Day 133 continued - Naruto Shippden: 7 The Last (Japanese)

"Hyuuga Hanabi, the younger sister of Hyuuga Hinata is kidnapped by the alien Ootsutsuki Toneri, and a disheartened Uzumaki Naruto must put himself together to help his new found love save her younger sister. Naruto's abilities are put to the test when he loses his most powerful form - the Sage of Six Paths cloak" - IMDb

I was so looking forward to this movie, but it was a letdown. Not only was the art and animation questionable. The story line was weak! I was finally able to see the romantic duo of Hinata and Naruto! The best parts of the movie come in the middle of the movie and at the end. I did like how Hinata was portrayed, but I wanted something more out of the story. I thought fans were cheated because we didn't get to see their wedding until the credits started rolling, but even then we only saw silhouettes of the characters as the wedding was going on. I suggest only fans of the series watch this film as it's not that good animation wise. 

2/5

Day 117 continued - Gun Woman (Japanese)

"A brilliant doctor on a quest for revenge buys a young woman and trains her to be the ultimate assassin, implanting gun parts in her body that she must later assemble and use to kill her target before she bleeds to death." -IMDb

If you want to see a sexy Japanese woman who spends a lot of the movie nude kick ass then this is the film for you. The best scenes in the film happen at the end with the final battle. The whole film is slightly entertaining with the usual pink film flair. There is something about Asami that makes me want to watch her more, I think she has a good presence. 

1.2/5

Little Info

Asami was a former Adult Video Idol

Day 112 continued - Leonie (Japanese)

"The film is based on the life of Léonie Gilmour, the American lover and editorial assistant of Japanese writerYone Noguchi and mother of sculptor Isamu Noguchi and dancer Ailes Gilmour."-Wikipedia

A truly terrible film that was bland to the point it was almost unwatchable if not for the fact that I like interracial relationship movies and movies that showcase multiple cultures. I don't like the way that Emily Mortimer acted but I do appreciate a film with a strong female character. I didn't feel like this movie had any amount of depth, it also seemed quite rushed. At times I had a time enjoying the film due to the poor direction choices. I understand that you can only do so much when making a film based on someones life but still there could be better historical accuracy and more realistic human emotions. If you are interested in Japan at all then this the movie for you. 

0.5/5

Starring

Also Appeared in:

The Ghost and the Darkness

Scream 3

Disney's The Kid

The Sleeping Dictionary

Howl's Moving Castle

Our Idiot Brother

Day 98 continued - 009-1:The End of the Beginning

 

"Marking the 75th anniversary of his birth, Shotaro Ishinomori's classic spy heroine manga "009-1" has been adapted into a live-action motion picture for the first time ever." _IMdb

 

 

Not one of the best Japanese movies I have ever seen but its not the worst one either. Mayuko Iwasa who plays Cyborg 009-01 is cute for sure but she could have been a little better acting wise. The direction was a bit poor, the script was bad and the story was too predicable. It was slightly entertaining but it was mostly dull.

 

1/5

 



Day 70 continued - The Wind Rises (Japanese)



"A look at the life of Jiro Horikoshi, the man who designed Japanese fighter planes during World War II."

Absolutely a one in a kind movie that no one really saw coming. Hayao Miyazaki leaves the world with a true stunner that is so similar but so different from anything else he has ever done. Before I start I would like to say there is no Anti-American emotion or scenes present in this film.
        Now I will this say the animation is truly wonderful, the world is beautiful and the characters are remarkable. No one else in this world has been able to make a film as wonderful as Hayao Miyazaki. From the hand drawn animation which is a dying craft that should be brought back to the colors of the world. He makes these wonderful words that have a basis in fiction and reality that makes it so believable. All of this is present in The Wind Rises, if you see the movie you will understand why he chose to make a movie like this. You will understand him more than ever, as I think this is a very personal film in a way. Often when I looked at Jiro I saw Hayao Miyazaki, the two lookalike and really stand for the same things.
Disney did a great job in finding the right people to do the voice work and were able to match the characters quite well. There is romance, war, adventure, dreams, and harsh reality in the film. Miyazaki doesn't leave anything out, I feel like this movie can't really be expressed in words. I suggest everyone go out and watch the film now. There is just so much we could all learn from this film that we can absorb into our own lives.
The Wind Rises is about a man named Jiro who wants to design airplanes that are meant for flight not war but the sad reality is whatever he designs will be used for war. There's a wonderful question in the film "Would you like to live in a world with or without pyramids?" meaning would you like to live with or without Airplanes knowing full well the airplanes you design will be used in wars. This is quite powerful as we can adapt the question to whatever we do thus it gets personal.
The love story between Jiro and Naoko is so wonderfully real. There's nothing fabricated, it was a love affair that probably actually happened during the time. So its a real love story in more ways than one, its really such a beautiful experience. Even Jiro's love of design is truly inspiring, he's passionate about what he does and not a lot of people in this generation are. So it really spoke to me as a designer myself, that we all need to stay alive and live with life.
I suggest this film to everyone from fans of Ghibli, animation fans, designers, movie lovers, women, men, and most importantly humans.

"I just wanted to make something beautiful"

5/5

 

 

Little info

 

Jiro is a combination of Tatsuo Hori who wrote the original story of the Wind Rises and Jiro Horikoshi the inventor of the Zero airplane

 

After the screening of the film, it was the first time Hayao Miyazaki cried during a screening of one of his movies

Day 55 continued - In His Charts (Japanese)

"

Dr. Ichito Kuriharai (Sho Sakurai) works at a clinic in Nagano Prefecture. He rarely has any free time due to the clinic's shortage of doctors and the constant influx of patients. Ichito even sometimes diagnoses patients out of his area of speciality and sometimes goes days without sleeping. He hopes to work at a major hospital where he can get more free time to spend with his wife Haruna (Aoi Miyazaki) and also specialize in his field of study. However, Ichito is also reluctant to add to shortage of doctors at the clinic and break his relationships with the patients.

One day, Dr. Ichito Kuriharai clears out the belongings of a terminal cancer patient who passed away. Durin this time, he discovers a letter made out to him thanking him for the care he provided to her, even though he could not cure her sickness. Dr. Ichito Kuriharai then has a revelation about the medical chart he keeps in his hand - filled with personal observations and concerns ..."-AsianWiki

A very slow movie that gets better then starts to get slow again. There are a few good moments in the film but they tend to be overshadowed by some of more comical moments. I actually liked the characters but I felt like they were wasted do to poor direction and script. I felt like there could have been more romantic feelings between Ichito Kuriharai and Haruna Kuriharai. But I understand why they didn't add more of it, I do appreciate some of what the movie was trying to say. Its a slow movie but if you have nothing to do then its the perfect movie for you.

 

1.8/5

 

little info

 

It appeared at the 15th Shanghai International Film Festival   

Day 50 - Hostipality Department (Japanese)

 

"The hospitality division in Kochi Prefecture can't promote the beautiful nature in the area due to a strict rule by the prefecture government. Popular writer and Koichi area native Kyosuke Yoshikado (Kengo Kora) is appointed as a special envoy for tourism in the area. He then receives a recommendation to meet Seien, a former employee of Kochi Prefecture, who once hatched an unusual idea to promote tourism. Seien pushed forward a project to import pandas into the area, but lost his job because of that project. Meanwhile, hospitality division employees Fumitaka (Ryo Nishikido) and Taki (Maki Horikita) visits the tourist house which is run by Seien and his daughter (Megumi Seki). When they arrive, the daughter throws a bucket of water at them, still angry for the way her father was dismissed from his job. From there, a plan for the hospitality division is born. "

This was a good hearted movie about the beauty and wonder of the part of Japan they call Kochi. I enjoyed the movie a lot, there were some very good parts. I enjoyed the romance present in the film and the way it was executed. The comedy wasn't over the top it was actually realistic as was the approach to the romance. If you really like to see a beautiful place and see some wonderful characters then this is the movie for you.

3/5 

 

little info

 

Ryo Nishikido was a part of two J-Pop groups. This was also his 3rd movie

Kengo Kora also starred in The Egoists



Day 45 - Neck (Japanese)

 

"

Tomokazu Shudo (Junpei Mizobata) has his first ever crush on Sugina Mayama (Saki Aibu), a senior graduate student. Tomokazu has troubles confessing his feelings to the popular student, but one day, Tomokazu is invited to the research lab where Sugina Mayama works. Tomkazu hopes to use this meeting to express his true feelings for her. To Tomokazu's surprise, when he arrives he first sees a big wooden box in the middle of the lab and the lab is dark. Sugina tells Tomokazu that he looks scared and then proceeds to push Tomokazu into the box!
While being placed into the box Tomokazu is told that he will watch a horror movie produced from his mind, with only his neck & head protruding from the box. Tomokazu will be the first test subject for Sugina's "The Neck Machine". The device hopes to turn people into monsters from the neck down while watching monsters. The first experiment fails, but Sugina then gets the help of childhood friend Takashi Gori (Yuta Hiraoka), who is now a horror writer named Mataro Echizen" -Asian Wiki

Seriously I thought it was going to be a good movie but I was wrong. The comedy was over the top and leaves you rolling your eyes rather than laughing. There is some romantic factor but they don't really play out. I thought Chiaki Kuriyama's performance was weak, her character was a bit lacking since she was in love with a character from Gori's book rather than Gori which it hints to a bit. Or the fact that Sugina seems to be romantically inclined to Takashi until the later half of the film. If you are looking for a good romantic comedy then this isn't the film for you.

1/5

 

little info

 

Chiaki Kuriyama was in Kill Bill Volume 1

Saki Aibu's first film role was The Taste of Tea

Day 40 continued - Gakudori - Young Drifter (Japanese)

"A young man discovers the exciting world of drifting when he falls in love with a beautiful woman. Masaki (Minehiro Kinomoto) is a first-year student at Akagiyama University who falls instantly in love with Nanako (Yumi Sugimoto), a beautiful driving instructor at a local driving school. When he learns that Nanako was a former member of his school’s auto club and a drifting enthusiast, he immediately joins the club. As he tries to learn the art of drifting, a driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers to make a sharp corner turn, has Masaki gotten himself in over his head when he and his friends vie for a spot in the “Gakudori: Young Drifters,” an annual drifting competition for students? “Gakudori” is a 2011 Japanese movie directed by Kei Era. "

A very over the top film about the drifting world, I didn't really like it because of that. You can't take any serious in this film because nothing is actually serious. There were a few laughable moments but not enough to leave me feeling satisfied.

0/5

Day 40 - Bleach the movie: Hell Verse (Japanese)

"The movie opens with a recap of Ichigo Kurosaki's final battle against Ulquiorra in Hueco Mundo, in which he transformed into an incredibly powerful and uncontrollable Hollow. Some time later—after Aizen's defeat, but before Ichigo loses his powers—, Rukia Kuchiki and Renji Abarai arrive in the human world to inspect a strange occurrence; though they remain vague about what. Shortly after, powerful masked spirits attack Ichigo and the others at school."

 

I was so bored with this movie, to me the story was very simple and really had no heart. The art was good but the animation was fine needed more work. Overall I was disappointed with this film so much.

 

1/5

 

little info

Johnny Yong Bosch does the English voice for Ichigo Kurosaki was a power ranger

Day 34 continued - Rinco's Restaurant (Japanese)



"After a bad breakup, a young woman returns to her hometown and opens a menuless restaurant."

Such a cute movie that balances comedy, drama, and the absurd in a unique way. The lead actress, Kou Shibasaki,  was quite good she often had me smiling with her sincere acting. I enjoyed the comedy of the characters present in the small town. The film made me laugh a lot, its quite easy to understand even for non-Japanese speakers. If you are looking for a good hearted movie with many values that blend comedy and drama together then this is the movie for you.

2.9/5

 

Little info

 

Kou Shibasaki also appeared in Battle Royale, Dororo, 47 Ronin and many other films. She is also a singer with three albums.

 

Kimiko Yo who plays Rinco's mother also appeared in The Departures, Suicide Club, Rebirth, and many other films

Day 33 - Lupin the 3rd vs. Detective Conan (Japanese)

" The plot follows Conan Edogawa who sets out to apprehend Arsène Lupin III, the suspect of stealing a jewel called Cherry Sapphire"

 

I love a good crossover and that is what this is. Though its far from perfect it is still an interesting watch. The art could have been a lot better but the animation wasn't that bad. I also think that the whole story needed some work. But everyone did a good job with this crossover.

 

2.5/5

 

little info

this is the second crossover of these series, the first one being a TV special

Day 23 - Lady Ninja Kaede 2 (Japanese)

"The female ninja Kaede has escaped from her master Yatsude into Tomobiki, where she wishes to start a new life."

A very corny film with a good amount of sexuality. The best parts were seeing the lead actresses' wonderful body. Other than that the comedy was corny and the action was short. The first half of the movie the lead actress is playing with herself with a dildo made out of severed penises. If you like Japanese action comedies than you will love this movie.

1/5

Day 20 continued - Love Hotel (Documentary)

 

"Pensioners, lawyers, married couples and teenagers are all customers at the Angel Love Hotel in Osaka Japan. With unprecedented access into one of the most private and anonymous spaces in Japanese society, this film follows the love hotel's struggling manager and staff as the try to keep their hotel running, as well as revealing the intimate and private lives of the customers who visit. "

 

A very in depth documentary into a world you really don't get to see unless you are in Japan. The people were so real and natural that is was so much a wonderful documentary to see. The directors did a great job proving that these people are normal but have to hide in fear of being discriminated. It can seem a little slow but its a good movie to watch. Please don't watch this if you are just looking for nudity, it doesn't have a whole lot. It does show intimate situations but not a lot of intercourse. I

will suggest this movie to everyone who is interested, its totally worth watching.

 

 

3.4/5 

Day 14 - Mutant Girls Squad (Japanese)

 

"The film is about Rin, a sixteen-year-old mutant girl who meets a gang of rebel mutants who aim to take revenge on humans for persecuting their race."

 

This was probably the best horror comedy Japanese movie I have ever seen. It wasn't badly directed and the film used didn't look that low budget. So they used good lighting and good characters. I enjoyed most of the movie plus you have a bunch of cute girls fighting. If you like Japanese horror comedies then watch this film. It is slightly corny as you can expect but its still entertaining.

1/5

 

Little Info

The lead actress Yumi Sugimoto is also a singer and gravure idol

Suzuka Morita is also a gravure idol

Day 6 - Stories of Appariations (Japanese)

"Based on the popular Japanese urban legends of "Shinrei Shashin", or so called ghost photos, Stories is an omnibus collection of five skin-crawling ghost stories of unexpected paranormal encounters, when schoolgirls and office ladies alike come across eerie, otherworldly photographs possessing more than just images."

A few unique stories brought together is a difficult thing to deliver. Yet the directors of this film almost make it but they fail in many ways. I hate the fact the film looks so low budget which is a slight annoyance. Some of the characters were well written but sometimes the story was difficult to follow and at times I felt like my attention was elsewhere. Watch this if you really love Japanese movies.

1/5

Day 5 continued - MMA Zen (Documentary)



"Top Japanese fighters prepare for big fights and put their lives on the line for spirituality and glory"

It was quite interesting to hear about the lengths that these fighters take in order to achieve their dreams. From obtaining the local championship to one day fighting in the USA for UFC. There are a few fights present in the film and there a few recordings of previous fights. Each fighter was asked about their dreams and how they started on their long journey to enter the ring. We really don't get to hear from the fighters from Japan that often so it was quite interesting to see the way they fought, trained, and the way they think. I wish there was better camera control because some of the shots were bad but some of them were quite good. I wish there was more information about this documentary but I don't think it was promoted well. It was quite nice to hear from the family members of the fighters from their grandfathers to their mothers. It was a nice inside to who they are and why they chose to pursue fighting.

2.6/5

Little Info

Yoshiro Maeda makes a small appearance, he is currently a MMA fighter with a record of 31-15-5

Katsuomi Inagaki also makes appearance, his record is 18-23-3