Close-Up is a feature that spotlights films now playing on Mubi. Akihiko Shiota's Wet Woman in the Wind (2016), which is receiving an exclusive global online premiere on Mubi, is showing from November 24 - December 24, 2017 as a Special Discovery.Much like Hollywood, the Japanese film industry goes to the well as often as possible once it hits a lucky strike. Such was the case with the so-called Roman Porno films of the 1970s, an infamous genre of sexploitation primarily identified with Japan’s oldest major studio, Nikkatsu. Financial trouble necessitated a popular, inexpensive product, and these softcore numbers were just the ticket. This may have been the studio where Kenji Mizoguchi and Shohei Imamura made films early in their careers, but by 1971 the Roman Porno factory was in full swing, producing quick, cheap, titillating product for an audience hungry for female toplessness and a great deal of convulsive thrusting.
- 11/23/2017
- MUBI
"Wet Woman in the Wind is a curious proposition—a formal genre exercise with energy to spare, and a cheerfully dirty mind," writes Jonathan Romney in a dispatch to Film Comment from Locarno. "Written and directed by Akihiko Shiota, best known for low-key drama titles such as Harmful Insect and action blockbuster Dororo, Wet Woman is one of a series of films commissioned by the Nikkatsu Corporation to celebrate the 45th anniversary of their 'Roman Porno' series of sex films, which originally ran from 1971 to 1988." We're collecting reviews. » - David Hudson...
- 8/13/2016
- Keyframe
"Wet Woman in the Wind is a curious proposition—a formal genre exercise with energy to spare, and a cheerfully dirty mind," writes Jonathan Romney in a dispatch to Film Comment from Locarno. "Written and directed by Akihiko Shiota, best known for low-key drama titles such as Harmful Insect and action blockbuster Dororo, Wet Woman is one of a series of films commissioned by the Nikkatsu Corporation to celebrate the 45th anniversary of their 'Roman Porno' series of sex films, which originally ran from 1971 to 1988." We're collecting reviews. » - David Hudson...
- 8/13/2016
- Fandor: Keyframe
Director: Takashi Miike. Review: Adam Wing. I don’t know what it is that draws Takashi Miike to projects but you could never accuse the man of being one-dimensional. In the past three years alone he has directed two samurai movies, a superhero film and a farcical children’s adventure. He has two movies scheduled for release next year and three films from 2012 that have yet to see the light of day on western shores. For Love’s Sake – a fascinating blend of High School Musical, Crows Zero and West Side Story – is the first to hit UK shelves, courtesy of Third Window Films. In 2001 Miike directed one of my favourite movies, a quirky zombie musical called The Happiness of the Katakuris. Combining elements of Kim Jee-Woon’s The Quiet Family and Christmas favourite The Sound of Music, Katakuris was an offbeat masterpiece infused with claymation set pieces, twisted humour and karaoke singalongs.
- 6/7/2013
- 24framespersecond.net
The following is a list of all comic books, graphic novels and special items that will be available this week and shipped to comic book stores who have placed orders for them.
Abrams
Art Of Daniel Clowes Modern Cartoonist Hc, $40.00
Garbage Pail Kids Hc, $19.95
Gonzo A Graphic Biography Of Hunter S Thompson Tp, $17.95
Abstract Studios
Rachel Rising #1 (Terry Moore 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Rachel Rising #2 (Terry Moore 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Rachel Rising Volume 1 Shadow Of Death Tp, $16.99
Antarctic Press
Last Zombie Neverland #2 (Of 5), $3.99
Arcana Studio
Space Mn Gn, $14.95
Archaia Entertainment
Black Charity Hc, $19.95
Archie Comic Publications
Archie #631, $2.99
Betty And Veronica Friends Double Digest #223, $3.99
Jinx Hc (resolicited)(not verified by Diamond), $16.99
Jinx Sc (resolicited)(not verified by Diamond), $9.99
Life With Archie #18, $3.99
Aspen Mlt
Lady Mechanika #0 (Cover H 4th Printing), $2.99
Audiogo Ltd
Doctor Who And The Silurians Audio CD, $29.95
Docter Who Earthshock Audio CD,...
Abrams
Art Of Daniel Clowes Modern Cartoonist Hc, $40.00
Garbage Pail Kids Hc, $19.95
Gonzo A Graphic Biography Of Hunter S Thompson Tp, $17.95
Abstract Studios
Rachel Rising #1 (Terry Moore 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Rachel Rising #2 (Terry Moore 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Rachel Rising Volume 1 Shadow Of Death Tp, $16.99
Antarctic Press
Last Zombie Neverland #2 (Of 5), $3.99
Arcana Studio
Space Mn Gn, $14.95
Archaia Entertainment
Black Charity Hc, $19.95
Archie Comic Publications
Archie #631, $2.99
Betty And Veronica Friends Double Digest #223, $3.99
Jinx Hc (resolicited)(not verified by Diamond), $16.99
Jinx Sc (resolicited)(not verified by Diamond), $9.99
Life With Archie #18, $3.99
Aspen Mlt
Lady Mechanika #0 (Cover H 4th Printing), $2.99
Audiogo Ltd
Doctor Who And The Silurians Audio CD, $29.95
Docter Who Earthshock Audio CD,...
- 3/25/2012
- by GeekRest
- GeekRest
(And there are pics to prove it!) Director Tony Ching Siu-Tung is currently finishing the martial arts fantasy "The Sorcerer and the White Snake", an ancient Chinese fairytale in which a young man falls in love with a beautiful woman, not knowing she is in fact a White Demon Snake in disguise. A monk tries to save him by battling the Snake. So far, so "Chinese Ghost Story". But this production has a few aces up its sleeves: Tony Ching Siu-Tung is one of the best choreographer and stunt directors in the business, having worked on productions as diverse as "Hero", "Dororo" and "Shaolin Soccer". And while we're namedropping: the monk will be played by Jet Li and the demon ladies by Vivian Hsu,...
- 5/12/2011
- Screen Anarchy
Japanese director Takahisa Zeze (Flying Rabbits; Moon Child) disaster movie come medical thriller ‘Kansen Rettou’ (aka Pandemic) is heading for UK DVD next month. A great cast including; Satoshi Tsumabuki (Dororo), Kanningu Takeyama (Memories Of Matsuko) and veteran actor Tatsuya Fuji (Empire Of Passion) keeps the - world threatened by a mysterious killer virus - plot moving at pace, and the love story (this is a Japanese disaster movie after all) sub plot, thankfully veers away from full blown melodrama…most of the time. Pandemic streets on May 9.
- 4/18/2011
- 24framespersecond.net
Above: From left to right, Tokyo FilmEx festival directors Kanako Hayashi and Shozo Ichiyama; and Nobuteru Uchida's prize-winning film, Love Addition.
Last November, I had a conversation with Tokyo FilmEx Festival directors Shozo Ichiyama and Kanako Hayashi. For more than a decade, this duo has helmed Japan’s most serious festival, one dedicated to independent cinema from Asia. Office Kitano, Takeshi Kitano’s production company, has remained its key partner over the years, and helped Japan’s support of Iranian directors as well as groundbreaking figures from China, most notably Jia Zhangke, a regular at FilmEx from the beginning. The festival also revealed the fragile state of art cinema in and from Japan and how a very small, centralized community that has been determining what fits into this category, and what is not allowed in; a community that’s aged while being unable to neither find nor form new heirs.
Last November, I had a conversation with Tokyo FilmEx Festival directors Shozo Ichiyama and Kanako Hayashi. For more than a decade, this duo has helmed Japan’s most serious festival, one dedicated to independent cinema from Asia. Office Kitano, Takeshi Kitano’s production company, has remained its key partner over the years, and helped Japan’s support of Iranian directors as well as groundbreaking figures from China, most notably Jia Zhangke, a regular at FilmEx from the beginning. The festival also revealed the fragile state of art cinema in and from Japan and how a very small, centralized community that has been determining what fits into this category, and what is not allowed in; a community that’s aged while being unable to neither find nor form new heirs.
- 3/9/2011
- MUBI
by Colleen Wanglund, MoreHorror.com
Dororo (2007) is a Japanese horror/dark fantasy movie directed by Akihiko Shiota. Based on volume one of a three-volume manga of the same name written by Osamu Tesuka (there's also a 26-part anime), Dororo takes place in feudal Japan and tells the story of a young samurai named Hyakkimaru (Satoshi Tsumbakuki) who was born without 48 body-parts. His father, Daigo, sold those body parts to 48 different demons in exchange for the world. Hyakkimaru’s mother abandoned him, rather than watch Daigo kill him but he is found by a powerful shaman who builds him an artificial body made from the parts of dead children. After his "father" the shaman dies, Hyakkimaru begins a quest to kill all of the demons and get his real body back. He is joined in his quest by a thief who takes the name Dororo (Ko Shibasaki) which means 'little monster'...
Dororo (2007) is a Japanese horror/dark fantasy movie directed by Akihiko Shiota. Based on volume one of a three-volume manga of the same name written by Osamu Tesuka (there's also a 26-part anime), Dororo takes place in feudal Japan and tells the story of a young samurai named Hyakkimaru (Satoshi Tsumbakuki) who was born without 48 body-parts. His father, Daigo, sold those body parts to 48 different demons in exchange for the world. Hyakkimaru’s mother abandoned him, rather than watch Daigo kill him but he is found by a powerful shaman who builds him an artificial body made from the parts of dead children. After his "father" the shaman dies, Hyakkimaru begins a quest to kill all of the demons and get his real body back. He is joined in his quest by a thief who takes the name Dororo (Ko Shibasaki) which means 'little monster'...
- 3/4/2011
- by admin
- MoreHorror
Time to call your cable or satellite provider and add the Sundance Channel to your lineup as the network is launching a new season of its late-night destination Asia Extreme™ on August 7, showcasing the sharpest of cutting-edge Asian genre fare every Saturday night at midnight.
You'll note that a few of the offerings aren't strictly horror fare, but we're including everything since just about all of them offer gore and violence, even if the supernatural/horror elements aren't quite there.
From the Press Release:
The 2010 season of Asia Extreme includes the U.S. television premieres of five films from South Korea: The Restless, Shadows in the Palace, Tazza: The High Rollers, Voice, and The Wig. The new season of Asia Extreme premieres on August 7 at 12:00 midnight Et/Pt.
In addition to their on-air presentations, the five premieres will be among the thirteen Asia Extreme titles available free from August...
You'll note that a few of the offerings aren't strictly horror fare, but we're including everything since just about all of them offer gore and violence, even if the supernatural/horror elements aren't quite there.
From the Press Release:
The 2010 season of Asia Extreme includes the U.S. television premieres of five films from South Korea: The Restless, Shadows in the Palace, Tazza: The High Rollers, Voice, and The Wig. The new season of Asia Extreme premieres on August 7 at 12:00 midnight Et/Pt.
In addition to their on-air presentations, the five premieres will be among the thirteen Asia Extreme titles available free from August...
- 8/4/2010
- by The Woman In Black
- DreadCentral.com
Good news coming to us thanks to Ulrik's Asian BluRay-Guide website: publisher Arrow UK has anounced through a series of forums that a BluRay release of the original (non-3D) "Battle Royale" by Kinji Fukasaku will be forthcoming in October.
This is most welcome as this movie is a certified classic. Audiences worldwide back in 2000 were shocked by the story of a schoolclass of teenagers being forced to kill each other on an island over the course of three days. The film was based on a manga but became a hype of its own because of strong acting (the premise is not played for laughs here) and strong violence involving children. It launched the careers of several of its cast members including Chiaki Kuriyama ("Kill Bill", "Exte"), Kô Shibasaki ("The Sinking of Japan", "Dororo", "One Missed Call") and Tatsuya Fujiwara ("Death Note").
Kinji Fukasaku even started on a sequel, but...
This is most welcome as this movie is a certified classic. Audiences worldwide back in 2000 were shocked by the story of a schoolclass of teenagers being forced to kill each other on an island over the course of three days. The film was based on a manga but became a hype of its own because of strong acting (the premise is not played for laughs here) and strong violence involving children. It launched the careers of several of its cast members including Chiaki Kuriyama ("Kill Bill", "Exte"), Kô Shibasaki ("The Sinking of Japan", "Dororo", "One Missed Call") and Tatsuya Fujiwara ("Death Note").
Kinji Fukasaku even started on a sequel, but...
- 7/28/2010
- Screen Anarchy
Director: Akihiko Shiota. Review: Adam Wing Now this is what Eastern cinema is all about. A female warrior raised as a man joins forces with a young samurai on a quest to kill the 48 demons in control of his body parts. Sound a little bit strange? You bet. Dororo is based on a comic series of the same name and tells the story of Hyakkimaru, a warrior cursed at birth who was born faceless, organ-less and limbless. The man responsible is Kagemitsu Daigo, and just so happens to be our protagonist’s father. I sense family domestics ahead. It's all about greed you see, and power, lots of it. Daigo offers his sons life for ultimate power but fortunately for us (not to mention the rest of the movie) his mother is on hand to stage a rescue, leaving her son to float down the river and start a new life.
- 8/25/2009
- 24framespersecond.net
Director: Akihiko Shiota. Review: Adam Wing Now this is what Eastern cinema is all about. A female warrior raised as a man joins forces with a young samurai on a quest to kill the 48 demons in control of his body parts. Sound a little bit strange? You bet. Dororo is based on a comic series of the same name and tells the story of Hyakkimaru, a warrior cursed at birth who was born faceless, organ-less and limbless. The man responsible is Kagemitsu Daigo, and just so happens to be our protagonist’s father. I sense family domestics ahead. It's all about greed you see, and power, lots of it. Daigo offers his sons life for ultimate power but fortunately for us (not to mention the rest of the movie) his mother is on hand to stage a rescue, leaving her son to float down the river and start a new life.
- 8/25/2009
- 24framespersecond.net
Director: Akihiko Shiota. Review: Adam Wing Now this is what Eastern cinema is all about. A female warrior raised as a man joins forces with a young samurai on a quest to kill the 48 demons in control of his body parts. Sound a little bit strange? You bet. Dororo is based on a comic series of the same name and tells the story of Hyakkimaru, a warrior cursed at birth who was born faceless, organ-less and limbless. The man responsible is Kagemitsu Daigo, and just so happens to be our protagonist’s father. I sense family domestics ahead. It's all about greed you see, and power, lots of it. Daigo offers his sons life for ultimate power but fortunately for us (not to mention the rest of the movie) his mother is on hand to stage a rescue, leaving her son to float down the river and start a new life.
- 8/25/2009
- 24framespersecond.net
Manga adaptations have been hitting Japanese screens en masse in recent years, though fantasy sword epic “Dororo” does at least have an impeccable pedigree to set it out from the crowd, being based upon a long running series from the 1960s by the masterful Osamu Tezuka (who also created the much loved iconic “Astro Boy”). Having already been transformed into an anime, the comic made the leap to cinemas in 2007 at the hands of director Akihiko Shiota, previously responsible for the likes of “Canary” and “Harmful Insect”. The film was a massive hit on its original release, setting a domestic box office record by holding onto the top spot for an unprecedented six consecutive weeks, and is now finally available on region 2 DVD via Mvm, coming with a featurette and deleted scenes. Although it ostensibly takes place in the future, the film basically has a period setting, and begins as...
- 8/8/2009
- by James Mudge
- Beyond Hollywood
The 21st annual Eisner Awards, the "Oscars" of the comics industry, will be given out at a gala ceremony at a brand-new location: the Indigo Ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront. This year's special them is "Comics and All That Jazz." Scheduled presenters include writer/actors Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant (Reno 911, Balls of Fury), acclaimed comics creators Jeff Smith and Terry Moore, actor/comedian Patton Oswalt, actor/musician/writer Bill Mumy, actress/musician Jane Wiedlin, and G4's Blair Butler, with many more to be announced.
Other prestigious awards to be given out include the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award, the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, and the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing. The master of ceremonies is Bongo Comics' Bill Morrison.
We're going to cover it as best as we can here... boldfacing the winners as they are announced.
8:46: Neil Gaiman tweets: "on...
Other prestigious awards to be given out include the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award, the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, and the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing. The master of ceremonies is Bongo Comics' Bill Morrison.
We're going to cover it as best as we can here... boldfacing the winners as they are announced.
8:46: Neil Gaiman tweets: "on...
- 7/25/2009
- by Glenn Hauman
- Comicmix.com
Japanese director Tetsuya Nakashima (Memories Of Matsuko) has rapidly earned himself a reputation as a hugely talented and idiosyncratic auteur whose genre-busting films have been favourably compared to the work of directors such as Tim Burton (Charlie And The Chocolate Factory; Big Fish), Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge; Romeo And Juliet) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (A Very Long Engagement; Amelie). Now, the pop culture phenomenon that has taken Japan by storm, Nakashima's Kamikaze Girls, comes to DVD courtesy of Third Window Films.
Based on the bestselling novel-turned-manga by cult author Novala Takemoto, Kamikaze Girls concerns 17-year-old Momoko (Kyoko Fukada), a self-absorbed dreamer and ‘Lolita' fashion obsessive whose love of all things Rococo sees her fantasizing about fleeing her backcountry home and living life in 18th Century Versailles.
While selling off her father's supplies of bootleg designer fashion goods in order to fund her expensive obsession, Momoko unexpectedly meets the rebellious Ichigo (Anna Tsuchiya...
Based on the bestselling novel-turned-manga by cult author Novala Takemoto, Kamikaze Girls concerns 17-year-old Momoko (Kyoko Fukada), a self-absorbed dreamer and ‘Lolita' fashion obsessive whose love of all things Rococo sees her fantasizing about fleeing her backcountry home and living life in 18th Century Versailles.
While selling off her father's supplies of bootleg designer fashion goods in order to fund her expensive obsession, Momoko unexpectedly meets the rebellious Ichigo (Anna Tsuchiya...
- 1/22/2009
- by Leigh
- Latemag.com/film
This week was going to be Samurai Week, but I threw in a book about psychics for spice – just to keep it interesting.
Dororo, Vol. 3
By Osamu Tezuka
Vertical, August 2008, $13.95
This is the third and final book in a samurai saga from Tezuka, the “godfather of manga.” (I’ve previously reviewed volume 1 and volume 2 for ComicMix.) I’ve seen references that say this series was truncated rather than continuing to its expected end, and that’s plausible from the book itself.
It does have something like an ending; the swordsman Hyakkimaru confronts and defeats his evil father, and parts from the young thief Dororo (whose secret he’s recently learned). But the stories of these main characters aren’t actually done – Hyakkimaru is not finished with his quest to become human again, and Dororo needs to grow up (and probably to battle some evil feudal lords on behalf of downtrodden...
Dororo, Vol. 3
By Osamu Tezuka
Vertical, August 2008, $13.95
This is the third and final book in a samurai saga from Tezuka, the “godfather of manga.” (I’ve previously reviewed volume 1 and volume 2 for ComicMix.) I’ve seen references that say this series was truncated rather than continuing to its expected end, and that’s plausible from the book itself.
It does have something like an ending; the swordsman Hyakkimaru confronts and defeats his evil father, and parts from the young thief Dororo (whose secret he’s recently learned). But the stories of these main characters aren’t actually done – Hyakkimaru is not finished with his quest to become human again, and Dororo needs to grow up (and probably to battle some evil feudal lords on behalf of downtrodden...
- 9/5/2008
- by Andrew Wheeler
- Comicmix.com
With nary an Oscar nomination to its name, 20th Century Fox International's Night at the Museum continued to lead the pack internationally, finishing No. 1 for the fifth consecutive weekend with an estimated $14.6 million from about 2,500 screens in 48 markets.
Museum's international total gross is $193.7 million ($410.4 million including North America). Fox is shooting for an overseas cume of $200 million for the Ben Stiller comedy.
No. 1 debuts for the weekend netted Museum an estimated $5.6 million from 483 screens in Spain and $800,000 from 96 sites -- for a meaty per-screen average of $8,333 -- in the Philippines.
The biggest holdover territory was the U.K., where Museum garnered an estimated $2.4 million in its fourth weekend at 453 sites, for a market total of $39.4 million. Upcoming this weekend are bows in Italy and Sweden.
Thanks to a powerful Japan bow, plus a best actor Oscar nomination for Will Smith, Sony Pictures Releasing International's The Pursuit of Happyness finished No. 2 on the weekend, racking up an estimated $12.5 million from about 2,000 screens in 15 territories including Italy (where Medusa Distribuzione has releasing rights). Overseas gross total to date stands at $48 million.
Happyness finished second in the all-important Japan market -- behind local-language Dororo, a samurai action-adventure co-produced by Toho Co. and Tokyo Broadcasting System -- snaring an estimated $3.1 million from 274 screens. Key holdover markets included the U.K., where the title finished No. 3 with an estimated $2.4 million from 404 situations for a third-weekend cume of $14.1 million.
The film took top spots in Germany (an estimated $2.1 million from 520 sites for a cume over two weekends of $5.9 million) and New Zealand ($270,000 from 51 screens).
Museum's international total gross is $193.7 million ($410.4 million including North America). Fox is shooting for an overseas cume of $200 million for the Ben Stiller comedy.
No. 1 debuts for the weekend netted Museum an estimated $5.6 million from 483 screens in Spain and $800,000 from 96 sites -- for a meaty per-screen average of $8,333 -- in the Philippines.
The biggest holdover territory was the U.K., where Museum garnered an estimated $2.4 million in its fourth weekend at 453 sites, for a market total of $39.4 million. Upcoming this weekend are bows in Italy and Sweden.
Thanks to a powerful Japan bow, plus a best actor Oscar nomination for Will Smith, Sony Pictures Releasing International's The Pursuit of Happyness finished No. 2 on the weekend, racking up an estimated $12.5 million from about 2,000 screens in 15 territories including Italy (where Medusa Distribuzione has releasing rights). Overseas gross total to date stands at $48 million.
Happyness finished second in the all-important Japan market -- behind local-language Dororo, a samurai action-adventure co-produced by Toho Co. and Tokyo Broadcasting System -- snaring an estimated $3.1 million from 274 screens. Key holdover markets included the U.K., where the title finished No. 3 with an estimated $2.4 million from 404 situations for a third-weekend cume of $14.1 million.
The film took top spots in Germany (an estimated $2.1 million from 520 sites for a cume over two weekends of $5.9 million) and New Zealand ($270,000 from 51 screens).
- 1/29/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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