According to an undertaker in Noriko Yuasa’s darkly drama Performing Kaoru’s Funeral (カオルの葬式, Kaoru no Ososhiki) death is a kind of natural disaster. Despite the sometimes farcical goin…
Apr 1, 2024 • Subscribe
More like this
![Featured image for Performing KAORU’s Funeral カオルの葬式 Director: Noriko Yuasa [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024]](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240408/1712549771.82298.121148.jpg)
Performing KAORU’s Funeral カオルの葬式 Director: Noriko Yuasa [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024]
Performing KAORU’s Funeral カオルの葬式 (Dir Noriko Yuasa) is a heady story of remembering an individual through pulling together memories. Amidst the farce and tears of the funeral lies a…
Performing Kaoru’s Funeral
"Performing..." is also a funny, melancholic and classic Japanese love story. Classic because within the traditional Japanese relationship, a man and woman only realize the depth of their…
![Featured image for Performing Kaoru’s Funeral (2023) review [OAFF 2024]](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240407/1712477770.82238.121076.jpg)
Performing Kaoru’s Funeral (2023) review [OAFF 2024]
Yuasa’s narrative shows that the unavoidable presence of death during a funeral can allow a subject to re-route his own trajectory.
Kaiba: Yuasa Well Done
Greetings, fabulous people of the Internet! Hanime on Anime here, and welcome to the first new review of September! And in opening this review, I wanted to start…
Episode 70 - Dr. Noriko Aso (UCSC)
In this episode, Dr. Aso reconstructs representations of Japanese modernity in imperial museums from the early Meiji Period, noting the influence of international expositions and imperialist expansion. We…
Ashita Niji ga Denakutemo: Kihara Noriko
Let’s face it. We need more cross-dressing BL. I don’t make the rules here. This is just fact. It’s such an interesting story device in the world of…
Inu-Oh (犬王, Masaaki Yuasa, 2021)
A blind Biwa player and a cursed young man exorcise the spirits of the Heike through musical expression in Masaaki Yuasa’s stunning prog rock anime
Dissolution Rites (解散式, Kinji Fukasaku, 1967)
“We’re all legitimate businessmen now” as a former yakuza explains to a recently released foot soldier stepping out into a very different Japan in Kinji Fukasaku’s Dissolution Rites…
Frieren At The Funeral PV 2
Okay, so I’ve been reading this series religiously since it came out given that it hits all the right spots, so you can imagine my enthusiasm to hear…
Frieren at the Funeral: Teaser PV
The Teaser PV for Frieren has also aired. For those unaware, the story follows an ages-old Elf who was part of the heroes’ party as they defeated the…
Anibros Podcast Episode 61 – Anime Funeral
Anibros return to banter about Japanese anime in a brotherly fashion! The main topic of discussion is the movie The Girl Who Leapt…
Frieren At The Funeral PV 3
Well, October is turning out to be stupidly packed to the point where I’m legitimately concerned that I won’t be able to jot down everything. So I might…
Rei (莉の対, Toshihiko Tanaka, 2024)
As the opening title cards of Toshihiko Tanaka’s Rei (莉の対, Rei no Tsui) somewhat paradoxically explain, Rei is a kanji character that has no real meaning on its…
Performing Arts Japan Programme for Europe 2016-2017...
Performing Arts Japan Programme for Europe 2016-2017 Performin...
Performing Arts Japan Programme for Europe 2017-2018...
Performing Arts Japan Programme for Europe 2017-2018 The Japan Foundat...
Funeral Parade of The Roses (1969) review
“A highly experimental and intense exploration of how the images we clothe ourselves with makes us blind for what truly grounds us as subject.”
Leiji Matsumoto’s Galactic Funeral, June 3, 2023
After Leiji Matsumoto’s passing in February 2023, his wife and daughter addressed his countless bereaved fans in Japan and around the world, announcing that in due time a…
Rocking Out in History With Inu-Oh Director Masaaki Yuasa
Yuasa excitedly introduced his multi-award nominated movie and its characters with the same energy and fervor as if he were pitching the film from scratch.
The Funeral (頭七, Shen Dan-Quei, 2022)
A haunted single mother is plagued by supernatural dread on returning to her family for a funeral in Shen Dan-Quei,s eerie gothic horror.
Purgatory Funeral Cakes: Dark Horse Licenses Bittersweet Manhwa
According to "Purgatory Funeral Cakes," the best way to mend a broken heart is by spending time with your loved ones...and with some cake.
This Week in Anime - Adorable Young Women Performing Lovable Activities
Lucas and Steve bat their big anime eyes at the CGDCT genre.
“I was happy to just work with Yuasa” – Satoshi Nakano interview
Interview with animator and character designer Satoshi Nakano about his work on Pokemon and Masaaki Yuasa's Inu-Oh
Manga Review | Even if There’s No Rainbow Tomorrow by Noriko Kihara
Chitose is a performer. By day, they appear to be an average gay man, but by night, they get all dolled up in women's clothing. Then, they either…
Mounting Contention Over State Funeral for Slain Abe Shinzo
The Japanese public remains polarized over plans for a rare state funeral in honor of recently assassinated former prime minister Abe Shinzo.
Majority in Japan Oppose Expensive State Funeral for Abe
On the eve of the event, polls show that most Japanese residents don't like Abe's pricey funeral - and that's hurting the current PM.
The Colors Within (きみの色, Naoko Yamada, 2024)
“If I could see my own colour, what kind of colour would it be?” the heroine of Naoko Yamada’s The Colors Within (きみの色, Kimi no Iro) asks herself.…
Desert of Namibia (ナミビアの砂漠, Yoko Yamanaka, 2024)
A young woman flounders unable to understand the world around her in Yoko Yamanaka’s quietly enraged character study.
Tune of the Week(ish) Frieren’s Frieren at the Funeral
This isn’t the opening I’d expect from a show like this, but’s not half bad. The Tune of the Week is the opening them for Frieren: Beyond Journey’s…
Frieren at the Funeral is the Best Manga of 2020
Every so often, I just pick something up based purely on the cover—and it turns out to be better than I could have possibly imagined.
Seattle Symphony with Guest Conductor and Composer Joe Hisaishi: Performing Ghibli Works
A couple of weekends ago I had the pleasure of experiencing Joe Hisaishi live in concert with the Seattle Symphony and Chorale. His works encompass many of Studio…
のだ
A subtle but important tip for written Japanese - How to Japanese - August 2023
![Featured image for All the Long Nights 夜明けのすべて (2024) Director: Sho Miyake [Nippon Connection 2024 / Japan Cuts 2024]](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240708/1720416929.86930.126877.jpg)
All the Long Nights 夜明けのすべて (2024) Director: Sho Miyake [Nippon Connection 2024 / Japan Cuts 2024]
Beautifully depicted, workmates suffering in silence with mental and physical conditions feel the warmth of human connection in director Sho Miyake’s All the Long Nights 夜明けのすべて (2024)…
A Girl Named Ann (あんのこと, Yu Irie, 2024)
A young woman’s attempts to turn her life around are frustrated by compromised authority figures and an indifferent society in Yu Irie’s hard-hitting drama.
My Sunshine (ぼくのお日さま, Hiroshi Okuyama, 2024)
A young man with his head in the clouds discovers a new means of expression through figure skating in Hiroshi Okuyama’s delicate drama.
![Featured image for Whale Bones 鯨の骨 (2023) Director: Takamasa Oe [Japan Cuts 2024]](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240713/1720899930.87213.127231.jpg)
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…
During the Rains (つゆのあとさき, Shinpei Yamazaki, 2024)
A collection of women discover that the real pandemic is misogyny in Shinpei Yamazaki’s covid-era indie drama.
Serpent’s Path Le chemin du serpent 蛇の道 (2024) Dir: Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Serpent's Path Le chemin du serpent 蛇の道 (2024), by director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, is an updating of a film made nearly 30 years ago. Its setting switched from Japan to France…
のです
Mixing direct and distal styles - How to Japanese - December 2024
Performing in the 2.5 Dimension: Producer Shimpei Yamashita on Oshi no Ko Season 2
Ahead of its final episode, Shimpei Yamashita discusses the challenges of following up Oshi no Ko's first season with one equally as good.
Children of the Beehive: What Happened Next (その後の蜂の巣の子供たち, Hiroshi Shimizu, 1951)
In an interesting piece of meta docufiction, Hiroshi Shimizu revisits the Beehive a few years later to find out how the orphans live now.
All the Long Nights (夜明けのすべて, Sho Miyake, 2024)
Mismatched colleagues struggling amid contemporary corporate culture find unexpected solidarity in Sho Miyake’s gentle human drama.
Yamaguchi Sagi kyōgen at Yamaguchi Prefectural University and Audience Building in the Traditional Performing Arts.
A few weeks ago I headed back to Yamaguchi to catch the Yamaguchi Sagi kyōgen show at Yamaguchi Prefectural University (YPU). Now in its 10th (and final) year,…
Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫, Hayao Miyazaki, 1997)
A young man from an exiled clan tries to make peace between the natural world and the industrial in Hayao Miyazaki’s landmark 1997 animation
生成AIの台頭と知的活動の隔絶の心配
AIが発達しても好奇心旺盛な人間、自己顕示欲が強くこだわりが強い創作者、頭の良さがずば抜けている人たち、天邪鬼、変人、狂人は創作や研究において頭角を現し続けるであろう。これは変わらないと思う。しかし頭のねじが壊れていない、その他大勢の方々は知的探求において受け身に甘んじたり思考が単純化しそうで怖い。 趣味の世界で没頭できる余裕がある人は大丈夫だろうけど、駆け出しの十代や日々の生活でかつかつな人たちからすればじっくり研究したり徐々に技を磨く工程が「贅沢な道楽」となってしまうのではないだろうか。 努力せずともそこそこ面白い想像や探究が可能とするAIだが、思考や論理組み立ての基礎が脆弱な段階からAIに依存するとカンペだよりと同じ結果になりそう。計算機を使う前に基礎的な計算方法を知らないとミスが発生しても対応に苦慮するのと同じである。計算機やAIをけなしているのではなく、それを使いこなす教育の不十分さと人間の怠慢さを危惧しているのだが…… また創作や研究への情熱を理解できない人はその重要性を「有効性」「生産性」や「人気」でしか図ることができなくなり、ますます人間の特権である遊び心の領域が退化する不安が先走る。杞憂であればよいのだが。 そもそも知的作業を営む人間の数がごく一部になってしまい、最先端にいる人とその他大勢の間に大きな隔たりが生まれると中世ヨーロッパのように「ラテン語の出来る人とできない人」のように認識能力においてかなり決定的な差異が発生しかねない心配をしている。 中世においてラテン語ができれば古代の知識や遠方の人間との交流を可能とする学術の言語だった。ラテン語ができれば自らの研究が共有されやすく、他者の知的探求を認知しやすくなる。いっぽうラテン語ができない人間は他者（権力者その他）による解説に依存することにある。 これまで人は創作や研究における競争が行き過ぎると、その内容ではなく人格攻撃やプラットフォームでの上げ足取りや人気取りの小手先を重要視する傾向がある。もちろんこれは兼光の個人的な印象でしかないが、日米を比較したり、これまでのメディア業界の歴史を振り返るとそのような事象が目立つのだ。巨大な統一プラットフォームでの勝ち組負け組形成による不均衡の増大より、複数のプラットフォームで色々な競争があったの方が文化は豊かになると思っている。 プラットフォームの集約と生成AIの問題は別だが、片方がもう片方を悪化させる可能性は否めないのではないだろうか。 すごい作品ばかりが立ち並ぶ領域にいきなり立たされると人は委縮しやすい。最初は身近な箱庭がいい。家庭の中で、学校で、同人誌即売会の中で――ローカルで技を磨き、やがて本当に上を目指す人はより大きなステージへ。 しかし生成AIから手軽に研究・創作できると最初からグローバルでの競争となるために、気軽に身近な場所で下手の横好きから創作・研究が始められず、挫折する人が増えそうな気がして仕方ない。 これがすべて50代中盤のおっさんの身勝手な心配であればいいのだが……
Drawing Closer (余命一年の僕が、余命半年の君と出会った話。, Takahiro Miki, 2024)
A young man with a year to live finds new purpose after meeting a girl who is also dying of a terminal illness in Takahiro Miki’s teen junai…
ブラフマンの埋葬
Yōko Ogawa’s 2004 novel Burafuman no maisō (Brahman’s Funeral) is a story about the lonely caretaker of an isolated artist’s retreat who adopts a forest creature of indeterminate…
Triple Release: Choriki Robo Galatt - Episode 15 / Noriko '85 (LD) / Maple Town's Traffic Safety (16mm 1080p Scan)
Decided to do something different for today. I have three fansub releases for today, but I didn't feel like separating these into their own ...
![Featured image for Inch Forward 走れない人の走り方 (2024) Director: Su Yu-chun [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024]](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240508/1715177129.83849.123013.jpg)
Inch Forward 走れない人の走り方 (2024) Director: Su Yu-chun [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024]
Inch Forward 走れない人の走り方 (2024) Director: Su Yu-chun [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2024]
![Featured image for Episode #72 (S10E1) – Princess Mononoke [ もののけ姫] (1997)](https://cdn.aniblogtracker.com/live/20240131/1706688971.78398.116105.jpg)
Episode #72 (S10E1) – Princess Mononoke [ もののけ姫] (1997)
We kick off Season 10 with one of the most internationally renowned animated films of all time. Derick McDuff of the Underrated network returns to discuss Studio Ghibli’s…