A young woman comes to a new understanding of herself while travelling abroad in Nobuhiko Obayashi’s laidback kadokawa idol movie.
Oct 15, 2022 • Subscribe
More like this
The Island Closest To Heaven (1984) review
“This might be the purest idol-film Obayashi made and the clearest example of how Kadokawa wanted to exploit the audio-visual medium.”
The Island Closest to Heaven (1984) [Film Review]
The Island Closest to Heaven; or, Let’s Go to the Beach See this river? If you follow it all the way out, it leads you to…
News recap: RIP Nobuhiko Obayashi
Welcome back! Hopefully everyone is following good social distancing guidelines, but in case you need some help, our favorite kaiju heroes are here to help: On to…
Is This Heaven? (天国か、ここ?, Shinji Imaoka, 2023)
A middle-aged couple ponder loss and regret on a surreal odyssey into the afterlife , or something like it at least, in Shinji Imaoka’s cheerfully absurdist dramedy
Nobuhiko Obayashi Coming to France on Blu-Ray [Announcement]
Hello and welcome to today’s update. No review or editorial this week due to work obligations, but I did not want to leave an empty weekly s...
Shirobamba / しろばんば (1962)
Obscure Japanese Film #248Toru Shimamura This Nikkatsu production was based on the autobiographical novel of the same name by one of Japan’s major writers, Yasushi Inoue (1907-91). The book was translated into…
Hiragana Song あいうえおにいいさん (ft みーぽん CV @swimmy_music ) / YuTanP
Sign Up for My Japanese Lessons & Get the Lyrics PDF with Definitions and Grammar Explanations https://bit.ly/4aFRVb7 あいうえおにいいさん - Hiragana Song Written, Arranged, Produced by YuTanP Vocal: https://www.youtube.com/@swimmy_music Drums: Glenn Welman https://www.fiverr.com/glennwelman Guitar:…
Mom, Is That You?! (こんにちは、母さん, Yoji Yamada, 2023)
Disillusioned with the salaryman dream a middle-aged man returns home to his mother only to find her busy with a life of her own in a touching drama…
Is ばんごはん (Dinner) Outdated? #learnjapanese
Learn Japanese with Me - https://bit.ly/4drmyU2
Sister Claire’s まいにち動画+ [10.31] [ENG TL]
Japanese Transcript*今日もまいにち動画始まります!2020年、10月 31日(土)みなさん、おはようございます。そしてお誕生日の方もおめでとうございます!うらめしや~この格好でこのセリフはおかしいか?TRICK OR TREATお菓子をくれないとーいたずらしちゃうぞ!ーなんて私はもう子どもたちにお菓子をくばるがかりです.でもたまにはいたずらもーいいかも?それでは今日のくち…
Sister Claire’s まいにち動画+ [10.8] [ENG TL]
Japanese Transcript*今日の朝もまいにち動画からまいにち動画+2020年、10月 8日(木)みなさん、おはようございます。そしてお誕生日の方もおめでとうございます!みなさんは今日の朝、1番最初にどんな言葉を発しましたか?おはよう!などの挨拶って意識しないうちに、家族の間でもしなくなっているかもしれませんでも、朝に顔を合わせた人に挨拶をすると、なんとなくー心がほっこりすきがす…
Sister Claire’s まいにち動画+ [10.6] [ENG TL]
Japanese Transcript*今日もまいにち動画+2020年、10月 6日(火)みなさん、おはようございます。そしてお誕生日の方もおめでとうございます!何かを頑張る時って、その頑張りに、結果に、いろいろなことに、波があると思います。勢いがつくとき、それが止まってしまう時ーだから今、止まってしまっているなぁーと思う人は頑張ってる人なんだと思います。大丈夫!十分がんばってるよ!この先は…
Sister Claire’s まいにち動画+ [10.7] [ENG TL]
Japanese Transcript*今日も元気に過ごせるようにまいにち動画+2020年、10月 7日(水)みなさん、おはようございます。そしてお誕生日の方もおめでとうございます!みなさんは、しっかりお休みできていますか?出来ないことを、どうか、責めないで。前進している最中なのですから!頑張っている人はとっても、輝いていると思います!頑張ってね!それでは今日のくち占い!今日は食器を綺麗に片…
Sister Claire’s まいにち動画+ [10.5] [ENG TL]
Japanese Transcript*今日も元気にまいにち動画+2020年、10月 5日(月)みなさん、おはようございます。そしてお誕生日の方もおめでとうございます!そして、おひさしぶりです。何も言わすにお休みに入ってしまってごめんなさい。お誕生日や、お休みしている期間を通してー私がどれだけ皆さんに支えてもらっているかということを痛感しましたー弱い私ですがーこれからまた新しい私で頑張ってい…
Brush of the God (カミノフデ ~怪獣たちのいる島~, Keizo Murase, 2024)
A young girl struggles to accept her grandfather’s legacy in Keizo Murase’s retro drama.
Legend of the Cat Monster (麗猫伝説, Nobuhiko Obayashi, 1983)
A young writer falls prey to the dream of cinema while tasked with convincing a reclusive actress to return to the silver screen in Obayashi’s gothic tale of…
Hey! Our Dear Don-chan (おーい!どんちゃん, Shuichi Okita, 2022)
A trio of actors undergo a coming-of-age tale of their own when a baby is suddenly abandoned on their doorstep in Shuichi Okita’s charming slice of life dramedy
Death on Gokumon Island / 獄門島
I’ve read several Kindaichi stories that I just haven’t reviewed because they’ve all been bad, but not quite as bad as It Walks By Night, so it felt…
Domains 王国 (あるいはその家について) (2019) Dir: Natsuka Kusano
Domains is a thoroughly absorbing drama thanks to excellent performances and its unique structure. Domains 王国 (あるいはその家について) (2019) Dir: Natsuka Kusano
Samurai Kids (水の旅人-侍KIDS-, Nobuhiko Obayashi, 1993)
A small boy grows closer to the natural world while guiding a tiny samurai on his journey to the sea in Nobuhiko Obayashi’s charming family adventure.
Nagi’s Island (凪の島, Masahiko Nagasawa, 2022)
A young girl begins to put the past behind her while comforted by an idyllic island community in Masahiko Nagasawa’s gentle human drama.
VTuber Canan (ばかなんす): From Hikikomori to Influencer
Canan revealed her face in an incident back in August 2020. Learn more about your favorite VTuber and see what she looks like IRL!
Seven Weeks (野のなななのか, Nobuhiko Obayashi, 2014)
“A death is a history” in Obayashi’s intensely moving tale of the interconnectedness of all things, love, death, war, and memory.
The Eleventh Hour (どたんば, Tomu Uchida, 1957)
The problematic working practices of a post-war coal mine are thrown into stark relief when five men are trapped underground during a collapse in Tomu Uchida’s tense rescue…
High and Low (天国と地獄, Akira Kurosawa, 1963)
A self-made millionaire faces a moral dilemma when his chauffeur’s son is kidnapped in place of his own in Kurosawa’s post-war crime film.
Casting Blossoms to the Sky (この空の花 長岡花火物語, Nobuhiko Obayashi, 2012)
An emotionally arrested journalist begins to reconnect with the past through wartime stories of Nagaoka in Obayashi’s compassionate plea for a kinder future
All Under the Moon (月はどっちに出ている, Yoichi Sai, 1993)
Citizens of post-Bubble Tokyo struggle to reorient themselves amid changing realities in Yoichi Sai’s lighthearted comedy.
Episode #97 (S12E07) – Cowboy Bebop: The Movie [カウボーイビバップ 天国の扉] (2001)
Podcaster Ian Buckley returns for another anime film. This time, we spotlight Cowboy Bebop: The Movie, also known as Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door. We discuss the…
Blue Island (憂鬱之島, Chan Tze-Woon, 2022)
Chan Tze-Woon’s melancholy documentary places the protestors of today into the protests of the past and asks them what is Hong Kong that Hong Kong means to them.
(Easy Japanese Song) 先輩、気づいてよ - Notice Me, Senpai (feat. ちーちゃん CV: @hoshigumo_suzu ) / YuTanP
Sign Up for My Japanese Lessons & Get the Lyrics PDF with Definitions and Grammar Explanations https://bit.ly/3y1SrCA 先輩、気づいてよ - Notice Me, Senpai (feat. ちーちゃん) Written and produced by YuTanP Vocal 星雲すず☆*゜https://www.youtube.com/@hoshigumo_suzu Illustrations…
Do Japanese Names Typically Have ちゃん、さん etc? #learnjapanese
Learn Japanese with Me - https://bit.ly/4drmyU2
Episode #102 (S13E03) – High and Low (1963) [天国と地獄]
YouTuber and fellow Japan resident Amanda Hartsell joins Perry in this episode to discuss capitalism and Japanese society as depicted in Akira Kurosawa's High and Low.
Shrieking in the Rain (雨に叫べば, Eiji Uchida, 2021)
A female director struggles to make a mark in the midst of sexist crew members, the absurdity of the censors board, and the commercial concerns of the industry…
Let’s Have A Dream (九ちゃんのでっかい夢, Yoji Yamada, 1967)
Fearing he has a terminal disease a young man falls into despair little knowing he is the heir to a Swiss fortune in Yoji Yamada’s nonsense comedy.
Out of the Blue (小爸爸的天空, Chen Kun-Hou, 1984)
A young man begins to dream after discovering he has become a father in Chen Kun-Hou’s poignant coming of age drama Out of the Blue (小爸爸的天空, xiǎo bàba de…
Model-chan to Jimi Mane-san, Volume 2 (モデルちゃんと地味マネさん)
In Volume 1, we met Okabe-san, a new manager for top model Yuria-san. Yuri appears cool and remotes but that may well be because she’s so beautiful no…
Laughing Under the Clouds (曇天に笑う, Katsuyuki Motohiro, 2018)
A cheerful former samurai chooses laughter as the best weapon against existential anxiety in Katsuyuki Motohiro’s big budget adaptation of the manga by Karakara-Kemuri.
Ito (いとみち, Satoko Yokohama, 2021)
A shy young woman with a talent for Tsugaru shamisen grows in confidence after getting a job at a maid cafe in Satoko Yokohama’s warmhearted drama
Thorns Of Beauty (恋のいばら, Hideo Jojo, 2023)
A jilted ex and the current girlfriend team up against a no good guy with compromising photos of them both in Hideo Jojo’s playful drama.
Hit Me Anyone One More Time (記憶にございません!, Koki Mitani, 2019)
Japan’s “all time worst” prime minister undergoes a change of heart after getting hit on the head with a rock in Koki Mitani’s lowkey political satire
Futari ha Daitai Konna Kanji (ふたりはだいたいこんなかんじ)
In the Yuri world Ikeda Takashi is best known for Sasamekikoto / Whispered Words in English, from One Peace Books. That series made fun of every Yuri trope,…
Mi-chan to Airi, Part 1 (みーちゃんとアイリ (上))
In Mi-chan to Airi, Part 1 (みーちゃんとアイリ (上)), Midori is heading home one day and passes a pile of garbage bags, on which she sees the sleeping form…
Mi-chan to Airi, Volumes 1 & 2 (みーちゃんとアイリ)
Midori is a taciturn woman, a loner. She’s got a job that she doesn’t mind much and a place to live. But, if she were honest, she doesn’t…
Immersion (忌怪島/きかいじま, Takashi Shimizu, 2023)
An attempt to recreate the “real” in the “virtual” causes a rupture between this world and another in Takashi Shimizu’s high tech horror.
SAKURA (朽ちないサクラ, Hiroto Hara, 2024)
A police PR assistant turns investigator when her friend is murdered only to stumble on a wider conspiracy in Hiroto Hara’s paranois thriller.
Drunken Angel (酔いどれ天使, Akira Kurosawa, 1948)
A gruff yet well intentioned doctor does his best to cure the ills of post-war Japan in a rundown slum on the edge of a fetid swamp in…
New Moomin 36/52 - Grandpa Is the Best In the World (おじいちゃんは世界一) (1972) (English subtitles)
Snork's grandfather is visiting, and Moomin wishes he had a grandpa as amazing as him. Thereafter, the Ancestor drops in to be Moomin's grandpa, and quickly proves to…
Futari ha Daitai Konna Kanji, Volume 3 (ふたりはだいたいこんなかんじ)
One of the defining characteristics of an adult life is facing setbacks. You can work really hard, gambare with all you have and still not achieve the goal.…
Futari ha Daitai Konna Kanji, Volume 4 (ふたりはだいたいこんなかんじ)
In Futari ha Daitai Konna Kanji, Volume 4 (ふたりはだいたいこんなかんじ) Ikeda Takashi brings his specific brand of wacky slice-of-life to a fantastic conclusion. In the first three volumes of…