Posts tagged japan
[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'A Life Turned Upside Down: My Dad's an Alcoholic' provides laughs and tears
[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'A Life Turned Upside Down: My Dad's an Alcoholic' provides laughs and tears

A Life Turned Upside Down: My Dad’s an Alcoholic is a funny and touching look at what happens when self-destruction pulls everyone down. Based on a semi-autobiographical web comic by Mariko Kikuchi, director Kenji Katagiri’s sensitive touch and ability to mix humour with the dark depths of human emotion elevates this film above your usual melodramatic fare.

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Film, New ReleasesJason Chena life turned upside down, kenji katagiri, comedy, manga, alcoholism, tragedy, japan, viff, viff 2020, Mariko KikuchiComment
[VIFF 2018] REVIEW: 'Shoplifters' will steal your heart
[VIFF 2018] REVIEW: 'Shoplifters' will steal your heart

The word “family” is used loosely here, and without giving away any key plot points, many of the common terms of familial endearment – father, wife, aunt, son, sister and grandma – are merely titles, and it’s clear that love, friendship and companionship are more apt ways to describe the Shibata clan.

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Film, New ReleasesJason Chenshoplifters, hirokazu kore-eda, lily franky, japan, japanese, cannes, palme d'or, oscars, viff, 2018, review, movies, cinemaComment
REVIEW: 'Batman Ninja' cannot be unseen
REVIEW: 'Batman Ninja' cannot be unseen

Let’s start with the good; Batman Ninja looks gorgeous. The smoother CGI and cel animation threw me for a loop because I’m still used to some of the herky-jerky action of the old hand-drawn ones, but the colours are vivid, the movements look cool and smooth and the transitions are creative. I watched it with its original Japanese audio and I had no qualms with the voice acting or the translated subtitles, but note there is a completely different set of subtitles to go with the English audio.

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Film, New ReleasesJason Chenbatman, ninja, batman ninja, japan, feudal, anime, afro samurai, samurai, warner bros, animation, takashi okazaki, movie, video, review, cinema, filmComment
REVIEW: ‘Isle of Dogs’ trades Wes Anderson’s coziness for scrappiness
REVIEW: ‘Isle of Dogs’ trades Wes Anderson’s coziness for scrappiness

It’s the relationship between Atari, Chief and Spots that really fuels the film. Anderson and his team punctuate the movie with intense close-ups of both the dogs and Atari, deep in thought, tears coming to their eyes as they think about the beings they care about.

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Film, New ReleasesRobert Snowisle of dogs, wes anderson, bryan cranston, jeff goldblum, bill murray, greta gerwig, frances mcdormand, edward norton, harvey keitel, koyu rankin, japan, japanese, dogs, animation, stop-motion, film, cinema, review, movies, criticism, 2018Comment
DEEP DIVE: The Long-Lasting Appeal of the Original Power Rangers
DEEP DIVE: The Long-Lasting Appeal of the Original Power Rangers

Who knew coloured spandex would have such a lasting impression on our pop culture? On March 24, Haim Saban will be bringing Power Rangers back to the silver screen, 22 years after the original theatrical film grossed $66 million worldwide on a $15 million budget. What is old is new again, which seems to be the running theme for a lot of franchises these days.

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TV, FilmJason Chenpower rangers, super sentai, japan, japanese, tv, show, series, zords, meggazord, robots, martial artsComment