Godzilla Did you know the original Godzilla (“ゴジラ” Gojira in Japanese), was made as an anti-nuclear protest film? In 1954, a Japanese fishing boat inadvertently strayed into the U.S. H-bomb testing range of the Bikini Atoll. The crew aboard were subsequently irradiated, with one dying of radiation poisoning. With the memories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki...Read More
Are you a voluntary or involuntary corona virus shut-in, and tired of watching Gilligan’s Island reruns? How about a virtual tour of Japan through Japanese movies. Watching Japanese movies is a great way to learn more about Japan, its people and culture. Here are some of our suggestions. I have tried to provide a wide...Read More
I am writing again about one of my favorite subjects: Japanese movies. One of my favorite Japanese movie series is Zatoichi, The Blind Swordsman. A total of 26 movies were made between 1962 and 1989, and 105 television shows were made between 1974 to 1979 making it the longest-running action series in Japanese history. Oddly...Read More
Movies can be another fun and interesting way of learning more about another culture, and this applies to Japanese films as well. Traditional Japanese performing arts, such as Kabuki, Noh and Bunraku are audio visual. There is typically very little plot and character development when compared to western performing arts. The main purpose of these...Read More
At first glance, “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” is a foodie’s dream. A documentary made by David Gelb, it tells the story of 85 year-old Jiro Ono, generally considered to be one of the best, if not the best sushi chef in the world. The Japanese government has designated him as a Living National Treasure. His...Read More
The 1953 film “Tokyo Story” (東京物語 or Tokyo monogatari) by Yasujiro Ozu was selected as “the greatest film ever made” in a poll of movie directors conducted once a decade by the British Film Institute. The organization’s monthly publication, Sight and Sound, reported that Ozu’s masterpiece was the top choice of 358 film directors, including...Read More
As a movie lover, it is interesting to see how some lines from a movie are able to entrench themselves into a culture. For example, who has not heard the lines “We’re not in Kansas anymore Toto”, “Go ahead, make my day”, “I’ll be back” and “I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse” to...Read More
Anyone who knows me can tell you that I love movies. Of course, it is only natural that I love Japanese movies. When thinking about Japanese movies, the name of Akira Kurosawa will always be mentioned. In a career that spanned more than 50 years, Kurosawa directed 30 films. He is widely regarded as one...Read More
