13 movies to catch at the Japanese Film Festival 2016

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13 movies to catch at the Japanese Film Festival 2016

Writer: Casey Lee

For fans of contemporary Japanese cinema, September is that time of the year when the Japanese Film Festival returns. Now onto its 13th installment in Malaysia, the selection of movies has become more exciting than ever, with none of them released before 2015. Not only are we getting some of the latest offerings that had recently come out in Japanese theaters, but we also get a very special and rare threat to catch some of the latest 2016 titles that had only just premiered in native Japan. As the JFF begins its first leg in the Klang Valley starting this 8 September before it moves to Penang, Kuching and finally to Kota Kinabalu, it's best to start scheduling your watch-list around these 13 movies, so that you don't miss out on seeing them on the big screen.

The Mohican Comes Home

After failing to make it as a punk rocker in Tokyo and getting his girlfriend pregnant, Eikichi brings her back to his coastal hometown in Hiroshima to meet his family and break the news. Upon arriving home, Eikichi and his news aren't received very warmly and he also learns that his disapproving father is dying from terminal cancer.

Festival goers may remember being melted by writer and director Shuichi Okita's "The Chef of the South Polar", and so we are looking forward to see his 2016 outing that has Ryuhei Matsuda of 2013's Oscar entry "The Great Passage" (also in "The Magnificent Nine") going wild but showing a tender side for his father, played by Akira Emoto and Maeda Atsuko as the pregnant girlfriend.

My Love Story!

Goda Takeo is a man among man; tall, muscular, a monster in karate and also intimidating. All of Takeo's love interests had fallen for his best friend and neighbour Suna, until Takeo saved a tiny Rinko from a molester. Although falling in love with her at first sight, Takeo resigns to the fact that she has fallen for Suna instead. "My Love Story!" already had its field earlier this year in February, but you can't keep a good love comedy down from a second run. This is an opportunity for fans of the sweet manga by Kazuna Kawahara and Aruko to catch this live adaptation.

What a Wonderful Family!

On the day of Tomiko Hirata's birthday after 50 years of marriage to her husband Shizuo, she asks for a divorce as her birthday present. News of her request sends shockwaves to the rest of the family, as their three children have to work out with each other to save the marriage, or not. Written and directed by Yoji Yamada, who's better known for writing samurai flicks, but directing family-oriented dramas, "What a Wonderful Family" is a warm look into Japanese family dynamics that can break down with little communication. There's still ground to cover with a sequel planned already for 2017.

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Cinema Online, 05 September 2016