Category: Japanese

  • 10s on TheAuteurs

    TheAuteurs currently has over 44pg (with 20 films each?) so I wondered which 10 films were the first to be added to their database… you know, just for trivia purposes xD

    1. La Antena (2007)
    2. Elementary Particles (2006)
    3. It’s Winter (2006) *
    4. Kirikou and the Wild Beasts (2005) *
    5. Padre Nuestro (Sangre de mi Sangre) (2007)
      * Online Press Screening Available by Invitation Only.
    6. The Perfume of the Lady in Black (2005) *
    7. Riviera (2005) *
    8. Someone Else’s Happiness (2005)
    9. Young Yakuza (2007) *
    10. The Return (2003)

    * available to watch on TheAuteurs [Peru Region]

    Then I also decided to check the 10 Most Popular films xD

    1. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
    2. The Godfather (1972)
    3. Citizen Kane (1941)
    4. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
    5. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
    6. Taxi Driver (1976)
    7. Pulp Fiction (1994)
    8. Seven Samurai (1954)
    9. The Shining (1980)
    10. The Godfather II (1974)

    Interesting to see 4 films from the 70s, 2 from the 60s… followed by one of the 50s, 40s, 80s and 90s. Then, it’s also 4 films by Stanley Kubrick, 2 by Francis Ford Coppola, and the films by Orson Welles, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, and Akira Kurosawa.

  • Dr. NakaMats is so KAKKOII!!!!

    Dr. NakaMats – or Yoshio Nakamatsu – has invented around 3k things since age 5. Among those things the Karaoke machine, the early technology for floppy disks, CDs, and DVDs.

    x

    In the video, Nakamatsu-san states that Edison and him are way different, and you’ll see why. He is totally pro-education, which is pretty refreshing considering all the “I don’t need school” types out there~

    Check out the post over at MotherBoard.tv~

  • Decadism: Cinema 2000—2009

    I found an interesting post!
    Here’s an excerpt;

    Just as the music industry had it’s comfy, soulless, profit-raking, creatively-void existence shaken out of it’s tree, so too the film industry started to feel their profits shrivel in this freshly democratic media landscape. It seems innovation and profit didn’t necessarily go hand in hand though as the massive film production companies tried to plug the gaps with endless remakes, 3D tomfoolery and crap loads of marketing driven genre dirge. If anything it was a decade of extremes, as the mainstream became more generic and formulaic so there were the occasional glittering gems shining through the shinola, that kicked against the tide and were all the better for it.

    They talk about Hollywood remakes, Indies and International films~~~

    One thing to note, there aren’t any Asian films… like you know, Memories of Matsuko, 3-Iron, Oldboy, In the Mood for Love, All About Lily Chou Chou, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Battle Royale, Nobody Knows, Still Walking, etc.

    You can read the post here.

  • THR Reviews Otouto

    It is a mixed review, but it has a nice comment on Yu and Ryo’s storyline.

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  • Really? Two months of music?

    Wow, it seems like such a small # of albums xD

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  • Vote for the Green Globe Film Awards

    This seems VERY open. It’s Asian, and it’s also Hollywood… so it seems like my kind of award. Funny thing is that some of those nominees seem very off and certainly kind of random.

    For example the historical film The Founding of a Republic is… nominated for Best Comedy? OMG, is that ironic? Also… Inglourious Basterds didn’t make it to Best 2009 Film (even though you can vote for “other” and add it), and Bigelow didn’t make it to Best 2009 Director…

    Anyway, some of the nominees in the international bits include usual suspects Avatar, The Hurt Locker, District 9, A Prophet, and Inglourious Basterds~~~ even Peru’s The Milk of Sorrow. xD

    The Asian nominees include Mother, Thirst, Air Doll, Red Cliff, Ponyo, Forever Enthralled, Nobody to Watch Over me, Jackie Chan, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Eason Chan, Rain, Maggie Cheung, Gong Li, etc.

    Some of the unusual categories include Best Asian Entertainer in Hollywood, Best Asian Movie of the Decade, 10 Best Asian Actors and Actresses…

    You can vote here.

  • The Killing of a Chinese Cookie

    I haven’t had a Fortune Cookie in forever~~~

    Take a look at The Killing of a Chinese Cookie, for a short documentary that talks about the history of this pop culture icon that is not so Chinese… or Japanese. It’s interesting and funny! Favorite part was the judge’s cookie~

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eboi6keicvg

    You can actually  order it on DVD, watch it onDemand… or as a Rental, or you can just head over here.

  • Norwegian Wood (Tokio Blues) by Haruki Murakami


    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

  • Yu Aoi Films Ranked

    Hey, guys~

    Just wanted to let everyone know that I created a Yu Aoi list on TheAuteurs ranking her films. I’m still undecided about overall film or just Yu’s performance, so I’m going to say a mix of both.

    I think it’s time to take the post-its off…

  • If Only… Picnic

    Well, now that I’m much better I can continue going through Acerk’s and my own picks for Yu Aoi wishful thinking films. We are almost done, and I really wish more people would participate, not only commenting but also suggesting your own.

    Anyway… here we go~

    2. Picnic

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