Three teenage boys come to terms with past and future while on a climactic summer adventure in Atsuko Ishizuka’s heartfelt coming-of-age anime.
Aug 24, 2022 • Subscribe
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We interviewed Ishizuka about the film's unique setting, cultural differences to look out for, and the likelihood of getting attacked by a bear in the Japanese countryside.
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By Shelley Pallis. Back in town for the summer vacation, would-be medical student Toto is reunited with his former middle-school bestie, Roma. In the intervening months, their roles…
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From the director of A Place Further Than the Universe comes a new story that will take three boys from the Japanese countryside all the way to Iceland,…
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I believe that the appeal of anime and manga stems partly from its willingness to tackle a variety of genres and subjects, and “I can’t believe they made…
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By Andrew Osmond. This summer, I interviewed the director Atsuko Ishizuka in London about her new film Goodbye, Don Glees, which is screening at this year’s Scotland Loves…
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Shari (シャリ, Nao Yoshigai, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
A red monster roams the landscape smearing its blood wherever it goes in Nao Yoshigai’s surreal documentary hybrid.
Seire (세이레, Park Kang, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
A new father finds himself haunted by paternal anxiety and old transgressions in Park Kang’s eerie folk horror.
Chorokbam (초록밤, Yoon Seo-jin, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
A small family contend with the persistent unfairness of the contemporary society in Yoon Seo-jin’s slow burn indie drama.
Tanaka Atsuko, Shinohara Emi, Ohyama Nobuo: Goodbye to Voice-Acting Greats
I wanted to express my brief thoughts on three different Japanese voice actors who passed away recently. I don’t mean to diminish any of them, but I’ve been…
Next Door (옆집사람, Yeom Ji-ho, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
An aspiring policeman becomes embroiled in a kafkaesque series of events after waking up next to a dead body in next-door’s apartment in Yeom Ji-ho’s deliciously dark farce.
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“A stylish exploration of the cruel call for destruction that structures the perverse criminal field.”
Midnight (미드나이트, Kwon Oh-seung, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A deaf woman and her mother become unwitting targets for a sadistic serial killer in Kwon’s extraordinarily tense chase through the darkened streets of Soeul
Seobok (서복, Lee Yong-ju, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A terminally ill former government agent reckons with mortality while bonding with a clone birthed to cure humanity’s ills in Lee Yong-ju’s high concept thriller
Follow The Light (2021) review [Fantasia Festival 2021]
The narrative might not offer anything new at a thematical level, but stands out due to his refusal to spell things out and, instead, imply certain subjective truths…
Convenience Story (2022) review [Fantasia Film Festival 2022]
Miki delivers a great psychological mystery narrative, yet it might not be for everyone.
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A young couple find themselves caught up in an epidemic of sadistic violence in Robert Jabbaz’ defiantly depraved satirical horror
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A blocked writer finds himself stranded in an uncanny reality in Satoshi Miki’s surreal sci-fi adventure.
My Small Land (マイスモールランド, Emma Kawawada, 2022) [Fantasia 2022]
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Next Sohee (다음 소희, July Jung, 2022) [Fantasia 2022]
A policewoman investigating the suicide of a teenage girl uncovers a dark web of corporate exploitation in July Jung’s hard hitting drama.
Tokyo Revengers (2021) Review [Fantasia Film Festival]
“An exciting blend of satisfying violence, tensive moments, surges of pleasing lightheartedness, and touching emotional moments.”
My Broken Mariko (2022) [Fantasia Film Festival]
Tanada offers a compelling exploration of the emotional turmoil a female subject caused by the sudden death of someone important.
Shin-Ultraman (2022) review [Fantasia Film Festival]
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Tokyo Revengers (東京リベンジャーズ, Tsutomu Hanabusa, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
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“Hanabusa’s second outing proves to be as enjoyable and thrilling as the first.”
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“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.”
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Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko (2021) [Fantasia Film festival]
“A great animation film that offers an emotional and moving celebration of the strength of the bond between a daughter and a mother.”
Sexual Drive (性的衝動, Kota Yoshida, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A strange spirit of sexual liberation visits three troubled couples in Kota Yoshida’s odyssey of food-themed eroticism.
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Devastated by the death of a friend, a young woman embarks on one last road trip in Yuki Tanada’s adaptation of the manga by Yuki Tanada.
Stellar: A Magical Ride (스텔라, Kwon Soo-kyung, 2022) [Fantasia 2022]
A cynical man makes peace with his father’s memory while driving his possibly haunted and very rundown Hyundai Stellar in Kwon Soo-kyung’s charmingly quirky road movie.
Chun Tae-il: A Flame That Lives On (태일이, Hong Jun-pyo, 2021) [Fantasia 2022]
Hong Jun-pyo’s animated biopic of the real life labour activist casts him as an ordinary man radicalised by compassion in witnessing the exploitation of those around him.
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“An extremely well-structured genre-blend that does not only provides the laughs and giggles with its pleasant political satire, but also allows the spectator to immerge himself into the…
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Miike’s narrative delivers everything a fan of the previous narratives desires and even succeeds in inviting newcomers to delve into Reiji’s past exploits.
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