A recently released yakuza attempts to join the new society by going straight but finds his efforts frustrated by upstart gangsters in Seijun Suzuki’s postmodern noir.
Feb 1, 2023 • Subscribe
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Episode #89 (S11E9) – Tokyo Drifter [東京流れ者] (1966)
Director Seijun Suzuki is a really unique figure in the world of Japanese cinema, with a style all his own. In this episode, Japanese film scholar Jennifer Upton…
Carmen from Kawachi (河内カルメン, Seijun Suzuki, 1966)
Suzuki’s anarchic take on Bizet’s opera sees its heroine transcend the forces which oppress her to find true freedom and independence.
Tokyo Bay (東京湾, Yoshitaro Nomura, 1962)
Two old war buddies find themselves on opposite sides of the law in Nomura’s sprawling journey through the post-war underworld
Tokyo Lullaby (東京夜曲, Jun Ichikawa, 1997)
A meditation on lost love and middle-aged regret, Jun Ichikawa’s Tokyo Lullaby weaves a melancholy path through a lonely city but finds in it a sense of comfort…
●ILLUSTRATION● TOKYO SKA TREASURES ~ベスト・オブ・東京スカパラダイスオーケストラ~
Katsuhiro Otomo, Akira, Bibliography, Otomo, Animation, Manga, Steamboy, Japanimation,
Episode #104 (S13E05) – Tokyo Godfathers (2004) [東京ゴッドファーザーズ]
Christmas comes early as Matthew Trecek of the Deskwarmers podcast joins Perry for a discussion of Satoshi Kon's beloved anime, Tokyo Godfathers.
Tokyo Sweetheart (東京の恋人, Yasuki Chiba, 1952)
A fake ring causes untold chaos in a small corner of Ginza in Yasuki Chiba’s charming ensemble rom-com.
Woman of Tokyo (東京の女, Yasujiro Ozu, 1933)
A loyal sister finds her tremendous sacrifice rejected by an unforgiving and conservative society in Yasujiro Ozu’s silent melodrama
Tokyo Revengers (東京リベンジャーズ, Tsutomu Hanabusa, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A dejected 27-year-old gets a second chance to face his high school trauma in Hanabusa’s high school delinquent x time travel manga adaptation
おやすみ、東京
Atsuhiro Yoshida’s 2018 linked short story collection おやすみ、東京 chronicles the adventures of a cast of slightly odd characters with subtle connections to one another. Each of the stories…
An Inn in Tokyo (東京の宿, Yasujiro Ozu, 1935)
Yasujiro Ozu was perhaps most at home in the genial world of the shomingeki in which everyone is comfortable enough and the problems, such as they are, are…
Tokyo Uber Blues (東京自転車節, Taku Aoyagi, 2022)
Taku Aoyagi documents himself as he starts to go slightly crazy working as a Tokyo Uber Rider at the height of the pandemic.
Tokyo Onigiri Girl / 東京おにぎり娘 / Tokyo onigiri musume / (aka ‘Triangle Moods’, 1961)
Obscure Japanese Film #149 Ayako Wakao and Ganjiro Nakamura Ganjiro Nakamura and Murasaki Fujima Mariko (Ayako Wakao) is the daughte...
Flowing (流れる, Mikio Naruse, 1956)
The denizens of a moribund geisha house contemplate visions of independence in post-war Japan Mikio Naruse’s thriving ensemble drama.
Tokyo Private Eye (東京探偵) the sequel to Tokyo Vice coming in Spring of 2023, with Marchialy (France)
Clients say they want to know, but they don't They want you to tell them what they want to hear But that's not the job My job is…
東京战争戦後秘話’ OST - Toru Takemitsu
The Man Who Left His Will on Film [Tokyo Senso Sengo Hiwa] Directed by: Nagisa Oshima 1970 Download
Japan Society New York to Host Seijun Suzuki Centennial Feb. 3 – 11
At Japan Society New York, Feb. 3 – 11
Velvet Hustler (紅の流れ星, Toshio Masuda, 1967)
A gangster laying low realises there is no escape from his sense of ennui in Toshio Masuda’s post-modern re-imagining of his earlier Red Pier
A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness (悲愁物語, Seijun Suzuki, 1977)
An aspiring golfer begins to lose her sense of identity after being picked up as a brand ambassador in Seijun Suzuki’s surreal consumerist satire.
Bumming in Beijing: The Last Dreamers (流浪北京, Wu Wenguang, 1990)
Wu Wenguang’s seminal indie documentary follows a group of bohemian artists eventually scattered by the events of 1989
hyper light drifter
Art by Narciso Espiritu Jr. I’ve become kind of fed-up with AAA games. Well, maybe “fed-up” is too strong a phrase — let’s go with a less intense…
Thoughts on: Time and Space Are Nonsense: The Films of Seijun Suzuki by Tom Vick
Being someone who digs about piles of Japanese cinema looking for interesting titles to watch and books to help me understand the medium I was quite happy to…
River (リバー、流れないでよ, Junta Yamaguchi, 2023) [Fantasia 2023]
The staff of a hotel along with its guests find themselves trapped in an infinite two minute loop in Junta Yamaguchi’s strangely poignant farce.
Strangers 人知れず Director: Sae Suzuki [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2022]
Strangers 人知れず Director: Sae Suzuki [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2022] is an effective look at how people can explore thorny issues such as sexual harassment and discrimination in…
Synduality: Noir – 04 – Drifter University
Kanata has the Coffin (i.e. mech) and the Magus (i.e. copilot), but is eager to gain Drifter experience, so he endures the japes from more seasoned drifters to…
Whirlpool of Flesh (おんなの渦と淵と流れ, Ko Nakahira, 1964)
A intellectual professor and his wounded wife find themselves trapped in a toxic marriage after returning from Manchuria in Ko Nakahira’s fatalistic drama
Daimajin (1966) review
“A wonderful and refreshing blend between the jidai-geki/chanbara and the kaiju genre.”
Irezumi (1966) review
“Masamura delivers a phenomenal narrative, a true post-war classic.”
Sword of Destiny (孤剣は折れず 月影一刀流, Yasushi Sasaki, 1960)
A wandering swordsman winds up in intrigue on returning to his fencing school to find his old master murdered in Yasushi Sasaki’s jidaigeki adventure.
Konomi Suzuki - Alkatale
Rating : 53/100 Man, it sucks when I cant enjoy something. It especially sucks when its something you were looking forward to. The subject of todays review, Stories…
In the Wake (護られなかった者たちへ, Takahisa Zeze, 2021)
A policeman investigating a series of murders comes to a new accommodation with the post-earthquake society in Takahisa Zeze’s gritty crime drama.
Kentaro Miura (1966-2021)
“When you’re a cartoonist and working at home you sit at your desk pretty much all day,” Kentaro Miura once said in an interview. “You get most of…
Black Tight Killers (1966)
A stylish and visually dazzling romp with lots of action and sensuality
This game / Suzuki Konomi
Anime 「No Game No Life」 Opening Theme Track #03 is a cover of a vocaloid song. — Tracklisting: #01 – This game #02 – Delighting #03 – Cyber…
それが
An interesting conjunction - How to Japanese - September 2023
Review—Mami Suzuki: Private Eye
Slow-burning character studies wrapped in mysteries that originate with people grappling with real-life problems.
Review—Mami Suzuki: Private Eye
Slow-burning character studies wrapped in mysteries that originate with people grappling with real-life problems.
Japan Stories それぞれの日本
A beautifully written patchwork of stories of contemporary Japan each of which focuses on and mainly revolves around one person with associated minor characters who, though obviously less…
The Wild Goose / 雁 / Gan (1966)
Obscure Japanese Film #158 Ayako Wakao Tokyo, 1880. Otama (Ayako Wakao) is a young woman back living with her widowed father (Tomosaburo...
Kentaro Miura (1966-2021): A Tribute
In which I talk about the recent passing of a manga legend.
Warm Current (暖流, Yasuzo Masumura, 1957)
A trio of youngsters tussle for the post-war future through the medium of a love triangle in Masumura’s ironic melodrama
Kounodori : Doctor Stork by Suzuki Yuuju
I was actually looking for a little fun yaoi to read when I came across this medical thriller, Kounodori: Dr. Stork. about an jazz pianist who has a…
Manga Review | BARBARITIES by Tsuta Suzuki
Adam Canning has been brought in from a neighboring country to serve as a bodyguard for the illustrious Lord Montague. Adam is a playboy who likes to spend…
"これいる? vs. これ欲しい?" #learnjapanese
Learn Japanese with Me - https://bit.ly/4drmyU2
The Threat (脅迫, Kinji Fukasaku, 1966)
An ambitious executive is confronted with the emasculating nature of the salaryman dream when escaped convicts invade his home in an early thriller from Kinji Fukasaku.
Drifting (濁水漂流, Jun Li, 2021)
Hong Kong’s homeless find themselves pushed ever further into the margins by an increasingly unequal society in Jun Li’s gritty drama
Kagemusha (影武者, Akira Kurosawa, 1980)
A thief reborn as a lord finds himself caught between the contradictions of the feudal order and the borders of identity in Akira Kurosawa’s Sengoku-era tragedy.
Dear Etranger / 幼な子われらに生まれ
It’s no secret that divorce is messy and complicated, particularly when children are involved. From the child’s perspective, it may be the moment that you realize your parents…
Episode 43 - Prof. Tessa Morris-Suzuki (ANU)
In this episode, Prof. Tessa Morris-Suzuki de-centers the history of the Meiji Restoration by refocusing our attention on the territorial incorporation of Japan’s frontier areas: Ezo, Sakhalin, the…