Latest news with #Shoplifters
The Guardian
16-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Cottontail review – beautifully understated Japanese-English bereavement road trip drama
The bereavement road trip is a niche sub-genre but a rewarding one. Patrick Dickinson's pensive, beautifully acted Japanese and English-language drama Cottontail has much in common with 2019's John Hawkes-starring End of Sentence: both feature an estranged father and son forced together by the death of the woman who was the only thing they had in common. In this case, the cantankerous, recklessly independent widower is Kenzaburo, played by the remarkable Japanese actor Lily Franky (Shoplifters) in a performance that's a masterclass in understated anguish. Kenzaburo lost his wife to dementia before she lost her life, but, a lifelong fan of Beatrix Potter, she made him promise to take her ashes from Tokyo to the shores of Windermere in Cumbria. A delicate gem of a film, with a powerhouse turn from Franky. In UK and Irish cinemas
New York Times
30-01-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
‘Asura' Is a First-Class Domestic Drama
'Asura,' a seven-episode Japanese drama on Netflix (in Japanese, with subtitles, or dubbed), is the full package: a detailed, human-scale domestic drama with plenty to say, fascinating characters to say it and the stylishness to make it sing. The downside is that other shows feel paltry and thin in comparison. The upside is everything else. The show begins in 1979 and centers on four sisters. Ooooh, do they call each other on the phone! The story is set in motion when the prim, unmarried librarian sister, Takiko (Yu Aoi), discovers that their father has been having an affair, for years, and has a young son with his girlfriend. Takiko is horrified, but her sisters are less doctrinaire: Sakiko (Suzu Hirose), the dramatic and immature one, blames Takiko for meddling. The oldest sister, Tsunako (Rie Miyazawa), is a widow with a married boyfriend, and she's reluctant to throw stones. Makiko (Machiko Ono), married with two teenagers, is the first among equals, and she suspects her own dismissive husband is cheating on her. Maybe the ties that bind are the polite fictions everyone can agree on. Cut one, and you might accidentally cut them all. Each sister bristles under the control of men, and each finds it much easier to see the shallowness of the others' excuses than to confront her own suffering. Such is sisterhood. As the years go by, they become both more entrenched in their choices but less committed to them; by the time you realize how stuck you are, you really are stuck. Scenes from 'Asura' feel like scenes from life, with conversations that comfortably include snappy jokes, deep intimacy, physical wrestling, meal-planning and petty but profound complaints about family dynamics, all in the span of a few minutes. Food is a huge element of the show, and the characters are constantly cooking, eating or discussing when they're going to cook and eat. It's the easy nutshell for so many other behaviors: You always take the good ones; here, have this, it hurts my fake tooth; you always take the bad ones — treat yourself for once; I can't believe you ate that with her. Every episode of 'Asura' was written and directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda ('Shoplifters'), adapted from a novel by Kuniko Mukoda. Visually, the show is sumptuous, evocative in its vintage feel but not contrived or ostentatious.
Al Jazeera
27-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Al Jazeera
Top Fuji TV executives in Japan resign over sex scandal
Japan's Fuji Media says its chairman and the head of its TV unit will step down immediately amid a probe into alleged sexual misconduct by a celebrity TV host. Chairman Shuji Kano and television President Koichi Minato called it quits on Monday, weeks after host Masahiro Nakai was accused of sexual assault, causing a public relations storm and mass exit of advertisers. The 52-year-old Nakai reportedly later paid the woman 90 million yen ($580,000) and the pair signed a non-disclosure agreement. While Nakai has worked for many of Japan's TV networks, the dinner at which the incident occurred was reportedly arranged by one of the broadcaster's executives. One of the magazines, Shukan Bunshun, also reported the same executive had in a separate event gathered female TV personalities at a hotel to act as entertainment for Nakai and other celebrities. Dozens of brands, including McDonald's and Toyota, pulled their advertisements from the private broadcaster after staff were accused of trying to cover up the scandal. As pressure mounted, Kano and Minato announced their decision to leave. 'I would like to apologise sincerely to the women concerned for failing to provide adequate care due to a lack of awareness of human rights,' Kano told reporters. 'I apologise to the viewers, advertisers, company members, shareholders… for the great concern and inconvenience caused by the series of news reports,' he added. Earlier this month, Minato admitted that Fuji TV was aware of the scandal before it was reported by local media. The company denies claims that its staff were involved in organising Nakai's meeting with the woman, which allegedly took place at the star's home. Nakai, a former member of the boy band SMAP, which swept charts across Asia in the 1990s and 2000s, announced his retirement on Thursday after he was dropped from shows on Fuji TV and other channels. 'I alone am responsible for everything' and 'sincerely apologise', Nakai said. He had previously issued a statement saying some of what had been reported was 'different from the facts'. Fuji Television boasted Japan's highest viewer ratings in the 1980s and early 1990s, with its soap operas and popular comedy and variety shows. It aired the first domestically produced animation Astro Boy in 1963, and has also produced films including Hirokazu Kore-eda's Shoplifters which won the 2018 Palme d'Or at Cannes. The Nakai scandal follows another huge reckoning in the industry, involving now-defunct boy band empire Johnny & Associates, to which SMAP belonged.
