'Family of Strangers': An admirable ode to the institutionalized
Hideyuki Hirayama's latest feature, filmed in a real psychiatric hospital in Nagano Prefecture, tells the story of three residents of an institution who form an unlikely bond
'Farewell Song': Guitars without rock 'n' roll excess
Of all the many breeds of musician out there, few are as stubbornly uncinematic as acoustic singer-songwriters. Forget flamboyance, creative excess, clashing egos and all the other qualities that tend to attract filmmakers to the music industry in the first place. The average singer-songwriter ...
'Hero Mania': Japanese heroes are keeping it real
Why don't Japanese audiences turn up in big numbers for Hollywood superhero movies? The rare success in Japan of the Spider-Man series suggests one answer: Japanese like superheroes just fine, as long as they're flawed humans as well as heroic fighters for justice. Another case ...
NNN Document 16; Fukigen-na Kajitsu; WOWOW
Tokai Television has become an expert on the subject of adoption in Japan, and this Sunday it will air the latest installment in its series "NNN Document 16" (Nippon TV, 12:55 a.m.) The program follows Emiko, a 56-year-old woman who only last year discovered she ...
'Bakuman' depicts a life-or-death quest for manga success
High school kids dream big dreams, and in Japan one of the biggest is to be a successful manga artist. The financial rewards for a hit manga published in a national magazine and sold in paperback editions are substantial. And the accompanying recognition and ...
