We all know that Blake Griffin and Chris Paul can combine to score points. But how good are they at scoring laughs together? The Los Angeles Clippers teammates' assortment of individual commercials for Kia and State Farm — as well as this sketch from the ESPYs — show some promise. Their comedic skills will be put to the next test tonight, though, when they team up for BGCP3 TV in HD, a two-part sketch comedy "special" that airs on Adult Swim tonight at 12:12 a.m. Et. (The second five-minute episode can be seen next Thursday night.) There are, of course, cautionary...
- 10/24/2014
- by Dan Snierson
- EW - Inside TV
About a year ago, it was announced that Warner Bros signed Ken Watanabe (Inception) to star in a Japanese remake of "Unforgiven," playing the role that Clint Eastwood played in the original film. And today, we have a trailer for the new movie. Check it out below. Set in 1880, Watanabe plays a samurai with a violent past, who lives on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido with his Ainu (the aboriginal people of the island) wife, but is brought out of retirement for one last job. Koichi Sato (The Magic Hour) will play the Gene Hackman role, while veteran Akira Emoto (Villain) will take the part played by Morgan Freeman in the Oscar-winning original. The remake is set to be released in Japan on September 13th. Trailer:...
- 7/15/2013
- WorstPreviews.com
Japanese writer-director Mitani Koki is - in my opinion - one of the world's truly great overlooked masters. He is one of the absolute best at what he does and has been for many, many years now and yet he gets very little respect or attention outside of his native Japan?Why? Because critical praise, it seems, is reserved for directors who make movies about people being sad and Mitani likes to make people laugh, instead.The director of Suite Dreams and The Magic Hour - also the writer of University of Laughs - Mitani's specialty are super classy comedies that would have fit right in to Hollywood's Golden Age, the sorts of films that delight in poking fun at social strata and good manners and take...
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- 7/2/2013
- Screen Anarchy
"Magic Hour (Part Two)" didn't quite have the same finesse that part one enjoyed, but we needed to find out what happened last week, didn't we?
Audrey seemed to grow up a little since her trip to Colorado and I don't think she'll be taking things for granted any more. What else went down?
We figured out why Moira was so angry at her sister. Because at age 34, Noelle looked like a teenager and Moira looked like her mother. I was shocked to find out the reason Moira hated her sister was because the last time the Troubles came around Noelle was eight and didn't save their dad. I never would have guessed her to be 34.
Okay, I'm being silly, but Moira's attitude was so utterly annoying that I almost clapped when Audrey finally pulled her gun and threatened to kill her so her Trouble might kick in. It was absolutely brilliant!
Audrey seemed to grow up a little since her trip to Colorado and I don't think she'll be taking things for granted any more. What else went down?
We figured out why Moira was so angry at her sister. Because at age 34, Noelle looked like a teenager and Moira looked like her mother. I was shocked to find out the reason Moira hated her sister was because the last time the Troubles came around Noelle was eight and didn't save their dad. I never would have guessed her to be 34.
Okay, I'm being silly, but Moira's attitude was so utterly annoying that I almost clapped when Audrey finally pulled her gun and threatened to kill her so her Trouble might kick in. It was absolutely brilliant!
- 11/10/2012
- by carissa@tvfanatic.com (Carissa Pavlica)
- TVfanatic
Ken Watanabe (Inception) has signed on for a Japanese remake of "Unforgiven" to be made by Warner Entertainment Japan. He will take a role played by Clint Eastwood. The new film is called "Yurusarezaru Mono (A Thing That Can't Be Forgiven)" and will be directed by Lee Sang-Il (Hula Girls, Villain). The plan is to start shooting in the fall for a 2013 release. Watanabe will play a samurai with a violent past, who lives on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido with his Ainu (the aboriginal people of the island) wife, but is brought out of retirement for one last job. Koichi Sato (The Magic Hour) will play the Gene Hackman role, while veteran Akira Emoto (Villain) will take the part played by Morgan Freeman in the multi-Academy Award-winning original.
- 8/20/2012
- WorstPreviews.com
Twenty years ago this month Clint Eastwood‘s western Unforgiven was released, which went on to win four Oscars including Best Picture and now it’s time for Japan’s take. Just as Seven Samurai was flipped into the western Magnificent Seven for the Us, the process will be reversed for a remake of the 1992 film, Variety reports.
Inception star Ken Watanabe, who actually worked with Eastwood on Letters from Iwo Jima, will lead the remake from WB’s Japanese division. Set in the same time period of 1880, Watanabe will instead be a “a samurai with a violent past, who lives on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido with his aboriginal wife, but is brought out of retirement for one last job.” Titled Yurusarezaru Mono, which translates to the more expounded A Thing That Can’t Be Forgiven, Lee Sang-Il will be directing and his Villain star Akira Emoto will take the Morgan Freeman role,...
Inception star Ken Watanabe, who actually worked with Eastwood on Letters from Iwo Jima, will lead the remake from WB’s Japanese division. Set in the same time period of 1880, Watanabe will instead be a “a samurai with a violent past, who lives on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido with his aboriginal wife, but is brought out of retirement for one last job.” Titled Yurusarezaru Mono, which translates to the more expounded A Thing That Can’t Be Forgiven, Lee Sang-Il will be directing and his Villain star Akira Emoto will take the Morgan Freeman role,...
- 8/20/2012
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
Ken Watanabe will have the role Clint Eastwood had in the Japanese remake of Unforgiven from Warner Entertainment Japan. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the idea for the project was brought to Warner May 2011 by helmer Lee San-Il, and will be a samurai version of the story which is set on the northernmost island of Japan. Watanabe was of course in The Last Samurai with Tom Cruise, so this is nothing new in terms of that for the actor who impressed in Christopher Nolan's Inception. Also in the cast of the Unforgiven reboot are Koicho Sato of The Magic Hour in the role played by Gene Hackman in the original film, while Akira Emoto (Villain) is set to take the part played by Morgan Freeman.
- 8/20/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Ken Watanabe will have the role Clint Eastwood had in the Japanese remake of Unforgiven from Warner Entertainment Japan. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the idea for the project was brought to Warner May 2011 by helmer Lee San-Il, and will be a samurai version of the story which is set on the northernmost island of Japan. Watanabe was of course in The Last Samurai with Tom Cruise, so this is nothing new in terms of that for the actor who impressed in Christopher Nolan's Inception. Also in the cast of the Unforgiven reboot are Koicho Sato of The Magic Hour in the role played by Gene Hackman in the original film, while Akira Emoto (Villain) is set to take the part played by Morgan Freeman.
- 8/20/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Tough drama “Villain” emerged as one of the most acclaimed films from Japan in 2010, earning a massive 15 nominations from the Japan Academy, including those for Best Picture, Director and a variety of acting nods. The film was directed by Lee Sang Il, and is a very different proposition to his last outing, the hugely popular inspirational dance flick “Hula Girls”. Based upon the award-winning novel by Yoshida Shuichi, who also co-scripted, the film is a dark examination of modern Japanese society that charts the many aftershocks that follow a brutal and tragic crime. The film has a fine cast, headed by Tsumabuki Satoshi (“The Magic Hour”) and Fukatsu Eri (who won the Best Actress award at the 2010 Montreal World Film Festival for her stunning performance), with support from Mitsushima Hikari, (“Love Exposure”), Kiki Kirin (“Still Walking”), Emoto Akira (“April Bride”), and Okada Masaki (“Confessions”). Having enjoyed a successful run at a variety of international festivals,...
- 1/24/2012
- by James Mudge
- Beyond Hollywood
Director: Lee Sang Il. Review: Adam Wing. I usually avoid award-winning films because the height of expectation is often a curse, but it’s hard to ignore a success story of this magnitude. Based on Shuichi Yoshida’s novel of the same name, Villain is director Lee Sang Il's follow-up to the award-winning movie Hula Girl. Not that Villain has proven any less successful. Villain earned 15 nominations at the 2010 Japan Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Score and six nominations for its cast. It took home 5 of them, including Best Actress, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress. Fukatsu Eri, herself victorious, also took home the Best Actress award at the 2010 Montreal Film Festival. Tsumabuki Satoshi (The Magic Hour) stars as one of the villains of the title, suspected of murdering his on-off girlfriend (Hikari Matsushima, Love Exposure). He is supported on this bleak journey by the likes of...
- 12/3/2011
- 24framespersecond.net
Director: Lee Sang Il. Review: Adam Wing. I usually avoid award-winning films because the height of expectation is often a curse, but it’s hard to ignore a success story of this magnitude. Based on Shuichi Yoshida’s novel of the same name, Villain is director Lee Sang Il's follow-up to the award-winning movie Hula Girl. Not that Villain has proven any less successful. Villain earned 15 nominations at the 2010 Japan Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Score and six nominations for its cast. It took home 5 of them, including Best Actress, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress. Fukatsu Eri, herself victorious, also took home the Best Actress award at the 2010 Montreal Film Festival. Tsumabuki Satoshi (The Magic Hour) stars as one of the villains of the title, suspected of murdering his on-off girlfriend (Hikari Matsushima, Love Exposure). He is supported on this bleak journey by the likes of...
- 12/3/2011
- 24framespersecond.net
To mark the release of Villain on DVD 5th December, Third Window Films have given us three copies of the Lee Sang-il (Hula Girls) movie to give away. You can pre-order your copy here or scroll down for your chance to win one. Villain stars Eri Fukatsu (The Magic Hour, Bayside Shakedown), Satoshi Tsumabuki (Tokyo!, Villon’s Wife, Pandemic), Hikari Mitsushima (Love Exposure, Death Note, Sawako Decides) and Masaki Okada (Confessions).
Villain is based on Shuichi Yoshida’s novel of the same name, which sold over half a million copies in Japan. It has just been translated to English and was released by Random House publishing on August 18th, 2011 – a day before the theatrical release of the film.
With over twenty companies bidding for the film adaptation rights, and many of Japan’s top directors vying for the project, Lee Sang-il’s adaptation of Shuichi Yoshida’s award-winning novel Villain...
Villain is based on Shuichi Yoshida’s novel of the same name, which sold over half a million copies in Japan. It has just been translated to English and was released by Random House publishing on August 18th, 2011 – a day before the theatrical release of the film.
With over twenty companies bidding for the film adaptation rights, and many of Japan’s top directors vying for the project, Lee Sang-il’s adaptation of Shuichi Yoshida’s award-winning novel Villain...
- 11/28/2011
- by Competitons
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Japanese writer-director Koki Mitani is about to do for the courtroom what he has already done for the theater, the hotel and the movie set. Make it very, very funny.You see, Mitani is an absolute master of the ensemble comedy, a man who thrives on taking large group settings governed by a strict set of rules and then turning them on their ear to fabulous effect. He did it with his script for University of Laughs and as writer-director on The Magic Hour and Suite Dreams and he is very much up to his old tricks in Once In A Blue Moon.The story here revolves around a low grade lawyer who must rely on the testimony of a 421 year old ghost to clear...
- 11/15/2011
- Screen Anarchy
Japanese “Space Battleship Yamato”, based upon the classic 1974 anime television series, hit the big screens in 2010 as a massive blockbuster release, boasting an all star cast and extensive special effects work to bring its epic off world skirmishes to life. Fittingly, the film was helmed by effects maestro turned director Yamazaki Takashi, who previously showed a commercial yet winningly human touch with the likes of “Always – Sunset on Third Street” and “Ballad”. Taking on the lead role of daredevil commander Kodai was popular actor and Smap member Kimura Takuya (“Hero”), with support from Kuroki Meisa (“Crows Zero”), Yanagiba Toshiro (“Bayside Shakedown”), Nishida Toshiyuki (“The Magic Hour”), Maiko (“Yama no Anata”), Yamazaki Tsutomu (“Departures”), and Ikeuchi Hiroyuki (“Ip Man”). Set in 2199, the film begins with Earth on the verge of destruction after having been bombarded with toxic meteorite attacks from the Gamilons, an as yet unseen vicious alien enemy. With most...
- 9/4/2011
- by James Mudge
- Beyond Hollywood
Japanese writer-director Koki Mitani is about to do for the courtroom what he has already done for the theater, the hotel and the movie set. Make it very, very funny.You see, Mitani is an absolute master of the ensemble comedy, a man who thrives on taking large group settings governed by a strict set of rules and then turning them on their ear to fabulous effect. He did it with his script for University of Laughs and as writer-director on The Magic Hour and Suite Dreams and he is very much up to his old tricks in Once In A Blue Moon.The story here revolves around a low grade lawyer who must rely on the testimony of a 421 year old ghost to clear her...
- 7/23/2011
- Screen Anarchy
Director: Zeze Takahisa. Review: Adam Wing. Outbreak gets a Japanese makeover in Zeze Takahisa’s crisis drama, in which a deadly virus is the key to mankind’s annihilation, infecting millions of people and threatening to destroy the lives of many more. Tsumabuki Satoshi (Dororo) stars as a young doctor who finds himself centre stage in a fight against a highly contagious illness that begins with flu-like symptoms and ends in death. Dan Rei (Love and Honour) plays a World Health Organization officer, not to mention token love interest, who joins him in the race against time to find a cure. They used to be lovers but personal ambition drove them apart, and now they must work together in order to survive the relentless chaos that threatens to consume them. Directed by Zeze Takahisa (Flying Rabbits), Pandemic spreads fear through the heart of an impressive supporting cast including the likes...
- 4/27/2011
- 24framespersecond.net
“Pandemic” sees Japanese cinema again taking on the time honoured disaster movie formula, this time with the tale of a deadly virus threatening the country as various stars try to save themselves and their loved ones. Very much in the style of the 1995 Hollywood outing “Outbreak”, the film was directed by Zeze Takahisa, (best known for the offbeat vampire effort “Moon Child”), with actor Tsumabuki Satoshi (“Dororo”) and actress Dan Rei (“Love and Honor”) in the lead roles, and a supporting ensemble cast including Sato Koichi (“The Magic Hour”), Ikewaki Chizuru (“Strawberry Shortcakes”), Fuji Tatsuya (“Flavor of Happiness”), Kuninaka Ryoko (“Train Man”), and Mitsuishi Ken. Arriving shortly on region 2 DVD via Mvm, the film was originally released domestically back in 2009, at a time when global virus scares were still very much making headline news, and given recent events in Japan, its scenes of eerily empty cities and destruction still ring sadly true.
- 4/18/2011
- by James Mudge
- Beyond Hollywood
“Ringu” director Nakata Hideo returns with “The Incite Mill”, a gripping psychological thriller that sees him continuing to explore themes of paranoia and the darker side of human nature. Pitting ten strangers against each other in a do or die game with high financial rewards, the film was based upon a novel by Yonezawa Honobu, and is similar in tone to Nakata’s recent English language outing “Chatroom”, though with added detective mystery elements that help to add a little excitement. Being billed as the 50th anniversary production for Japanese talent agency Horipro, the film is an appropriately ensemble affair, with a top cast headlined by Fujiwara Tetsuya (“Battle Royale”, “Death Note”) and Ayase Haruka (“The Magic Hour”), with support from the likes of Ishihara Satomi (“Zatoichi the Last”) and Abe Tsuyoshi (“Boys Over Flowers Final”). The film kicks off with Fujiwara Tetsuya as a shiftless young man hanging around in a convenience store,...
- 4/3/2011
- by James Mudge
- Beyond Hollywood
You think Conan O'Brien's sticking with the beard so he has cover in case tonight's TBS launch goes badly? Nobody knows better than O'Brien, after all, how talk shows—even good ones—can go splat. After you check out our list, you'll know, too: 1. The Chevy Chase Show: Now that the Saturday Night Live icon is back in the good graces of the Community, you'd think we'd all be able to laugh fondly at that little late-night misfire of his. You'd think that. Until you rewatch a clip. And cringe all over again. And to think, this went on, night after night, for six loooooong weeks. 2. The Magic Hour: You know how many otherwise-successful folks have hosted...
- 11/8/2010
- E! Online
Koki Mitani, the comedy director behind box office hits like “The Uchoten Hotel” and “The Magic Hour” is hard at work on a new film called Suteki na Kanashibari: Once in a Blue Moon. According to Mitani, the film will of course be a comedy, but will also include elements of courtroom suspense, ghost fantasy, and drama. It’s a film he’s been planning for over 10 years, but only got the confidence to go ahead with it when he witnessed the positive reaction to “The Magic Hour”.
The cast includes Mitani regulars such as Eri Fukatsu, Kiichi Nakai, and Toshiyuki Nishida as well as actors he hasn’t previously worked with like Hiroshi Abe, Yuko Takeuchi, and Tadanobu Asano.
Fukatsu will play Emi, a third-rate attorney with zero prospects and Abe will play the boss of her law firm. Takeuchi will play both the wife of a murdered capitalist and her own twin sister.
The cast includes Mitani regulars such as Eri Fukatsu, Kiichi Nakai, and Toshiyuki Nishida as well as actors he hasn’t previously worked with like Hiroshi Abe, Yuko Takeuchi, and Tadanobu Asano.
Fukatsu will play Emi, a third-rate attorney with zero prospects and Abe will play the boss of her law firm. Takeuchi will play both the wife of a murdered capitalist and her own twin sister.
- 6/2/2010
- Nippon Cinema
Roland Emmerich's disaster blockbuster heralds a period of sunny box-office receipts, with the vampires and werewolves of Twilight set to keep the winter chill at bay next week
The winner
Question: when is a summer blockbuster not a summer blockbuster? Answer: when it's released in November, of course. Roland Emmerich's patented formula of awesome planetary destruction and human heroics always screams out for a summer release, but this year Sony chose not to throw his 2012 into a competitive market already crowded with Transformers, Terminators and Wolverine. And the strategy has paid off, with an opening gross of £6.49m, proof that audiences will line up to see a big, dumb action flick no matter what month it is.
It's not the biggest opening of the year – it is behind both Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. But if you strip out the...
The winner
Question: when is a summer blockbuster not a summer blockbuster? Answer: when it's released in November, of course. Roland Emmerich's patented formula of awesome planetary destruction and human heroics always screams out for a summer release, but this year Sony chose not to throw his 2012 into a competitive market already crowded with Transformers, Terminators and Wolverine. And the strategy has paid off, with an opening gross of £6.49m, proof that audiences will line up to see a big, dumb action flick no matter what month it is.
It's not the biggest opening of the year – it is behind both Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. But if you strip out the...
- 11/17/2009
- by Charles Gant
- The Guardian - Film News
[Our thanks to Christopher Bourne for the following review.]
Koki Mitani’s latest film The Magic Hour is an entertaining and beautifully designed tribute to movies and movie-making that revels in its artificiality. Early in the film, Natsuko (Haruka Ayase), a nightclub waitress, remarks that the elements of the story – gangsters, guns, cement overshoes, a boss’ moll – all make the town seem like a movie set. At the film’s outset, nightclub manager Bingo (Satoshi Tsumbuki) has run afoul of yakuza boss Teshio (Toshiyuki Nishida) by having an affair with the boss’ girlfriend Mari (Eri Fukatsu). Bingo saves them both from being the proverbial feed for the fishes by claiming to be an acquaintance of Della Togashi, a famous hit man known as the “Phantom Assassin,” whom Teshio would like to meet. Not actually knowing the assassin at all, and unable to find the real deal, he comes up with the idea of asking Murata (Koichi Sato), a stuntman,...
Koki Mitani’s latest film The Magic Hour is an entertaining and beautifully designed tribute to movies and movie-making that revels in its artificiality. Early in the film, Natsuko (Haruka Ayase), a nightclub waitress, remarks that the elements of the story – gangsters, guns, cement overshoes, a boss’ moll – all make the town seem like a movie set. At the film’s outset, nightclub manager Bingo (Satoshi Tsumbuki) has run afoul of yakuza boss Teshio (Toshiyuki Nishida) by having an affair with the boss’ girlfriend Mari (Eri Fukatsu). Bingo saves them both from being the proverbial feed for the fishes by claiming to be an acquaintance of Della Togashi, a famous hit man known as the “Phantom Assassin,” whom Teshio would like to meet. Not actually knowing the assassin at all, and unable to find the real deal, he comes up with the idea of asking Murata (Koichi Sato), a stuntman,...
- 7/5/2009
- by Todd Brown
- Screen Anarchy
This just in from a Turner press-release: sit-com comedian, George Lopez, will be getting his own late night talk show on TBS Mondays through Thursdays at 11 p.m. (Et/Pt), beginning in November 2009. I have no idea why TBS would chose to throw its hat into the ring now, other than that they, like NBC, are sick of dropping lots of money on serial shows, and want a cheap late-night format to drive traffic. The press release speaks to a different kind of talk-show with a “street party air.” Man, I miss Arsenio too, but is this a good idea? - “While high-energy, Lopez’s new series will feature a casual environment that invites guests to engage fully with the crowd, giving audience members the chance to interact with the guests, ask questions and walk away feeling as though they’ve experienced something new.” Maybe they smell blood in the water too.
- 3/24/2009
- UGO TV
The Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan announced their final box office tally for 2008 today. No prizes for guessing which film topped the list: Hayao Miyazaki’s Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (Gake no Ue no Ponyo) left everything else trailing in its wake, raking in approximately 15.50 billion yen (over Us$172 million at current exchange rates). That was twice as much as the second highest-ranking film, TV spin-off Boys Over Flowers: Final (Hana Yori Dango Final, 7.75 billion yen). It was a bumper year for homegrown cinema in general, mind you. Other domestic flicks that hit gold at the box office included Suspect X (Yôgisha X no Kenshin, 4.92 billion yen), Partners: The Movie (Aibô Gekijôban, 4.44 billion yen), the first installment of 20th Century Boys (20 Seiki Shônen, 3.95 billion yen) and The Magic Hour (Za Majikku Awâ, 3.92 billion yen).
Hollywood, by contrast, didn’t fare nearly so well. While admissions for...
Hollywood, by contrast, didn’t fare nearly so well. While admissions for...
- 1/29/2009
- by James Hadfield
- Screen Anarchy
When you’re up to your knees in a bucket of concrete and about to be dumped in the sea, you’ll say pretty much anything. For small-time hustler Bingo (Satoshi Tsumabuki), it’s a seemingly innocuous fib: after being caught sleeping with his boss’s moll, Mari (Eri Fukatsu), he rescues them both from a watery grave by claiming acquaintance with the renowned hitman Della Togashi. The only problem is that he now has five days to bring Togashi to his boss - and, of course, he hasn’t got a clue who he is.
Neither does anyone else, for that matter - well, what he looks like, at least - leading Bingo to concoct an unlikely scheme. He decides to hire an actor to impersonate the famed assassin, plumping for one Taiki Murata (Koichi Sato), a second-rate hack who scrapes by on a gruel-like diet of bit parts and body double work.
Neither does anyone else, for that matter - well, what he looks like, at least - leading Bingo to concoct an unlikely scheme. He decides to hire an actor to impersonate the famed assassin, plumping for one Taiki Murata (Koichi Sato), a second-rate hack who scrapes by on a gruel-like diet of bit parts and body double work.
- 1/14/2009
- by James Hadfield
- Screen Anarchy
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