JFF

JFF THEATER: UNDER THE OPEN SKY Review: Inspiring tale about the importance of a second chance.

After 13 years of imprisonment for murder, Misao Mikami, a middle-aged former yakuza, is released from jail, finding himself in a hostile society that treats him like a left-over, however, Misao will gather all his determination to put in good use this new opportunity that he has been granted in order to reach his redemption. “Under the Open Sky“, is an inspiring tale about the importance of second chances and the good use we put on them. The director and writer, Miwa Nishiwaka, lures the audience into the story of a conflicted man aware that the wasting time will never be retribuited, but who has been graced with a second chance to make the most of the time he has left. The film navigates into the dark instincts of someone who has been cursed by a past of violence, who this new opportunity will teach to be blessed by the […]

JFF THEATER: KEY OF LIFE: A touching trip of laughs and emotions

Mike Garcia

Since August 1, 2024, Japanese film fans are in luck as the Japan Foundation has launched a new streaming website, “JFF Theater,” through which they distribute Japanese films and other works worldwide, with multilingual subtitles and free of charge, with the intention of promoting Japanese culture and language learning. “Key of Life” is one of the films included in the platform, which will be available until February 1, 2025 and is part of a new collection on the platform that´s been called: “The twist and turns of life” that includes other films such as “Under the Open sky”, or “Her love boils water”, in a collection that according to the site, explores the unpredictable journey of human existence marked by moments of joy, sorrow, struggle and acceptance. The film, released in 2012, and directed by Kenji Uchida, with a cast made up of Masato Sakai, Teruyuki Kagawa and Ryoko Hirosue, […]

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JFF+ INDEPENDENT CINEMA 2023: A GIRL IN MY ROOM Review: Delightful Tale of Spectral Love

Mike Garcia

After being dumped by his girlfriend, Yohei picks up the pieces of his broken heart, discovering that he shares his tiny apartment with the ghost of a beautiful young girl. subsequently he attempts to exorcise the apartment to get rid of her pressence, But sometimes fate acts in unexpected ways, and the begin to forge a strong bond between them that slowly turns into a spectral love affair that tries to find its way into mortality. Based on a popular manga by Chugaku Yamamoto, “A Girl in my Room” is a delightful tale of a spectral romance that seeks to be buried in someone´s heart in a quest of that unique eternity that only true love can grant it. The beautiful city of Onimichi becomes the perfect canvas for its director, Natsuki Takahashi , to draw into the screen this touching spectral romance, adding some good traces of comedy that […]