Forgive the complete absent from the blog recently (two entries last month, and this is the first one this month!), I’ve been generally “more busy” updating the MUBI (the site formerly known as The Auteurs lol) database than even actually keeping up with news (trailers/music) on YAM Magazine or watching movies and shows. I’ve also been occupied watching Korean shows, which tend to make everyone procrastinate. And it’s not like it was priority-watching, either~ I’ve been watching Solar and Eric Nam’s We Got Married episodes, but my favorite watch and re-watches was Mamamoo x GFRIEND’s Showtime.
I don’t actually stan GFRIEND, and I already have biases. Bless.
Bless, SinB. Bless SinB with Moonbyul, Bless New Crush Star. LOL
Otherwise known as SamuraiDroneCatIdolSuperhumanRubeGoldbergViewerWarningTooExplosiveHighSchoolGirl (侍ドローン猫アイドル神業ピタゴラ閲覧注意爆速すぎる女子高生) — I don’t exactly know how the translation in English came to being, but in the Japanese, there’s a mention of Pythagora (as in PythagoraSwitch).
Just taking the chance to dump all Over Fence images I’ve found in the last couple of weeks~ Cinema Cafe has recently published a couple of new stills from the film, which opens on September 17th.
A few items on Yu Aoi’s upcoming film, which we are calling The Lonely Girl Has Gone, but it should be noted that IMDb has it listed twice— one as Japanese Girls Never Die, and the other as Haruko Azumi Is Missing. Therefore, there is no official English title for the movie, despite the book being listed with the name in YesAsia [1].
According to Eiga.com, the film is set to close this year’s edition of the Shinjuku Cinema Qualite Film Festival (新宿シネマカリテの映画祭) in Tokyo, as part of the Qualite Fantastic! Cinema Collection 2016 (カリテ・ファンタスティック!シネマコレクション2016) presenting 71 films from 16 countries… including Taiwan’s Our Times [Trailer], which I totally recommend for a fresh rom-com.
The collection will be presented from July 16th to August 19th. In addition, there will also be presentations at Cine Libre Umeda (シネ・リーブル梅田) in Osaka between August 6th to the 26th, and Nakagawa Corona Cinema World (中川コロナシネマワールド) in Nagoya, Aichi, between August 6th to September 2nd.
I also updated my Yu Aoi Films Ranked post with an Umineko watch, which was better than I was expecting from its IMDb rating. It’s totally worth the 6.5-7 rating on Douban, though… even if Yu-chan is barely in it. The subtitles available are poor, though, but they make do~
I can’t believe it’s been 8 years since. Last month I remembered Last Friends and Juri Ueno, and all my Asian entertainment fever years, which is coming back, I can feel it. Going to Japan, having Kirin Tea, Calbee potato chips, getting JiNS Air Frame glasses, eating tokoroten~ the whole fan experience. lol
So~ to celebrate this fan-niversary, here’s an image of Yu-chan in her Oha-garu days~
So there’s been some rumors around, I’m not going to discuss… but they did turn out this super duper cute kiddie picture of Solar, and after I went all lady-like saying “omygoshshessocuuuuuuute,”
Last October I reported about Yu-chan returning to the leading-lady gig with Daigo Matsui’s AZUMI HARUKO wa Yukuefumei (アズミ・ハルコは行方不明). Twitter has just shown me a first still. There’s also a music video by Ishizaki Huwie (石崎ひゅーい) titled Flower Vase (花瓶の花, Kabin no Hana) attached to the press release on natalie.mu, but it’s geo-blocked :*(
Did I tell you? I’m going to Japan next week! It’ll be less than 2 weeks, but I’m going! I’m mad excited and totally nervous. I feel there’s so much to do and so little time, all I’m hoping is that I don’t get lost. xD Anyway~
This just popped up in my searches~ Yu Aoi is doing another rendition of John Ford’s 1600s incest tragedy ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, under the Japanese name Aware Kanojo ha Shofu (あわれ彼女は娼婦), which had already been presented back in 2006 with Eri Fukatsu, Shosuke Tanihara and Mikami Hiroshi [1][2]. The brother half of this story will be played by stage/voice actor Kenji Urai (浦井健治).
The play was translated by Odajima Yushi (小田島雄志), and is being directed by Kuriyama Tamiya (栗山民也).
The play will begin on June 8th 2016 until the 26th.
You can check the varying schedules available at the New National Theatre Tokyo website.Prices ranges from 8,640円; 5,400円; 3,240円 and 1,620円.
You can check two interviews with both of them over at Spice [1][2].
I ran into this video on YouTube from the Off the Great Wall channel, and they got a bit of flack over the fact that a vast majority of their picks (3 picks for each of the four speakers) were East Asians xD — only one South Asian pick, because Aishwarya has to be everywhere xD, and then there were the Asian-American (Lucy Liu, I don’t think she’s mixed… is she? And she makes it twice~), the Euro-Asian (but basically) Asian-Americans (Maggie Q + Olivia Munn), and (off the official list) the Euro-Asian (Thai-Swede Praya Lundberg).
The thing is beauty is such a subjective element- whatever floats your boat depends on who you are, cultural background, upbringing, etc. But I do agree with Dan (though he doesn’t apply his own rule when it comes to Munn) — especially when making lists — Staying Power is important.
So I do agree 100% that Gong Li deserves that spot. She’s fabulous and continues to be even more fabulous… In Bollywood talk, Gong Li basically started her career doing de-glam roles in banned Zhang Yimou movies. She was a villager so often, wife of gangsters; and in her 40s, she became an Empress. That’s the complete opposite of the typical Bollywood heroine. She hasn’t been acting much, but a couple of years ago she romanced Andy Lau in a sick powersuit, and just a year or two ago broke everyone’s heart as the wife of a writer during the Cultural Revolution. This year? She’s the baddie in one of the blockbusters on this season- The Monkey King 2. And yeah~ she still looks as fabulous as ever at 50 years old.
Besides staying power? Talent, especially when it comes to celebrities, you know? Someone that can do their job like no other? Interview (variety show appearace) perception is a big plus, but CV is important.
But sometimes, so it happens, I also break my own rules~ lol
Also~ my Pakistan, South East Asian, Middle East and Russian games are not strong. Neither is my Asian-Latino game. So forgive the lack of names there, and I do take suggestions (especially if they come with great movie recommendations~~~).