tagged w/ Japanese Anime
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“Junko’s Shamisen” is a super-stylized samurai tale by Canadian filmmaker Sol Friedman. The short film is an exquisite chanbara mini-epic of revenge, suffused with manga and kabuki theater. “Junko’s Shamisen” flawlessly integrates traditional cell animation, 2D “cut out” style set animation, comic book dialogue bubbles and even some stop-motion to round things out. All of this is woven into the live action base of the film, which leaps off the screen with vivid color, depth and texture.
Set in the dark and densely-forested, rural backwoods of feudal-era Japan, “Junko’s Shamisen” is the quiet story of a young peasant girl named Junko living with her blind grandfather, who plays a three-stringed instrument called a shamisena. One day, Junko returns to their simple home to discover that her grandfather has been brutally murdered. Devastated and filled with despair, Junko, accompanied by a mystical fox spirit, abandons her old life and sets off for the village in search of better fortunes. While she goes begging from house to house, young Junko inadvertently encounters the ruthless Samurai Lord Yamamura, who was responsible for killing her grandfather. Emboldened by the influence of the fox spirit, Junko breaks out of her petite and non-threatening shell and avenges her grandfather through an act of gruesome poetic justice.
This piece presents a number of colorful photographs, as well as the exquisitely designed short film.
http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2011/03/03/junkos-shamisen-a-mini-epic-of-poetic-revenge/“Junko’s Shamisen” is a super-stylized samurai tale by Canadian... more
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“Grave of the Fireflies” is a Japanese anime masterpiece, an animated drama film written and directed by Isao Takahata, with animation production work provided by Studio Ghibli. “Grave of the Fireflies” tells the story of two children from Japan’s port city of Kobe, who have been made homeless by the WWII American firebombing of the city. The film is based on a semi-autobiographical novel by Nosaka Akiyuki, who was a boy at the time of the firebombs, whose sister did die of hunger and whose life has been shadowed by guilt.
Roger Ebert considers “Grave of the Fireflies” to be one of the most powerful anti-war movies ever made and has described the film as “an emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation….“Grave of the Fireflies” is a powerful dramatic film that happens to be animated, and I know what the critic Ernest Rister means when he compares it to “Schindler’s List” and says, “It is the most profoundly human animated film I’ve ever seen.”
The film tells a simple story of survival. The boy and his sister must find a place to stay and food to eat. But in wartime their relatives are neither kind nor generous, and and the boy soon is left to fend for both himself and his young sister. He has some money and can buy food, but soon there is no food to buy. His sister grows weaker and weaker. Their story is told not as melodrama, but rather in the simple and direct manner of the neo-realist tradition. And there is time for silence in it. One of the film’s greatest gifts is its patience; shots are held so that we can think about them; characters are glimpsed in their private moments; atmosphere and nature are given time to establish themselves.
This piece includes a number of high-resolution colorful illustrations, as well as an HD full-version of the acclaimed animated film.
http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/grave-of-the-fireflies-a-japanese-anime-masterpiece/“Grave of the Fireflies” is a Japanese anime masterpiece, an animated... more
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Warner Bros. has released a new trailer for Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch, and it sure packs a wallop. Every new bit of film we see from this visual feast looks more and more scintillating, bizarre and glorious. The movie seems to be the kind of dream fantasy picture that Inception could have been if Christopher Nolan was into Japanese Anime, sexy young girls, women-in-prison movies, retro styling and LSD.
Sucker Punch opens on March 25th, 2011.
http://www.moviesreviews2010.com/the-amazing-trailer-for-sucker-punch-will-leave-you-breathless/Warner Bros. has released a new trailer for Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch, and it... more
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Gantz, one of the most bad-assed things ever put to paper (anime was okay) is going live-action, and it seems that they've roped in some high-profile Japanese talent to star in the movie.
First off is famed actor and musician Ninomiya Kazunari, who all the girls call Nino. He's a good leading man, so it's good to hear that he'll be playing the lead role of Kei. Another great actor, Matsuyama Kenichi, who you probably know as L from the Death Note films, will be playing Masaru Kato, another main character in the Gantz world.
I'm thinking this film could be good. We already got a good cast. Now let's get some gore in there.Gantz, one of the most bad-assed things ever put to paper (anime was okay) is going... more
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If you've got some free time at the end of July, you should head on over to UC Berkeley if you're anywhere near California, because Hayao Miyazaki will be going there on July 25th to pick up his Berkeley Japan award, and because apparently, he's contractually required by Disney to make a US appearance. Which, knowing Disney, doesn't surprise me in the least.
There aren't many details right now, but we'll stay tuned to Kai-Ming Cha for more information, since she's got her finger on the pulse of this. As she points out, Miyazaki didn't even show up to the Academy Awards the year Spirited Away won big, so this really is a rare opportunity.If you've got some free time at the end of July, you should head on over to UC... more
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Samurai Deeper Kyo (サムライ ディーパー キョウ, Samurai Dīpā Kyō?) is a manga series written and illustrated by Akimine Kamijyo. The manga was serialized from October 15, 1999 to May 10, 2006 in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine, and collected over 38 volumes.
Samurai Deeper Kyo follows the story of Demon Eyes Kyo (鬼目の狂, Oni Me no Kyō?) as he seeks to regain his body after his soul was sealed inside the body of his rival, Mibu Kyoshiro. Kyo is joined in his search by the bounty-hunter Shiina Yuya, the heir to the Tokugawa shogunate Benitora, and Sanada Yukimura, a known rival of the Tokugawa.
Underlying the principle story arc of Kyo's search to reclaim his body, there are many smaller arcs, each leading to the next one. The basis of many later revelations are established many volumes in advance. In the manga, it is revealed that all of the Mibu, except for Kyo , are descendants of "Battle Dolls", creatures created by the Mibu to fight for their amusement. In time, the Battle Dolls come to believe they were the real Mibu, and that the real Mibu were destroyed by infighting. The extant Mibu are gradually being killed by the "Disease of Death". Muramasa's sister was the first to be killed by the Mibu Disease, but others soon followed. The disease manifests itself when the infected person reaches a certain age. For this reason, the aging process has been stopped in Antera, Tokito, and probably others.
Demon Eyes Kyo (鬼目の狂, Oni Me no Kyō?)
He is known for his demonic blood-red eyes and is one of the most feared samurai in the world. He carries a legendary nodachi called Tenro (Heavenly Wolf), made by mastersmith Muramasa. In the manga, he is depicted as a cold, unbeatable samurai. When he was young, he was shunned by all of the Mibu clan for his demonic red eyes except for the Sendai Aka no Ou (Former Crimson King). After killing Oda Nobunaga, he was thrown into the Mibu dungeons until Muramasa rescued him and trained him in Mumyo Jinpu Ryuu. Kyo is the last remaining True Mibu. Sendai Aka no Ou asked Kyo to seek out the outside world and one day stop the former King himself if he was to become evil and destroy the world.
Mibu Kyoshiro (壬生京四郎, Mibu Kyoshiro?)
A remarkable swordsman, depicted as the only rival to Demon Eyes Kyo. He wielded the Shibien (Purple Sword), a Muramasa. In the manga, he is depicted as one of the heirs to the Aka no Ou throne, the Red Eyes were proof of his Mibu lineage. He is a "Red Cross Knight", created from the flesh of the Sendai Aka no Ou. Though he is able to control the Red Eyes, he is not a true Mibu, but merely a more powerful battle doll resembling the first generation of battle dolls created. It is depicted that he is stronger than Demon Eyes Kyo, although they are trapped in a same body.Samurai Deeper Kyo (サムライ ディーパー キョウ, Samurai Dīpā Kyō?) is a... more
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