I’m starting out my list this week… with lack of visitor’s response.
No complaining from you then~~~
I’m gonna start out with 5 of the guys, followed by 5 of the girls like last time. Only properly.
Archives For rinko kikuchi
Excuse me as I’m totally biased.
Where’s Yu Aoi? xD
CNN Go [new brand?] has an article about 7 not-so-known Japanese actors outside of Japan. Obviously there’s the mention of everyone’s favorites like Ken Watanabe [who is like the go-to Japanese guy in Hollywood now], Rinko Kikuchi, Tadanobu Asano, Rie Miyazawa, and Koji Yakusho.
Of course, don’t forget Hiroyuki Sanada ;P
Some not so surprising choices, some… or I mean, I got surprised by one xD
The best choice? A mention for Ryo Kase…
and a cool mention of Sakura Ando. =D
Also… why 7? 7 is a weird number for a TopList. It’s like the writer couldn’t come up with 10 names, so he did 7. So… I wonder what 10 Japanese Actors not so known outside of Japan… or I mean, outside Asia would you choose?
I’ll comment on this later…
I had recently bought a whole bunch of Haruki Murakami novels because I have fallen in love with his style. His narrative holds this air of melancholy… missing the past, but also a terrible sense of unhappiness. It’s utterly depressing, but this is why it’s so good.
Norwegian Wood (or Tokio Blues, in Spanish) is already being adapted into a film with a possible release for Dec’10, so it wasn’t a stretch to think about actual people playing the characters in the book.
It tells the non-chronological story of Watanabe Toru, who all of a sudden remembers Naoko, the girlfriend of his best friend in high school, who ended up killing himself. It deals with the aftermath of the suicide, Naoko’s life pre and post-suicide, and Watanabe’s life pre and post-suicide as well.
Just as the other Murakami novels, the story has that vibe of quiet sadness, great soundtrack and a sense of great cinematography. The characters are often quiet, and internalize everything. They are so real, that you can’t help getting into someone else’s shoes and call someone a jerk or a bitch.
I had problems starting the novel, I read the first two chapters fine, but lost something during the middle part that made it almost tedious to continue with it. However, I was over it once I read about Midori, and how her developing relationship with Watanabe clashed with Watanabe’s feelings for Naoko… and then Reiko. As much as I wonder why these three end up sucked into the gravitational forces of Watanabe, and how I think that is somewhat sexist… I can’t help but want the best for him. And, in my opinion, that was with Hatsumi…
I can’t wait to see this on screen!
3.5/5
Congrats, Amy! You’ve made it a year!
Now please, get to work on that website you’ve been talking about all this time.
Yeah, where is Nate? Yeah, that. Nate and I are working on something else, which is nothing at the moment… just a random gig, which will hopefully fuel our bank accounts a bit and let us work on YAM fully for a month or two…
This is Julz 2nd straight cover. Hooray! Omedetou!!!
In it she covered the Stockholm Film Festival… met Susan Sarandon xD, there’s a Q&A with Sin Nombre director Cary Fukunaga, reviews for Precious, Up in the Air, Koreeda’s Air Doll, Map of the Sounds of Tokyo, The Cove, Thirst, Dexter Season 4, Sasameki Koto, Family Outing, Les Amants Papillons, 2pm, Shinee, Rihanna, The Swell Seasons, Crowd Lu and more! Oh yeah! There’s also a Julz BSB concert review of their Worldwide This Is Us tour, and some Eva Ayllon. Coz we love variety…
First, let me begin saying that I thought 2006 was a great year to watch films. Also, funny thing to point out — it was really, and I mean… REALLY tough to pick my Best Supporting Actress picks~
Many of my favorite films have a 2006 tag in them, so this list might seem a little bias, even though I really tried hard to not be. You might noticed how hard I tried not to be bias. LOL — check the Best Actress category~
LOL’
Does that say enough to you? Really, read the editor’s note. Lots of things on this new issue… new problems, new films, new music…
Reviews of films from the blockbuster season… Star Trek, Wolverine, Terminator Salvation, Up~~~ Brothers Bloom. Short film reviews, concert reviews… of Kiss in Lima. Music reviews of The Sounds, Green Day, Shiina Ringo… a bunch of K-pop courtesy of Julz~~~ off you go to Japan!!! WOOOOO – there’s Life on Mars, House M.D. and my more “professional” review of Yu Aoi’s Portugirl.
In original audio!!!! LOL
Because I hate dubbing in general, but I have something against Spain’s Spanish dubbing… You can probably say it’s because of those “black market” Dragon Ball Spanish-dubbed videos my cousin used to buy. Ha!
Anyway, trailer is not okay for work or public places… *TV announcer’s voice* Viewer discretion is advised.
Map of the Sounds of Tokyo is directed by Isabel Coixet, who also worked on My Life without Me (with Sarah Polley), and you can read all about it LOL over at Nippon Cinema which has an article translated by me.
Of course, I’m a fan of Rinko Kikuchi (or check out my comments (comment #2) on how she was snubbed), so this pretty much goes to my list of ‘want to watch’ ~~~ hopefully this year. Also, Rinko Kikuchi has a bunch of new projects… including that horribly-delayed Brothers Bloom picture with Rachel Weisz, and Mark Ruffalo… and a Japanese remake for Sideways *legasp!* I don’t want to have bad feelings about it… and the fairly-recent announced Norwegian Wood with Kenichi Matsuyama.
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I tried to add really old entries from when I started blogging, but it’s really impossible. It’s effing retarded to see how I was blogging almost daily when I was 17, and I find it almost impossible now. Gosh~ So I just gave that idea up.
Since it’s been so long since I last really, really blog, this post might just turn up a little too long, but here goes~
I have been a Dixie Chicks’ fan since I first heard “Without You,’ back when Napster was still free, and I was merely a kiddo living in Lima, Peru. I had NEVER in my life been exposed to Country music, because it’s really not the type of music you hear in a country like mine, so we’d never get anything related to them or their music.
Recently, at a forum, I created a topic to discuss Country music, because I was so excited by the Dixie Chicks sweeping off the Grammy awards. Soon, the topic turned from Country music songs to a heated argument about the Dixie Chicks, so I have been wanting to rant about this.
PS: I think the Chicks will be so proud to create so much controversy in forums~ ;)
However, I must say that their music prior this whole thing was pretty great. Loads of fun to listen to, and lovely ballads.
You can’t take that away from them (hmm… mariah carey’s flashback)
I just saw the documentary “Shut Up & Sing,” which was pretty good… I was expecting more politics, but it was actually moving in bits of the film.
I am not American, but I do not condemn or praise what Natalie Maines said. Well, sure I don’t like Bush… I’m guilty of that, but to defend Natalie’s mistake, her comment wasn’t part of the act. They had just finished a song, and during that moment where they were preparing for the other, she wanted to express something that was bugging her, since the US was invading Irak THAT DAY. The Chicks were watching the news… and closely watching Internet news, when they had to go perform, so that kinda messes with your mind a little, and makes you voice your opinion easier than in other circumstances.
Totally opposite to what Tobey(sp?) Keith did insulting Natalie Maines – that was actually PART of his show, which then turned into that stupid kid’s game of insulting. But whatever~ FUTK, FUDC… but I must say I found Natalie hilarious. x’D
However, watching the documentary – you did see them taking advantage of it. At first, Natalie was all about not making a big deal out of it – and their manager was like “wouldn’t it be great if this and that happened?” – I think that was wrong, and the press didn’t wanna let it go either. If the press and republican groups hadn’t made a big deal out of it, nothing would’ve happened – and probably, the Dixie Chicks would’ve been left standing worse.
There’s no such thing as bad publicity. Any type of publicity is good publicity.
Now, I never saw the big deal with insulting Bush. Everyone does. Every political comic artist in the world pokes fun at every politician they know, because that’s what they do. Otherwise, they’d have no jobs.
Bush is as any other president, or any regular person in the planet. Respect should be earned for the things you do, not the title you wear. That’s my opinion…
After my post, the discussion turned to the definition of “freedom of speech” – And I must say that their arguments weren’t valid to me. Freedom of speech is not “saying whatever you like” – Freedom of speech is “giving your opinion about something.” Yelling “FIRE!” at a cinema does not count as part of Freedom of speech because it doesn’t state anything about anything. I rest my case.
In other crap things~ The Oscar was held a few days back. I guessed a few of them – and I loved the surprise for Alan Arkin =D I was really happy for him, even though I wanted Djimon Honsou to win. ^^ – I also loved “Happy Feet” kicking “Cars”‘ ass for Best Animated Feature. However… WTF – I know Jennifer Hudson was a shoo in for all the awards she’s been getting, but WHATEVER in HELL possessed people to give her an Oscar for playing a singer? It wasn’t much of a stretch now, wasn’t it? – Is Rinko Kikuchi a deaf-mute person? Is Adriana Barraza ever an illegal nanny in the States? – ah, I didn’t think so.
But, ok – whatever~ rant’s over~
