The weekly unveiling of licenses continues at Seven Seas Entertainment, and this week the publisher saw fit to announce five more titles. The latest batch includes a new addition to the mature Ghost Ship imprint in Gorou Nori's Imaizumi Brings All the Gals to His House , the Hikari-man omnibus from Ichi the Killer author Hideo Yamamoto and more. Let's see what's due out this November and December: Imaizumi Brings All the Gals to His House by Gorou Nori December 2024 Synopsis: Imaizumi lives a life that most high school boys could only dream of! During the day, he attends his classes like any dutiful student, only to return each evening to a home full of hotties! It seems his home has become the go-to hangout for the coolest gyarus in town. From endless gossip fests to snack binges to getting downright physical with his three new housemates, his once-quiet abode is...
- 6/6/2024
- by Joseph Luster
- Crunchyroll
“Audition” is quite a historic production (at least for its cult following), since it was the film that established Takashi Miike as a prominent member of the horror category and Eihi Shiina as a “priestess” of the grotesque.
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Based on the homonymous novel by Ryu Murakami, who actually wrote it as a reaction to a failed love affair, “Audition” tells the story of Shigeharu Aoyama, a middle aged entrepreneur who has recently lost his wife and has been living a disinterested life ever since. His 17-year-old son, Shigehiko, who worries about the turn his father's life seem to have taken, prompts him to meet new women. Yoshikawa, a friend of Shigeharu and a film producer, proposes that he take part in a sham in order to meet women, an idea he agrees to. According to the plan, actresses would...
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Based on the homonymous novel by Ryu Murakami, who actually wrote it as a reaction to a failed love affair, “Audition” tells the story of Shigeharu Aoyama, a middle aged entrepreneur who has recently lost his wife and has been living a disinterested life ever since. His 17-year-old son, Shigehiko, who worries about the turn his father's life seem to have taken, prompts him to meet new women. Yoshikawa, a friend of Shigeharu and a film producer, proposes that he take part in a sham in order to meet women, an idea he agrees to. According to the plan, actresses would...
- 1/19/2024
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Japanese filmmaker Koji Fukada is back with another middle-class (melo)drama about common people in uncommon life situations. “Love Life” premiered at Venice and after that went on the tour of festivals.
Love Life is screening at Black Movie
Taeko and her husband Jiro live a peaceful life. At the beginning, their mood could be seen as celebratory, since they are throwing a party for his stern father’s 65th birthday, and also celebrating her son Keita’s local Othello championship title. However, Jiro’s father has a hard time accepting the fact that his son married a divorcee with a child from her previous marriage.
A sudden tragedy resulting in Keita’s accidental death starts the spiral of events. Firstly, Keita’s biological father Park (Atom Sunada) suddenly appears at the funeral and Taeko has the urge to do her best to help this troubled deaf homeless Korean man.
Love Life is screening at Black Movie
Taeko and her husband Jiro live a peaceful life. At the beginning, their mood could be seen as celebratory, since they are throwing a party for his stern father’s 65th birthday, and also celebrating her son Keita’s local Othello championship title. However, Jiro’s father has a hard time accepting the fact that his son married a divorcee with a child from her previous marriage.
A sudden tragedy resulting in Keita’s accidental death starts the spiral of events. Firstly, Keita’s biological father Park (Atom Sunada) suddenly appears at the funeral and Taeko has the urge to do her best to help this troubled deaf homeless Korean man.
- 1/22/2023
- by Marko Stojiljković
- AsianMoviePulse
Based on the homonymous manga by Ken Wakui, “Shinjuku Swan” is another testament to Sion Sono’s prowess in adapting, with the many and colorful characters, the extreme violence and the overall sleaziness being just down his alley.
on Amazon
The labyrinth story begins with Tatsuhiko, an unemployed young man who does not have even the fare to return home (although he wears a Supreme hoodie that costs upwards than 400), getting into a fight with a gang, and getting rescued by Mako, a scout who recruits girls to work for the Burst scouting agency run by Yamashiro in Kabukicho. Tatsuhiko learns the “tricks” of wooing women to work in massage parlors, and although he feels uncomfortable when he realizes that they are exploited, the sense of belonging, success and comradeship soon take over with him becoming quite successful. However, Burst is not the only company working in the area,...
on Amazon
The labyrinth story begins with Tatsuhiko, an unemployed young man who does not have even the fare to return home (although he wears a Supreme hoodie that costs upwards than 400), getting into a fight with a gang, and getting rescued by Mako, a scout who recruits girls to work for the Burst scouting agency run by Yamashiro in Kabukicho. Tatsuhiko learns the “tricks” of wooing women to work in massage parlors, and although he feels uncomfortable when he realizes that they are exploited, the sense of belonging, success and comradeship soon take over with him becoming quite successful. However, Burst is not the only company working in the area,...
- 5/12/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
‘The Grudge’ Director Takashi Shimizu’s New Movie ‘Homunculus’ is Now Streaming on Netflix [Trailer]
Best known as the creator of the Japanese Ju-on series and The Grudge franchise, Takashi Shimizu is back with a brand new movie, titled Homunculus and now streaming on Netflix. The live-action film adapts the cult classic manga by Hideo Yamamoto (Ichi the Killer). In Homunculus, “Truth and illusion blurs when a homeless amnesiac awakens from an experimental medical procedure with […]...
- 5/3/2021
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
Although in terms of series, Netflix is doing a nice enough job regarding its Japanese content, the same does not apply with the movies, and particularly the anime/manga adaptations, with titles like “Bleach” and “Full Metal Alchemist” being mediocre, to say the least. Unfortunately, the same applies to the adaptation of Hideo Yamamoto’s homonymous manga, which seems to suffer both from terms of writing and direction.
The story revolves around Susumu Nokoshi, a 34-year-old man who once worked for a top foreign company, but now finds himself hopeless, hanging around a park in Shinjuku with others who share the same fate. One fateful night, he meets medical student Manabu Ito, who is eventually revealed to be the owner’s son, who also happens to be looking for volunteers to undergo a surgical procedure known as trepanation, essentially having a hole drilled in their skull that can potentially unleash the brain’s restricted potential.
The story revolves around Susumu Nokoshi, a 34-year-old man who once worked for a top foreign company, but now finds himself hopeless, hanging around a park in Shinjuku with others who share the same fate. One fateful night, he meets medical student Manabu Ito, who is eventually revealed to be the owner’s son, who also happens to be looking for volunteers to undergo a surgical procedure known as trepanation, essentially having a hole drilled in their skull that can potentially unleash the brain’s restricted potential.
- 5/1/2021
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Koki Mitani used to be one of the main faces of intelligent comedy in Japanese cinema, but his works in 2010s did not share the quality of his previous ones, indulging into too much in silliness and slapstick. His last effort of the decade, however, finds him back in form, with a film that is quite smart and entertaining, to say the least.
“Hit Me Anyone One More Time” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Keisuke Kuroda wakes up in a hospital bed without being able to remember who he is, and even starts roaming the streets in his pajamas, at least until his entourage picks him up. Soon, he realizes that he is the President of the country, but also one of the most hated leaders Japan ever had, with his approval having reached an all-time low. Soon, his two secretaries, the always serious Isaka and the more kind and understanding Banba,...
“Hit Me Anyone One More Time” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Keisuke Kuroda wakes up in a hospital bed without being able to remember who he is, and even starts roaming the streets in his pajamas, at least until his entourage picks him up. Soon, he realizes that he is the President of the country, but also one of the most hated leaders Japan ever had, with his approval having reached an all-time low. Soon, his two secretaries, the always serious Isaka and the more kind and understanding Banba,...
- 10/3/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
It’s sometime in the 90’s (according to Miike – year 199X), and the Osaka’s shabby neighborhood is impatiently waiting for the live transmission of the match of the year from the Tokyo dome – a mixed martial vent featuring the Bantam-weight boxing champion Kazuyoshi Tamai (Kyosuke Yabe) and the wrestling champion Takeshi Hamada. It is announced that it will be a dirty game with no rules, with all tricks allowed, a reason more for the crowd to get frantic about it. As men start placing bets on the winner, the fighters are preparing for their first clash ever, making sure their hidden trumps will cause the painful damage to the opponent.
Based on Seijun Ninomiya’s novel of the same name (adapted by Masa Nakamura) which was inspired by the true Japanese fighting legends Hidekazu Akai and Akira Maeda, Miike Takashi’s “The Way to Fight” is...
Based on Seijun Ninomiya’s novel of the same name (adapted by Masa Nakamura) which was inspired by the true Japanese fighting legends Hidekazu Akai and Akira Maeda, Miike Takashi’s “The Way to Fight” is...
- 8/9/2019
- by Marina D. Richter
- AsianMoviePulse
In their hometown of Osaka, a group of teenagers celebrates their graduation from school and their road into adulthood. Led by loudmouth Riichi (Koji Chihara), the three boys try to make ends meet collecting debts from local businesses, offering their services as bodyguards and eventually attempting to take on more solid jobs when, for example, Kotetsu (Kyosuke Yabe) gets a job as a bartender.
However, especially Riichi struggles with the reality after school. While his girlfriend manages Ryoko (Sarina Suzuki) to get a job at a local hair salon, his attempts at a regular job fail. When he cheats on her with a childhood friend of his, he becomes estranged from Ryoko as well as the other friends. Eventually, the separation and the fact he is beaten up several times by his former enemies, result in Riichi being severely depressed and lacking the necessary drive to move on in life.
However, especially Riichi struggles with the reality after school. While his girlfriend manages Ryoko (Sarina Suzuki) to get a job at a local hair salon, his attempts at a regular job fail. When he cheats on her with a childhood friend of his, he becomes estranged from Ryoko as well as the other friends. Eventually, the separation and the fact he is beaten up several times by his former enemies, result in Riichi being severely depressed and lacking the necessary drive to move on in life.
- 8/7/2019
- by Rouven Linnarz
- AsianMoviePulse
One of the earliest films that proved Miike’s ability for diversity, “Shangri-La” is one of his lesser-known films, since it was never released on DVD in the United States.
Shangri-La is the name given to a narrow piece of land by the sea by the homeless and altruistic people that live there. Their leader is a peculiar individual everyone calls The Mayor, who has an afro and constantly wears sunglasses. Gangs of criminals attack the homeless because they aspire to use their area to dump garbage. However, a passerby saves the homeless by pretending to be a cop, showing them a badge that is actually his postal booklet. He subsequently becomes a resident of Shangri-La, under the nickname “the Deputy”.
The next day, the Mayor and the Deputy prevent Umemoto, an owner of a printing house from committing suicide, due to the bankruptcy of the company that chiefly financed him,...
Shangri-La is the name given to a narrow piece of land by the sea by the homeless and altruistic people that live there. Their leader is a peculiar individual everyone calls The Mayor, who has an afro and constantly wears sunglasses. Gangs of criminals attack the homeless because they aspire to use their area to dump garbage. However, a passerby saves the homeless by pretending to be a cop, showing them a badge that is actually his postal booklet. He subsequently becomes a resident of Shangri-La, under the nickname “the Deputy”.
The next day, the Mayor and the Deputy prevent Umemoto, an owner of a printing house from committing suicide, due to the bankruptcy of the company that chiefly financed him,...
- 8/5/2019
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Keishi Otomo has emerged, during the last years, as one of the most successful adaptors of manga in Japanese cinema, following in the footsteps of Takashi Miike, with films like the “Rurouni Kenshin Trilogy” and “The Top Secret: Murder in Mind”. In the case of “Museum,” he goes to a different direction from samurai and sci-fi movies, and presents a crime thriller that lingers somewhere between “Saw” and “Seven”.
“Museum” screened as part of the Asian selection at Fantasia International Film Festival
Detective Hisashi Sawamura is one of the best detectives in his department, highlighting his ingenious and coolness every chance he gets. Deep down, though, he is a mess, since his wife abandoned him, taking their son with her, after suffering years of neglect. Around the same time, a serial killer starts appearing in Tokyo, killing his victims in ritualistic but grotesque fashion, with the murders taking place only during heavy rain.
“Museum” screened as part of the Asian selection at Fantasia International Film Festival
Detective Hisashi Sawamura is one of the best detectives in his department, highlighting his ingenious and coolness every chance he gets. Deep down, though, he is a mess, since his wife abandoned him, taking their son with her, after suffering years of neglect. Around the same time, a serial killer starts appearing in Tokyo, killing his victims in ritualistic but grotesque fashion, with the murders taking place only during heavy rain.
- 7/6/2019
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Sion Sono had one of his most prolific years in 2015, eventually managing to shoot six films, including this particular one that stands apart due to its minimalism, a concept almost unknown to one of the most maximalist filmmakers of the world.
“The Whispering Star” screened at Art Film Fest Kosice
80% of the universe is populated by androids. The few humans left have chosen to live in silence, enforcing a law that forbids any sound over 30db. A female humanoid robot named Yoko lives in a spaceship shaped like a traditional Japanese house, while delivering packages to humans all over the galaxy. In the vast intervals between the deliveries, Yoko cleans and makes tea, in one of Sono’s favorite practices, who seems to relish shooting his real-life wife (Megumi Kagurazaka who plays Yoko) doing domestic chores. Her sole company is a robot attached to the spaceship’s control panel, who...
“The Whispering Star” screened at Art Film Fest Kosice
80% of the universe is populated by androids. The few humans left have chosen to live in silence, enforcing a law that forbids any sound over 30db. A female humanoid robot named Yoko lives in a spaceship shaped like a traditional Japanese house, while delivering packages to humans all over the galaxy. In the vast intervals between the deliveries, Yoko cleans and makes tea, in one of Sono’s favorite practices, who seems to relish shooting his real-life wife (Megumi Kagurazaka who plays Yoko) doing domestic chores. Her sole company is a robot attached to the spaceship’s control panel, who...
- 6/7/2019
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Audition
Blu ray
Arrow Video
1999 / 1:85:1 / 115 Min. / Street Date – February 12, 2019
Starring Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina
Cinematography by Hideo Yamamoto
Directed by Takashi Miike
It could be described as lyrically sadistic but de Sade himself might flinch at Audition – like its fragile leading lady, Takashi Miike’s film treads ever so softly before lowering the boom on its stupefied audience.
Ryo Ishibashi plays Shigeharu Aoyama, a middle-aged widower tired of sleeping in a single bed but ill-equipped for the dating game. Like the desperate anti-heroes of so many noirs, Aoyama makes just one mistake but it’s a doozy – he stages a sham audition as his personal matchmaking service. Into that not-so-tender trap steps Asami, a supernaturally shy ballerina with secrets all her own.
Miike spins their gauzy-lensed courtship with kid gloves and compassion and by the time the happy couple set sail for a seaside rendezvous we’re aching...
Blu ray
Arrow Video
1999 / 1:85:1 / 115 Min. / Street Date – February 12, 2019
Starring Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina
Cinematography by Hideo Yamamoto
Directed by Takashi Miike
It could be described as lyrically sadistic but de Sade himself might flinch at Audition – like its fragile leading lady, Takashi Miike’s film treads ever so softly before lowering the boom on its stupefied audience.
Ryo Ishibashi plays Shigeharu Aoyama, a middle-aged widower tired of sleeping in a single bed but ill-equipped for the dating game. Like the desperate anti-heroes of so many noirs, Aoyama makes just one mistake but it’s a doozy – he stages a sham audition as his personal matchmaking service. Into that not-so-tender trap steps Asami, a supernaturally shy ballerina with secrets all her own.
Miike spins their gauzy-lensed courtship with kid gloves and compassion and by the time the happy couple set sail for a seaside rendezvous we’re aching...
- 2/23/2019
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
“Visitor Q” was filmed as the sixth and final part of the Love Cinema series, consisting of six straight-to-video releases by independent filmmakers via a brief but exclusive run at the minuscule Shimokitazawa cinema in Tokyo. The six films were conceived as low budget exercises to explore the benefits afforded by the low-cost Digital Video medium, such as the increased mobility of film and the low-lighting conditions available to the filmmakers.
Buy This Title
The script revolves around the Yamazakis, a family of four, all of who are quite disturbed individuals. Kiyoshi, the father, is a former reporter trying to shoot a documentary on violence and sex among youths. Therefore, he spends his time recording Takuya, his son, on camera, while his classmates bully him; he also occasionally has sex with his prostitute-daughter, Miki.
Takuya, frustrated by the constant bullying, takes out his fury on his mother, Keiko, beating her over any insignificant excuse,...
Buy This Title
The script revolves around the Yamazakis, a family of four, all of who are quite disturbed individuals. Kiyoshi, the father, is a former reporter trying to shoot a documentary on violence and sex among youths. Therefore, he spends his time recording Takuya, his son, on camera, while his classmates bully him; he also occasionally has sex with his prostitute-daughter, Miki.
Takuya, frustrated by the constant bullying, takes out his fury on his mother, Keiko, beating her over any insignificant excuse,...
- 10/8/2018
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Takashi Miike has answered the “Can a film be so bad that is good?” question affirmatively a number of times, and the “Katakuris” is definitely among the movie that provide a positive reply.
The script is loosely based on Kim Jee-woon’s film, “The Quiet Family”, but Takashi Miike took the basic premises of the original and turned them completely upside down, in order to present a movie that lingers between the musical and the thriller, also including elements of slapstick comedy, parody and claymation.
The Katakuris are a four-generation family of failures: patriarch Masao Katakuri, his wife Terue, his father Jinpei, his formerly criminal son Masayuki, his divorced daughter Shizue, her child Yurie and their dog, Pochi. The family uses the father’s redundancy pay to purchase an old home in the country, near Mount Fuji, in order to convert it into a bed and breakfast.
The script is loosely based on Kim Jee-woon’s film, “The Quiet Family”, but Takashi Miike took the basic premises of the original and turned them completely upside down, in order to present a movie that lingers between the musical and the thriller, also including elements of slapstick comedy, parody and claymation.
The Katakuris are a four-generation family of failures: patriarch Masao Katakuri, his wife Terue, his father Jinpei, his formerly criminal son Masayuki, his divorced daughter Shizue, her child Yurie and their dog, Pochi. The family uses the father’s redundancy pay to purchase an old home in the country, near Mount Fuji, in order to convert it into a bed and breakfast.
- 4/15/2018
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
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