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Following last year’s hiatus, JAPAN CUTS makes a very welcome return for 2023 once again presenting a selection of the best of recent Japanese cinema at Japan Society New York from July 26 to Aug. 6. This year’s Cut Above award goes to the actor Yuya Yagira who will be appearing in person to present Under the Turquoise Sky alongside director KENTARO.
Opening Film: THE FIRST SLAM DUNK
The first feature length film in 33 years based on the classic high school basketball-themed manga also marks the directorial debut of original author Takehiko Inoue. Following Ryota Miyagi as he takes centre stage at the Inter-High Championships, the movie won the Japan Academy Film Prize award for Best Animation.
Centerpiece Film: Under the Turquoise Sky
Introduction and Q&A with Director KENTARO and Actor Yuya Yagira; Followed by Centerpiece Party
Soulful road movie starring Yuya Yagira as the spoiled grandson of a wealthy businessman who is sent to Mongolia in search of the daughter his grandfather left behind during the second world war. Directorial debut of the actor KENTARO.
Closing Film: The Three Sisters of Tenmasou Inn
Tearjerking melodrama directed by Ryuhei Kitamura and adapted from the manga by Tsutomu Takahashi in which a traditional Japanese inn becomes the waystation between life and death. A young woman (Non) arriving after a car accident is unexpectedly reunited with the half-sisters (Yuko Oshima & Mugi Kadowaki) she never knew she had.
TRIBUTE TO RYUICHI SAKAMOTO: Tokyo Melody: A Film about Ryuichi Sakamoto
Screening on 16mm
Opening comments by Akiko Yano; Screening followed by a Q&A with Director Elizabeth Lennard
French-Japanese TV documentary co-production directed by Elizabeth Lennard following Sakamoto during the production of his 1984 album Ongaku Zukan.
Best Wishes to All
Horror film produced by Takashi Shimizu in which a young woman begins to question her reality after visiting her grandparents’ home and discovering what brings them happiness.
Convenience Story
Surreal drama based on a story by Japan Times critic Mark Schilling and directed by Satoshi Miki starring Ryo Narita as a blocked writer who finds himself drawn into a strange alternate combini universe. Review.
Father of the Milky Way Railroad
Prestige drama based on the life of legendary poet and children’s author Kenji Miyazawa (Night on the Galactic Railroad) starring Masaki Suda and Koji Yakusho as his supportive father.
From the End of the World
The first feature in eight years from Casshern’s Kazuaki Kiriya, this pre-apocalyptic drama takes place in the two weeks before the end of the world and follows a young woman (Aoi Ito) who has the power to stop the disaster.
Hand
Nikkatsu Roman Porno homage from Daigo Matsui adapted from the novel by Nao-Cola Yamazaki following a young woman with a fetish for older men whose photos she collects in a scrapbook.
I Am A Comedian
Documentary following comedian Daisuke Muramoto who was once a popular figure on Japanese television but soon found his bookings cancelled when he began including controversial topics such as the Fukushima nuclear disaster and discrimination against ethnic Koreans into his act. Review.
I Am What I Am
Empathetic social drama starring Toko Miura as a young asexual woman who struggles to find acceptance for her lack of interest in sex and romance in a society largely defined by marriage. Review.
MONDAYS: See you “this” week!
Witty workplace timeloop comedy in which a collection of office workers are forced to relive the same dull working week several times over while trying to figure out how to escape their corporate purgatory.
Plastic
Latest film from Daisuke Miyazaki in which a young couple bond over their shared love of a ’70s glam rock band only to break up when the demands of their lives place a strain on their relationship.
Single8
Charming teen summer adventure movie set in 1978 in which a group of high school students inspired by the success of Star Wars get together to make a sci-fi movie for the school cultural festival.
The Fish Tale
Quirky dramedy from Shuichi Okita starring Non in a role inspired by the real life fish-obsessive Masayuki Miyazawa, aka Sakana-kun. Review.
The Legend & Butterfly
Introduced by and followed by a Q&A with director Keishi Otomo
Lavishly produced historical epic starring Takuya Kimura as Oda Nobunaga and Haruka Ayase as his wife Nohime who find themselves falling in love while plotting the unification of Japan and dreaming of a new life in a distant land.
Wandering
Adapted from the novel by Yu Nagira, the latest from from Lee Sang-il is a morally complex drama in which a university student is accused of kidnapping after taking in a neglected little girl.
Winny
Drama from Yusaku Matsumoto (Noise) contemplating the implications of the legal case surrounding file sharing programme Winny which saw its developer prosecuted for aiding and abetting copyright theft.
Amiko
An unusual little girl living in an idyllic Hiroshima village retreats into fantasy when her family unit begins to crumble in the wake of an unexpected tragedy in the debut feature from Yusuke Morii.
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Minimalist directorial debut from actor Hiroki Kono who stars as a petty thief agreeing to drive a fleeing salaryman in exchange for a million yen.
People Who Talk to Plushies Are Kind
Empathetic drama adapted from the novel by Ao Omae in which sensitive university students talk through their worries with a series of stuffed toys to avoid burdening others with their troubles. Review.
Saga Saga
Drama in which a former actress plagued by strange dreams reassesses past and future while pursued by a mysterious woman and bonding with an anxious teenage girl.
Sanka: Nomads of the Mountain
Drama set in the 1960s in which a young man becomes friends with a nomadic people after moving to his grandmother’s village from Tokyo.
When Morning Comes, I Feel Empty
Followed by a Q&A with Director Yuho Ishibashi
Zeitgeisty indie drama in which a young woman struggles to move forward with her life after discovering the corporate world was not for her. Review.
JAPAN CUTS 2023 runs at Japan Society New York July 26 to Aug. 6. Tickets are on sale now for Japan Society Members and open for the general public on June 27. Full details for all the films are available via the official website and you can also keep up with all the latest details by following the festival’s official Letterboxd, Instagram, Facebook page and Twitter account.
Windows on Worlds 