
Film / Reviews Sep 3, 2020
‘The Brightest Roof in the Universe’: Looks nice, lacks sparkle
by James Hadfield
Michihito Fujii changes pace but can’t quite find the right tempo on this lightweight follow-up to gritty award winner “The Journalist.”
‘The Brightest Roof in the Universe’: Looks nice, lacks sparkle
Michihito Fujii changes pace but can’t quite find the right tempo on this lightweight follow-up to gritty award winner “The Journalist.”
‘I Never Shot Anyone’: This nostalgic neo-noir misses its mark
Junji Sakamoto's neo-noir film about a writer leading a shadowy double life has a cast laden with heavyweight talents, but it doesn’t quite hit the spot.
Prize-winning short 'Oh Lucy' brings humor to the classroom
Given the potential global audience available on digital film platforms, it is surprising how few Japanese filmmakers have invested in foreign-language subtitles to get their films out there. Thus, it was a pleasant surprise to find director Atsuko Hirayanagi's short comedy "Oh Lucy" up ...
Momoi is on fire in her new indie film 'Hee'
In her four-decade acting career Kaori Momoi has always been a free-spirited stand-out, indifferent to convention. But beneath her easygoing attitude and signature drawling delivery (which used to make me wonder what she had been ingesting before the cameras started rolling) was a thorough ...
The foreign element at the Kyoto International Film and Art Festival
While covering the recently ended second edition of the Kyoto International Film and Art Festival, I again realized that being a non-native isn't always such a bad deal in a country that prides itself on its omotenashi (hospitality) to outsiders. Sponsored by Yoshimoto Kogyo, an ...