Japanese cinema

January 7, 2007 12:10pm CST
Currently, in the UK we have an absolute dirth of quality films, as our own film industry has curled up and died under a stone somewhere, and Hollywood, unfortunately, seems to think a teenage boy ogling girls in swim suits is better than a script, plot and acting. During the last 5 years, Japanese cinema has really gained a foothold with viewers, especially such hits as Battle Royale, Ring, Dark Water. Fortunately, I was introduced to Japanese cinema about 20 years back, and have always enjoyed the works of the great Akira Kurasawa (esp. 'Throne of Blood' - because I had to study 'MacBeth' at school), 'Beat' Takeshi (esp. 'Sonatine') and the Manga genre (Akira, Ghost in the Shell, OEDO 808), and am glad that the current success means more and more Japanese films are available in the West. My current favourite is 'Azumi', largely on the strength of the bad guy (I think, Babomaru?), and the series, 'Paranoia Agent'. Can anyone recommend any other modern classics that I might have missed?
1 person likes this
2 responses
@shmeedia (1044)
• Canada
14 Jan 07
i'm with you! :) is azumi the one about the female warrior or am i getting confused? if you like films like ring and dark water you should check out films by *another* kurosawa...kiyoshi films like seance and cure are great!
@shmeedia (1044)
• Canada
17 Jan 07
though i love cure, i somehow managed to fall asleep on both of the 2 theatre viewings i had of the film :( i think it's something very cold, claustrophobic and quiet about the film that made me fall asleep. it was weird, like a sleep you have locked in a car when the weather's cold and damp out, and you fall asleep without the heater on. you wake up confused, cold and creeped :)
17 Jan 07
Sounds perfect, but I'll make sure I top up on coffee first. I should be going DVD shopping next week, and I'll let you know how things go. Thanks again, for what sounds like some great recommendations.
14 Jan 07
Yes, Azumi is orphaned and raised with several lads to be assassins. I, note, that they only kill 2 of the 3 targets, so hope there may be an 'Azumi 2' yet to come. Thanks for the Kiyoshi Kurosawa reccommendation, I'll search for his works this week. Both 'seance' and 'cure' are the sort of one word titles that have a sense of impending doom within them, so I'll certainly give them a try.
1 person likes this
@usama46 (861)
• Pakistan
8 Jan 07
i have no idea about japanese cinema.
8 Jan 07
Then don't answer the question. This isn't an answer, so you're obviously just looking for extra points. Either ask a question on the subject if you're interested in it, or go and answer a question you DO have an idea about.
14 Jan 07
Not very angelic there, my dear angelicEmu, though I should reccommend to usama46 that your missing out. There are many tremendouse Japanese films out there to savour.