Thursday, 6 March 2008

How to Speak Japanese

Love this hillarious clip from a very underrated film called, Scary Movie 4 which parodies the American remake of Juon, The Grudge. Funny stuff on how to speak Japanese. Anyone can do it!

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Labels: Japanese, movies

Monday, 6 August 2007

01-18-08

Went and saw the Transformers movie the other night on opening day here in Tokyo and LOVED IT!!!! Have been waiting for that movie to be made since I was 5! Definitely on my DVD must have list whenever it comes out. Can't wait for the two sequels which have been confirmed. Just hope Michael Bay does those ones too.

One question though: Why didn't they play the new remix of the Transformers Theme during the credits when it's available on the soundtrack? Weird.

Anyway, before the movie there was this great trailer for an upcoming movie which looks incredible. I would have had no idea what it was for if I hadn't been following everything JJ Abrams online (loved Felicity, Alias, Mission Impossible III and am LOVING LOST).

The guy's trying to create an American monster movie. The Japanese have Godzilla but English speaking films don't really have an equivalent. Yeah they remade Godzilla but that's still a remake and nothing unique (though I thought it was okay).

So far everything about the movie has been kept top secret. Noone knows what kind of monster it will be and the film doesn't even have a name yet. It's currently going by the release date which is 01-18-08 (18th January 2008).

The trailer which is incredible can be viewed HERE AT APPLE.COM/TRAILERS. Thought it was fun how it features a guy's farewell party before he goes to teach English in Japan.

The even more mysterious official site, www.1-18-08.com is also up. Cool how you can drag the photos with your mouse. Couldn't find much on it though.

Seriously can't wait for this movie. Am looking more forward to this than the new Indiana Jones movie.

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Labels: movies

Thursday, 1 February 2007

Final Harry Potter Book Release Date

July's going to be one hell of a month this year! Not only is the 5th Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (my personal fave book) coming out then, but so is the 7th and final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on the 21st!

I can't wait for this final book.

I remember laughing at Heather, my sister when she first raved about how great the books are but after reading the first book and then the second and third within three days I was hooked and was with everyone else for the launches of the 5th and 6th books.

It's going to be interesting as to what will happen to all the Harry Potter fans when the series concludes with the final book. I guess there will be the final two movies to look forward to (with the same actors hopefully) and there will always be other series to get into.

Labels: books, Harry Potter, movies

Friday, 26 January 2007

Ghibli's Earthsea Worst of 2006?

I havn't seen Earthsea yet but really want to as I read the books when I was young given to me by my Pam and enjoyed her passion for them. I have read though that Ursela Le Guinn didn't like the film at all and was very disappointed that the wrong Miyazaki directed the film (the guy that did this film was the brother of the famous one who made Mononoke and Spirited Away).

A good example of how people in Japan get promoted on age or family connections and not through any ability at all. This guy was an architect for crying out loud! Why the hell was he allowed to direct a Ghibli movie???

I heard his brother wasn't too happy about it either.

Shukan Bunshun has announced the recipients of the 2007 Bunshun Raspberry Awards. The awards recognize the worst of Japanese cinema in 2006, in the same manner that the Golden Raspberry Awards recognize the worth of North American cinema every year.

Goro Miyazaki's debut movie, Gedo Senki (Tales from Earthsea), topped the list for worth movie of 2006, and he also won the award for worst director.

1. Tales from Earthsea (Japan) 2. Sinking of Japan (Japan) 3. Da Vinci Code (US) 4. Nada Soso (Japan) 5. The Promise (China) 6. Umizaru 2: Test of Trust (Japan) 7. Now and Forever (Korea) 8. Rough (Japan) 9. Angel-A (France) 10. Christmas on July 24th Street (Japan)

Worst Actress: Masami Nagasawa Worst Actor: Tom Hanks Worst Director: Goro Miyazaki

From ANN

Labels: Ghibli, movies

Thursday, 25 January 2007

The Rape of Nanking. Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You.

(Apparently saying "Coming Attractions" sounds wierd. I thought the phrase was pretty common place but it came up the other day and everyone laughed. I say "Trailers" too, but a little "Coming Attractions" every now and then is good for the soul.)

Anyway, from CBC:

China plans to depict one of the most infamous events of the Second World War, with a film version of U.S. author Iris Chang's historical account The Rape of Nanking.

Chinese moviemakers will team up with U.S. and British filmmakers to describe the brutal massacre of Chinese civilians and burning of the former capital city by Japanese troops in December 1937.

The movie deal was announced Monday, a day before the anniversary of Japan's Second World War surrender.

China has objected to plans by Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to visit the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which honours Japanese leaders convicted of war crimes as well as Japan's 2.5 million war dead.

Backers of the $25 million US project hope to woo Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi and Malaysia's Michelle Yeoh for the cast, according to a report from the Chinese news service Xinhua.

erald Green, the American producer of the movie, said the film would be a war classic like Schindler's List, the Oscar-winning 1993 film by Steven Spielberg about a businessman who attempts to save the lives of Jews in Poland.

"We hope we can make the film a classic on a massacre in the Second World War, just like Schindler's Listabout the miserable experience of Jewish people during the war," he said in an interview with Xinhua.

Chang, an American-Chinese writer who died in 2004 at age 36, wrote the 1997 English-language history, The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II.

The book was on the New York Times bestseller list for several months and became a New York Times notable book. It helped bring the massacre, little known in the West, to wider attention.

China claims 300,000 Chinese men, women and children were slaughtered by invading Japanese troops in the war-time capital Nanjing, formerly known as Nanking. A 1948 Tokyo war crimes tribunal found Japanese troops killed 155,000 people.

Japanese war crimes are a sensitive issue in China, which says Japan has not taken full responsibility for its wartime occupation of China.

Viridian, a Hollywood entertainment firm, is working with British investors and China's Jiangsu Cultural Industry Group on the project.

Shooting is to begin soon, with the movie scheduled for completion by Sept. 1, 2007, ahead of the 70-year anniversary of the Nanjing massacre.

I for one think this is great news. It definitely is something that everyone should be aware of. The things the Japanese army and government did during their occupation of China is indescribable. Mutilations, rape, forcing boys to have sex with their grandmothers and then kill them both, rip babies from mother's stomachs. The list goes on and it gets worse. (seriously)

What's infuriating is that Japan has yet to appologise for this. A lot of people think the Chinese are even making this up despite all the evidence from International and Japanese researchers. Don't even get me started on the history textbook censorship of which Japan, who has been bitching about it happening in China is itself doing the same thing.

As a movie, the story of the people involved in the real life Rape are very interesting historical characters and should make for a very gripping story on film.

I do wonder how edited this film will be when released in Japan, if at all.

Labels: movies, Rape of Nanking

Thursday, 18 January 2007

That's right! The 10th Pokemon Movie!

Yup! You all laughed and said it was just a phase but Pokemon is still a massive success in Japan and this year sees the release of the 10th Pokemon movie!!! I'm a Pokefreak and proud of it and can't wait for this next movie. Last year's (animated movies from tv shows are an annual production here in Japan, not every 4 years like a Disney movie) Pokemon movie sucked serious arse. Seriously there were cliches coming out of it's ears where cuteness weemed more important that plot or character.

This year's one however gets back to good old fashioned huge arse Pokemon battling it out with the world at stake. Can't get much better than that!

Now where's my ticket... Pokemon Centre, here I come!

Labels: computer games, japan, movies, Pokemon