Tag: japan

  • Oh, Eita! Why Thou Maketh Me Cry?

    EitaLOL, I don’t even know if that’s grammatically correct, but it will do~~

    So… I got ready to watch Atsu-Hime. Why? Because! Because in about… 5hrs? Yes, I should wake up at 6am, NHK will be showing the last episode of Atsu-Hime (ep50) and I just got up to date with episode 37, and read the summary for the rest (up to ep49, which I saw last week without understanding anything).

    Anyway, I also saw some interview on Friday afternoon that NHK did to Aoi Miyazaki… which I didn’t understand either~~ LOL’ at least not the majority of what they were talking about.

    Atsu-Hime is cool, you know? She doesn’t piss me off like a certain previous Taiga Drama I saw before starring some singer who happens to sing the closing theme of Osen. *cough cough* Anyway~~ I know I may be girly for saying this, but I really liked the drama for the Aoi Miyazaki (Okatsu, Atsu-Hime, Midai-sama? and Tenshoin-sama) and Eita (Naogoro, Tatewaki… and does he change his name more??) Yeah, all those names…. but I always really looked forward to their scenes together, which almost always make me cry~~~ hence the title. I’ve been sad for Atsu-Hime alone… you know, like when that thing with Kikumoto happened, and the thing with Ikushima. I’m just blaming Eita because I seem to always cry with anything he’s on. LOL – Let’s see… I’ve cried in Last Friends (with that Eita and Juri scene in the park), and I’ve cried with Memories of Matsuko… though, I don’t think that was because of Eita, but the whole “all characters singing the song, and the going up the stairs” gets me everytime with the “Okaeri”

    Hmm… well, I didn’t cry in Nodame, maybe cried with the laughing hard xD The fact is, he’s made me cry quite a bit on Atsu-Hime alone… you know that friends-turned-lovers thing, and then with the in-love-but-afar-and-never-to-see-you-again thing? UGH, all of that with the combination of Aoi Miyazaki and Eita’s acting. I’m telling you, it will get you. And it’s not the love thing either, because they both were on that film Sukida, which I thought was boring as boring can be~~~ It’s the whole political thing, and all the other people and fate that are keeping them apart that kills me. And if the preview from last week is any indication, I think I will be crying quite a bit this one last time. xD

    Epic love. Something a certain someone who didn’t make Harmony happen couldn’t achieve. LOL’

  • Yu Aoi Film Discussion – HURA GARU – Hula Girls

    This film discussion doesn’t come until after the Honey & Clover live action movie, but I thought it will be good to post this now since Cinemax Latin America is showing the film this December and January (and perhaps scattered February, check times here).

    This was probably the third film I saw of Yu, I was most impressed with the fact that Asians could move their booties like that… call it my Latin American gene that told me that the Asian gene makes you unfit to dancing. xD

    Here’s the 12-part video on YouTube. Or just wait for it on cable…

    A little about the film:
    (from Wikipedia)
    It’s a 2006 Japanese-award-winning film based on true events of a small coal mining town facing the shut down of the mine, and looking at the loss of +2000 jobs. While all the grownups seemed to be fuzzing about the future of their coal-legacy, a young group of girls see a gleam of hope in the opening of The Hawaiian Center, and hula dancing.

    Genre: Drama, Comedy and dancing!
    Starring: Yasuko Matsuyuki, Etsushi Toyokawa, Yu Aoi, Eri Tokunaga, Shoko Ikezu & Shizuyo Yamazaki
    Duration: 2hrs

    Spoilers ahead, you’ve been warned.

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  • Camouflage – Aoi Yu x Yottsu no Uso – Chapter 1

    Jinseitte Uso Mitai, or Life is like a Lie, is the first 3-episode-chapter of the Yu Aoi WOWOW drama Camouflage (previously known as Aoi Yu x 4 Lies) which aired at the beginning of the year, and it’s already on DVD. Finally saw! WEEEE – I waited… what, 6 months??? And still haven’t finished ‘coz no one is translating, and my translator bailed on me… dunno where he is.

    So I re-watched the three episodes last night, though the 3rd episode only had subs in the story and not on the introductions (in which the director and writer explain a bit), and the ending (where the photographer shows and explains the photos taken), so kinda missed some of the episode.

    Anyway…

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  • La Bailarina de Izu (The Dancing Girl of Izu) by Yasunari Kawabata

    la-bailarina-de-izu-kawabata

    Also known as Izu no Odoriko, or The Izu Dancer is the first published work (1926) to achieve popularity and acclaimed by Yasunari Kawabata. The book, very much like Kyoto, is about nothing at all… in fact, this is just a compilation of stories put together.

    The first one, which gives the name to the book is one of the few interesting ones, as well as Diario de mi Decimosexto Año that tells some of the moments of Kawabata’s dying grandfather. Some other stories I liked were La Princesa del Palacio Dragón, El Camino de Monedas, and Una Oración en Lengua Materna.

    Despite that, the just over 200-page book seemed to be a very long and slow book, compared to the reading time it took me to finish Kyoto. If you are a fan of Yasunari Kawabata’s writing about a time and a place and the people, you might enjoy this compilation of stories. If you’re looking for an introduction to him, or an epic tale about Japan… you might want to skip this one.

  • Dango San Kyou Dai

    When I watched Memories of Matsuko, there was one scene when Matsuko’s life was already going to the gutters, she was lying on the garbage bags, and she was watching TV. I immediately recognized the song as an Okaasan to Issho song… today I decided to look for it, and found it!

    Okaasan to Issho 1999 song, at first I thought it was a Takoyaki Mambo song, but I was lucky enough to find it on a website listing all the songs. Video and Romaji after the break!
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  • Yu Aoi Film Discussion – Nanako to Nanao – TV Movie

    I was gonna apologize for not getting the time to write a new review, luckily I found that this reviewed followed next. Yay! xD

    Nanako to Nanao – Ane to Otouto ni Nareru Hi

    I have no idea where to put this since it’s not a film, but it’s also not a series. Sure it is, for some reason, labeled as a TV show or series… but no. It’s a TV movie, people. What is the difference between a film/movie and a TV movie, you say? Well, first it’s medium… then it’s budget and resources. In the end, you can almost always tell the difference between one and the other.

    What’s this TV movie about?
    Well… let’s see~ It’s a 2004 NHK Made-for-TV-Film about a high school girl named Nanako (Yu Aoi), who is often labeled as weird and anti-social due to trust issues with people caused by the betrayal she feels her dad committed. Seven years after his death, Nanako is thrown into the unusual situation to cohabit with her half-brother, Nanao (Yuri Chinen).

    Genre: Drama… kinda cute, but drama.
    Starring: Yu Aoi, Yuri Chinen
    Duration: 1:15hr

    Spoilers ahead, you’ve been warned.

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  • Atsu-Hime – Aoi Miyazaki and Eita luvin’

    I am just about to watch episode 8, but I just had to mention Aoi Miyazaki on episode 1. You all must see her on this scene at school (for boys), pretending to be a boy… and I mean, can you believe? Aoi Miyazaki and Eita playing kiddos? Bizarre concept idea… and it doesn’t always work, but there ARE cases. You’d know that if you ever saw El Chavo del 8.

    Atsu-Hime - Aoi Miyazaki
    Aoi Miyazaki as Okatsu (later known as Atsu-Hime) getting Naogoro (Eita) out of a lecture by her father.

    Grownups playing little kids, you can see the are grownups, but their acting totally works. This is the case…

  • Just Felt like Blogging…

    about nothing in particular. I might be attending to a few events to this year’s Semana Cultural del Japon (Japanese Cultural Week) – so might get photos.

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  • Eri my Love – Finally!

    Saw it. It’s a pity more people didn’t get to watch this…

    11-one-or-two-minute-episodes + a five-minute-SP, some of them were pretty funny and showcased Asami Mizukawa’s funnyness. Is it wrong that I laughed so hard when Eri hit Ogurin with the paper-fan?

    After the break, enjoy a +1minute of Eri (Asami) impersonating Ruka (Juri), Ogurin impersonating Takeru (Eita) and finally Eri impersonating Michiru (Masami) – Laugh Out Loud moment… well, if YOU’ve seen the series anyway…

    I literally laughed my ass off with Asami’s Michiru’s spot-on laugh. Seriously… if you want to watch it, the LJ Juri Community has it~~~ You either need an account or maybe join the community…

  • The Aoi’s Power!

    HIYAH!

    LOL’

    Well, in the meantime while I figure out my video ripping…

    I’ll leave you with a cute CM with Aoi Miyazaki and Yu Aoi, who… of course! worked together in the… 2000? 2001? Gaichu (Harmful Insect).

    I really like both Aoi’s work, and I am actually watching Atsu-Hime on NHK (whenever I catch it on). People seem to want to make them compete? Both are good, but Miyazaki might be a tad more known… I noticed many of her films on DVD do include English and even French subs, while Yu’s are not subtitled at all – is that a cause or a result? Subtitles are EVERYTHING for broad distribution, I think.

    Anyway… geez! How cute is this CM? They both know each other for 5, 6 years?

    Extra.