Starring: Hiroaki Iwanaga (Guts), Takahiro Sakurai (Griffith), Toa Yukinaru (Casca), Aki Toyosaki (Charlotte), Kenta Miyake (Nosferatu Zodd)
Possible spoilers ahead. This is a new teaser trailer for the third Berserk feature and it gives us a glimpse into the mayhem, carnage and trauma that comes at the very end of the Golden Age Arc. This is where the story goes from conventional medieval combat to full on supernatural horror and I was left pretty horrified at the end which just reinforced how swept up in the Berserk saga I was. It is directed by Toshiyuki Kubooka who was the director of the previous two instalments and Studio 4°C look to have continued with their excellent animation.
After Guts leaves the employ of the Band of the Hawk it all goes very wrong for Griffith and The Band of the Hawk. Casca does her best to hold the remnants of the mercenary army together but with Midland’s soldiers closing in on them their days seem numbered. Until Guts steps back into the picture. This, however, will lead him to the Eclipse Ceremony and the horrific creation of Femto.
Scotland Loves Anime announced their line-up of titles and it includes some of the newest anime films to premiere in Japanese cinemas this year. The festival is split up between two locations over two weeks. Glasgow goes first from 12th – 14th October and that is followed up by Edinburgh from the 19th to the 21st October. The films include major titles like The Wolf Children Rain and Snow, Nerawareta Gakuen, Gyo, and the live-action Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. There is also talk of a mystery film which will be shown which sounds intriguing. There are also lectures and other cultural events but the main draw will definitely be the films.
Anyway… the line-ups for both locations look the same and I will detail the films below but here is a quick guide:
Starring: Hiromasa Taguchi (Goth), Haruka Tomatsu (Mako), Kouichi Yamadera (Kunstlijk), Sakiko Uran (Miko), Minako Kotobuki (Mutsuko), Chafurin (Bach), Hiroshi Yanaka (Mozart), Dai Matsumoto (Beethoven), Hozumi Goda (Schubert)
The CGI film After School Midnighters is directed by Hitoshi Takekiyo who was behind the 2007 short which inspired this. It has been submitted for an Oscar in the best animated feature category. It stars the following seiyuu: Hiromasa Taguchi (Father in Kaasan), Haruka Tomatsu (Yunyun in CANAAN, Asuna in Sword Art Online), Minako Kotobuki (Yūko in A-Channel, Hamaji in Fuse: A Gun Girl’s Detective Story) and Kouichi Yamadera (Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop).
When midnight arrives a human anatomical model maed Kunstlijk (Yamadera) comes to life in a school science classroom and goes on to have fun with a skeleton named Goth (Taguchi).
Writer: George Nolfi, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Andrew Knauer
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Forest whitaker, Peter Stormare, Harry Dean Stanton, Rodrigo Santoro, Genesis Rodriguez, Luis Guzman, Johnny Knoxville,
While I only review American films on this blog if they have impressed me enough there are a number of Japanese and Korean directors working in Hollywood right now and so I post trailers for their projects. Right now Takashi Shimizu (Ju-On franchise, Reincarnation) is putting the finishing touches on 7500 (following the demise of the production company behind it, when that will get a release I have no idea) while Park Chan-Wook (Oldboy, J.S.A.) is handling Stoker. Kim Jee-Woon looks set to deliver the biggest blockbuster of the bunch in the form The Last Stand starring action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) was once in the LAPD but after a police operation goes badly wrong he leaves to become the sheriff of a quiet town named Sommerton Junction which is on the border with Mexico. Just when he thought he was free Owens is soon forced back into the thick of the action when an infamous drug baron escapes the FBI and makes a dash for the border. Owens will join forces with FBI agents Bannister (Whitaker) and Richards (Rodriguez) as they aim to stop the bad guy.
So this is a classic action film the likes of which propelled Scwarzenegger to fame. I actually enjoyed some of his films like True Lies but the real draw for me is Kim Jee-Woon. I have reviewed two of his films so far – The Quiet Family, A Bittersweet Life – and need to review the others I have seen (although the prospect of re-watching The Good, the Bad, the Weird leaves me feeling tired…). The trailer looks pretty awesome – he is bringing his post-modern take on films to Hollywood. My only reservation is that Kim Jee-Woon is not writing. That job is being handled by Jeffrey Nachmanoff (The Day After Tomorrow), Andrew Knauer and George Nolfi (co-writer of The Bourne Ultimatum and the writer and director of The Adjustment Bureau). Not bad but not brilliant. What does look good is the cast which includes top veteran actors like Forest Whitaker (Ghost Dog, The Last King of Scotland), Luis Guzman (Magnolia, Snake Eyes), Harry Dean Stanton (Alien, Repo Man) and Peter Stormare (Fargo).
In 1974 Leiji Matsumoto (Galaxy Express 999, Captain Harlock) and Yoshinubu Mishizaki Space Battleship Yamato was first broadcast and it became a massive hit. 38 years later we are seeing the remake of the series slowly released in Japan. There are 26 episodes in a TV series which have been broken up into three movies which will get a limited Japanese theatrical release before the 26 episode TV series airs on Japanese TV next year. This is the trailer for the third movie which covers episodes 7 – 10.
In the year 2199, the human race has lost a war against alien invaders named Gamilos and have been driven underground due to the threat of radiation. Scientists give humanity a year before it is destroyed. When young officers Susumu Kodai and Daisuke Shima retrieve a capsule from a ship that crash-landed on Mars they set off to Iscandar on the other side of the Magellan Galaxy which has the technology to smash the Gamilos and save Earth. The battleship Yamato is sent on a mission to get that technology.
The role of director is taken up by two men: Yutaka Izubuchi is a veteran designer in the anime industry having worked on anime like RahXephon, Patlabor and early entries in the Yamato franchise and Akihiro Enomoto (Fafner, Mobile Suit Gundam 00). Nobuteru Yuki (Escaflowne) acting as character designer and animation director.
There are a lot of veteran seiyuu involved with Daisuke Ono (Shizuo Heiwajima in Durarara!!), Kenichi Suzumura (Uta no Prince Sama), Aya Hisakawa (Yoko Yuzuki in Mōryō no Hako), Rina Satou (Mikoto Misaka (A Certain Magical Index), and Rie Tanaka (Sammy in Time of Eve).
The animation is produced by Xebec (Nyarko-san: Another Crawling Chaos) and AIC (Burn Up).
I replied to Andina’s Liebster blog award, reviewed the awesome Korean thriller Desire to Kill, dug into the Japanese films and TV (Kiyoshi Kurosawa is there with his latest TV show!) at the Venice International Film Festival and posted a trailer for the 2013 film entry in the A Certain Magical Index franchise. Scotland Loves Anime announced their line-up and I will post about that tomorrow. Alua has a nice round-up. Just as I wrote that Strange Circus and Eureka were delivered by the postal service \o/.
Kamen Rider Fourze the Movie: Everyone, Space is Here!
The Dark Knight Rises
Fairy Tail: The Phoenix Priestess
Eight Ranger
Helter Skelter
Last week saw the release of Marvel’s The Avengers so there was only one Japanese film released last week. The dust has settled and TheAvengers movie is at the top of the charts while Fairy Tail lies at nine. Umizaru and Wolf Children drop one place each to two and three respectively. Helter Skelter, Another and The Kirishima Thing – Erika Sawajiri and Ai Hashimoto!!! – remain in the top fifteen.
This week sees a flood of Japanese films released and all but one of them are based on manga.
The live-action adaptation of Nobuhiro Watsuki’s classic chanbara manga Rurouni Kenshin is released today. The film stars Takeru Sato (BECK, Kamen Rider Den-O) as the titular samurai with Emi Takei (Ai to Makoto) playing Kaoru, Yu Aoi (Memories of Matsuko, Honey and Clover), and Teruyuki Kagawa (Tokyo Sonata, Sukiyaki Western Django). The film is directed by Keishi Ōtomo who directed a popular NHK historical television series named Ryomaden which featured Takeru Sato.
The early Meiji period in Japan is a time of rapid industrialisation and modernisation and a time when samurai like Kenshin Himura are being consigned to the history books. He was once an elite swordsman known as “Battosai” before taking an oath not to kill. He now finds himself as a wandering samurai offering aid to those in need as atonement for his past actions. During his travels he meets Kaoru Kamiya, an instructor at her father’s Kendo school. She offers Kenshin a place to stay at her dojo and their relationship begins to blossom but Kenshin’s past will soon catch up with him as he discovers that somebody has been using the name “Battosai” while committing murders in Tokyo.
I can feel the emotion from this trailer. I’m getting a Okuribito feel from this film. It stars Yuko Tanaka (the voice of Lady Eboshi in Princess Mononoke), Koichi Sato (Starfish Hotel, Sukiyaki Western Django, Infection), Kimiko Yo (Villain, Ace Attorney), Haruka Ayase (Ichi, Cyborg She), Tadanobu Asano (Kids Return, Survive Style 5+, Bright Future, Vital, Last Life in the Universe), and Takeshi Kitano (Kikujiro, Boiling Point, Fireworks).
Eiji Shimakura (Takakura) is a 53-year-old prison guard in Hokuriku. When he loses his wife Yoko (Tanaka) he receives a letter from her and follows her last wishes, which is to have her ashes spread in the sea next to her home town of Nagasaki. He is curious as to the reason why she wants her ashes taken there and decides to go Nagasaki n his homemade camper van.
The Toaru Majutsu no Index (A Certain Magical Index) franchise is due to get its first film entry next year and it is going under the title Toaru Majutsu no Index: Endyumion no Kiseki (A Certain Magical Index: The Miracle of Endymion). From the look of the trailer fans of the series will see some explosive action.
Synopsis
Academy City is about to see the completion of the space elevator named Endymion. Around the time of completion Tōma Kamijō and Index encounter a Level 0 girl named Arisa Narumori who has a mysterious connection to Index. The three get along well but soon find themselves the targets of magicians lead by Stiyl Magnus who claims that Arisa is key to a brewing war between science and magic.
The staff list is filled with Index franchise veterans. Leading the way is Hiroshi Nishikiori (Gad Guard, Azumanga Daioh) who is directing the film. The script has been written by Hiroyuki Yoshino (Macross Frontier, Accel World) and that is based on an original story from Kazuma Kamachi the creator of the franchise. Kiyotaka Haimura, the man behind the illustrations for the Toaru Majutsu no Index light novel is helping with original character designs while art direction is orchestrated by Tomonori Kuroda. All of this is taking place with J.C. Staff animating and studio Sanzigen handling the CG.
The film is due for theatrical release in Japan on the 23rd of February 2013.
The 69th Venice International Film Festival launches on the 29th of August and ends on the 8th of September. It is a place where Japanese films frequently crop up – Himizu premiered at last year’s event. This year’s festival has a few Japanese films and since this is a blog dedicated to Japanese films (most of the time…) here are the titles:
Penance
Romaji: Shokuzai
Japanese Title: 贖罪
ScreeningDates: 2:30 p.m. 30th of August (Palabiennale)
Kiyoshi Kurosawa followed the magnificent Tokyo Sonata with this five-episode TV drama based on Kanae Minato’s novel of the same name (Minato also wrote the novel which the film Confessions is based on). It is playing Out of Competition, a section dedicated to “Important works by directors already established in previous editions of the Festival”. Well that applies to the genius that is Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Anyway this stars a collection of some of the best actresses in Japan including Kyoko Koizumi (Tokyo Sonata, Adrift in Tokyo), Sakura Ando (Love Exposure, Crime or Punishment?!?), Yu Aoi (Memories of Matsuko, All About Lily Chou-Chou), Eiko Koike (Kamikaze Girls, 2LDK) and Chizuru Ikewaki (Haru in The Cat Returns). It seems like 30 minutes has been cut from the total running time but it has Kurosawa’s trademark eerie atmosphere and deep characters.
When a girl named Emiri moves from Tokyo to Ueda she makes friends with four girls named Sae, Maki, Akiko and Yuka. One day when the five girls are playing volleyball at school they are approached by a man dressed in work clothes who asks for their help in repairing the ventilation system. He picks Emiri. The two head towards the gym. When there is no sign of Emiri returning her friends head in the same direction and discover her dead. When questioned by the police they cannot describe the man which means leads to the investigation grinding to a halt. Several months later, Emiri’s mother Asako (Koizumi) invites the four girls to her house on Emiri’s birthday. It is there that she tells them that they will have to atone for their inability to describe the man and help in his capture. Fifteen years later, Sae (Aoi), Maki (Koike), Akiko (Ando) and Yuka (Ikewaki) are leading troubled lives and live in fear of the penance expected of them.
Carmen Comes Home
Romaji: Karumen Kokyō ni Kaeru
Japanese Title: カルメン 故郷 に 帰る
ScreeningDates: 5:00 p.m. 31st of August (Sala Perla), 10:00 p.m. 01st September (Sala Volpi)
Carmen Comes Home is screened as part of the Venice Classics section. It was Japan’s first colour film and was released in 1951. It stars Hideko Takamine (When a Woman Ascends the Stairs which Goregirl loved, and Obaasan), Yūko Mochizuki (Ballad of Narayama, Kaidan). It was directed by Kinoshita Keisuke (Ballad of Narayama) and his assistant director was Masaki Kobayashi (Harakiri, Kaidan, Samurai Rebellion). No trailer but here’s a scene.
A girl named Aoyama (Takamine) returns to the small village she grew up in after living in Tokyo. When the truth of the life she has been leading in Tokyo is revealed there is a scandal. Her name in Tokyo is Lily Carmen and she is a… I’ll leave that up to the audience to find out.
Outrage Beyond
Romaji: Autoreiji Biyondo
Japanese Title: アウトレイジ ビヨンド
ScreeningDates: 4:30 p.m. 03rd of September (Sala Grande), 10:00 p.m. (Palabiennale)
Outrage Beyond gets its world premiere in September at the Venice International Film Festival in competition. This is ahead of its Japanese release on the 06th of October. Just a look at the synopsis and cast list contains some spoilers for the first film but there you go. It stars that magnificent filmmaker Takeshi Kitano (Kids Return, Boiling Point), Ryo Kase (Like Someone in Love, SPEC: Heaven), Tomokazu Miura (Adrift in Tokyo, Survive Style 5+), Yutaka Matsushige (Ring). After watching the first film I know who I want to see get bumped off first but the guy is so slick he might just survive round two!
When he is released from prison Otomo (Kitano) finds himself part of a police plot to destroy his former Yakuza brothers.
The Millennial Rapture
Romaji: Sennen no Yuraku
Japanese Title: 千 年 の 愉楽
ScreeningDates: 11:30 a.m. 04th September (Sala Grande), 2:00 p.m. 05th of September (Sala Grande),
RunningTime: 118 mins.
Director: Koji Wakamatsu
Writer: Koji Wakamatsu(Script), Kenji Nakagami (Original Novel)
Fresh from premiering 11:25, the Day He Decided His Own Fate, the prolific Koji Wakamatsu uses the wonderful month of September to appear at the Venice International Film Festival in the Orizzonti section which covers new trends in world cinema. His latest is called The Millennial Rapture and it stars Shinobu Teraima (Helter Skelter, 11:25, The Day He Decided His Own Fate), Shota Sometani (Himizu), Shiro Sano (Vanished, United Red Army), and Kengo Kora (Norwegian Wood, The Woodsman and the Rain, The Drudgery Train, Signal).
This collection of stories is set in Shingu in the Wakayama Prefecture and focusses on the lives of various people of the Burakumin minority group. These people include a womaniser and a yakuza.
That’s a pretty strong line-up of films actually. There are also other titles like Kim Ki-Duk’s latest. Needless to say I wish I was there sipping expensive coffee, gazing at the beautiful women and watching awesome Japanese films. I will try and follow the buzz as I have done with previous festivals.
UK DVD Release Date: 20th August 2012 (Terror-cotta)
Running Time: 91 mins.
Directors: Owen Cho, Kim Sang-Hwa
Writers: Owen Cho, Kim Sang-Hwa
Starring: Cheon Ho-Jin, Yu Hae-Jin, Seo Hyo-Lim, Kim Seo-Hyung, Ra Mi-Ran, Ahn Eun-Jung, Lee Jeong-Heon,
Desire to Kill is the debut feature by Owen Cho and Kim Sang-Hwa but you would never know it because this thriller is so well put together with such flair and smart writing it makes many other films from more experienced directors look creatively barren.
After the death of his wife, Kim Min-Ho (Cheon Ho-Jin) repeatedly tries to commit suicide. His efforts leave him in hospital and paralysed from neck down. He is overwhelmed by his muddled memories and the desire to kill the murderer of his wife. When an unconscious man named Sang-Up (Yu Hae-Jin) is brought into Kim Min-Ho’s room he discovers that he is the murderer and is suffering amnesia and paralysis. The two are under the care of Nurse Ha (Seo Hyo-Rim) and Dr. Paik (Kim Seo-Hyung) who is performing brain surgery on Sang-Up whilst feeding the two an untested medicine named AAP. Kim Min-Ho finds himself in a race to recover before Sang-Up so he can exact his revenge.
The film begins on July 25th 1984 with Min-Ho stating “Weather clear. I plan to kill a man today but I can’t remember his face.” This is the start of a film which features a great thriller plot accompanied by black comedy all wrapped up in great visuals but what really impresses is the exploration of memory.
Memory can be a tricky thing. When we bring in different interpretations it can be the least reliable thing around. It is a subject regularly explored in films like Memento, The Bourne Identity and Retribution. If I had to make a comparison with another film it would be Oldboy as it gives us two characters defined by memory, or lack of it in one case, and pulls back their layers of memory as part of an intricately constructed plot tied to one character’s desire to kill.
I have been given a Liebster Blog award by Andina over at Inspired Ground (thank you Andina!). Here are the rules:
1. Tell us 11 things about yourself
2. Answer 11 questions the blogger who awarded you asked
3. Pass the award to 11 people
4. Give them 11 questions. 5. Tell them about the award 6. Don’t award people who are recipients already
Actually this is the second time so I’ll keep this short and sweet and just answer the questions.
11 Random Things About Me
1. I have met Doctor Who.
2. I have Japanese relatives, I own Japanese things, I obsess over Japanese films but I have yet to go to the country. Also I speak Japanese – it has improved, so much so I spent time talking to Japanese tourists during the Olympics!
3. I have a sister who is much younger than me and more beautiful, cooler and smarter than me. She has developed a cool taste in films.
4. I watch at least three films a week – two Japanese and one from somewhere else.
5. My mother and father helped me get into foreign films. I spent most of my childhood watching subtitled films from France and China.
6. I have ruined a friendship by not waiting at a train station for a person stuck on a train because I was afraid I was going to miss a film at a cinema. The film was Infernal Affairs and it was awesome so you can hardly blame me for leaving the person behind. That person also had poor taste in films. While I was taking them to see stuff like Oldboy, they made me suffer through Bridget Jones.
7. I tend to go to the movies alone (because my taste is idiosyncratic) but this year I have been going with others. And frowning at them when they make noise eating after the film has started. Seriously, pay attention!
8. I like rainy weather.
9. I sometimes like to watch trashy anime like Haiyore! Nyaruko-san and Haganai.
This week began when Lynn dashed across the playground and tagged me in a game of Book Tag which meant I had to answer a number of questions concerning my reading habits. This started a bit of a book club as Alua and Novroz joined in and we discussed world literature. After that I reviewed Gyo: Tokyo Fish Attack, an adaptation of Junji Ito’s weird manga of the same name. I loved it. Much like the live-action adaptation of Uzumaki it makes major changes to the source which has divided fans but I felt it made a fun action apocalypse film. I followed this with a trailer for Resident Evil: Damnation, the latest CG action film. Then I followed this with a review of Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s film Retribution which I loved a lot. As a major fan of Kurosawa’s ghost stories and supernatural mysteries this hit all the right notes.
Kamen Rider Fourze the Movie: Everyone, Space is Here!
Pokemon: Best Wishes 2012
The Dark Knight Rises
Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie
Eight Ranger
Helter Skelter
Umizaru 4: Brave Hearts and The Wolf Children Rain and Snow hold on to the first and second spots of the top ten with the remake of Total Recall entering at three. Helter Skelter stays in the top ten at number ten but Another the Movie drops out at eleven. Of last week’s releases, Kirishima and Jewelpet Sweet Dance Princess enter at thirteen and fourteen.
Ah, yet another anime adaptation only this time it is a movie instalment in the shounen franchise Fairy Tail. I have not watched it but a few chaps in my Japanese class have and they seem to like it. The director is Masaya Fujimori who handled the anime Spirit of Wonder. The writer is Masashi Sogo who has worked on the television series. The voice actors are familiar from some of the most popular anime shows out there with Rie Kugiyama (Alphonse in FMA: Brotherhood), and Tetsuya Kakihara (Simon in Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann),
The Fairy Tail wizard’s guild find themselves in an adventure to save the magical world when a mysterious girl named Éclair approaches them claiming to have lost all of her memories save for the one connected to delivering two extremely powerful artefacts: the Phoenix Stones.
Genkinahito 