Author Archives: philipbrasor

Review: Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

Posted on September 1, 2018 by philipbrasor

Thanks to Japan’s complicated publicity machine, the sequel to the successful movie version of the very successful ABBA-inspired jukebox musical Mamma Mia! arrives well after most of the rest of the world has decided it’s a better movie than the … Continue reading →

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Media Mix, Aug. 26, 2018

Posted on August 26, 2018 by philipbrasor

Here’s this week’s Media Mix, about children orphaned after World War II. As described in the column, the Japanese media has avoided the topic for years and most likely decided to finally cover it because, as with many controversial subjects … Continue reading →

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Review: Pop Aye

Posted on August 25, 2018 by philipbrasor

The titular elephant in this Thai film is named after the iconic cartoon sailor, though I can’t really fathom the title’s unconventional spelling. In a way, the linguistic disconnect expands on the movie’s sometimes jarring juxtaposition of universal themes and … Continue reading →

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Review: The Girl Without Hands

Posted on August 22, 2018 by philipbrasor

The Brothers Grimm story from which this French animated film has been adapted is not one of their more famous ones, but it has all the non-Disney hallmarks that have made the fairy tale-meisters the darlings of comparative lit majors. … Continue reading →

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Review: Tully

Posted on August 18, 2018 by philipbrasor

Charlize Theron’s second feature with director Jason Reitman and writer Diablo Cody is more sentimental than Young Adult but every bit as irreverent, which may sound like a contradiction in terms. Theron plays Marlo, the pregnant mother of an autistic … Continue reading →

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Aretha Franklin

Posted on August 17, 2018 by philipbrasor

I first heard Aretha Franklin when I was 11 years old, listening clandestinely to my small transistor radio tuned to WABC (or was it WMCA?), which was tucked under my pillow as I was supposed to be sleeping. Like my … Continue reading →

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Review: Viceroy’s House

Posted on August 13, 2018 by philipbrasor

Given the casting of Hugh Bonneville in the role of Lord Louis “Dickie” Mountbatten, the last British viceroy of India before independence, it’s easy to guess that the producers wanted direct comparisons between this dramatic recreation of the summer of … Continue reading →

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Review: Mission: Impossible – Fallout

Posted on August 10, 2018 by philipbrasor

Christopher McQuarrie returns to direct the sixth installment of Tom Cruise’s vanity project, which he has every right to be proud of, and not just because it continuously breaks box office records internationally. For what it’s worth, the Mission: Impossible … Continue reading →

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Review: Double Lover

Posted on August 9, 2018 by philipbrasor

Though Francois Ozon has made an enviable reputation for himself by being both prolific and consistently engaging, his best movies are throwbacks to enduring styles that have never really benefited from being updated. Double Lover falls into this category. It’s … Continue reading →

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Media Mix, Aug. 5, 2018

Posted on August 5, 2018 by philipbrasor

Here’s this week’s Media Mix about how LDP lawmaker Mio Sugita’s controversial remarks about LGBT individuals highlights the Japanese mindset regarding rigid family structures. Though I’ve discussed this matter many times before in this column (it has personal meaning since … Continue reading →

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