The Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan's biggest film fest and a showcase for foreign movies that otherwise might never see the light of day here, will run from Oct. 22 to 31 this year. Opening the festival is Robert Zemekis' "The Walk," and the closer is local tearjerker "Kishuten Eki Taminaru" ("Terminal"), which features megastar Koichi Sato.
The Competition section is beefed up this year, with three Japanese movies making the cut: "Foujita" by one of Japan's last remaining auteurs Kohei Oguri; "The Inerasable" ("Zan-e") by artisan Yoshihiro Nakamura; and "Sayonara" by the uniquely progressive Koji Fukada. Of these, "The Inerasable," starring Yuko Takeuchi, apparently takes the J-horror genre to another level — "It goes far beyond the concept of scary," according to programming director Yoshihiko Yatabe. Other worthwhile films in competition from outside Japan include the Brazilian "Nise — The Heart of Madness," with its "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" undertones, and the Iranian whodunnit "The Girl's House."
The Japan Now section features 10 local films released over the past year (with the exception of "0.5 mm"), and also includes a selection of older films by Masato Harada, widely acknowledged as one of the most daring filmmakers working in Japan today. TIFF's pop-up restaurant, Tokyo Cinema Cuisine, will again offer dishes from five renowned chefs.
New sections at the festival include a selection of films starring Ken Takakura and — arriving just in time for Halloween — an all-night screening of classic J-horror films honoring the masters of the genre.