninja Girl.
Straying (2022) review [Camera Japan 2022]
A pleasant and charming exploration of the fact that, within the game of love and romance and beyond, subjects often rely on acting-out to reveal to the other…
Japan Diary: February 2021
When I said I didn’t see much changing this month, I was swiftly proven right with an extension to the State of Emergency. After already spending a month…
Japan Diary: October 2021
In my last diary post, I predicted that October was going to be busier and I was certainly right. However, a lot of that ‘busy-ness’ was behind the…
Japan Diary: April 2021
The start of April saw me back on the road again, taking the opportunity to have a spontaneous, yet cautious trip further south.
Japan Diary: November 2021
Usually, my November diary would start off with anniversary celebrations marking the day I moved to Japan for the first time, but things didn’t really play out like…
Japan Diary: January 2021
Okay, so technically I’m starting this diary in December 2020, but considering that New Year’s celebrations usually span across two days, I think you can let me off.…
Japan Diary: March 2021
Well, another month has passed of mainly staying at home, going to work and restarting the same cycle the next morning. I can’t pretend that I haven’t been…
Japan Diary: July 2021
I started this month with the mindset that I would treat myself more.
Japan Diary: December 2021
In the start of December, it was time for me to get organised. Yes, I’d barely slowed down since October, but I still had one last push before…
Japan Diary: August 2021
After a few days in Shizuoka Prefecture, I returned to Kanagawa with a vast stretch of summer holiday ahead of me.
Japan Diary: September 2021
While the first of September saw the kids go back to school, it wasn’t exactly the return we’d imagined.
Summer in Japan 2021
Last year in the summer I went on a good road trip with a few friends through Nagano Prefecture. This year, I didn’t get up to as much,…
Japan Diary: June 2021
After a pretty uneventful May, I was determined to make June busier, even if just a little.
Japan Diary: May 2021
May, as per usual, started with Golden Week. This would be my fourth, but like last year, I was pretty much stuck where I was. With State of…
Wonderful Paradise (Japan, 2020) [JAPAN CUTS 2021]
Epoy Deyto reviews Masashi Yamamoto's eccentric comedy Wonderful Paradise.
Japan Diary: January 2022
At the end of my last diary post, my positive COVID test had completely ruined my plans to fly back to Japan as scheduled. All of a sudden,…
Japan Diary: June 2022
June started off the best way I know how: with plenty of opportunity to socialise.
Japan Diary: May 2022
While my first few days of May were very uneventful, Golden Week was about to kick off properly.
Japan Diary: April 2022
Between having a rough few months and the self-imposed deadline to fulfil my Japan travel goals approaching, I figured that having a few days away would be the…
Japan Diary: February 2022
As much as I was hoping that February would bring more positivity… that didn’t exactly happen.
Japan Diary: July 2022
The start of July called for more organisation than I’m used to, but I was determined to hit the ground running. Time was running out to get things…
Autumn 2021 First Impressions – Blue Period
Streaming: Netflix Episodes: TBA Source: Manga Episode Summary: Yatora is a high school student making his way through life on auto-pilot. His studiousness makes getting good grades easy,…
UCL-Japan Youth Challenge 2021...
UCL-Japan Youth Challenge 2021 The UCL-Japan Youth Challenge returned for its 7th annual summer school programme. The programme took place online to ensure the safety of all participants. Between…
Japan Foundation Film Tour 2021
By Jasper Sharp. The ongoing Coronavirus crisis may have disrupted many aspects of the cultural calendar, but it is heartening to report that one the Japan Foundation UK…
UCL-Japan Youth Challenge 2022...
UCL-Japan Youth Challenge 2022 Between 2nd August and 23rd August 2022, the UCL-Japan Youth Challenge held its 8th annual summer school programme for pre-university students. This year, due to…
Hyper Japan Festival, London 2022
For three days in late July, Battersea Park in London England was taken over by Japan. I’m talking about the Hyper Japan Festival, of course! Going strong since…
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.”
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…
Last of the Wolves (Japan, 2021) [NYAFF 2021]
Jason Maher reviews Kazuya Shiraishi's sequel Last of the Wolves.
Spring 2021 First Impressions – Blue Reflection Ray
Streaming: Funimation Episodes: 24 Source: Game Story Summary: Ruka is a quiet girl with a longing to connect with others but an inability to do so effectively. She…
Day Eighteen: Three Colors: Blue (MotM 2021)
Before the numerous superhero trilogies that spawned from the early 2000’s and onwards, there was this trilogy. The theme? Colors. Why? Uh, because.
2021-2022 Top 10
Between the start of July 2021 and the end of June 2022, I watched 36 anime series/movies. Here are my top 10 from those, as well as some…
Short Movie Time: Honeymoon (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A pleasing narrative about the arbitrariness of language and culture.”
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.”
Japan Foundation / BAJS Postgraduate Workshop 2021...
Japan Foundation / BAJS Postgraduate Workshop 2021 ...
Robinson’s Garden (1988) [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Yamamoto is not able to create a composition that engages the spectator with its highly relevant message.”
Japan Diary: March 2022 {2/2}
After the earthquake on the 16th, it was back to life as normal.
Alivehoon (2022) review [Camera Japan Festival]
Shimoyama hits all the common beats of the sports-genre, but succeeds in elevating his exploration of the art of drifting by framing the battling cars in an exciting…
Hand (2022) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
Matsui avoids delivering an exploitative erotic piece merely to be enjoyed by male audiences.
Hyper Japan Festival London 2022 Details
The good folks from Hyper Japan have sent us details of their festival for this year. Set to run from Friday 22nd to Sunday 24th July 2022, ...