It’s September, and that means TIFF in Toronto. The Toronto International Film Festival, which will be running from Sept 4-14 is a great way to check out the best films from around the world including Japan. For more information on TIFF check out their website here. Be sure to stop by and see some of the below highly anticipated Japanese films.
Tokyo Tribe – Sept 4, 5, 14
Dir: Sion Sono, Cast: Ryohei Suzuki, Shota Sometani
Midnight Madness favourite Sion Sono (Why Don’t You Play in Hell?, winner of the 2013 People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award) ventures even further into uncharted cinematic territory with this yakuza-street gang-hip hop-musical epic.
Fires on the Plain (Nobi) – Sept 9, 10, 13
Dir: Shinya Tsukamoto, Cast: Tatsuya Nakamura, Riri Furanki, Shinya Tsukamoto
Tetsuo director Shinya Tsukamoto creates a gritty and graphic version of the classic war novel about a dazed, wounded soldier who wanders through the surreal carnage of the Pacific War.
Kabukicho Love Hotel (Sayonara Kabukicho) – Sept 7, 9, 13
Dir: Ryuichi Hiroki, Cast: Shota Sometani, Atsuko Maeda, Roy
This drama from Japanese director Ryuichi Hiroki (Vibrator) traces the intersecting stories of a group of employees and visitors at a notorious “love hotel” in Tokyo’s red-light district.
Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (Yume to Kyoki no Okoku) – Sept 8, 10, 14
Dir: Mami Sunada, Cast: Hayao Miyazaki, Hideaki Anno, Isao Takahata
This engrossing documentary follows the work of Hayao Miyazaki and takes us inside Studio Ghibli, the renowned Japanese animation studio that created such classics as Spirited Away, Grave of the Fireflies, My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke.
Over Your Dead Body (Kuime) – Sept 11, 12, 13
Dir: Takashi Miike, Cast: Ebizo Ichikawa, Ko Shibasaki, Hideaki Ito
Prolific Japanese auteur Takashi Miike, Over Your Dead Body unfolds the film within the walls of a theatre where a troupe of players are in rehearsals for a production of the kabuki play Yotsuya Kaidan, a 200-year-old tale of murder, betrayal, and phantasmagorical vengeance — and where life comes to imitate art in spooky and ultimately shocking ways.
Still the Water (Futasume no Mado) -Sept 11, 12, 14
Dir: Naomi Kawase, Cast: Nijiro Murakami, Jun Yoshinata
Facing both family tragedy and the unpredictable rhythms of nature, two teenagers on a subtropical Japanese island find solace in each other, in this gorgeous and poetic cinematic vision from director Naomi Kawase (Shara, The Mourning Forest).
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (Kaguyahime no Monogatari) -Sept 5, 6, 14
Dir: Isao Takahata, Cast(Voice): Aki Asakura, Yukiji Asakura
Studio Ghibli’s Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies) transforms an ancient Japanese folktale into a dazzling animated fantasy, telling the story of a magical girl among ordinary humans.
The World of Kanako (Kawaki) – Sept 7, 9, 13
Dir: Tetsuya Nakashima, Cast: Koji Yakusyo, Nana Komatsu, Satoshi Tsumabuki
An ex-cop finds out more than he wanted to about his missing teenage daughter, in this stylish and provocative thriller from Confessions director Tetsuya Nakashima.
Tokyo Fiancee – Sept 7, 9, 14
Dir: Stefan Liberski Cast: Taichi Inoue, Pauline Etienne
A Japanophile young Belgian woman in Tokyo falls into a whirlwind romance with a Francophile Japanese student, in this charming and tender tale of young love and cultural discovery.
Hill of Freedom (Jiyugaoka 8chome) – Sept 10, 12, 13
Dir: Hong Sang-soo, Cast: Ryo Kase, Sori Moon
It’s a Korean film but the main cast is Japanese. South Korean master Hong Sang-soo crafts yet another delightful, soju-saturated tale of love thwarted, in this story of a heartsick Japanese man who travels to Seoul to attempt a reunion with the woman he still pines for.