Horror is typically regarded as the least feminist genre of film; a genre that routinely objectifies, sexualizes, tortures, rapes and murders women and girls. However, if viewed from a different angle, horror films often feature story lines that grant wronged women the power and agency (in death) to respond to the injustices done to them [...]
Posts Tagged ‘critical essay’
Feminism in Horror Film: Dead Wet Girls and Onryō
Posted in Film Reviews, Japan, Japanese Film Reviews, tagged constantine in tokyo, constantineintokyo, critical essay, film, film review, Film Reviews, ghosts, horror, J-horror, Japan, japanese film, JU-ON, Kwaidan, Nakata Heideo, Oiwa, Okiku, onryo, Shimizu Takashi, The Grudge, The Ring, yokai, yotsuya kaidan, yurei on January 23, 2012 | 6 Comments »
Japanese Film Review: Kon Satoshi’s PERFECT BLUE (1998)
Posted in Film Reviews, Japan, Japanese Film Reviews, tagged anime, CHAM, constantine in tokyo, constantineintokyo, critical essay, film review, Japan, Japanese culture, japanese film, Japanese film review, Kon Satoshi, Perfect Blue on November 26, 2011 | 7 Comments »
Already before Perfect Blue I wrote a script for another director [Katsuhiro Otomo], an episode of the omnibus film Memories called Magnetic Rose. It was also a story of confusion between memory and the real world. Because I didn’t direct it myself I was a bit concerned about how it was turning out. On many occasions I [...]
Absolutely Grotesque: Feminist Literature in Japan
Posted in Book Reviews, Japan, Japanese Culture, tagged book review, constantine in tokyo, constantineintokyo, critical essay, feminism, grotesque, Japan, Japanese culture, Japanese feminism, kirino natsuo, natsuo kirino on September 9, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Unlike the West, Japan does not have a history of strong feminist movements – or, at least, Japanese feminism is less focused on individual autonomy than Western feminism. Even today, most ‘feminist’ dialogue takes place within community or civil rights organizations, not feminist activist groups. While the position of women within Japanese society has changed [...]
Japanese Film Review: Memories – Magnetic Rose 彼女の想いで (1995)
Posted in Film Reviews, Japan, Japanese Film Reviews, tagged constantine in tokyo, constantineintokyo, critical essay, film review, Film Reviews, japanese film, Kon Satoshi, Magnetic Rose, Memories, Satoshi Kon on September 1, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Magnetic Rose (a rather loose translation of 彼女の想いで, “her memories”) is the first of three episodes based on the manga short stories of Otomo Katsuhiro (the genius behind Akira). Directed by Morimoto Koji, Magnetic Rose does not offer any insight into Kon Satoshi’s work as a director. However, he wrote the adaption of Otomo’s original [...]
Purikura (プリクラ – Print Club)
Posted in Japan, Japanese Culture, tagged critical essay, Japanese culture on January 25, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
If you go to Japan or have Japanese friends you’re bound to run into a purikura photo or photo booth. Purikura stands for purinto kurabu (プリント倶楽部), or print club. These photo booths were introduced in 1995 and by 1997 over 45,000 booths existed around the country (Okabe, Daisuke et al., pg. 1). It is popular [...]
Japanese Film Reviews #13: Oshima Nagisa’s GOHATTO
Posted in Film Reviews, Japan, Japanese Film Reviews, Japanese History, tagged critical essay, Film Reviews, Japanese culture, Japanese history, Oshima Nagisa on January 15, 2010 | 1 Comment »
My YouTube video on this review shall be posted in the upcoming days. For now, here is the essay. 危ない義理のできる男色 Oshima Nagisa’s 1999 film Gohatto is about desire and suspicion within the ranks of the Shinsengumi during the bakumatsu period. The film can be interpreted as both an examination of the destructive effects of desire [...]
Rethinking the Russo-Japanese War
Posted in Japan, Japanese History, tagged critical essay, Japanese history on December 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
A few days ago, I read the article “Finding Sparks Rethink of Russo-Japan War” in the Yomiuri (Link to original article HERE). According to some new documents discovered by University of Tokyo historian Wada Haruki, a key Russian politician attempted to propose an alliance with Japan in the days leading up to the Russo-Japanese War. [...]
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