Archive for the 'Movies' Category

What’s been going on…

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on August 13, 2008
in Buddhism, Larks and Movies
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A fresh post up on Deep Kyoto today for the cafe/bar Salut Ya. Top slogan they have there: Soup! Hamburger!!

Last weekend I went to see the long-awaited follow-up to Batman Begins (which I loved), The Dark Knight. I’d heard it was dark, but man, that’s a really dark movie. I think it’s less a Batman movie than a movie about three people (one of whom happens to be Batman) who decide to take a stand against the crime and corruption in their city and then are totally and utterly thwarted by a twisted psychopath called the Joker. Forget any other portrayal of the Joker you have seen, they were just cartoon characters. Heath Ledger’s Joker is a flesh and bones character you can believe in: creepy, scary, nasty, he lives for mayhem, pain and fear. And did I mention scary? He’s really scary. Oh, he also likes to corrupt people. He loves that. Moral quandaries - he likes those too. It’s a complex story and not for the kiddies. I’m wondering how they are going to follow that up.

On Sunday, I went to see the Ujigawa fireworks. Great display. I’ve always thought 花火 or fireflowers is a great name for fireworks. On Sunday, they had fireworks that looked like flowers, hearts, cats, smiley faces and Doraemon. Yet all I managed to take were these lousy pictures:
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People weren’t kidding when they told me it would be packed though. It took ages to get home when it was over. Still I enjoy the summer festival atmosphere, the yatai stalls with their crap-but-tasty food, the girls in yukata, the street beers, the excited children…

Now, once again the Japanese festival of the dead, Obon, is upon us and it’s time for another message from Hozouji.

Obon message

Obon
kono yo to
ano yo no
tsunagari wo
kakunin suru
kikai

Obon:
a chance to reaffirm
the ties between
this world
and the next.

During Obon, the traditional belief is that the departed spirits of our loved ones return to visit their homes. Families get together during this time to honor their departed relatives and visit their family grave. In Kyoto, they light fires on the hills around the city on the 16th, to guide the spirits back to deads-ville. I’ll be there watching on Saturday in my jimbei. And then I’m going to Joao for Masuda’s birthday party. I think that’ll be my last blast for the summer. Off to South Africa next Tuesday for ten days, and it’s winter there…

Holy Crap! I’m 38…

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on July 6, 2008
in Larks, Movies and TV
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Birthday Cake

…How did that happen? Well, having celebrated more than plenty on Friday night, I opted for a quiet night in on the day itself. “Let’s stop in with a DVD” says I, “Something light and fluffy. Nothing too heavy. A romantic comedy perhaps…” But instead I ended up watching “Reign Over Me” which is a movie about friendship, and about loss and it does have a lot of light humour in it but also what you might call a deep sea of sadness. I recommend it. Don Cheadle is always good but Adam Sandler’s performance was outstanding. Rent it! Here’s the trailer:

That was a really good movie. The chocolate cake and champagne I had after was nice too… AND・・・Thanks very much to my sister Sheila for the You Must Celebrate! Dalek birthday card. That made me laugh out loud! Oh, and I just watched the last episode of Doctor Who tonight (glad to see that I’m not alone in that), and I’m glad (yet sad) at how all those loose ends got tied up. Davros was supramegalomaniacally excellent. The bit with Rose choked me up. Donna’s exit from the show did my head in totally… I’m glad David Tennant is still the Doctor. And I’m gutted there won’t be a full series next year… Saturday’s just aren’t the same without him, eh? I’ll definitely be home with the family for the Xmas Special.

Here are a couple of pictures from Nakano-kun’s second Takoyaki party last Wednesday, that I haven’t had a chance to post till now. Below are left to right: Miyazaki-san, China-san, Miyabe-san, some daft git in glasses and Nakano-kun.

Takoyaki

And here is the same bunch but with Yamamoto-san on the far left. We had a good time!

Takoyaki 2

Sentiment

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on June 30, 2008
in Movies, Music, TV and Whales
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Here’s a nice story I spotted on Japan Probe today: Elementary schoolers watch whalemeat processing.

Clutching a notebook and a pencil, Yuna and her classmates occupied the front row of the crowd Wednesday, bending forward to watch a 10-metre (33-foot) animal — the town’s first catch of the three-month season — be dismembered.

“Look! That’s her heart!” Yuna said to her friends with her face half covered by her hand. “Oh no, so much blood is gushing out.” LINK

Which totally reminded me of this old strip from the Perry Bible Fellowship: The Golden Ticket.

I went to see Indiana Jones at the weekend. “I’ll probably cry at the end - it being the last one.” I joked, just before going in. And then right at the end, as the stirring strains of the Indiana Jones theme started up for the last time and Harrison Ford seized his hat from “Junior”’s hands before striding out the church, and because you know there is, and can only be, one Indy Jones to wear that hat or crack that whip, I felt little pin-pricks of moisture spring to my eyes and trickle down my cheeks. I enjoyed the movie (although it did have some incredibly silly moments). I don’t think it’s as good as the earlier Indiana Jones movies but it’s still a good addition to the series and I enjoyed it.

Then last night I was watching the penultimate Doctor Who of this series and it does look an awful lot like the Doctor is regenerating. But then, there’s no word on the net (nothing I can find anyway) about David Tennant quitting or anyone else taking over the role so… is he? A shame if Tennant does quit, because he’s a good Doctor. That and as the last two Doctors have been really good, I’m afraid the next one will be a Colin Baker type or even worse… a Sylvester McCoy. Eek. By the way, never watch Doctor Who just before going to sleep. I had the Doctor and Indiana Jones running through some very vivid dreams last night and woke up completely exhausted this morning.

Here’s the latest song from Michael Franti. Not one of his best but still Michael Franti, so who cares?

Japanese Movies

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on June 5, 2008
in Movies and Random
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As some of you are aware, I spend way too much of my time watching movies. As some of you are also aware I have a part-time job teaching English conversation at a mental clinic. I say teaching, but what I actually do is play games and chat and generally end up learning more Japanese (and more about Japan) than teaching English… Anyway, last Saturday I put the question: What Japanese movies should I watch in order to understand Japan better? My pals at the clinic gave me the following list:

椿三十郎 - Tsubaki Sanjuro (That’s the original by Kurosawa not the latest starring Oda Yuji).
男はつらいよ - Otoko ha Tsurai Yo (anything from this series but especially those starring Yoshinaga Sayuri).
東京物語　- Tokyo Monogatari directed by Suzu Yasujiro.
華麗なる一族　- Kareinaru Ichizoku (TV drama?)
忠臣蔵　- Chuushingura (a classic samurai/revenge tale that has been remade many times).
おしん　- Oshin (old NHK TV drama)
機動戦士ガンダン - Kidou senshi Gandan (anime)
And then these movies by director Itami Juzo:
マルさの女　ー　Marusa no Onna
スーパーの女　－　Su-pa- no Onna
お葬式 - Ososhiki

That should keep me busy for a while, but I wonder if anyone out there has any more recommendations they feel should be on the list…? As it happens, all of Itami Juzo’s movies come with lovely English subtitles so that’s where I intend to start. Tonight: Ososhiki. I’ll let you know what I think.

Some Other Stuff

Up on Deep Kyoto tonight, a fresh post on Dog Cafe. All good dogs welcome.

Here are some more links.

The Daily Mail has a story about a polar bear that drifted on an ice-flow all the way to Iceland last Tuesday. The first polar bear in Iceland for 15 years, it attracted a crowd of sightseers eager to see one of the world’s largest land-based predators before they all succumb to climate change… And the police shot it dead.

A Burger King advertising campaign reveals the seedy underbelly of life as a vegetable: Veg City. These images have apparently been used as tray liners in Burger King stores!

Coco Wang’s heart-breaking comics from the Chinese Earthquake. LINK. All true stories apparently.

And here is a man with exactly 2008 (very colorful) pins in his head celebrating the Beijing Olympics. LINK.

Bed - Genji - Atonement

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on May 15, 2008
in Art and Movies
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Today on Deep Kyoto, there is a fresh post on the delightful Shizuku cafe.

I just spent the day traipsing round town looking for a new sofa bed, failing to find one, getting frustrated by the dawdling crowds (why does everyone but me dawdle?) and upon going home ordering this little beauty from amazon.co.jp instead. Praise be the interwebs! Now I have to wait a week or so until I can test it out. Hope it’s comfortable. If you’re wondering why I need a new sofa bed, my old sofa is falling to pieces and my old futon - well, a dog peed on my futon. Don’t ask why or how. These things simply happen.

Last Sunday I went to see the Tale of Genji Millenium exhibition at the Museum of Kyoto; a very impressive collection of priceless manuscripts, emaki, beautiful folding screens and other precious knick-knacks to celebrate 1000 years since this tale of nobility and nookie first made a big splash in the Heian court. What really impressed me was just how popular and important this story has been to Japanese people down the centuries and still is today - the place was packed. Actually, it was a little too packed, and with quite a few ladies of a certain age with vicious elbows. I’d recommend going to see it, but not on a weekend. Anyway, I’ve been inspired to dig the two-volume copy out of the school library and have another crack at it. Or I could read it here I suppose but I prefer a paper copy.

Later, the same day I went to see Atonement at the Cocon Karasuma cinema. Wow. Great movie. It started off so slow I was thinking “This is going to be a very pretty but dull couple of hours…“, but then it started to build and build, and the story had me totally in its clutches until the devastating ending. I heartily recommend it. The sort of movie that makes you very very thankful for whatever happiness you’ve got. Here’s a trailer.

Once

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on January 27, 2008
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Today, mikeylambe.com recommends Once - a movie I went into knowing nothing about and came out thinking, “Damn! That’s a nice movie!”. Currently showing at Cocon Karasuma, it’s a story of music and friendship and it’s really really GOOD. Here’s a scene:

You can download the song “Falling Slowly” for free here: ONCE
Update: I have since bought and am thoroughly enjoying: Once: the original soundtrack

Hellboy II

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on December 27, 2007
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Guillermo del Toro (director of the utterly wonderful Pan’s Labyrinth) has now directed the second in the Hellboy series of movies and judging by the trailer - it’s going to be pretty damn wonderul too.

I’m Not There

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on November 21, 2007
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I can't wait to see this:

Tsotsi

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on November 14, 2007
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Last week I watched American Gangster. American Gangster is a good movie. It’s entertaining. It’s based on real events. It’s educational. It plays interesting games with your sense of sympathy. And Russell Crowe has a very convincing ’70s hairstyle that convinced me to get my own hair cut today because it was beginning to look way too similar.

Anyway, I recommend that movie.

Mere, moments ago I finished watching Tsotsi. That movie is brilliant. It’s enthralling. It’s a story of life in Soweto: harsh and brutal. And it’s the story of the eponymous lead character, (whose nickname means simply “hoodlum”), of the mixture of chance and impulse that made him what he is, and also of the chance and impulse that leads to his redemption. It’s a strong story; one that will help you to understand just a little bit about that part of the world, and help you to understand the people struggling in those circumstances too. And if you are a wuss like me it might even elicit the odd teardrop. In addition it has a thumping kwaito soundtrack which I want. And I want to read the book. After listening to the director’s commentary, it sounds deeeeeeeeeeeep.

Anyway, the movie only came out here on DVD recently so I rented it, stupidly thinking “of course it will have English subtitles” without checking properly, but that turned out in fact to be a good thing because I have reached a bit of a milestone today. I’ve watched and understood an entire foreign language movie with only Japanese subtitles to help me and that was something I didn’t even realise I was capable of doing.

In my own mind you are all applauding me now. Seriously.

Anyway, Tsotsi - great movie. Wish I’d seen it in the cinema.

Oim ‘ere to kill your monsta!

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on November 5, 2007
in Bars, Friends, Movies and Teaching
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Things that have happened lately that I have neglected to blog about… Hmmm. Let’s see… It got colder…

Seriously, I’ve watched “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown” 13 times with my students (a palpable hit!) and have only 3 viewings to go…

Amusingly, I was chased down the street by a policeman last Tuesday morning (yes - CHASED!) and questioned as to the ownership of my bicycle AGAIN (that’s about 12 times since September). They like to claim it’s simply because I have “the wrong type of lock” but I think the fact I am white and have a big nose has something to do with it too. I think they think “Oh Jimminy! It’s a foreigner! He’s bound to be up to no good!” and then come galloping along in their excitement only to be met by my scowling face asking them “What’s your name and the name of your police station?” as I whip out my notebook and take down their details. Table-turning see. Role-reversal. Yeah. (Doesn’t work though).

Foolishly, I woke up late for my job at the clinic this Saturday (AGAIN!), jumped in a taxi and mailed K___-san to say I would be late. She then immediately replied, pointing out it was a national holiday and I had the day off anyway. So that felt a bit silly.

Nepotistically, I’ve put a link up in the blog-roll to Chris Cotter’s “Heads Up English!” - an English teaching resource site that looks pretty snappy.

Sadly, Luka’s bar Pagode is closing down on Saturday and you can read about that and about the final live music performance this Friday (Nov. 9th) and about a possible Pagode resurrection up in the mountains up on the sister-blog at Deep Kyoto.

Regrettably, tonight I managed to wind-up one of my (adult) students by being just plain rude. Thing is, I’m not naturally the most patient person (bad trait in a teacher I know) and he is one of my more mind-bogglingly obtuse students. He has a habit of sinking into his own little world, and staring at the page or the ceiling whilst muttering to himself in Japanese and holding up the class for twenty to thirty minutes at a time. After ten minutes of him doing this while his partner tried to get him to respond with endless unanswered questions I decided to intervene and spur him on a bit. Which was the right thing to do. But I was less than diplomatic in doing so. And I have to be dimplomatic. Because he is a customer. And for better or for worse, for the time being, that’s my job. Sigh. Oh well, I shall just try to be nicer next time and hope he forgives me…

And finally… to explain tonight’s title. There’s an amusing post by Neil Gaiman up on his website today on a press junket for the new Beowulf movie. He makes brief mention of two of the stars of the movie; Angelina Jolie (turns out - she’s a human being!) and Ray Winstone, who, quite delightfully, is very much Ray Winstone. And I’m not going to give you a link to that you lazy gits - just type in “Neil” on google and be totally awe-struck by the fact that he is the most popular Neil in the entire google-verse.

And there I was not blogging for the last couple of weeks because I thought I had nothing to blog about.