Continue reading →In his beautiful if sometimes convoluted first feature, Makoto Shinkai shows the early rumblings of an artist who would become a first-rate anime director.
Tag / Japan
Tale of Zatoichi, The (1962)
Continue reading →A tale of respect and dignity between friend and foe, this influential classic birthed the legendary blind swordsman as we know it.
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart in Peril (1972)
Continue reading →Another worthy entry into the series with requisite gory fight scenes and heightened sensuality, this time shot by the legendary Kazuo Miyagawa.
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart to Hades (1972)
Continue reading →Despite being more talky than usual, this satisfying entry features a terrific climactic action set-piece.
Lone Wolf and Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx (1972)
Continue reading →The second movie brings the series down to a disappointing notch with a thinner storyline, and some questionable decisions in plotting.
Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance (1972)
Continue reading →The first of the popular if bloody Japanese chanbara series is sharp and swift like its titular assassin.
Shoplifters (2018)
Continue reading →Not his very best, but Kore-eda has an intuitive way of working with children, and this ensemble piece illustrates with delicate ease the filmmaker’s longstanding preoccupation with relational dynamics within the family unit.
Third Murder, The (2017)
Continue reading →Kore-eda changes his own scenery with a genre film in this largely humanistic if didactic legal procedural about a murky murder.
After the Storm (2016)
Continue reading →Not one of the master’s finest, but Koreeda’s subtle touch continues to bring warmth and insight to the complexity of modern family relations.
Still Walking (2008)
Continue reading →Koreeda’s mastery of the subtle gives this drama an emotional weight as pure as life itself.
Eternality Tan 