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August 07, 2025
 

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Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo star as Mario and Luigi in 1993’s “Super Mario Bros.,” the first big-budget, big-screen attempt at a video game adaptation.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 13, 2023

The critics were wrong. The ’90s ‘Super Mario’ flick is awesome.

On the film’s 30th anniversary, the box-office bomb is back in Japanese cinemas for a limited time with a new 4K remaster.
Arata Oshima follows the events of Sept. 27, 2022 — the day of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s funeral — to capture the state of the nation in the documentary, “The Day of the State Funeral.”
CULTURE / Film
Sep 14, 2023

‘The Day of the State Funeral’ bears witness to the end of the Abe era

Arata Oshima’s documentary about the official send-off for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is a portrait of a nation adrift.
King Charles III coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey on May 6
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 13, 2023

Charles III has been a very dull monarch, thank God

Defying expectations, King Charles III is popular. Losing the fervor or his years as prince and being dependable — even dull — has paid off.
Sofia Coppola (right), Bill Murray (center) and Scarlett Johansson attend the Venice Film Festival to present their movie “Lost in Translation” in August 2003.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 13, 2023

The complex legacy of ‘Lost in Translation,’ 20 years on

Sofia Coppola's acclaimed film relaunched Tokyo's global fame, but along the way it forgot to show its Japanese characters some love.
Yoji Yamada cast familiar faces in his latest heartwarming family drama “Mom, Is That You?!” including veteran Sayuri Yoshinaga (right), who has appeared in three other Yamada films. Yoshinaga plays the mother of a stressed salaryman (Yo Oizumi, left) in the new film.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 15, 2023

Film veteran Yoji Yamada warms the soul with 'Mom, Is That You?!'

Even after 60 years in the industry, the director continues to make hits. His latest offers a hearty helping of deeply felt human truths.
Monkey D. Luffy (Inaki Godoy), a young wannabe pirate who leads a crew of misfits driven by personal missions, is defined by his ability to stretch his body, making him elastic and indestructible in every way.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 16, 2023

‘One Piece’: Netflix tries to translate the anime magic (again)

Based on a remarkably endurable manga and anime franchise, the live-action series may satisfy fans, but most of the personality of the original is gone.
The Toronto International Film Festival opened on Sept. 7 with admiring applause for "The Boy and the Heron," Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki's latest movie — a meditation on love, loss and the horrors of World War II.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 16, 2023

Hayao Miyazaki has ideas for next project after 'The Boy and the Heron'

Junichi Nishioka, Studio Ghibli's vice president for international distribution, says the director "shows the willingness to create something new."
In "Dragon Palace," Hiromi Kawakami's new collection of short stories, middle-aged and elderly characters inhabit a world in which sexuality and attractiveness are liberated.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 17, 2023

Hiromi Kawakami's 'Dragon Palace': Delightfully raunchy and funny

In her new collection of short stories, the author returns to a world of fluid transfiguration with dry matter-of-factness and knowing humor.
The refined fusion cuisine at Toki reflects the delicacy of Kyoto’s famous kaiseki (multicourse Japanese haute cuisine).
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 17, 2023

Does whisky have a place in Kyoto's fine dining? Hibiki says yes.

My meal opens with a sparkling mix of soda and Hibiki Blossom Harmony, a blend finished with grain spirit aged in cherrywood casks.
Ryo Onishi’s debut feature “Feelingscape” tells a slice-of-life story about a blind man struggling to connect to others while affirming his agency.
CULTURE
Sep 16, 2023

‘Feelingscape’: Ordinary lives made poignant

Ryo Onishi’s debut feature about a man living with a visual disability and his relationships goes into close detail that is both rare and revealing.
As Chinese leader Xi Jinping throws up a forcefield of security controls to repel perceived foreign threats, Beijing’s message to the public is that spooks are everywhere.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 18, 2023

Xi’s security obsession turns Chinese citizens into spy hunters

The push comes after Xi chaired a National Security Council meeting in May that stressed the importance of "extreme-case scenario” thinking.
The far-right Confederation Liberty and Independence party rally against measures imposed by the Polish government to stem the spread of COVID-19, in Warsaw in October 2020.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 18, 2023

The far right is advancing in a vulnerable Europe again

Disruptors in far-right political parties are taking advantage of resentment born out of COVID-19, a cost-of-living crisis and the war in Ukraine.
Montse Tome, the new coach of Spain's women's soccer team, speaks at a news conference in Las Rozas, Spain, on Monday.
SOCCER
Sep 19, 2023

Spain's women's players say their boycott remains, deepening crisis

Should they refuse the call-up, the players could face sanctions including fines of up to $32,000 and the suspension of their federation licence.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 19, 2023

Watchdog starts on-site probe of Bigmotor and Sompo Japan

The investigation aims to dig deeper into the insurance fraud scandal by the leading used-car dealer. The probe is likely to take several months.
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang holds a copy of China's constitution during a news conference at the Media Center of the National People's Congress in Beijing on March 7.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 19, 2023

China ousted foreign minister over affair in U.S., report says

Top officials in China were told in August that a Communist Party inquiry into Qin uncovered "lifestyle issues.”
Urawa's notoriously fervent supporters are known for packing stands, as well as for repeated off-the-pitch incidents that have impacted the club's reputation.
SOCCER / J. League / From the Spot
Sep 20, 2023

Urawa pays price for hooliganism after years of looking the other way

The J. League club has been banned from playing in Japan's top club tournament after more than a hundred supporters took part in an August pitch invasion.
Fans watch the F1 Tokyo Festival outside Kabukicho Tower in Shinjuku Ward on Wednesday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 20, 2023

Formula One fans fill up Tokyo festival ahead of Japanese Grand Prix

Thousands skipped work and school to get a glimpse of two-time champion Max Verstappen, hometown hero Yuki Tsunoda and other drivers.
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.
A TV director (Kanna Hashimoto, left) is haunted by the dead wife of an old office crush (Daiki Shigeoka) in “The Forbidden Play.”
CULTURE / Film
Sep 21, 2023

‘The Forbidden Play’: J-horror mishmash offers satisfying scares

Horror legend Hideo Nakata's latest flick is a halfway return to form, in part due to actor First Summer Uika's chilling turn as a vengeful wraith.
Spain's players during during a training session in Oliva near Valencia, on Wednesday.
SOCCER
Sep 21, 2023

Women's soccer players in Spain to end boycott

As part of a deal to end the move, between six and nine senior officials of the football federation will be invited to leave their jobs or will be fired.
A sign at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on July 6. AI and quantum information science have recently become a major issue in international politics.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 26, 2023

How emerging technologies can bring power to states

While the technologies are expected to largely change how militaries, economies and societies are operated, many of their social impacts remain unclear.
Freshness and seasonality, along with the chef's ability to highlight both, feature heavily in Japanese fine dining.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 24, 2023

Does Japan's fine dining philosophy stand alone?

While Japanese fine dining is not as categorically defined as French gastronomie, a culture of refined dining has long existed in the country.
John Williams (right) and Seiji Ozawa (center) have been friends for decades. Their long-awaited reunion in Japan comes courtesy of a musical collaboration between Williams and the Saito Kinen Orchestra for the 31st edition of Ozawa’s annual music festival.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 24, 2023

Music legends John Williams and Seiji Ozawa reunite at Matsumoto festival

The American composer and conductor led a special program featuring his famous film scores at his long-time friend's annual event in Nagano Prefecture.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 22, 2023

Is this the end for Japan’s iconic Studio Ghibli?

It’s tough to find an appropriate analogy for the Ghibli sale; the only one that comes close is Disney's purchase of Pixar for $7.4 billion in 2006.
Paternity leave has not taken root in Japan due to concerns over decreases in income and disruptions to the work side of life.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 24, 2023

Japan local governments working to encourage paternity leave

From Saga to Yamanashi, local officials are trying a variety of policies to give their male employees a chance to better participate in family life.
Members of the Writers Guild of America picket outside of Universal Studios in Universal City, California, on Friday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Sep 25, 2023

Striking Hollywood writers reach tentative deal with studios

The WGA settlement, while a milestone, will not return Hollywood to work. The SAG-AFTRA actors' union remains on strike.
People take part in a protest against the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's redevelopment project for the Meiji Jingu Gaien district in Tokyo in February.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 25, 2023

Petitioners try to halt razing of thousands of trees in historic Tokyo park

Tokyo's percentage of public green space is far lower than other major cities such as New York, Seoul and London.
Rupert Murdoch in his office in New York in 2007. Murdoch's decision to step down from the boards of News Corp. and Fox Corp. marks the end of a decadeslong media career.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 25, 2023

Rupert Murdoch, the last of the press barons

No living person has influenced the media landscape like Rupert Murdoch. Should we view his career in a favorable light, or is his legacy one of darkness?
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) banner outside the party's state office in Kolkata, India.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 26, 2023

Modi's ruling BJP plots election drive of epic scale

Growing anti-incumbency sentiment is conspiring with a newly formed national alliance to pose what BJP officials say will be Modi's toughest test by far.
Nintendo Tokyo at the Shibuya Parco department store complex, the first such official Nintendo store in Japan
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 27, 2023

Microsoft buying Nintendo would have been a disaster

Imagine the clash of cultures. Nintendo executives famously cut their own salaries rather than lay off workers during the failure of the Wii U.
How Pakistan shot down India's cutting-edge fighter using Chinese gear
An Indian Air Force pilot gets out of a Rafale fighter jet during its induction ceremony at an air force station in Ambala, India, September 2020.
China’s unbeatable new production model export
China is not merely moving more goods; it is exporting a new, ruthlessly efficient production model powered by automation, AI and state-guided industrial optimization.
Trump: The $550 billion pledged by Japan is 'our money'
U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday. He told CNBC that investment pledges are like signing bonuses.
Australia announces new warships will come from Japan
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami-class frigate Niyodo sails at an undisclosed location in this image released Tuesday.
Japan swelters as previous heat record melts
A worker tries to cool down a street in central Tokyo Tuesday as wide swaths of the Kanto region sweltered under intense heat. In Gunma Prefecture, the temperature rose 41.8 degrees Celsius, the highest ever recorded in Japan.
Photographer Bleg Bayraktar is winning social media with politeness
A video on Bayraktar's Instagram of approaching an elderly worker in Tokyo's Shibuya has gone viral, garnering almost 9 million views.
Australia announces new warships will come from Japan
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami-class frigate Niyodo sails at an undisclosed location in this image released Tuesday.
Fuji Rock's weekend of surprises was one of its best yet
Radwimps lead singer Yojiro Noda threw himself into the rock band’s Green Stage performance ahead of headliner Vampire Weekend.
How Trump is gaslighting on climate change — with Japan’s help
The Bishu Maru LNG tanker, owned by Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, next to the Freeport LNG terminal in Texas
With a new distillery, Suntory makes a spirited move on gin market
A staff inspects a distillation pot still at Suntory's new Osaka Spirits & Liqueurs Craft Distillery, which will focus on gin production and help Suntory capture a bigger slice of the fast-growing gin market.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped
By Elizabeth Beattie

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