Oscar season is a marathon whether you win or lose. Ryuske Hamaguchi was lucky enough to be on the winning end when “Drive My Car” won the International Film Oscar two years ago. In so doing, the filmmaker became just the fifth Japanese director to win the honor and the first since Yōjirō Takita triumphed in 2009 for “Departures.” It also became the first Japanese film nominated for Best Picture, a landmark achievement for a nation with a legacy of auteur filmmakers.
Continue reading Ryusuke Hamaguchi Takes An Unexpected Turn With ‘Evil Does Not Exit’ [Interview] at The Playlist.
Continue reading Ryusuke Hamaguchi Takes An Unexpected Turn With ‘Evil Does Not Exit’ [Interview] at The Playlist.
- 5/6/2024
- by Gregory Ellwood
- The Playlist
The official YouTube channel for Japanese rock band Bump Of Chicken has posted a collaboration music video for "Kaikou" ( Encounter ), the theme song for Onmyoji 0 , a new live-action film inspired by Baku Yumemakura's historical fantasy novel series. As their 21st digital single, the song released on April 15, ranking #1 in Oricon's daily digital single charts on its first day. The clip is composed of scenes from the film selected by Shimako Sato , who wrote and directed the film, and includes plenty of VFX scenes by the renowned video production company Shirogumi ( Godzilla Minus One ). Bump Of Chicken "Kaikou" × "Onmyoji 0" Collaboration Music Video Bump Of Chicken profile photo Related: Onmyoji 0 Live-Action Film Releases Full Trailer Featuring Bump Of Chicken Theme Song The film opens in Japan today on April 19, 2024. The novel series features Abe no Seimei, a real-life sorcerer/leading specialist of Onmyodo from the Heian period (a Japanese sorcery.
- 4/19/2024
- by Mikikazu Komatsu
- Crunchyroll
Voice actor Megumi Ogata (Shinji Ikari in Neon Genesis Evangelion ) announced on her official Twitter that she served as the narrator for a special trailer for Onmyoji 0 , a new live-action film inspired by Baku Yumemakura's historical fantasy novel series Onmyoji . "Awesome visuals...in a word, super cool!" Ogata said on Twitter. "Please check out the trailer and the movie!" The new clip features sorcery scenes by young Abe no Seimei, played by Kento Yamazaki, and visual effects created by Shirogumi ( Godzilla Minus One ). Ogata narrates the four abilities of Seimei: to cut through space, seal the enemy's spells, make a spiritual barrier, and summon hidden, powerful forces. Related: Onmyoji 0 Live-Action Film Releases Full Trailer Featuring Bump Of Chicken Theme Song Onmyoji 0 Main trailer The main cast for the movie includes: Abe no Seimei played by Kento Yamazaki Minamoto no Hiromasa played by Shota Sometani Queen Yoshiko played by Nao...
- 4/4/2024
- by Mikikazu Komatsu
- Crunchyroll
The official website for Onmyoji 0 , a new live-action film inspired by Baku Yumemakura's historical fantasy novel series Onmyoji , released a full trailer today featuring its theme song "Kaikou" ( Encounter ) performed by Japanese rock band Bump Of Chicken. The film is set to release in Japan on April 19, 2024. Poster visual Related: Onmyoji 0 Live-Action Film Posts New Teaser Trailer for April 2024 Release The main cast for the movie includes: Abe no Seimei played by Kento Yamazaki Minamoto no Hiromasa played by Shota Sometani Queen Yoshiko played by Nao Hegurino Sadafumi played by Masanobu Ando Tachibana no Yasuie played by Nijiro Murakami Emperor played by Rihito Itagaki Kamono Tadayuki played by Jun Sonomura Koremune no Korekuni played by Kazuki Kitamura Fujiwara no Yoshisuke played by Kaoru Kobayashi Bump Of Chicken band photo Bump Of Chicken made their major debut in 2000 and have provided theme songs for many popular anime franchises, such as...
- 2/8/2024
- by Mikikazu Komatsu
- Crunchyroll
On November 20, 1971, Nikkatsu launched its new Roman Porno line with the double bill of Hayashi Ishao’s “Castle Orgies” and Nishimura Shogoro’s “Apartment Wife: Afternoon Affair”. The following 17-year period saw a grand total of at least 850 titles (another catalogue mentions 1133) released under this new brand name. before the series came to a halt in 1988. The bulk of these, a total of around 710 films, were made in-house by Nikkatsu, with the rest produced under contract by a number of independent pink companies including Shishi Pro and Enk, which meant that one of the three films playing on the triple bills in the Nikkatsu-operated adult theaters would have been made outside of Nikkatsu
Check the review of the book Book Review: Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Cinema (2008) by Jasper Sharp
The films were (in)famously shot under three simple rules, ave a scene of...
Check the review of the book Book Review: Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Cinema (2008) by Jasper Sharp
The films were (in)famously shot under three simple rules, ave a scene of...
- 2/4/2023
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Click here to read the full article.
Safe to say there isn’t another country bar Japan where a handful of top directors, including celebrated auteurs and an Oscar winner, learned their craft in adult films. Or perhaps even anywhere else in the world where that is imaginable.
But when cinemagoing plunged in parallel with the penetration of television sets into homes in the 1960s, it was so-called Pink Eiga that kept large parts of the movie industry afloat for decades, nurturing a generation of directors, scriptwriters and other filmmaking crew.
Usually between 60 and 70 minutes long, shot on 35mm and released in theaters, often on triple bills, the low-budget productions gave directors a lot of freedom provided they delivered the prescribed number of sex scenes.
In 1964, with the eyes of the world on Japan as it reemerged onto the world stage after World War Two as host of Tokyo Olympics,...
Safe to say there isn’t another country bar Japan where a handful of top directors, including celebrated auteurs and an Oscar winner, learned their craft in adult films. Or perhaps even anywhere else in the world where that is imaginable.
But when cinemagoing plunged in parallel with the penetration of television sets into homes in the 1960s, it was so-called Pink Eiga that kept large parts of the movie industry afloat for decades, nurturing a generation of directors, scriptwriters and other filmmaking crew.
Usually between 60 and 70 minutes long, shot on 35mm and released in theaters, often on triple bills, the low-budget productions gave directors a lot of freedom provided they delivered the prescribed number of sex scenes.
In 1964, with the eyes of the world on Japan as it reemerged onto the world stage after World War Two as host of Tokyo Olympics,...
- 10/28/2022
- by Gavin J Blair
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/5/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
DVD label Pink Eiga is still flying the pinku flag high and strong. They have recently released two noteworthy titles: Yôjirô Takita's Sexy Timetrip Ninjas and Yutaka Ikejima's The Japanese Wife Next Door Part 2. If you like pinku, these release deserve your support.
Pink Eiga has become the "go to" source for those who want to peek deep into the pinku phase of Yôjirô Takita's career. First, they released two Groper Train films -- Search for the Black Pearl and Wedding Capriccio -- on DVD. Now, they are unleashing another Groper Train movie called Sexy Timetrip Ninjas. This film uses a time travel contrivance to transport warring ninjas, one of whom is played by Yukijro Hotaru, to Tokyo during the 1980s. As one might guess, the battle of the ninjas eventually ends up on a train. Groping ensues.
Japanese Wife Next Door: Part 2 was directed by Yutaka Ikejima,...
Pink Eiga has become the "go to" source for those who want to peek deep into the pinku phase of Yôjirô Takita's career. First, they released two Groper Train films -- Search for the Black Pearl and Wedding Capriccio -- on DVD. Now, they are unleashing another Groper Train movie called Sexy Timetrip Ninjas. This film uses a time travel contrivance to transport warring ninjas, one of whom is played by Yukijro Hotaru, to Tokyo during the 1980s. As one might guess, the battle of the ninjas eventually ends up on a train. Groping ensues.
Japanese Wife Next Door: Part 2 was directed by Yutaka Ikejima,...
- 10/16/2010
- Screen Anarchy
The fine purveyors of pinku at Pink Eiga have released a new slate of titles to U.S. DVD. In addition to releasing two of Yôjirô Takita's Groper Train films (Search for the Black Pearl and Wedding Capriccio), the company has also released discs of Daisuke Goto's Blind Love and Yutaka Ikejima's The Japanese Wife Next Door.
These releases are loaded with supplements, including material exclusively produced by Pink Eiga. For example, both Groper Train titles contain jaw-dropping featurette in which Yutaka Ikejima (aka Mr. Pink) waxes nostalgically about the long-running film series. An extensive discussion of the Groper Train series is featured in the Twitch archives; write-ups for the other two films will appear in the near future. ...
These releases are loaded with supplements, including material exclusively produced by Pink Eiga. For example, both Groper Train titles contain jaw-dropping featurette in which Yutaka Ikejima (aka Mr. Pink) waxes nostalgically about the long-running film series. An extensive discussion of the Groper Train series is featured in the Twitch archives; write-ups for the other two films will appear in the near future. ...
- 12/22/2009
- Screen Anarchy
Yôjirô Takita's bitter-sweet tale of the Japanese funeral trade plays a bit like a formal service itself
Yôjirô Takita's bitter-sweet tale of the Japanese funeral trade plays a bit like a formal service itself. At the start there is some uncertain shuffling, a few inappropriate giggles; the odd spasm of embarrassment. Then the mood settles and the soberness of the ritual takes hold.
Masahiro Motoki (a former boy-band singer) plays the down-on-his-luck cellist who accepts a job administering to "the departures" in his hometown, tenderly washing and shaving the corpses on their last stop before the incinerator.
This was a surprise winner of this year's foreign film Oscar, which prompted some to joke that here, at last, was a movie the decrepit Academy voters could really relate to. Fortunately, Takita's wry, insightful handling ensures that it speaks to the rest of us as well.
Rating: 3/5
World cinemaDramaXan Brooks
guardian.
Yôjirô Takita's bitter-sweet tale of the Japanese funeral trade plays a bit like a formal service itself. At the start there is some uncertain shuffling, a few inappropriate giggles; the odd spasm of embarrassment. Then the mood settles and the soberness of the ritual takes hold.
Masahiro Motoki (a former boy-band singer) plays the down-on-his-luck cellist who accepts a job administering to "the departures" in his hometown, tenderly washing and shaving the corpses on their last stop before the incinerator.
This was a surprise winner of this year's foreign film Oscar, which prompted some to joke that here, at last, was a movie the decrepit Academy voters could really relate to. Fortunately, Takita's wry, insightful handling ensures that it speaks to the rest of us as well.
Rating: 3/5
World cinemaDramaXan Brooks
guardian.
- 12/4/2009
- by Xan Brooks
- The Guardian - Film News
Here’s the new poster (click to enlarge) & trailer for the movie which won the Best Foreign Language film at the 2009 Academy Awards. It’s called Depeartures (Okuribito), stars Masahiro Motoki, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ryoko Hirosue, Kazuko Yoshiyuki and is directed by Yôjirô Takita.
It’s being released in UK cinemas 4th December and you can check out the synopsis and trailer below.
A delightful and sensitive journey into the heartland of Japan and an astonishingly beautiful look at a sacred part of Japan’s cultural heritage, Departures tells the story of Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Matoki), a devoted cellist in an orchestra that has just been dissolved who now finds himself without a job. Daigo decides to move back to his old hometown with his wife to look for work and start over. He answers a classified ad entitled “Departures” thinking it is an advertisement for a travel agency only to...
It’s being released in UK cinemas 4th December and you can check out the synopsis and trailer below.
A delightful and sensitive journey into the heartland of Japan and an astonishingly beautiful look at a sacred part of Japan’s cultural heritage, Departures tells the story of Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Matoki), a devoted cellist in an orchestra that has just been dissolved who now finds himself without a job. Daigo decides to move back to his old hometown with his wife to look for work and start over. He answers a classified ad entitled “Departures” thinking it is an advertisement for a travel agency only to...
- 12/1/2009
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
A Japanese film about a Buddhist mortician is set to be an unlikely commercial success
There aren't many films about the Japanese art of corpse beautification. Still fewer made by a director who previously specialised in soft-core porn and starring an ex-boy band heart-throb. But Departures (Okuribito), which opens in Britain on Friday, is all these things. It won this year's best foreign language Oscar, beating two critically feted films, Waltz with Bashir and The Class.
But why? The film, after all, is hardly a Saturday night no-brainer. Loosely adapted from Aoki Simmons's autobiography Coffinman: The Journal of a Buddhist Mortician, it's about a redundant cellist who finds meaning in his life when he gets a job ceremonially washing bodies, preparing them for entry into the next life. Even in Japan, where films about death and funerals are not uncommon (see Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece Ikiru), the role of the...
There aren't many films about the Japanese art of corpse beautification. Still fewer made by a director who previously specialised in soft-core porn and starring an ex-boy band heart-throb. But Departures (Okuribito), which opens in Britain on Friday, is all these things. It won this year's best foreign language Oscar, beating two critically feted films, Waltz with Bashir and The Class.
But why? The film, after all, is hardly a Saturday night no-brainer. Loosely adapted from Aoki Simmons's autobiography Coffinman: The Journal of a Buddhist Mortician, it's about a redundant cellist who finds meaning in his life when he gets a job ceremonially washing bodies, preparing them for entry into the next life. Even in Japan, where films about death and funerals are not uncommon (see Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece Ikiru), the role of the...
- 11/30/2009
- by Stuart Jeffries
- The Guardian - Film News
Grade: Four Stars Heartwarming 'Departures' may be set in Japanese funeral parlor but its tale of unemployment syncs perfectly with American audiences. Perfect timing for specialty film buffs is a 2008 Japanese drama featuring an out-of-work cellist finding his calling via an unexpected funeral parlor job. Layoffs, furloughs and downsizing are driving themes in America today and "Departures" ("Okuribito"), a critical and box office smash in its native Japan and recent winner of the 2009 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, tackles the topic of unemployment via life-affirming storytelling, warm performances and subtle comedy. Veteran Japanese director Yôjirô Takita may set his drama around the Asian tradition of "encoffination," the little- known ritual of washing, dressing and preparing the deceased in front of the family as a way to say goodbye to a loved one, but the movie is very much a global celebration of life, family and new beginnings.
- 6/3/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Grade: Four Stars Heartwarming 'Departures' may be set in Japanese funeral parlor but its tale of unemployment syncs perfectly with American audiences. Perfect timing for specialty film buffs is a 2008 Japanese drama featuring an out-of-work cellist finding his calling via an unexpected funeral parlor job. Layoffs, furloughs and downsizing are driving themes in America today and "Departures" ("Okuribito"), a critical and box office smash in its native Japan and recent winner of the 2009 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, tackles the topic of unemployment via life-affirming storytelling, warm performances and subtle comedy. Veteran Japanese director Yôjirô Takita may set his drama around the Asian tradition of "encoffination," the little- known ritual of washing, dressing and preparing the deceased in front of the family as a way to say goodbye to a loved one, but the movie is very much a global celebration of life, family and new beginnings.
- 6/3/2009
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Departures took most prognosticators by surprise when it beat out the already released, much hyped competition of Waltz with Bashir and The Class to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at this year’s Oscars. After seeing the movie, however, it’s not hard to fathom how the upset happened. As directed by Yôjirô Takita, this is a sumptuous, richly composed drama that considers big, broad emotional issues with a sweeping cinematic canvas. It is, in other words, exactly the sort of movie Academy voters tend to love. The same cannot be said for an abstractly animated, psychological depiction of the burdens of war or a verité rendering of life in a French classroom over the course of a school year. That’s not to take anything away from the high levels of craft Takita pours into every frame of his film. Had the movie been more widely seen prior to the awards it...
- 5/5/2009
- by Robert Levin
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Tribeca provided a flashback to Oscar night on Tuesday as director Yôjirô Takita (fun fact: he started his career in 'pink films,' i.e., porn) and star Masahiro Motoki both approached the microphone to speak to an appreciative crowd. This time they weren't accepting Departures' Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film but, as Takita noted, thrilled to be holding their first stateside Q and A. The award-winning movie, opening in limited release on May 29, is about a cello player who loses his orchestra job and leaves the city for his hometown. After a comical misunderstanding during a job search, he discovers an affinity for an unusual line of work, preparing dead bodies for 'departure.' The film's unique topic sparked curiosity in the audience. Why the cello, for example? It could have been any instrument given the plot. 'It was the screenwriters idea to make him a cello player...
- 4/29/2009
- TribecaFilm.com
Do you remember during the Oscars, when a Japanese film called Departures won for Best Foreign Language Film, taking the Oscar right out of the hands of Waltz With Bashir? Well we finally have the trailer for Departures, and it looks pretty good. Although I personally would have given the Oscar to The Class, I definitely want to see this and I expect it to be as wonderful as this trailer makes it out to be. Departures is a drama about a devoted cellist who finds himself without a job when his orchestra is dissolved. It looks emotional, amusing, charming, everything a great Oscar winner should be. Watch the official trailer for Yojiro Takita's Departures: [flv:http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/departures-trailer.flv http://media2.firstshowing.net/firstshowing/departures-trailer.jpg 598 338] You can also watch the trailer for Departures in High Definition on Apple Departures, aka Okuribito, is directed by Japanese filmmaker Yojiro Takita, of The Tropical People, The Exam, The Yin Yang Master, When...
- 4/9/2009
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Tze Chun's "Children of Invention" will open the 25th-anniversary edition of the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, which runs from April 30-May 7.
The fest will screen 181 films and videos from 26 countries at the DGA Theatre, Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatres, Downtown Independent Theatre, the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy and the Aratani/Japan America Theatre.
"We are excited to present the Los Angeles premiere screening of 'Children of Invention' as our opening-night film," said Abraham Ferrer, fest co-director and exhibitions director at Visual Communications, which presents the fest. "We have been following director Chun's career since his short 'Windbreaker' was presented at the 2007 festival."
"Treeless Mountain," directed by So Yong Kim, is slated as the Laapff Centerpiece film, screening May 2 at the DGA Theatre.
Closing out the eight-day fest will be the 2008 Academy Award-winning best foreign-language film "Departures," from director Yojiro Takita, screening May 7 at the Aratani Japan...
The fest will screen 181 films and videos from 26 countries at the DGA Theatre, Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatres, Downtown Independent Theatre, the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy and the Aratani/Japan America Theatre.
"We are excited to present the Los Angeles premiere screening of 'Children of Invention' as our opening-night film," said Abraham Ferrer, fest co-director and exhibitions director at Visual Communications, which presents the fest. "We have been following director Chun's career since his short 'Windbreaker' was presented at the 2007 festival."
"Treeless Mountain," directed by So Yong Kim, is slated as the Laapff Centerpiece film, screening May 2 at the DGA Theatre.
Closing out the eight-day fest will be the 2008 Academy Award-winning best foreign-language film "Departures," from director Yojiro Takita, screening May 7 at the Aratani Japan...
And here's the rest, including the Midnight Section, all after the break.
Encounters
This collection of engaging and entertaining narrative features and documentaries, a mixture of dark comedies and lighter fare, offers work from returning filmmakers, established talent, and popular subjects, and includes 10 World Premieres. Included in Encounters are performances from Academy Award®-nominated actors Thomas Haden Church, Melissa Leo, Elisabeth Shue; directorial debuts from both Eric Bana and Cheryl Hines (from a screenplay by Adrienne Shelly); stories ranging from an ill-fated man's discovery of inspiration and happiness, dysfunctional families, and unrequited high school crushes to a doc on the emergence of New York’s independent film scene.
• Blank City, directed by Celine Danhier. (USA) - World Premiere, Documentary. Celine Danhier’s kinetic doc mirrors the urgent, anything-goes energy of her subject: the Diy independent film movement that emerged in tandem with punk rock in late ‘70s downtown New York.
Encounters
This collection of engaging and entertaining narrative features and documentaries, a mixture of dark comedies and lighter fare, offers work from returning filmmakers, established talent, and popular subjects, and includes 10 World Premieres. Included in Encounters are performances from Academy Award®-nominated actors Thomas Haden Church, Melissa Leo, Elisabeth Shue; directorial debuts from both Eric Bana and Cheryl Hines (from a screenplay by Adrienne Shelly); stories ranging from an ill-fated man's discovery of inspiration and happiness, dysfunctional families, and unrequited high school crushes to a doc on the emergence of New York’s independent film scene.
• Blank City, directed by Celine Danhier. (USA) - World Premiere, Documentary. Celine Danhier’s kinetic doc mirrors the urgent, anything-goes energy of her subject: the Diy independent film movement that emerged in tandem with punk rock in late ‘70s downtown New York.
- 3/11/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Subtitle of the Week: "My kung fu skills aren't too bad, eh?" -- Donnie Yen in Ip Man.
This week's edition of Asian Cinema Scene includes capsule reviews of films that were recently released on DVD in Asia.
Departures Takes Off: Yojiro Takita's drama Departures, the Academy Award winner for Best Foreign-Language Film, was a popular success during its initial run in Japan last fall. It resurged in the wake of the Oscar victory, ascending to the top of the charts. Departures also swept the 32nd Annual Japanese Academy Awards two days before the Oscars. The director's follow-up film, Sanpei the Fisher Boy, is due for release later this month. [Sources: Screen Daily; Japan Times; Toronto J-Film Pow-Wow; Nippon Cinema.]
Ip Man Inspires: Biopics are always better with martial arts, aren't they? Highly respected Wing Chun master Ip Man (Donnie Yen) lives a comfortable life in Fo Shan, China, but after the Japanese invade in 1937, he is reduced to...
This week's edition of Asian Cinema Scene includes capsule reviews of films that were recently released on DVD in Asia.
Departures Takes Off: Yojiro Takita's drama Departures, the Academy Award winner for Best Foreign-Language Film, was a popular success during its initial run in Japan last fall. It resurged in the wake of the Oscar victory, ascending to the top of the charts. Departures also swept the 32nd Annual Japanese Academy Awards two days before the Oscars. The director's follow-up film, Sanpei the Fisher Boy, is due for release later this month. [Sources: Screen Daily; Japan Times; Toronto J-Film Pow-Wow; Nippon Cinema.]
Ip Man Inspires: Biopics are always better with martial arts, aren't they? Highly respected Wing Chun master Ip Man (Donnie Yen) lives a comfortable life in Fo Shan, China, but after the Japanese invade in 1937, he is reduced to...
- 3/3/2009
- by Peter Martin
- Cinematical
In this week's edition of Asian Cinema Scene, we cover the unexpected and the surprising.
Oscar Shocker: One of the few genuine surprises of last night's Oscar telecast was the victory by Japan's Departures (Okuribito) as Best Foreign Language Film. Most observers thought that Israel's Waltz with Bashir or France's The Class would win; the former won the Golden Globe, while the latter picked up the Independent Spirit Award.
Of course, most observers haven't actually seen Departures, which played the Montreal film festival rather than Toronto last fall, and had its Us Premiere at the Hawaii Film Festival shortly thereafter. As I reported in January, Regent Releasing acquired distribution rights and announced summer release plans. Regent has already updated the film's official site to reflect the Academy Award victory, but there's no word yet on whether they might push the release up to take advantage of the attention.
Yojiro Takita...
Oscar Shocker: One of the few genuine surprises of last night's Oscar telecast was the victory by Japan's Departures (Okuribito) as Best Foreign Language Film. Most observers thought that Israel's Waltz with Bashir or France's The Class would win; the former won the Golden Globe, while the latter picked up the Independent Spirit Award.
Of course, most observers haven't actually seen Departures, which played the Montreal film festival rather than Toronto last fall, and had its Us Premiere at the Hawaii Film Festival shortly thereafter. As I reported in January, Regent Releasing acquired distribution rights and announced summer release plans. Regent has already updated the film's official site to reflect the Academy Award victory, but there's no word yet on whether they might push the release up to take advantage of the attention.
Yojiro Takita...
- 2/24/2009
- by Peter Martin
- Cinematical
Japanese drama Departures dominated the 2009 Japan Academy Awards, taking home 10 prizes - a day before the movie became a surprise Oscar winner.
The film, about a young man who gets a job in a mortuary, also scooped a Best Actor honour for Masahiro Motoki and Best Actress trophy for Kimiko Yo at the 32nd annual ceremony in Tokyo, Japan.
Immediately after the prizegiving, filmmaker Yojiro Takita and stars Motoki and Ryoko Hirosue flew to Los Angeles to compete at Sunday's Oscars, where Departures beat hotly-tipped Israeli movie Waltz With Bashir to land the Best Foreign Language Film title.
The movie has scooped more than 60 statuettes during Japan's current award season and taken more than $33 million (£22.6 million) at the domestic box office.
The film, about a young man who gets a job in a mortuary, also scooped a Best Actor honour for Masahiro Motoki and Best Actress trophy for Kimiko Yo at the 32nd annual ceremony in Tokyo, Japan.
Immediately after the prizegiving, filmmaker Yojiro Takita and stars Motoki and Ryoko Hirosue flew to Los Angeles to compete at Sunday's Oscars, where Departures beat hotly-tipped Israeli movie Waltz With Bashir to land the Best Foreign Language Film title.
The movie has scooped more than 60 statuettes during Japan's current award season and taken more than $33 million (£22.6 million) at the domestic box office.
- 2/23/2009
- WENN
As Yojiro Takita, director of Best Foreign Film winner Departures, said last night during his acceptance speech, "I am here because of films!" The Oscars are a time to celebrate any and everything film, whether it be the celebrities and their shenanigans, or the filmmakers and craftsmen who make it all look good, or the big execs who make everything happen. I'm one of those people who has grown up with the Oscars. I've watched the show since before I can remember and have never missed it, no matter where I am. This year's new format was refreshing to see and has obviously provided plenty for us to talk about the day after. First and foremost, I was very happy with Hugh Jackman as the host this year. He's got a great stage presence that lent itself to some truly entertaining moments, especially the opening musical number. I'm one of...
- 2/23/2009
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Kate Winslet emerged the victorious winner of the Best Actress category for the 81st Annual Academy Awards.
Sean Penn won for Best Actor for "Milk," and "Slumdog Millionaire" won the Best Picture, with its director, Danny Boyle winning the Best Director trophy.
The tally?
.Slumdog Millionaire. . 8 wins
.The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. . 3 wins
.Milk. . 2 wins
.The Dark Knight. . 2 wins
I scored 20 out of 24, based on my Oscars predictions.
The night.s biggest upset? Japan's "Departures" winning over Israel.s Best Foreign Language frontrunner, .Waltz With Bashir..
Here's the complete list of winners! And check out my Oscar minute-by-minute, play-by-play account below!
Complete Winners Of The 81St Annual Academy Awards
Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz . .Vicky Cristina Barcelona.
Best Original Screenplay
Dustin Lance Black . .Milk.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Simon Beaufoy . .Slumdog Millionaire.
Best Animated...
Sean Penn won for Best Actor for "Milk," and "Slumdog Millionaire" won the Best Picture, with its director, Danny Boyle winning the Best Director trophy.
The tally?
.Slumdog Millionaire. . 8 wins
.The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. . 3 wins
.Milk. . 2 wins
.The Dark Knight. . 2 wins
I scored 20 out of 24, based on my Oscars predictions.
The night.s biggest upset? Japan's "Departures" winning over Israel.s Best Foreign Language frontrunner, .Waltz With Bashir..
Here's the complete list of winners! And check out my Oscar minute-by-minute, play-by-play account below!
Complete Winners Of The 81St Annual Academy Awards
Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz . .Vicky Cristina Barcelona.
Best Original Screenplay
Dustin Lance Black . .Milk.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Simon Beaufoy . .Slumdog Millionaire.
Best Animated...
- 2/23/2009
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
5:31 pm Hugh Jackman's opening performance, a bit hawkish, corny-ish, but kinda fun, I enjoy the "Benjamin Button" bit, okay, per our report earlier, Anne Hathaway's "supposed to be" surprised performance.
5:35 pm Hathaway still performing, kinda funny with the peace sign ala Nixon.
5:36 pm Hathaway done, now "The Reader" techno performance
5:37 pm "The Wrestler" to I'm Wolverine...funny
Standing ovation...
I like the "faux intimate" setting
5:42 pm I like the Best Supporting Actress montage
Aw...a gallery of real-life past Best Supporting Actress winners...
Tilda Swinton is very regal...so is Miss Eva Marie Sainte...Viola Davis is fighting back tears...ooooh Miss Anjelica Huston for Penelope Cruz, I'm kinda liking this homage nominations presenters thingie...
Whoopi talking about Amy Adams, and being a nun...bless you Amy indeed! Goldie Hawn talking about Taraji P. Henson...Tilda Swinton honoring Marisa Tomei...
And The Oscar...
5:35 pm Hathaway still performing, kinda funny with the peace sign ala Nixon.
5:36 pm Hathaway done, now "The Reader" techno performance
5:37 pm "The Wrestler" to I'm Wolverine...funny
Standing ovation...
I like the "faux intimate" setting
5:42 pm I like the Best Supporting Actress montage
Aw...a gallery of real-life past Best Supporting Actress winners...
Tilda Swinton is very regal...so is Miss Eva Marie Sainte...Viola Davis is fighting back tears...ooooh Miss Anjelica Huston for Penelope Cruz, I'm kinda liking this homage nominations presenters thingie...
Whoopi talking about Amy Adams, and being a nun...bless you Amy indeed! Goldie Hawn talking about Taraji P. Henson...Tilda Swinton honoring Marisa Tomei...
And The Oscar...
- 2/23/2009
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
"Slumdog Millionaire," a rags-to-riches tale both on screen and off, was named best picture at the 81st Annual Academy Awards. The indie movie that fought an uphill battle to worldwide recogntion took home eight awards, including best director honors for filmmaker Danny Boyle.
Accepting the award, surrounded by the movie's cast and crew, many of whom had flown in from India for the awards, producer Christian Colson said, "together we have been on an extraordinary journey." Noting that the film had no stars, he cited a script that engendered "mad love...
Accepting the award, surrounded by the movie's cast and crew, many of whom had flown in from India for the awards, producer Christian Colson said, "together we have been on an extraordinary journey." Noting that the film had no stars, he cited a script that engendered "mad love...
- 2/22/2009
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tokyo -- In one of the only upsets of the evening, Yojiro Takita's "Departures" won the foreign-language Oscar on Sunday, beating out highly touted competitors "Waltz With Bashir" and "The Class." The victory of Kuni Kato's animated short "La Maison en Petits Cubes" earlier in the evening made it Japan's most successful night in Academy history.
"Departures" got a rousing sendoff to the Oscars at the Japan Academy Prize on Friday, collecting 10 wins from 13 nominations, including best picture.
The story of an unemployed cellist (Masahiro Motoki) who finds work as a "nokanshi," or ceremonial preparer of corpses, was a low-level surprise hit at the domestic boxoffice, centered as it as around a subject even most urban Japanese are unfamiliar with. It took in $33 million in 2008 but failed...
"Departures" got a rousing sendoff to the Oscars at the Japan Academy Prize on Friday, collecting 10 wins from 13 nominations, including best picture.
The story of an unemployed cellist (Masahiro Motoki) who finds work as a "nokanshi," or ceremonial preparer of corpses, was a low-level surprise hit at the domestic boxoffice, centered as it as around a subject even most urban Japanese are unfamiliar with. It took in $33 million in 2008 but failed...
- 2/22/2009
- by By Gavin J. Blair
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 20th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival was a huge success! The Opening Night Gala was well-attended, and there were many A-list celebrities including Clint Eastwood, Anne Hathaway, etc.
But it's all about the quality of films! And last night, the festival honored films around the world.
The Festival, held from January 6-19, 2009, screened 208 films from 73 countries, including 50 of the 67 foreign entries for this year.s Academy Awards®. Palm Springs. increasingly popular Festival continues to expand its diverse programming of quality independent and foreign films, setting the stage for the year.s film festival circuit.
Awards
This year.s Festival attendees selected Departures (Japan) directed by Yojiro Takita, as the Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature. A failed cellist connects with his inner undertaker, his rural hometown, and his newly deceased father in this tonally eccentric, lushly scored, moving drama. The film is on the Academy Awards® shortlist...
But it's all about the quality of films! And last night, the festival honored films around the world.
The Festival, held from January 6-19, 2009, screened 208 films from 73 countries, including 50 of the 67 foreign entries for this year.s Academy Awards®. Palm Springs. increasingly popular Festival continues to expand its diverse programming of quality independent and foreign films, setting the stage for the year.s film festival circuit.
Awards
This year.s Festival attendees selected Departures (Japan) directed by Yojiro Takita, as the Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature. A failed cellist connects with his inner undertaker, his rural hometown, and his newly deceased father in this tonally eccentric, lushly scored, moving drama. The film is on the Academy Awards® shortlist...
- 1/19/2009
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Yesterday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released their shortlist of nine foreign-language films, which will be whittled down to five Oscar nominees on January 22:
Revanche - Gotz Spielmann, Austria The Necessities of Life - Benoit Pilon, Canada The Class - Laurent Cantet, France The Baader Meinhof Complex - Uli Edel, Germany Waltz with Bashir - Ari Folman, Israel Departures - Yojiro Takita, Japan Tear This Heart Out - Roberto Sneider, Mexico Everlasting Moments - Jan Troell, Sweden 3 Monkeys - Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Turkey
If you think there are a few notable omissions from this list, you’re not alone. Over at AICN, Harry Knowles decries the omission of Tomas Alfredson’s Let The Right One In, insisting that the system is broken:
When you depend upon a host nation to offer up a film for consideration for Best Foreign Language Film, you are forced to consider...
Revanche - Gotz Spielmann, Austria The Necessities of Life - Benoit Pilon, Canada The Class - Laurent Cantet, France The Baader Meinhof Complex - Uli Edel, Germany Waltz with Bashir - Ari Folman, Israel Departures - Yojiro Takita, Japan Tear This Heart Out - Roberto Sneider, Mexico Everlasting Moments - Jan Troell, Sweden 3 Monkeys - Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Turkey
If you think there are a few notable omissions from this list, you’re not alone. Over at AICN, Harry Knowles decries the omission of Tomas Alfredson’s Let The Right One In, insisting that the system is broken:
When you depend upon a host nation to offer up a film for consideration for Best Foreign Language Film, you are forced to consider...
- 1/14/2009
- by David Chen
- Slash Film
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that nine films remain in the running in the Foreign Language category for the 81st Academy Awards®. The films are listed below in alphabetical order: Austria, “Revanche,” Gotz Spielmann, director; Canada, “The Necessities of Life,” Benoit Pilon, director; France, “The Class,” Laurent Cantet, director; Germany, “The Baader Meinhof Complex,” Uli Edel, director; Israel, “Waltz with Bashir,” Ari Folman, director; Japan, “Departures,” Yojiro Takita, director; Mexico, “Tear This Heart Out,” Roberto Sneider, director; Sweden, “Everlasting Moments,” Jan Troell, director; Turkey, “3 Monkeys,” Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director. The 81st Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2009, at [...]...
- 1/14/2009
- by The Critic
- SmartCine.com
The Academy has just released the nine final films up for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 81st Academy Awards from a previous list of 65. I have listed the nine films below and placed in bold my predictions for the five nominees. Austria, Revanche, Gotz Spielmann, director Canada, The Necessities of Life, Benoit Pilon, director France, The Class, Laurent Cantet, director Germany, The Baader Meinhof Complex, Uli Edel, director Israel, Waltz with Bashir, Ari Folman, director Japan, Departures, Yojiro Takita, director Mexico, Tear This Heart Out, Roberto Sneider, director Sweden, Everlasting Moments, Jan Troell, director Turkey, 3 Monkeys, Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director The shortlist will be winnowed down to the five 2008 nominees by specially selected committees in New York and Los Angeles. The committee members will spend this Friday, Saturday and Sunday viewing three of the films each day. The 81st Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday,...
- 1/13/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
(thanks to ‘Someone’ for reminding us to keep an eye out.) Austria, “Revanche” (Gotz Spielmann, director) Canada, “The Necessities of Life” (Benoit Pilon, director) France, “The Class” (Laurent Cantet, director) Germany, “The Baader Meinhof Complex” (Uli Edel, director) Israel, “Waltz with Bashir” (Ari Folman, director) Japan, “Departures” (Yojiro Takita, director) Mexico, “Tear This Heart Out” (Roberto Sneider, director) Sweden, “Everlasting Moments” (Jan Troell, [...]...
- 1/13/2009
- by Ryan Adams
- AwardsDaily.com
The Academy of Motion Picture Sciences has whittled down the list of 65 foreign-language film submissions to a shortlist of nine that will compete for the Oscar.
But while such prominent titles as the Palme d'Or winner "The Class," from France, and the Golden Globes winner "Waltz With Bashir," from Israel, made the list, a number of other acclaimed films, most prominent among them Italy's mafia tale "Gomorrah," were left out in the cold.
Along with Laurent Cantet's "Class" and Ari Folman's "Waltz," the titles that will contend for the five Oscar noms are Austria's "Revanche," directed by Gotz Spielmann; Canada's "The Necessities of Life" (Benoit Pilon); Germany's "The Baader Meinhof Complex" (Uli Edel); Japan's "Departures" (Yojiro Takita); Mexico's "Tear This Heart Out" (Roberto Sneider); Sweden's "Everlasting Moments" (Jan Troell); and Turkey's "3 Monkeys" (Nuri Bilge Ceylon).
Because past omissions on the Academy's shortlist -- like the failure to include the Romanian film "4 Months,...
But while such prominent titles as the Palme d'Or winner "The Class," from France, and the Golden Globes winner "Waltz With Bashir," from Israel, made the list, a number of other acclaimed films, most prominent among them Italy's mafia tale "Gomorrah," were left out in the cold.
Along with Laurent Cantet's "Class" and Ari Folman's "Waltz," the titles that will contend for the five Oscar noms are Austria's "Revanche," directed by Gotz Spielmann; Canada's "The Necessities of Life" (Benoit Pilon); Germany's "The Baader Meinhof Complex" (Uli Edel); Japan's "Departures" (Yojiro Takita); Mexico's "Tear This Heart Out" (Roberto Sneider); Sweden's "Everlasting Moments" (Jan Troell); and Turkey's "3 Monkeys" (Nuri Bilge Ceylon).
Because past omissions on the Academy's shortlist -- like the failure to include the Romanian film "4 Months,...
- 1/13/2009
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Nine films will advance to the next round of voting in the Foreign Language Film category for the 81st Academy Awards®. Sixty-five films had originally qualified in the category. The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are: Austria, Revanche , Gotz Spielmann, director; Canada, The Necessities of Life , Benoit Pilon, director; France, The Class , Laurent Cantet, director; Germany, The Baader Meinhof Complex , Uli Edel, director; Israel, Waltz with Bashir , Ari Folman, director; Japan, Departures , Yojiro Takita, director; Mexico, Tear This Heart Out , Roberto Sneider, director; Sweden, Everlasting Moments Jan Troell, director; Turkey, 3 Monkeys , Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director. Foreign Language Film nominations for 2008 are being determined in two...
- 1/13/2009
- Comingsoon.net
Let's ease into the new year with a couple of news bites of interest for Asian film fans. First up: the Us distribution front: if you're like me, you'll have trouble naming more than two East Asian pictures that got any kind of theatrical release in the latter half of 2008; I'm remembering only the Japanese drama Love and Honor and Wong Kar Wai's meditative action remix, Ashes of Time Redux. Anything I'm forgetting?
This year, the release calendar looks pretty empty as well. Tokyo!, expected in March, compiles three short films set in the titular city, but only one from an Asian director, the very talented Bong Joon-ho (The Host). So it's welcome news to hear via indieWIRE that Regent Releasing has picked up the drama Departures (Okuribito) for Us release this summer. Directed by Yojiro Takita, the film focuses on a Japanese death custom, specifically, "a professional who cleanses and clothes a body,...
This year, the release calendar looks pretty empty as well. Tokyo!, expected in March, compiles three short films set in the titular city, but only one from an Asian director, the very talented Bong Joon-ho (The Host). So it's welcome news to hear via indieWIRE that Regent Releasing has picked up the drama Departures (Okuribito) for Us release this summer. Directed by Yojiro Takita, the film focuses on a Japanese death custom, specifically, "a professional who cleanses and clothes a body,...
- 1/7/2009
- by Peter Martin
- Cinematical
Here's your dose of quick news bits for Jan. 6, 2009...
• Regent Releasing has aquired the North American distribution rights for Yojiro Takita's "Departures" (Okuribito), a drama that focuses on a cellist who loses his job and decides to move back to his hometown, where he starts to work as the local undertaker. The film is also Japan's submission for the best foreign film. (Hollywood Reporter)
• Director Adam Shankman talked to MTV about "Hairspray 2." Here's part of what he had to say: “[The treatment] is amazing, but it’s crazy. There are things in there that I was like ‘Can we do that?’ It’s real John Waters-y stuff, and it was more like a sequel to his movie than to our movie. Which I love, because then that becomes re-interpreted.”
• MTV also talked to "Sex and the City" stylist Patricia Field, who talked a bit about the sequel to last year's big-screen adaptation.
• Regent Releasing has aquired the North American distribution rights for Yojiro Takita's "Departures" (Okuribito), a drama that focuses on a cellist who loses his job and decides to move back to his hometown, where he starts to work as the local undertaker. The film is also Japan's submission for the best foreign film. (Hollywood Reporter)
• Director Adam Shankman talked to MTV about "Hairspray 2." Here's part of what he had to say: “[The treatment] is amazing, but it’s crazy. There are things in there that I was like ‘Can we do that?’ It’s real John Waters-y stuff, and it was more like a sequel to his movie than to our movie. Which I love, because then that becomes re-interpreted.”
• MTV also talked to "Sex and the City" stylist Patricia Field, who talked a bit about the sequel to last year's big-screen adaptation.
- 1/6/2009
- by Franck Tabouring
- screeninglog.com
Regent Releasing has acquired North American distribution rights to "Departures," the latest film from Yojiro Takita and Japan's submission for the best foreign-language film Oscar. Regent, which will distribute it in select U.S. cities this summer, acquired the film from international motion-picture studio and sales agent Shochiku Co.
"Departures" led the Japanese Academy Award nominations, receiving 13 in total including best picture and best director.
"Departures" marks the newest addition to the slate of art-house world cinema titles that Regent has acquired in recent months, including the 2008 Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury prize winner "Tokyo Sonata," Iran's Academy Awards submission, "The Song of Sparrows," "Serbis" and "$9.99."
"We are honored to bring Yojiro Takita's delightfully innovative feature to U.S. audiences this summer," said Mark Reinhart, West Coast general manager and executive vp distribution and acquisitions, Regent.
"Departures" recently won several festival awards including the Grand Prix des Ameriques Prize...
"Departures" led the Japanese Academy Award nominations, receiving 13 in total including best picture and best director.
"Departures" marks the newest addition to the slate of art-house world cinema titles that Regent has acquired in recent months, including the 2008 Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury prize winner "Tokyo Sonata," Iran's Academy Awards submission, "The Song of Sparrows," "Serbis" and "$9.99."
"We are honored to bring Yojiro Takita's delightfully innovative feature to U.S. audiences this summer," said Mark Reinhart, West Coast general manager and executive vp distribution and acquisitions, Regent.
"Departures" recently won several festival awards including the Grand Prix des Ameriques Prize...
- 1/5/2009
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A record 67 countries have submitted films for consideration for best foreign-language film for the 81st Academy Awards, Academy president Sid Ganis said Friday. Nominations will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 22, and the awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 22.
The complete list of foreign-language submissions follows. For more details on some of the films, visit THR.com/foreignoscars.
Afghanistan, "Opium War," Siddiq Barmak
Albania, "The Sorrow of Mrs. Schneider," Piro Milkani and Eno Milkani
Algeria, "Masquerades," Lyes Salem
Argentina, "Lion's Den," Pablo Trapero
Austria, "Revanche," Gotz Spielmann
Azerbaijan, "Fortress," Shamil Nacafzada
Bangladesh, "Aha!," Enamul Karim Nirjhar
Belgium, "Eldorado," Bouli Lanners
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "Snow," Aida Begic
Brazil, "Last Stop 174," Bruno Barreto
Bulgaria, "Zift," Javor Gardev
Canada, "The Necessities of Life," Benoit Pilon
Chile, "Tony Manero," Pablo Larrain
China, "Dream Weavers," Jun Gu
Colombia, "Dog Eat Dog," Carlos Moreno
Croatia, "No One's Son," Arsen Anton Ostojic
Czech Republic, "The Karamazovs," Petr Zelenka
Denmark,...
The complete list of foreign-language submissions follows. For more details on some of the films, visit THR.com/foreignoscars.
Afghanistan, "Opium War," Siddiq Barmak
Albania, "The Sorrow of Mrs. Schneider," Piro Milkani and Eno Milkani
Algeria, "Masquerades," Lyes Salem
Argentina, "Lion's Den," Pablo Trapero
Austria, "Revanche," Gotz Spielmann
Azerbaijan, "Fortress," Shamil Nacafzada
Bangladesh, "Aha!," Enamul Karim Nirjhar
Belgium, "Eldorado," Bouli Lanners
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "Snow," Aida Begic
Brazil, "Last Stop 174," Bruno Barreto
Bulgaria, "Zift," Javor Gardev
Canada, "The Necessities of Life," Benoit Pilon
Chile, "Tony Manero," Pablo Larrain
China, "Dream Weavers," Jun Gu
Colombia, "Dog Eat Dog," Carlos Moreno
Croatia, "No One's Son," Arsen Anton Ostojic
Czech Republic, "The Karamazovs," Petr Zelenka
Denmark,...
- 10/17/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Cologne, Germany -- Uli Edel's controversial terrorist drama "Der Baader Meinhof Komplex" joined a growing crowd of foreign-language Oscar hopefuls Tuesday, carrying the banner for Germany amid a rash of new entries.
Austria, last year's winner for "The Counterfeiters," added another German-language entry to the mix Tuesday, submitting "Revanche," Gotz Spielmann's unconventional story of guilt and revenge.
Shot in a stark, realistic style with a cast of unknowns, "Revanche" has been a festival hit, winning several international prizes, including top honors from both the Label of European Cinemas and the International Confederation of Art Cinemas in Berlin this year.
Other titles joining the race were Jan Troell's "Everlasting Moments," which will represent Sweden, and Bruno Barreto's "Last Stop 174" from Brazil.
Both titles played in Toronto, where Barreto's chronicle of a real-life bus hijacking in Rio de Janeiro had its world premiere and "Moments" was picked up by Rainbow Media's IFC.
Austria, last year's winner for "The Counterfeiters," added another German-language entry to the mix Tuesday, submitting "Revanche," Gotz Spielmann's unconventional story of guilt and revenge.
Shot in a stark, realistic style with a cast of unknowns, "Revanche" has been a festival hit, winning several international prizes, including top honors from both the Label of European Cinemas and the International Confederation of Art Cinemas in Berlin this year.
Other titles joining the race were Jan Troell's "Everlasting Moments," which will represent Sweden, and Bruno Barreto's "Last Stop 174" from Brazil.
Both titles played in Toronto, where Barreto's chronicle of a real-life bus hijacking in Rio de Janeiro had its world premiere and "Moments" was picked up by Rainbow Media's IFC.
- 9/16/2008
- by By Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Yojiro Takita’s “Okuribito” (Departures) won top honors at the 2008 edition of the Montreal World Film Festival, taking home the grand prize of the Americas.
Starring Masahiro Motoki, Ryoko Hirosue, the drama focuses on a cellist who loses his job and decides to move back to his hometown, where he starts to work as the local undertaker.
Meanwhile, the jury awarded its special prize to Benoît Pilon’s Canadian drama “Ce qu’il faut pour vivre” (The Necessities of Life), about an Inuit hunter who forms a special bond with a youngster while he’s being treated for tuberculosis at a sanatorium in Quebec.
Starring Masahiro Motoki, Ryoko Hirosue, the drama focuses on a cellist who loses his job and decides to move back to his hometown, where he starts to work as the local undertaker.
Meanwhile, the jury awarded its special prize to Benoît Pilon’s Canadian drama “Ce qu’il faut pour vivre” (The Necessities of Life), about an Inuit hunter who forms a special bond with a youngster while he’s being treated for tuberculosis at a sanatorium in Quebec.
- 9/2/2008
- by Franck Tabouring
- screeninglog.com
Departures directed by Japanese Yojiro Takita took home the top prize at the concluded 32 nd Montreal Film Festival. The film won the Grand Prix des Ameriques.
‘Departures’ is a tear jerker about a cellist forced to take a job as an undertaker after his orchestra disbands.
The jury was headed by director Mark Rydell who gave the runner up prize The Special Grand Prix of the jury to The Necessities of Life. The film is a fiction debut from Montreal documentary director Benoit Pilon.
The film looks into the life of an Inuit man...
(more...)...
‘Departures’ is a tear jerker about a cellist forced to take a job as an undertaker after his orchestra disbands.
The jury was headed by director Mark Rydell who gave the runner up prize The Special Grand Prix of the jury to The Necessities of Life. The film is a fiction debut from Montreal documentary director Benoit Pilon.
The film looks into the life of an Inuit man...
(more...)...
- 9/2/2008
- by John
- ReelSuave.com
Toronto -- The Montreal World Film Festival on Monday gave its top jury prize to Japanese director Yojiro Takita's "Okuribito" (Departures), but saw its top audience awards go to Canadian documentary filmmaker Benoit Pilon's debut fiction drama "The Necessities of Life."
The Montreal jury, led by U.S. director Mark Rydell, gave the Grand Prix of the Americas prize to Takita's drama about an out-of-work cellist who leaves Tokyo to return to his hometown to become an undertaker.
At the same time, the festival jury also gave the Special Grand Prix award to Pilon's feature about an Inuit man suffering from tuberculosis in 1950s Quebec. The period drama also earned the most popular film nod, voted on by filmgoers, and the audience award for most popular Canadian film.
Other jury awards in Montreal include Serbian director Goran Markovic's prize as best director for "The Tour," which also grabbed the Fipresci prize.
The Montreal jury, led by U.S. director Mark Rydell, gave the Grand Prix of the Americas prize to Takita's drama about an out-of-work cellist who leaves Tokyo to return to his hometown to become an undertaker.
At the same time, the festival jury also gave the Special Grand Prix award to Pilon's feature about an Inuit man suffering from tuberculosis in 1950s Quebec. The period drama also earned the most popular film nod, voted on by filmgoers, and the audience award for most popular Canadian film.
Other jury awards in Montreal include Serbian director Goran Markovic's prize as best director for "The Tour," which also grabbed the Fipresci prize.
- 9/1/2008
- by By Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Pioneer Entertainment
"Onmyoji" (The Yin-Yang Master) takes a viewer deep into the Japanese mythological past -- much too deep for a casual moviegoer. Unless one is Japanese or seriously devoted to its culture, history and lore, a viewer will get immediately lost in this tale of supernatural phenomena. The film reportedly grossed $23.6 million in Japan two years ago, but for the U.S. market, "Onmyoji" would define the term "specialized market."
The film, directed by Yojiro Takita and based on a series of novels set in the Heian period, takes us back a millennium to a Japan where humans lived alongside demons and ghosts. Practitioners of the occult and astrology known as Onmyoji interpret and, if necessary, combat these unnatural phenomena. In this tale, one such master named Abe no Seimei (Mansai Nomura) befriends court nobleman Hiromasa (Hideaki Ito) to counter the sinister ambitions of an evil Onmyoji named Doson (Hiroyuki Sanada).
The acting is overripe with emotions and wholly lacking in subtlety. Special effects and makeup are cheesy by today's standards. Takita's compositions in the film's limited locales achieve a painterly look. The film bills itself as a "martial arts epic," but there is little actual fighting and budgetary constraints prevent it from realizing any cinematic distinction that might qualify as epic.
"Onmyoji" (The Yin-Yang Master) takes a viewer deep into the Japanese mythological past -- much too deep for a casual moviegoer. Unless one is Japanese or seriously devoted to its culture, history and lore, a viewer will get immediately lost in this tale of supernatural phenomena. The film reportedly grossed $23.6 million in Japan two years ago, but for the U.S. market, "Onmyoji" would define the term "specialized market."
The film, directed by Yojiro Takita and based on a series of novels set in the Heian period, takes us back a millennium to a Japan where humans lived alongside demons and ghosts. Practitioners of the occult and astrology known as Onmyoji interpret and, if necessary, combat these unnatural phenomena. In this tale, one such master named Abe no Seimei (Mansai Nomura) befriends court nobleman Hiromasa (Hideaki Ito) to counter the sinister ambitions of an evil Onmyoji named Doson (Hiroyuki Sanada).
The acting is overripe with emotions and wholly lacking in subtlety. Special effects and makeup are cheesy by today's standards. Takita's compositions in the film's limited locales achieve a painterly look. The film bills itself as a "martial arts epic," but there is little actual fighting and budgetary constraints prevent it from realizing any cinematic distinction that might qualify as epic.
- 4/17/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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