Dear Doctor ディア ドクター (2009) Miwa Nishikawa

Dear Doctor    

ディア・ドクター  「Dea Dokuta-」

Release Date: June 27^th, 2009

Running Time: 127 mins.

Director: Miwa Nishikawa

Writer: Miwa Nishikawa (Screenplay/Original Novel)

Starring: Tsurube Shofukutei (Dr. Osamu Ino), Eita (Keisuke Soma), Kimiko Yo (Akemi Ohtake), Teruyuki Kagawa (Masayoshi Saimon), Kaoru Yachigusa (Kaduko Torikai), Haruka Igawa (Ritsuko Torikai), Ryo Iwamatsu (Lieutenant Yoshifumi Okayasu), Yutaka Matushige (Sergeant Hatano),

Website    IMDB

Miwa Nishikawa follows up her perfect twisted Tokyo-based family drama Wild Berries with this title about a countryside doctor who may not be what he appears to be. Despite the bucolic setting replacing Tokyo the themes are much the same as in her debut film, deception and desperation.

Dear Doctor takes place in a remote town in the middle of the countryside. It’s nighttime and creatures lurking in the rice fields croak and murmur in the darkness.  A man riding into town on a bicycle along a poorly lit road stops and puts on a doctor’s coat he finds lying on the ground. He continues cycling all the way to the clinic where a cluster of elderly villagers and police officers question him. Where did he find the coat? Where’s the doctor it’s normally attached to?

Su-ki-da 「好きだ,」(2006) Dir: Hiroshi Ishikawa (4/5)

I recently landed a role as contributor to V-Cinema and I have reviewed a number of films for the website. I have been something of a fan and enjoyed listening to their podcasts when they have covered Japanese cinema so I’m pretty excited to be a part of the team and helping to highlight Japanese cinema. Writing reviews is something I enjoy doing and I hope people enjoy reading my reviews!

My second review for V-cinema was for the film Su-ki-da which is the second film from Hiroshi Ishikawa. It’s an improvement on the first film and has a great performance from Aoi Miyazaki. Ishikawa makes a slightly more conventional film in the shape of a romance but with Ishikawa’s long game way of storytelling. I’m going to write about all three of Ishikawa’s films. This is just a snippet of the review with images and links to a little research. The full review can be found through a link at the bottom just before a bunch of images:

Wild 7 ワイルド７ (2011)

Wild 7                                            

Japanese Title: ワイルド７

Romaji: Wairudo 7

Release Date: December 21^st, 2011 (Japan)

Running Time: 109 mins.

Director: Eiichiro Hasumi

Writer: Mikiya Mochizuki (Original Manga), Masaki Fukasawa (Screenplay),

Starring: Eita, Kippei Shiina, Yuika Motokariya, Kyoko Fukada, Ryuhei Maruyama, Tsuyoshi Abe, Takashi Ukaji, Kiichi Nakai, Kotaro Yoshida, Yusuke Hirayama, Minoru Matsumoto, Jun Kaname,

Wild 7 was one of the first in a series of major live-action movies produced and released by Warner Bros. Japan in what has turned into a trend of adapting a series of famous manga and anime into movies. The list includes Rurouni Kenshin (2012), Black Butler (2014), and Ninja Kids!!! (2011), and Berserk (2012). The formula is simple, take something with an in-built fanbase and brand recognition which has enough elements like action and romance to appeal to a mainstream audience, and make a film with a decent budget, handsome actors and actresses and a solid director. The results so far have been high quality entertainment and this film is no exception.

The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck and God in a Coin Locker アヒルと鴨のコインロッカ (2007)

The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck & God in a Coin Locker

Japanese Title：アヒルと鴨のコインロッカ

Romaji: Ahiro to Kamo no Koin Rokka

Release Date: June 23^rd, 2007 (Japan)

UK DVD Release Date: January 14th, 2013

UK DVD Distributor: Third Window Films

Running Time: 110 mins.

Director: Yoshihiro Nakamura

Writer: Yoshihiro Nakamura (Screenplay), Kotaro Isaka (Novel)

Starring: Gaku Hamada, Eita, Megumi Seki, Nene Otsuka, Ryuei Matsuda, Kei Tamura, Kaoru Hirata, Midoriko Kimura, Masaki Okada
The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck & God in a Coin Locker is such a strange title that I expected a low-key indie comedy but got a lot more. 

Shiina (Gaku Hamada) is moving from the shoe shop his parents run to his new apartment in Sendai as he joins Aoba University to study law. On his first day he tries introducing himself to his neighbours but they are too pre-occupied with their own lives to care. As Shiina regroups after rejection he sings the Dylan song “Blowin’ in the Wind” which attracts the attention of one of his new neighbours, a tall and handsome chap named Kawasaki (Eita). Kawasaki is a complete contrast to the short and mild-mannered Shiina but share a mutual interest in Bob Dylan and strike up a friendship. Kawasaki does seem a bit of an odd duck, but in an irresistibly cool and charming kind of way, and Shiina can’t help but be drawn into his more exciting, if slightly loony world. Kawasaki’s head is full of unpredictable ideas, like his absurd warnings about pet shop owner Reiko (Nene Otsuka) or his even more absurd plan to steal a dictionary for their Bhutanese neighbour. Next thing Shiina knows, he’s standing watch with a toy gun outside the bookstore, on the beginning of their bizarre, existential adventure…

The film is based on a 2003 novel by mystery writer Kotaro Isaka (his book Remote Control is available through Amazon UK and sounds so good I may purchase a copy). This is not the first book of his to be adapted. Indeed, director Yoshihiro Nakamura adapted another called Fish Story to great acclaim (also available through Third Window Films). Finding out all of this came after viewing the film and so I had no idea this was a mystery. If I did I think my expectations would have been staggered because it never feels like one. Indeed after watching twenty minutes I had tagged it as a light comedy with goofball characters doing a lot of talking but the film manages to switch genre and mood with ease.

It starts with Shiina in what seemed like a play on a coming of age tale. We witness his first explorations of Sendai, a place famous for its BBQed tongue which his parents constantly remind him of. He is like anybody who finds themselves in a new environment, plagued by doubt and indecision and adhering to social codes to try and fit in. These moments are wryly observed and provide gentle comedy as we see him bewildered by his situation and swallowed up by crowds. His lost at sea is somewhat mirrored in that of an Indian woman who finds herself on the receiving end of suspicion and derision just for being an outsider. Ah, I said to myself, this is clearly a light comedy examining Japanese attitudes to foreigners! Foreign and native ducks! Case closed!

Think again!

Third Window Films Release The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck & God in a Coin Locker

Japanese film fans, it’s time to celebrate! One of the major titles in my preview of Asian films getting released in the UK is about to get its official release! Third Window Films release The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck & God in a Coin Locker next week Monday which just happens to be a great way to start the year! Despite my scepticism over the title I found myself enraptured in a film that is deceptively simple and light hearted and full of great performances. I think this may remain in my Top Ten Films for the rest of the year! Expect a review on Wednesday!

Here are the details:

 The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck & God in a Coin Locker

Dir: Yoshihiro Nakamura (Fish Story, Golden Slumber)

Starring: Eita (Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, Memories of Matsuko)
Gaku Hamada (Fish Story, Space Brothers)
Ryuhei Matsuda (Nightmare Detective, Blue Spring, Gohatto)

Japan / 2007 / 110 Mins / In Japanese with English subtitles / Colour / 35mm / Cert 15

Out on DVD January 11th, 2013

DVD Special Features:

35 minute ‘Making Of’, Deleted Scenes, Theatrical Trailer

Moving into his new apartment in Sendai, college student Shiina (Gaku Hamada) meets his new neighbor Kawasaki (Eita). Tall, confident Kawasaki and short, mild-mannered Shiina seem to be unlikely candidates for friendship, but they have a mutual interest in Bob Dylan.

Kawasaki is an odd duck, but in an irresistibly cool and charming kind of way, and Shiina can’t help but be drawn into his more exciting, if slightly loony world. Kawasaki’s head is full of unpredictable ideas, like his absurd warnings about pet shop owner Reiko (Nene Otsuka) or his even more absurd plan to steal a dictionary for their Bhutanese neighbor. Next thing Shiina knows, he’s standing watch with a toy gun outside the bookstore, on the beginning of their bizarre, existential adventure…

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai Gets UK Theatrical Release Today

Revolver Entertainment is releasing Takashi Miike’s remake of Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai in cinemas today and here is the UK trailer.

Takashi Miike, director of Audition, followed up his remake of 13 Assassins with another remake only this time it was the cult classic made by Masaki Kobayashi in 1962. It premiered at last year’s Cannes Film Festival where it competed for the Palme d’Or. It stars Hikari Mitsushima (Sawako Decides), Koji Yakusho (Cure), Eita (Monsters Club), and Kabuki actor Ebizo Ichikawa.

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai UK Release Details

I have some great news for anybody interested in Japanese films and the work of Takashi Miike (Audition, 13 Assassins): Revolver Entertainment is releasing Miike’s version of Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai in cinemas on the 4^th of May and on DVD and Blu-ray on the 7^th of May.

This is a remake of the cult classic made by Masaki Kobayashi in 1962. Miike’s version got its premiere at last year’s Cannes Film Festival where it competed for the Palme d’Or. Reviews largely dismissed the 3D but praised the story and action.