'Alley Cat': Hideo Sakaki delivers a fresh take on the buddy movie
In Japanese films, a lot of what used to be considered extreme is now routine. Geysers of blood and flying body parts may still thrill fanboys, but to me that sort of play violence has become about as exciting as the spin cycle. Hideo Sakaki's ...
'A Drop from Tomato': Planting the seeds of reconciliation
For independent filmmakers from elsewhere in Asia with high censorship or distribution hurdles, Japan must look like paradise. Last year, most of the 581 local films released here were low-budget indie titles. Hardly any of their makers got rich, but at least their films ...
Quadruple amputee yakuza raises hell in 'Daruma'
Yakuza are not usually thought of as disabled, but more than a few have had their pinky fingers, or a section thereof, sliced off with a blade. Traditionally, this disabling is punishment for violating the gang code. In Hideo Sakaki's yakuza shocker "Kiyamachi Daruma" ("Daruma"), ...
TIFF is your chance to catch up with Japanese film
The Tokyo International Film Festival, now in its 26th edition, has had its share of detractors, dissing it for everything from competition lineups of major festival castoffs (no longer true since TIFF stopped insisting on world premieres) to a Special Screening section that is ...
