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James Hadfield
For James Hadfield's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Veteran peace activist Setsuko Yamazato warns of the gathering “clouds of war” in Chie Mikami’s eight-year chronicle of the militarization of Okinawa.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 14, 2024
‘Clouds of War’: The real story of Okinawa is its people
“Clouds of War” is an unwieldy but heartfelt portrait of citizens fighting back against militarization in Okinawa.
A man (Pierre Taki) who gives sea burials to cremated remains finds himself in hot water after a customer asks him to scatter the ashes of a murderer in “Horizon.”
CULTURE / Film
Mar 7, 2024
‘Horizon’: Ethical dilemma makes for muted drama
Katsuya Kobayashi gives his cast space to wade through murky moral decisions in his directorial debut, “Horizon.”
A group of departed souls trapped in limbo tries to find closure — and finish an uncompleted movie — in Michihito Fujii’s “The Parades.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 29, 2024
‘The Parades’: Glossy afterlife drama is no ‘After Life’
Michihito Fujii’s wistful film is less than the sum of its influences.
A bloody demonic outbreak strikes Japan in “Visitors: Complete Edition.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 22, 2024
‘Visitors’ revels in all its gory glory with deadpan humor
Kenichi Ugana’s extended version of his brilliant splatter short is endearingly shaggy — and messy.
Building off her own experiences, “Voice” director Yukiko Mishima considers the effects of sexual assault and how the survivors and those around them continue with their lives.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 2, 2024
‘Voice’ examines the reverberations of trauma
Yukiko Mishima’s film draws from the director's own experience to shed light on life after experiencing assault.
Takuro Adachi’s documentary “Sono Kodo ni Mimi wo Ateyo” follows doctors working in Aichi Prefecture’s busiest ER over nine months.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 1, 2024
‘Sono Kodo ni Mimi o Ateyo’: An absorbing dive into pressures of the ER
Filmed at the height of the pandemic, Takuro Adachi’s documentary spotlights emergency room doctors who attend to patients from every strata of society.
Two lovers on the run (Misa Wada, left, and Takahiro Fukuya) wrestle with poverty and a monstrous mutant appendage in Taichiro Natsume’s “The Beast Hand.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 25, 2024
‘The Beast Hand’: Splatter movie has more soul than guts
Misa Wada proves a standout in Taichiro Natsume’s surprisingly soulful low-budget horror flick.
A scarred war veteran (Kento Yamazaki, center) in early-20th century Hokkaido embarks on a quest to find buried Ainu treasure in “Golden Kamuy.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 18, 2024
‘Golden Kamuy’: Big-budget adaptation glitters rather than dazzles
Shigeaki Kubo’s live-action version of Satoru Noda’s manga series has terrific visuals but doesn't quite stick the landing.
Haru (An Ogawa, center) searches for the origin of a recording left by her late mother, while keeping a watchful eye over two older acquaintances, in “Following the Sound.”
CULTURE / Film
Jan 4, 2024
‘Following the Sound’: A tantalizing and enigmatic study on grief
While Kyoshi Sugita’s fourth feature is a quietly absorbing drama, it leaves a great deal open to interpretation.
A sullen high schooler (Haruka Fukuhara, left) travels back in time and falls in love with a kamikaze pilot (Koshi Mizukami) in “Till We Meet Again on the Lily Hill.”
CULTURE / Film
Dec 14, 2023
‘Till We Meet Again on the Lily Hill’ has its head in the clouds
Yoichi Narita’s romance about a time-traveling teenager who falls for a kamikaze pilot in wartime Japan has the wholesome feel of a propaganda film.
Tomo Kasajima (left) and Asami Shibuya rehearse a scene in Natsuka Kusano’s striking sophomore feature, “Domains.”
CULTURE / Film
Dec 7, 2023
‘Domains’: Hypnotic and truly original
Natsuka Kusano’s experimental, multilayered drama breaks down a tragic event and probes how performances are constructed.
A psychopathic lawyer (Kazuya Kamenashi) finds himself targeted by a serial killer — and decides to fight back — in Takashi Miike’s “Lumberjack the Monster.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 30, 2023
‘Lumberjack the Monster’ will talk you to death
Takashi Miike’s film about a psychopath battling a serial killer fails to deliver on its schlocky potential.
In addition to directing “Kubi,” Takeshi Kitano (second from left) plays Oda Nobunaga’s successor, Hashiba (later Toyotomi) Hideyoshi, in the blood-soaked period film.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 23, 2023
Takeshi Kitano still has a head for provocation
The “Kubi” director doesn’t shy away from causing a commotion, whether it’s in public or in his latest film about a pivotal moment in Japan’s history.
Ryo Kase (top center) gives an audacious performance as warlord Oda Nobunaga in “Kubi.”
CULTURE
Nov 23, 2023
Takeshi Kitano’s ‘Kubi’ cuts great men of history down to size
The blood-drenched period epic offers a queer retelling of the 1582 Honnoji Incident with a ruthless and sadistic Oda Nobunaga at its center.
An out-of-work porn director (Go Ayano, right) goes on a drunken trip down memory lane with one of his dead lover’s former partners (Tasuku Emoto, left) in “A Spoiling Rain.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 2, 2023
‘A Spoiling Rain’: A boozy, rueful requiem for love and porn
Based on a novella, Haruhiko Arai’s drama keeps the melancholy core of its source material but expands it into a personal ode to the erotic film industry.
A young university grad (Kana Kita, right) is introduced to the world of "shunga" erotic art by an older academic (Seiyo Uchino) in “Picture of Spring.”
CULTURE / Film
Oct 19, 2023
‘Picture of Spring’: Smart, silly and lots of fun
Akihiko Shiota’s film about the world of Japanese erotic art feels like a crash course in “shunga” before veering into playfully risque territory.
A struggling novelist (Rie Miyazawa) wrestles with life’s bigger questions after taking a job at a care facility for people with severe disabilities in “The Moon.”
CULTURE / Film
Oct 12, 2023
‘The Moon’: Provocative drama bites off more than it can chew
Yuya Ishii’s film courts controversy with a fictionalized retelling of a real-life knife attack at a care facility for people with mental disabilities.
Sosuke Ikematsu plays two pianists — or is it just one? — pursuing dreams of becoming a jazz musician in late-1980s Tokyo in “Between the White and Black Keys.”
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2023
'Between the White and Black Keys': Offbeat biopic will have you seeing double
Masanori Tominaga’s free-spirited film about jazz pianist Hiroshi Minami captures the vibe of 1980s Tokyo nightlife but remains mostly on the surface.
A Japanese submarine captain (Takao Osawa, center) goes rogue with a nuclear-armed vessel in “The Silent Service.”
CULTURE / Film
Sep 28, 2023
‘The Silent Service’: Submarine thriller runs shallow
While it has the makings of a potent geopolitical thriller, Kohei Yoshino’s film struggles to work as a standalone feature — or generate thrills.
A con artist (Sakura Ando, top) and her half-brother (Ryosuke Yamada) try to make a getaway from the Osaka underworld in Masato Harada’s “Bad Lands.”
CULTURE / Film
Sep 21, 2023
‘Bad Lands’: Sakura Ando steals scenes in fast-paced thriller
The actor delivers a hypnotic lead turn as a con artist running from the law and a violent ex in Masato Harada’s high-octane film.

Longform

A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world