Japanese Movies/Discussion/Recommendations

i've seen Tada, Kimi wo Aishiteru too Geezer-san. i liked it too. yeah, it does have a similarity, a little, to Orange Days. but Joze, the Tiger and the Fish???

i recommend Space travelers and survive style+5..
both are very good movies.. :woot: :woot: :woot:

just saw Love&Pop


scary... :sweat:

Bushi no Ichibun ("Love And Honor") is the third of Director Yamada's Samurai Trilogy based on the works of novelist Fujisawa.

Frist came Tasogare Seibei ("Twilight Samurai")

Then Kakushi Ken Oni no Tsume ("The Hidden Blade")

and I just spent a pleasant afternoon watching "Love & Honor"

It is, like the others, a story about a lower level Samurai, living and working around the castle. He's not a general, not a lord, not a mover and shaker.

Just a guy doing his job, living his life. Of course, something happens to shake things up. To make a story out of it. But it is, as were the other two, stories about people rather than nations, or glory.

If you're looking for fast paced action... forget this one. It takes its time and tells the story at its own pace.

But I was fascinated. I found the story compelling, and the acting top notch.

Kimura Takuya is the lead in this movie, and he's back to the form I'd come to expect from him from his earlier work in TV.

Geezer,
Since you're the resident Samurai movie expert, what do you think of this one?
http://sharethefiles.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=73338

It has Toshiro Mifune in it, so i'm thinking it'll be good... but i'm interested in your opinion :)

Anime Dad

Boy, the guys who really know their stuff will laugh their heads off when they see you calling me an expert.

But as it happens, I have seen this one.

First thing... did you see the NHK Taiga drama titled "Shinsengumi"?

If not, I honestly think this one is gonna be difficult to follow.

Like the taiga drama, this movie is another attempt to white-wash the death squad called the Shinsengumi.

The problem, with the movie, (as with the taiga) is that the shinsengumi kept changing sides. First the Shogun used them as paid killers, then the Emperor used them. Then somebody else put up the Emperors flag and suddenly they found themselves listed as rebels.

Trying to hold onto the idea of them as heros becomes almost impossible since you never know which side they're fighting on (nor did they)... so the movie would -- I think -- become very confusing to anyone trying to watch it without some sort of score card.

I'm a Mifune nut, so I'll watch just about anything he did. But this one, by nature of the story he was trying to tell, came off very disjointed to me.

Does that help? Or were you just looking for a, it's good or it's bad.

Geezer,
It's all relative... compared to me, you're The Samurai Movie Show :hehe:

Since I had no idea of the history, that was very helpful. I haven't watched the taiga drama, so I have no background at all.

I think I will download it anyway, but maybe not watch it immediately. I have plenty of other stuff to watch coming up, thanks to beem and cori, and I may save it for a time when my viewing experience is broader ;)

So thanks! I knew you would give me a good answer :)

A.D.

For what it was worth... you're welcome.

In terms of the period, and again having to do with the Shinsengumi, I'd recommend "When the Last Sword is Drawn".

Instead of trying to make heros out of the Shinsengumi as a whole... this one tells the story of one lower level country Samurai who... in a desperate attempt to feed his family... leaves home and joins the Shinsengumi.

It's beautifully filmed, has an amazing cast, and it's a bit easier to follow what's going on, since it's coming at you from one guy's point of view.

But understand, anything to do with the Shinsengumi will have to be, in the end, a tragic story.

A-Dad are you just looking for samurai films?

'Cause there's tons of non-samurai films, particularly old ones, that are more than worth your time to watch... :)

Thanks Geezer :)

Beem, no, I wasn't particularly after a Samurai film. I just found that link and thought it sounded interesting ;)

yah suicide club is really interesting and a bit weird!! hahabut it's a good movie. nana movie 2 is also good since kanata hongo is there!! hehe and yellow tears it's a new movie of arashi i don't know if it's out now though.

is it just me or NANA2 sucks?

i just took a quick glimpse without subs

Kaneshiro stars in adaptation of Isaka's "Shinigami no Seido"

Kotaro Isaka's novel "Shinigami no Seido" is being turned into a movie, starring Takeshi Kaneshiro. It will be the actor's first domestic film since "Returner" in 2002.

Kaneshiro plays the role of Chiba, a death god in human form. Whenever he is assigned a candidate for death, he spends a week with the person to make his final decision. Rain follows him everywhere he goes, and because his direct touch causes people to faint, he always wears white gloves. As an avid music lover, he spends his free time sampling CDs in music shops.

Manami Konishi plays the heroine, an OL targeted for judgment. Sumiko Fuji has also been cast. Masaya Kakehi is directing, and Warner Brothers will distribute the picture next spring.[/list:u] I already posted this in the Manami Konishi thread, but wanted to post it here as well.

Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi will be shown on SpikeTV tonight...this is an excellent movie...Yui Natsukawa has a role in it...

http://www.spiketv.com/index.html#schedule

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0363226/

Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi

:bleh: :bleh: :bleh: :bleh: :bleh:

Geezer wrote:

Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi

:bleh: :bleh: :bleh: :bleh: :bleh:

I agree.

Katsu Shintaro must be rolling in his grave.

BMW

Between Beat's Variety Show version of "Zatoichi" and the announcement of the new female version of Zatoichi (Haruka Ayase) being filmed right now -- puts me in mind of "The New Karate Kid" -- I can hear him laughing from here.

Remember, he's the guy who signed away the rights to the character to the mama-san who ran his favorite bar, to pay his bar tab, a week before he died.

He signed "Zatoichi" away on a bar napkin.

The man had style.

Geezer wrote:The man had style.

LOL, but apparently poor judgment...

Can anyone tell me Yoshitsune finished in what chapter?

Geezer wrote:Bushi no Ichibun ("Love And Honor") is the third of Director Yamada's Samurai Trilogy based on the works of novelist Fujisawa.

Frist came Tasogare Seibei ("Twilight Samurai")

Then Kakushi Ken Oni no Tsume ("The Hidden Blade")

and I just spent a pleasant afternoon watching "Love & Honor"

It is, like the others, a story about a lower level Samurai, living and working around the castle. He's not a general, not a lord, not a mover and shaker.

Just a guy doing his job, living his life. Of course, something happens to shake things up. To make a story out of it. But it is, as were the other two, stories about people rather than nations, or glory.

If you're looking for fast paced action... forget this one. It takes its time and tells the story at its own pace.

But I was fascinated. I found the story compelling, and the acting top notch.

Kimura Takuya is the lead in this movie, and he's back to the form I'd come to expect from him from his earlier work in TV.

Geezer,

I saw this movie just the other night, and I have to agree with most of what you state. I thought it was a good movie, compared to Kakushi Ken Oni no Tsume which imo was a very good movie and Tasogare Seibei which imo was a great movie, sure to be a classic in the truest sense of the word. Yoji Yamada's career as a filmmaker is both prolific and superb, and it is gratifying to see that, in his 70's, he is still creating high quality movies.
I am not a Kimura fan, but I thought he did a good job in a role where he is prevented from injecting his one-trick pony cool persona.