Monthly Archives: November 2023

Review: This Is What I Remember

Posted on November 30, 2023 by philipbrasor

Kyrgyzstan director Aktan Arym Kubat says his latest film is a sequel to his debut fiction feature, The Adopted Son, which came out in 1998. Given that all his subsequent work has been autobiographical in nature, the “sequel” label may … Continue reading →

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Review: The Exorcist: Believer

Posted on November 29, 2023 by philipbrasor

When The Exorcist was released in 1973, it was considered the scariest studio movie since Psycho, with audience members actually fainting during intense scenes. Nowadays, it’s more of a relic than an experience, which means its importance lies in what … Continue reading →

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Media watch: If public misspeaking were an Olympic event, the LDP would get all the gold

Posted on November 26, 2023 by philipbrasor

In terms of entertainment value, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which is gone but far from forgotten, continues to pay dividends. The latest source of delight is Ishikawa Prefectural Governor Hiroshi Hase, a former Olympian wrestler who, during a lecture he … Continue reading →

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Review: Hokage (Shadow of Fire)

Posted on November 24, 2023 by philipbrasor

The news that director Shinya Tsukamoto was concluding his “antiwar trilogy” with a film about the Tokyo firebombing was compelling. The March 1945 aerial attack killed more than 100,000 people in one night and yet receives much less attention than … Continue reading →

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Review: Plane

Posted on November 22, 2023 by philipbrasor

Some find the trend of ultra-simple titles for blood simple action movies—Cocaine Bear, Snakes on a Plane—refreshingly honest, if not appropriately dumb, but this Gerard Butler vehicle, which was produced by Butler himself, would seem to be the last word … Continue reading →

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Media watch: Diet members neglect to read the room and (inadvertently?) raise their own pay

Posted on November 18, 2023 by philipbrasor

As Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s support numbers continue to drop, the Diet on Nov. 17 approved an increase in pay for him and the rest of the cabinet, not to mention a select group of bureaucrats who perform “special work,” … Continue reading →

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Review: Strays

Posted on November 17, 2023 by philipbrasor

As talking animal movies go, Strays isn’t very innovative visually, and its premise that the kind of typical dog behavior that humans find funny or gross is for dogs a point of pride is difficult to sustain for 90 minutes, … Continue reading →

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Review: Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon

Posted on November 16, 2023 by philipbrasor

For her third feature, Ana Lily Amirpour returns to the methodology she adopted for her impressive 2015 debut, the Iranian vampire movie A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, and though the dialogue was in Farsi (Amirpour grew up in … Continue reading →

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A conversation about Yasujiro Ozu with Kelly Reichardt

Posted on November 14, 2023 by philipbrasor

The acclaimed American indie filmmaker Kelly Reichardt was invited by the Tokyo International Film Festival to come to Japan and join a symposium to talk about the work of the late Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu to celebrate the 120th anniversary … Continue reading →

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Media watch: New child-oriented housing loan plan literally has something for everyone

Posted on November 13, 2023 by philipbrasor

Last week the Japan Housing Finance Agency announced a new scheme whose ostensible purpose is to support couples who have children or plan to have children. The scheme targets couples looking to buy homes by offering to reduce the interest … Continue reading →

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