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CULTURE / Film
Apr 18, 2001

Europe goes Hollywood

Enemy at the Gates Rating: * * * 1/2 Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud Running time: 132 minutes Language: EnglishNow showing You could probably count on one hand the number of European directors with the budgets and grand vision to compete directly with Hollywood films. Somewhere between Luc Besson and...
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Apr 18, 2001

Tight

Event preview by SUZANNAH TARTAN Turntablists are to the new century what lead guitarists were to the last: explorers of new sonic frontiers. The edginess comes not from gangsta rap-style posing but the heady exuberance of beats cut fast and fine.
Events
Apr 17, 2001

Makers won't throw in towel amid cheap import threat

KUMATORI, Osaka Pref. -- In a bid to survive fierce competition from foreign makers, some towel manufacturers and related firms here have joined forces to launch eco-friendly towels next month.
JAPAN
Apr 16, 2001

LDP presidential candidates spar over cure for economy

The four hopefuls in the race to replace Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori remained divided Sunday over their prescriptions for Japan's diseased economy.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 16, 2001

Understanding the message in the madness

Human history is rife with examples of natural phenomenon radically changing his existence — the ice ages and smallpox, to name two. The AIDS virus has had a profound effect on the sexual behavior of many people the world over. Now, a mysterious protein, the prion, is about to change the eating habits...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 15, 2001

Shared interests bolster Sino-Pakistani ties

ISLAMABAD -- As the United States and China were trying to resolve their standoff over the downing of a Chinese plane and the subsequent landing of a U.S. surveillance aircraft on Hainan Island, Pakistan was preparing to welcome Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji.
COMMUNITY
Apr 15, 2001

Where the reading's free and easy

As England was once called a nation of shopkeepers, Japan could be called a nation of readers.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 15, 2001

Cracks in the great wall of China

CHINESE SOCIETY: Change, Conflict and Resistance, edited by Elizabeth J. Perry and Mark Selden. London, Routledge, 2000, 249 pp., $27.99. A single image dominates Western perceptions of the regime in China since the Tiananmen massacre of 1989: that of a government willing to crack down mercilessly...
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2001

Cabinet divided on Lee's visa

Divisions within the government of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori deepened over whether to issue an entry visa to former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui, with five Cabinet ministers urging the reluctant Foreign Ministry for a quick decision to issue the visa.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / LEARNING BY HEART
Apr 13, 2001

Exploring a choice of futures beyond 17

"I am about to die," Takahisa Ide, 17, tells the camera. On his lap is a simple crayon drawing freshly made to illustrate the scene.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2001

Spat over whaling unlikely to sour business

Helen Clark is not afraid to snap at the hand that helps feed her nation.
JAPAN
Apr 12, 2001

Pyongyang welcomes Japan NGO pushing redress

Kyodo News
LIFE / Digital
Apr 12, 2001

Nintendo best positioned to rule

While Sony had the head start and Microsoft the marketing millions, as the battle lines become clearer, it appears that Nintendo may be best positioned to rule over the next generation of videogames.
CULTURE / Film / SHORT TAKES
Apr 11, 2001

Nostalgic views of youth and rebellion

Almost Famous Rating: * * * * Japanese title: 'Ano Kono Penny Lane To' Director:Cameron Crowe Running time: 122 minutes Language: English This spring's pure pop treat is a largely autobiographical tale by Cameron Crowe, a superior piece of '70s nostalgia that deals with his own memories of working...
COMMENTARY
Apr 11, 2001

A turning point for the LDP

The result of the election to choose a new president of the Liberal Democratic Party will be announced today. This will end a domestic political vacuum that has persisted since Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori revealed his intention of stepping down, over a month ago.
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Apr 11, 2001

Abe's enchanted villa inspires sublime pottery

In peaceful hamlets throughout Japan, local potters work at their own pace while garnering a loyal local following. There are literally thousands of such ceramists, and the serene environment in which they work nurtures and supports their artistic endeavors in subtle ways.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 10, 2001

Spy-plane incident bolsters PLA position

BEIJING -- America may translate as the "beautiful country" in Chinese, but it is also known as the arrogant superpower heir to the European invaders who carved up parts of China in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The spy-plane incident is rapidly inflating the hate element of China's love-hate relationship...
COMMUNITY
Apr 8, 2001

Keeping your eyes on the skies

In November 1999, the Leonid meteor storm returned, brighter in the night skies than it had been for 33 years, prompting many to turn out to watch the spectacular celestial show.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2001

Rice farmer ends family tradition by turning to flowers, vegetables

AKITA -- Masakazu Miyakawa, 38, a resident of the village of Ogata in Akita Prefecture, sat in his flower seedling greenhouse one April night three years ago, worrying about his farm.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2001

Ainu-language picture book, CD released

Efforts by an independent TV producer in Tokyo to hand down the traditions of the Ainu and their history have come to fruition via an illustrated storybook and a compact disc.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2001

Joint effort urged on youth crime

An Education Ministry panel proposed Friday that parents and schools, police and other relevant bodies communicate with each other and work closely to try to detect early signs of juveniles contemplating crimes in a bid to stop them, ministry sources said.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Apr 7, 2001

Rebeka Majid

At the beginning of this year, the Asian Ladies Friendship Society was formally renamed the Asia-Pacific Ladies Friendship Society. "This name better reflects the society's present composition," said Mrs. Rebeka Majid, wife of the ambassador of Bangladesh.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2001

Mori asks that Lee be issued a visa

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori has asked Foreign Minister Yohei Kono to issue an entry visa to former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui should he apply for one, several government sources said Friday.
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Apr 6, 2001

Opening the doors to the world

"How many Islamic people are there in the world?" Andrea Landis asks a class of 11th-graders at Ohara High School.
JAPAN
Apr 5, 2001

Crown Princess has cold, skips Kyoto

The Crown Princess canceled a three-day visit to Kyoto due to a cold, the Imperial Household Agency said Wednesday.
CULTURE / Film
Apr 4, 2001

Yummy, yummy, yummy, she's got love in her tummy

You know how a woman says "I'm not 16 anymore" as a prelude to making decisions and realigning her life? It's a phrase that signals her decision to stick to one guy, one career, a single brand of facial cream. Goodbye to psychedelic craziness, hello to . . . smoking cigarettes in bed, in the dark, on...
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2001

Spy satellite office set up by Cabinet

The government is gearing up to launch multipurpose information satellites as early as next year, setting up a new office Monday to push the long-awaited plan.
COMMENTARY
Apr 1, 2001

Banks offer no miracle cures

LONDON -- This is a tale of two banks, combined with a large dose of blind faith and credulity.

Longform

After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic