(Welcome to Under the Radar, a column where we spotlight specific movies, shows, trends, performances, or scenes that caught our eye and deserved more attention ... but otherwise flew under the radar. In this edition: Netflix's beautifully-rendered animated movie "The Imaginary," the Ilana Glazer-starring dramedy "Babes," and Jake Gyllenhaal's courtroom-thriller series "Presumed Innocent.")
Do studios just have no earthly idea how to market their latest movies and shows anymore, or is it the children viewers who are wrong? That age-old debate rears its ugly head practically every time a highly-anticipated title ends up underperforming in theaters or otherwise failing to reach its intended audience. Netflix is notorious for acquiring some of the buzziest and most exciting offerings ... only to promptly bury them under an avalanche of vague, algorithmically-defined parameters that ensures they'll never see the light of day (or even just the streamer's main page) again. And, to nobody's surprise,...
Do studios just have no earthly idea how to market their latest movies and shows anymore, or is it the children viewers who are wrong? That age-old debate rears its ugly head practically every time a highly-anticipated title ends up underperforming in theaters or otherwise failing to reach its intended audience. Netflix is notorious for acquiring some of the buzziest and most exciting offerings ... only to promptly bury them under an avalanche of vague, algorithmically-defined parameters that ensures they'll never see the light of day (or even just the streamer's main page) again. And, to nobody's surprise,...
- 8/9/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Netflix’s animated film, The Imaginary takes you back to your childhood days, when we used to create our own imaginary friends and play with them all day long. They were our best friends, and we had the best adventures together. But why do they disappear as we get older? Is it because of work pressure and life’s complexities piling on, so much so that we don’t even bother finding an escape route to dwell in our imaginary world? Or is it because someone steals our imaginary friends from us? Maybe it’s Mr. Bunting, the nemesis of the imaginaries, who sucks out their lives to feed his own purpose. Amanda and her imaginary friend Rudger face troubles as he tries to hunt them down too. Did he succeed, or did other imaginary friends like Zinzan and Emily help them? We will get to know all about that...
- 7/7/2024
- by Sutanuka Banerjee
- Film Fugitives
"Humans forget us. There's no getting around that. There is but little time for you." Studio Ponoc in Japan has unveiled an official trailer for their latest fantasy adventure movie called The Imaginary, their second feature after Mary and the Witch's Flower previously (and the anthology project Modest Heroes). Based on the novel "The Imaginary" by A.F. Harrold, this was originally set to release in 2022 - we featured the first teaser trailer back in 2021. After being delayed for a few years, it's now set for open in Japan in December 2023, and sometime in 2024 for the rest of the world. An imaginary friend must return to his creator before he is forgotten or captured by an evil man who can see imaginary friends. "Can a boy who isn't there survive without a friend to dream him up?" The main Japanese voice cast includes Kokoro Terada, Rio Suzuki, Sakura Ando, Riisa Naka,...
- 8/21/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Toshiaki Toyoda is an angry man. Angry for the “treatment” he experienced at the hands of the police for the second time, angry about the greed resulting from the upcoming (?) Tokyo Olympic games, angry at capitalism, and angry at the government for its policies regarding the pandemic. All this anger is channeled in “Days of Destruction” and eventually is turned into an audiovisual rage that fills the screen on multiple occasions. Having premiered on a 24-hour screening window at Japan Cuts on July 24, date the Olympics would have started, and with a performance that had the protagonists of the movie marching through the streets of Tokyo, eventually reaching a venue where Seppuku Pistols and Gezan performed, the film probably had the ideal promotion, given the circumstances, and the result does not disappoint at all.
The Day of Destruction is screening at Camera Japan
The narrative of the film is somewhat confusing,...
The Day of Destruction is screening at Camera Japan
The narrative of the film is somewhat confusing,...
- 9/23/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Adapting Haruki Murakami’s works in cinema is definitely an arduous task, chiefly due to the surrealism and minimalism that characterize his novels. However, this particular movie managed to capture the homonymous short story’s full essence.
The story behind the film is a very interesting. One day, Murakami entered a small shop with second hand clothes in Maui, where he bought, for $1, a T-shirt with the name “Tony Takitani” written on it. Actual Tony had produced these T-shirts as part of his failed campaign for a state Senate Seat. Murakami, though, was truly inspired by the name. According to an interview he gave at The Daily Yumiuri, “Every time I put on the T-shirt, I felt like this Tony Takitani was begging me to write a story about him.” And that he did, writing a short story that was included in the 2006 collection, “Blind Willow, Sleeping...
The story behind the film is a very interesting. One day, Murakami entered a small shop with second hand clothes in Maui, where he bought, for $1, a T-shirt with the name “Tony Takitani” written on it. Actual Tony had produced these T-shirts as part of his failed campaign for a state Senate Seat. Murakami, though, was truly inspired by the name. According to an interview he gave at The Daily Yumiuri, “Every time I put on the T-shirt, I felt like this Tony Takitani was begging me to write a story about him.” And that he did, writing a short story that was included in the 2006 collection, “Blind Willow, Sleeping...
- 12/29/2019
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.
Quad Cinema
Some of the best films ever made are about Joan of Arc, and they’re now playing at the Quad.
Films starring Alain Delon and American tough guys are screening.
Metrograph
Retrospectives on Grace Jones and Morris Engel take place, while Jafar Panahi’s debut, The White Balloon, plays on Saturday and Sunday.
Quad Cinema
Some of the best films ever made are about Joan of Arc, and they’re now playing at the Quad.
Films starring Alain Delon and American tough guys are screening.
Metrograph
Retrospectives on Grace Jones and Morris Engel take place, while Jafar Panahi’s debut, The White Balloon, plays on Saturday and Sunday.
- 4/6/2018
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Stars: Nien-Jen Wu, Issei Ogata, Kelly Lee, Jonathan Chang, Su-Yun Ko, Adrian Lin | Written and Directed by Edward Yang
Taiwanese writer-director Edward Yang’s final film starts with an ironically schmaltzy piano score playing over a scene of a slightly dismal wedding. It immediately sets the arch, bittersweet tone of the film to come.
A couple of hours into this intimate three-hour picture you might think you’re becoming used to Yang’s beautifully precise compositions and bold use of colour, but then he’ll pull something new and evocative out of the hat – a desperate midnight telephone call shot entirely in silhouette, for example – and you’ll remember you’re watching the twilight work of a master.
For all its stillness and its characters’ lack of impetus, it’s a fast-moving film. Its dry humour might lack punchlines, but the scenes themselves are punchy. It’s a family drama employing a very loose narrative,...
Taiwanese writer-director Edward Yang’s final film starts with an ironically schmaltzy piano score playing over a scene of a slightly dismal wedding. It immediately sets the arch, bittersweet tone of the film to come.
A couple of hours into this intimate three-hour picture you might think you’re becoming used to Yang’s beautifully precise compositions and bold use of colour, but then he’ll pull something new and evocative out of the hat – a desperate midnight telephone call shot entirely in silhouette, for example – and you’ll remember you’re watching the twilight work of a master.
For all its stillness and its characters’ lack of impetus, it’s a fast-moving film. Its dry humour might lack punchlines, but the scenes themselves are punchy. It’s a family drama employing a very loose narrative,...
- 3/5/2018
- by Rupert Harvey
- Nerdly
Dear Board of Governors and members of the Academy,
Let’s face it!
Actors are the face of Oscar. Every year, I’m struck by how many more worthy performances there are than films. We often find more problems in movies we like — plot points not resolved, length issues — than we do with performances, which are more consistently flawless.
In other words, great performances are in more abundance than great films.
So why should the number of acting nominees be limited to five, rather than up to ten, as the maximum current Best Picture rules allow? I propose increasing the number of acting nominees in all four categories, to be selected by the Entire membership, with the number of acting nominations equaling the number of Best Picture nominees.
All of the many Academy members I canvassed, including members of the Acting branch, Oscar-winners and former Governors, agreed with this proposal.
Let’s face it!
Actors are the face of Oscar. Every year, I’m struck by how many more worthy performances there are than films. We often find more problems in movies we like — plot points not resolved, length issues — than we do with performances, which are more consistently flawless.
In other words, great performances are in more abundance than great films.
So why should the number of acting nominees be limited to five, rather than up to ten, as the maximum current Best Picture rules allow? I propose increasing the number of acting nominees in all four categories, to be selected by the Entire membership, with the number of acting nominations equaling the number of Best Picture nominees.
All of the many Academy members I canvassed, including members of the Acting branch, Oscar-winners and former Governors, agreed with this proposal.
- 8/3/2017
- by Mike Kaplan
- Indiewire
“Tests Of Faith”
By Raymond Benson
Martin Scorsese has made several films that are challenging for an audience. Even some of his most acclaimed pictures, such as Raging Bull, are difficult to watch and “enjoy.” Scorsese tackles hard truths about the human condition, and many times they’re unpleasant and disturbing. Sometimes the dramas he explores are not what one would call a “good time at the movies.”
That doesn’t mean they’re bad. On the contrary, great art often requires an audience to meet it halfway, to capitulate and embrace the pain that is at the heart of what the artist has intended to convey.
Silence is one of those films. A decades-long passion project for the director, based on the novel by Shūsaku Endō, it is about the “silence” of God that is the biggest obstacle faced by people of faith. The subject matter would have been...
By Raymond Benson
Martin Scorsese has made several films that are challenging for an audience. Even some of his most acclaimed pictures, such as Raging Bull, are difficult to watch and “enjoy.” Scorsese tackles hard truths about the human condition, and many times they’re unpleasant and disturbing. Sometimes the dramas he explores are not what one would call a “good time at the movies.”
That doesn’t mean they’re bad. On the contrary, great art often requires an audience to meet it halfway, to capitulate and embrace the pain that is at the heart of what the artist has intended to convey.
Silence is one of those films. A decades-long passion project for the director, based on the novel by Shūsaku Endō, it is about the “silence” of God that is the biggest obstacle faced by people of faith. The subject matter would have been...
- 5/21/2017
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
22 is today's magic number. Two working directors, Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese, are ever inching up the statistics of "Directors who've guided the most Oscar-nominated performances"with 18 and 22 performances, respectively, thus far. William Wyler and Elia Kazan are still the champs but Martin Scorsese could eventually topple Kazan's record. This year's Scorsese picture Silence didn't manage an acting nomination (it's nominated only in cinematography) though some were rooting for Issei Ogata's sly supporting role as The Inquisitor. So Scorsese's number remains 22.
Most Performances Nominated From Their Films
William Wyler (36... with 14 winners) Elia Kazan (24... with 9 winners) Martin Scorsese (22... with 5 winners) George Cukor (21 ...with 5 winners) Fred Zinneman (20 ...6 winners)
It seems unthinkable now that the first two nominated performances Marty directed were by women, since he never again directed a female-focused picture after Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) but it's true. The Scorsese list of 8 supporting actresses, 7 lead actors, 5 supporting actors, and 2 lead actresses follows.
Most Performances Nominated From Their Films
William Wyler (36... with 14 winners) Elia Kazan (24... with 9 winners) Martin Scorsese (22... with 5 winners) George Cukor (21 ...with 5 winners) Fred Zinneman (20 ...6 winners)
It seems unthinkable now that the first two nominated performances Marty directed were by women, since he never again directed a female-focused picture after Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) but it's true. The Scorsese list of 8 supporting actresses, 7 lead actors, 5 supporting actors, and 2 lead actresses follows.
- 2/4/2017
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
“About three in the afternoon, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani (which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’)”—Matthew 27:46Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield), a Jesuit priest ministering in a 17th century Japan hostile to Christians, craves the sound of this voice, pining for a confirmation of his convictions: something—anything—to demonstrate that God, too, has not forsaken him. Accompanied by Garrpe (Adam Driver), a fellow priest, he enters Japan looking for his former mentor, Father Ferreira (Liam Neeson), who according to rumor apostatized at the hands of the Japanese authorities. Because the Japanese closed off their borders to “Christian” nations like England, Portugal and Spain, Garrpe and Rodrigues travel illegally from Macao to Japan, led by an enigmatic drunkard, Kichijiro (Yôsuke Kubozuka). Shortly after their arrival, the priests bear witness to excruciating acts of torture perpetrated against the local Japanese Christians.
- 1/12/2017
- MUBI
The most surprising feature of Martin Scorsese’s Silence, a 161-minute religious picture about 17th-century Jesuit priests in Japan, is that it exists at all; the second most surprising feature may be its critical reception, much of which seems to approach the film at a kind of respectful distance. The tentativeness of reviews seems to reflect the ambiguity of the film’s religious and moral conclusions, as Alissa Wilkinson writes at Vox:It’s been remarkable to discover that Silence is a challenging film for many critics and early viewers, including those who aren’t interested in religion at all, or who don’t identify with a particular faith. The genius of Endō’s story and Scorsese’s adaptation is that it won’t characterize anyone as a saint, nor will it either fully condone or reject the colonialist impulses, the religious oppression, the apostasy, or the faltering faith of its characters.
- 1/10/2017
- MUBI
Director: Martin Scorsese Writers: Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese(screenplay), Shûsaku Endô (based on the novel by) Starring: Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Liam Neeson, Tadanobu Asano, Ciarán Hinds, Issei Ogata, Shin’ya Tsukamoto, Yoshi Oida, Yôsuke Kubozuka Martin Scorses’s latest film, Silence, is based on Shûsaku Endô’s 1966 novel of the same name. Set mostly in 17th-century Japan at a time when priests were attempting to proselytize […]...
- 1/6/2017
- by Linc Leifeste
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
I’m a huge fan of director Martin Scorsese's films. If you’ve seen his work, then you know the guy has a certain signature style that makes his films unique. Well, his latest film, Silence, is completely different from anything he’s ever done before in terms of the story and how it is presented. He threw his signature style out the window for this film and gave us one of the best and most thought-provoking films that he’s ever made. It’s like he completely reinvented himself as a filmmaker for Silence, and I was completely blown away!
Silence was a stunning, beautifully made film that told an utterly brutal story of faith being tested to the absolute extremes. The film is brutal in both its sense of suffering and violence as well as its silence and meditative stillness. For those of you who have faith in something,...
Silence was a stunning, beautifully made film that told an utterly brutal story of faith being tested to the absolute extremes. The film is brutal in both its sense of suffering and violence as well as its silence and meditative stillness. For those of you who have faith in something,...
- 1/4/2017
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Every year, IndieWire looks beyond the countless top 10 lists written by critics to widen the field. We turn to friends and colleagues in the independent film community — programmers, distributors, publicists and others — to give them the opportunity to share their favorite films and other media from the past 12 months. We also invited them to share their resolutions and anticipated events for 2017.
The Best of 2016: IndieWire’s Year in Review Bible
Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director, Toronto International Film Festival
I’m limiting my list to films that had Us and Canadian theatrical releases in 2016. I saw far more than 10 this year that I liked, but if I have to be brutal, I’ll limit it to the films that lifted me.
1. “Moonlight”
2. “Julieta”
3. “Toni Erdmann”
4. “Cemetery of Splendor”
5. “Arrival”
6. “Fences”
7. “13th”
8. “American Honey”
9. “Things to Come”
10. “Moana”
Michael Barker, Co-President, Sony Pictures Classics
“Now is the winter of our discontent.
The Best of 2016: IndieWire’s Year in Review Bible
Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director, Toronto International Film Festival
I’m limiting my list to films that had Us and Canadian theatrical releases in 2016. I saw far more than 10 this year that I liked, but if I have to be brutal, I’ll limit it to the films that lifted me.
1. “Moonlight”
2. “Julieta”
3. “Toni Erdmann”
4. “Cemetery of Splendor”
5. “Arrival”
6. “Fences”
7. “13th”
8. “American Honey”
9. “Things to Come”
10. “Moana”
Michael Barker, Co-President, Sony Pictures Classics
“Now is the winter of our discontent.
- 12/30/2016
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
For a great many years, filmmaker Martin Scorsese has been trying to get one specific project off the ground. Through all the gangster tales and big successes, something has eluded him, namely a remake of the Japanese film Silence. This week, Scorsese sees his movie finally released. It’s a film that doesn’t lend itself to easy analysis or criticism, so one can only guess how the Academy will respond to it. Having seen it weeks ago, I’m still not certain what to make of it. It’s powerful filmmaking though, no one can deny that much. Scorsese put his heart and soul into it, and it shows. The movie is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Shûsaku Endô. In broad strokes, it follows a pair of Jesuit priests in the seventeenth century as they travel to Japan to face off against extreme violence...
- 12/22/2016
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
"The price for your glory is their suffering." A new full-length international trailer has arrived for Martin Scorsese's Silence, which will be quietly opening in select cinemas in the Us starting this Friday. Adapted from Shûsaku Endô's novel, Silence is about two priests who travel to Japan in the 17th century in order to figure out what is happening there. They discover Japan is opposed to Catholicism and removing anyone supporting it. Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield star. Liam Neeson and Ciarán Hinds also play two priests, with a Japanese cast including Tadanobu Asano, Shin'ya Tsukamoto, Yôsuke Kubozuka, Issei Ogata and Yoshi Oida. Early buzz says that this is one of Scorsese's best, more meditative and quiet than his usual work, but with so much to say (especially about religion and faith). Now this is a great trailer. Here's the new international trailer (+ poster) for Martin Scorsese's Silence,...
- 12/21/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
"The price of your glory is their suffering."
Director Martin Scorsese has finally a passion project that he has been trying to make for the past 28 years. The film is called Silence, and it's an adaptation of a novel by the same name written by Shûsaku Endô. Judging from the trailers that have been released so far, the film is yet another Scorsese masterpiece. I've heard that this is one of the best films of his career. The movie has an incredibly talented cast that includes Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, and Liam Neeson, and today we have an intense new Japanese trailer to share with you.
Two Jesuit priests, Sebastião Rodrigues and Francis Garrpe, travel to 17th century Japan which has, under the Tokugawa shogunate, banned Catholicism and almost all foreign contact. There they witness the persecution of Japanese Christians at the hands of their own government which wishes to...
Director Martin Scorsese has finally a passion project that he has been trying to make for the past 28 years. The film is called Silence, and it's an adaptation of a novel by the same name written by Shûsaku Endô. Judging from the trailers that have been released so far, the film is yet another Scorsese masterpiece. I've heard that this is one of the best films of his career. The movie has an incredibly talented cast that includes Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, and Liam Neeson, and today we have an intense new Japanese trailer to share with you.
Two Jesuit priests, Sebastião Rodrigues and Francis Garrpe, travel to 17th century Japan which has, under the Tokugawa shogunate, banned Catholicism and almost all foreign contact. There they witness the persecution of Japanese Christians at the hands of their own government which wishes to...
- 12/21/2016
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Read More: 2017 Oscar Predictions
Emerging at Sundance was Wes Anderson discovery Lucas Hedges (“Moonrise Kingdom”) for his performance in Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester By the Sea.” As Patrick, Hedges switches on a dime from a son mourning his father (Kyle Chandler) and tussling with his uncle (Casey Affleck) about his future to flirting with high school girls. A star is born. And a SAG nomination followed.
Jeff Bridges won critics’ raves at Cannes for surprise indie sleeper “Hell or High Water,” as well as Critics Choice, SAG, Globe and BAFTA nominations, ad did Hugh Grant, returning to the screen in form-fitting style as the devoted younger husband/manager of Meryl Streep’s “Florence Foster Jenkins.”
Breaking out at Telluride and Toronto was Barry Jenkins’ ensemble in “Moonlight” (A24), especially “House of Cards” star Mahershala Ali in the role of the Cuban-born drug-dealer who nurtures the young boy “Little.” So far Globe,...
Emerging at Sundance was Wes Anderson discovery Lucas Hedges (“Moonrise Kingdom”) for his performance in Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester By the Sea.” As Patrick, Hedges switches on a dime from a son mourning his father (Kyle Chandler) and tussling with his uncle (Casey Affleck) about his future to flirting with high school girls. A star is born. And a SAG nomination followed.
Jeff Bridges won critics’ raves at Cannes for surprise indie sleeper “Hell or High Water,” as well as Critics Choice, SAG, Globe and BAFTA nominations, ad did Hugh Grant, returning to the screen in form-fitting style as the devoted younger husband/manager of Meryl Streep’s “Florence Foster Jenkins.”
Breaking out at Telluride and Toronto was Barry Jenkins’ ensemble in “Moonlight” (A24), especially “House of Cards” star Mahershala Ali in the role of the Cuban-born drug-dealer who nurtures the young boy “Little.” So far Globe,...
- 12/20/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Read More: 2017 Oscar Predictions
Emerging at Sundance was Wes Anderson discovery Lucas Hedges (“Moonrise Kingdom”) for his performance in Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester By the Sea.” As Patrick, Hedges switches on a dime from a son mourning his father (Kyle Chandler) and tussling with his uncle (Casey Affleck) about his future to flirting with high school girls. A star is born.
Jeff Bridges won critics’ raves at Cannes for surprise indie sleeper “Hell or High Water,” and Hugh Grant returned to the screen in form-fitting style as the devoted younger husband/manager of Meryl Streep’s “Florence Foster Jenkins.”
Breaking out at Telluride and Toronto was Barry Jenkins’ ensemble in “Moonlight” (A24), especially “House of Cards” star Mahershala Ali in the role of the Cuban-born drug-dealer who nurtures the young boy “Little.” So far Ali is the frontrunner, winning the Gotham, New York and Los Angeles film critics and Critics Choice awards.
Emerging at Sundance was Wes Anderson discovery Lucas Hedges (“Moonrise Kingdom”) for his performance in Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester By the Sea.” As Patrick, Hedges switches on a dime from a son mourning his father (Kyle Chandler) and tussling with his uncle (Casey Affleck) about his future to flirting with high school girls. A star is born.
Jeff Bridges won critics’ raves at Cannes for surprise indie sleeper “Hell or High Water,” and Hugh Grant returned to the screen in form-fitting style as the devoted younger husband/manager of Meryl Streep’s “Florence Foster Jenkins.”
Breaking out at Telluride and Toronto was Barry Jenkins’ ensemble in “Moonlight” (A24), especially “House of Cards” star Mahershala Ali in the role of the Cuban-born drug-dealer who nurtures the young boy “Little.” So far Ali is the frontrunner, winning the Gotham, New York and Los Angeles film critics and Critics Choice awards.
- 12/20/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Issei Ogata
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
There’s a newcomer to the best supporting actor race for the 2017 Oscars: Silence star Issei Ogata. Until recently the 64-year-old Japanese actor was flying under the radar and then, all of a sudden, he’s a force to be reckoned with — but who exactly is this talented thespian?
Silence is a historical drama, set in the 17th century, that follows two Jesuit priests — Father Sebastião Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Father Francisco Garrpe (Adam Driver) — who face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor, Father Cristóvão Ferreira (Liam Neeson), and promote Christianity. Ogata plays Inoue Masashige, one of the Japanese officials in charge of persecuting and eradicating Christians from the country. The film, co-written by Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese, is based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Shūsaku Endō.
Ogata made headlines over the weekend...
By: Carson Blackwelder
Managing Editor
There’s a newcomer to the best supporting actor race for the 2017 Oscars: Silence star Issei Ogata. Until recently the 64-year-old Japanese actor was flying under the radar and then, all of a sudden, he’s a force to be reckoned with — but who exactly is this talented thespian?
Silence is a historical drama, set in the 17th century, that follows two Jesuit priests — Father Sebastião Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Father Francisco Garrpe (Adam Driver) — who face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor, Father Cristóvão Ferreira (Liam Neeson), and promote Christianity. Ogata plays Inoue Masashige, one of the Japanese officials in charge of persecuting and eradicating Christians from the country. The film, co-written by Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese, is based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Shūsaku Endō.
Ogata made headlines over the weekend...
- 12/8/2016
- by Carson Blackwelder
- Scott Feinberg
There is silence no more. After screening for hundreds of priests at the Vatican yesterday, the floodgates for reactions to Martin Scorsese‘s Silence have now opened. While an official review embargo is still set for later this month, select critics in New York and Los Angeles had the chance to see the director’s long-gestating adaptation of Shūsaku Endō‘s novel and, for the most part, it sounds like it was worth the wait. Ahead of our review, check out the reactions below (and we’ll add more as they arrive) along with a link to the full score, now available to stream.
I saw Silence twice today. First time, I was absorbed, impressed, moved. Second time, I was in tears. One of Scorsese’s greatest films.
— Life’s Scary Enough (@BilgeEbiri) November 30, 2016
Second screening revealed it to be one of Scorsese’s most beautifully structured & composed films. And...
I saw Silence twice today. First time, I was absorbed, impressed, moved. Second time, I was in tears. One of Scorsese’s greatest films.
— Life’s Scary Enough (@BilgeEbiri) November 30, 2016
Second screening revealed it to be one of Scorsese’s most beautifully structured & composed films. And...
- 11/30/2016
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
"The moment you set foot in that country, you step into high danger." Paramount has finally unveiled the first official trailer for Martin Scorsese's new film, titled Silence, adapted from Shûsaku Endô's novel of the same name. The story follows two Jesuit priests, played by Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield, who travel to Japan in the 17th century only to discover that the Japanese have outlawed Christianity. Liam Neeson and Ciarán Hinds also play two other priests, with a Japanese cast including Tadanobu Asano, Shin'ya Tsukamoto, Yôsuke Kubozuka, Issei Ogata and Yoshi Oida. Word is this is one of Scorsese's longest films, but it looks like it's going to be entrancing and harrowing to watch. As expected, this trailer is full of some fantastic footage from Scorsese, and the intense score only adds to it. Can't wait to see this film. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Martin Scorsese's Silence,...
- 11/23/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
About six months ago, we got our first look at Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man) in the upcoming "Silence" film, which is directed by Martin Scorsese. And now, we have a second photo, giving us a look at Liam Neeson. Check it out below. Plot: The story is set in the 17th century as two Jesuit priests face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. The new movie is based on Shusako Endo's 1966 novel and co-stars Adam Driver, Issei Ogata, and Tadanobu Asano. A release date has yet to be announced. Photo: (click to enlarge)...
- 11/16/2015
- WorstPreviews.com
Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, we now have the first photo from the upcoming "Silence" film, starring Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man) and directed by Martin Scorsese. Check it out below. Plot: The story is set in the 17th century as two Jesuit priests face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. The new movie is based on Shusako Endo's 1966 novel and co-stars Liam Neeson, Adam Driver, Issei Ogata, and Tadanobu Asano. A release date has yet to be announced. Photo: (click to enlarge)...
- 5/6/2015
- WorstPreviews.com
Will Martin Scorsese's Silence hit theaters this year or nextc Production is completed, but along with the first picture above of Andrew Garfield and Shinya Tsukamoto as Father Rodrigues and a villager named Mokichi, Entertainment Weekly says to expect the film, based on Shusako Endo's 1966 novel, in 2016. As of now, Parmount's awards slate is looking empty and I have to think with production complete they will be pushing Scorsese to get this one finished in time for the end of the year, the same as they did with The Wolf of Wall Street. The story is set in the 17th century as two Jesuit priests face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. Issei Ogata, Adam Driver, Liam Neeson and Tadanobu Asano also star. Just below is video of the press conference held in Taiwan following the...
- 5/4/2015
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
I've already listed my top ten most anticipated blockbusters of the new year and now I'll take a look at the rest of the field as I've done my best to whittle things down to an even twenty films. So before you get in a huff that your favorite franchises aren't listed, just remember you can view all my anticipated blockbusters right here, I simply didn't know how to write the headline other than to just say these were my most anticipated movies without any further distinction. That said, I think I have a nice rounded list for you here. Obviously several from the major studios, but also a few overseas entries to spice things up. Plenty of Tom Hardy and Jake Gyllenhaal and a couple starring Rachel Weisz along with several of my favorite directors coming with new films for the new year. If you're wondering where films such...
- 1/14/2015
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Martin Scorsese is finally going to be able to make Silence, a film based on Shesako Endo's novel of the same name, which the director has been attempting to get off the ground for years. Later this year in Taiwan production on the pic will begin and it looks like Paramount is ready to acquire domestic distribution rights with tentative plans to release the film in November 2015. Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York) adapted the novel, which is set in the 17th century and centers on two Jesuit priests facing violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. Liam Neeson, Issei Ogata, Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe and Adam Driver. Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films principals Randall Emmett and George Furla will finance the picture and Paramount will clearly be looking to position it as a major awards hopeful.
- 7/14/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Liam Neeson has joined the cast of Martin Scorsese's adaptation of Shusaku Endo's novel Silence, telling the 17th Century story of two Jesuit priests facing violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. amz asin="0800871863" size="small"Neeson joins Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe, Issei Ogata and Adam Driver with Garfield staring as Father Rodrigues, a Portuguese Jesuit who travels to Japan with a fellow priest amid rumors his mentor has abandoned the Church. It is a moment of religious persecution in the Asian nation, with Christians forced to practice their faith clandestinely. Watanabe will portray the priests' interpreter. It has been a long road to the big screen for Silence as Scorsese has had several names attached over the years, but it looks like he's finally getting the film off the ground. Deadline...
- 1/31/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Huh. We've gotten so used to Liam Neeson cashing paychecks and cracking skulls that it's easy to forget he's an Academy Award-nominated actor (for his turn in "Schindler's List"). And while he did dial it down a bit for Paul Haggis' abysmal "Third Person" which premiered at Tiff last fall, for the most part, we just think of Neeson these days as filling time with one generic thriller after another (e.g. the upcoming "Non-Stop" and the soon-to-be-filming "Taken 3"). But it looks he'll have a chance to remind everyone that he has other special skills that don't involve punching people in the groin. Neeson has come aboard Martin Scorsese's long-brewing "Silence," reteaming with the director a dozen years after appearing in "Gangs Of New York" (as a priest, fittingly). He'll join Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe, Adam Driver and Issei Ogata in the adaptation of Shusaku Endo's novel,...
- 1/31/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
In his relatively short time kicking around the movie world, Adam Driver has done it right, logging time with Clint Eastwood ("J. Edgar"), Noah Baumbach ("Frances Ha"), Steven Spielberg ("Lincoln") and the Coen Brothers ("Inside Llewyn Davis"), all while maintaining his day job as Hannah Horvath's grunting boyfriend on "Girls." So what's the next box he's going check off on his movie director bucket list? Martin Scorsese.While officially it's not quite 100%, it's widely expected that Scorsese will shoot his long, long-developing dream project "Silence" this year, and Driver has joined the cast. An adaptation of Shusaku Endo's novel, the story will follow two 17th-century Jesuit priests who face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. Driver will join a cast that includes Andrew Garfield, Ken Watanabe and Issei Ogata with a July shoot previously reported. And don't forget,...
- 1/13/2014
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
You don't get points for the good movie no one went to see. Pretend for a moment you have an endless amount of money to make any movie you want. What would it be? An action film? Romance? Comedy? Who would direct? Who would star? Pretend I came to you with a film directed by James Toback (Tyson) starring Alec Baldwin and Neve Campbell in something of a politically-inspired erotic Middle Eastern adventure inspired by Bernardo Bertolucci's Last Tango in Paris in which there's the promise of exploratory sex. How much would you be willing to pay to help fund that film? Better yet, what would it take to get you to fund that film? While navigating the 2012 Cannes Film Festival, Toback and Baldwin took such an idea to a variety of investors, both foreign and domestic to get the proposed film off the ground, while also taking a...
- 5/19/2013
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
He might be best known right now for slipping into the spandex suit of The Amazing Spider-Man, but Andrew Garfield has plenty of other avenues open to him. And how: he’s just been picked by Martin Scorsese to star alongside Ken Watanabe in the director’s long-gestating passion project Silence.Garfield will be playing Father Rodrigues, a 17th century Portuguese Jesuit heading to Japan with a fellow priest to discover whether Rodrigues’ mentor has left the church. Their mission is complicated by the fact that religious persecution is rife in the country, necessitating that they travel undercover. Watanabe is set to be their interpreter and the cast also includes Issei Ogata.Scorsese has been mulling a film of Shusaku Endo’s novel ever since he first read the book 25 years ago, and began working on an adaptation with writer Jay Cocks almost immediately. Their other films got in the way,...
- 5/7/2013
- EmpireOnline
At one point the cast included Daniel Day-Lewis, Benicio del Toro and Gael Garcia Bernal, but it's taken quite a long time for Martin Scorsese to get Silence off the ground and people move on while other projects stall. Silence, however, is finally coming together. With the production eying a 2014 start, Scorsese has set Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man 2, The Social Network) and Ken Watanabe (Inception, The Last Samurai) to star in the film based on Shusaku Endo's novel adapted for the screen by Jay Cocks and Variety's news item reporting it will be a Japaense-language film. Issei Ogata (Yi Yi) also stars. The story is set in the 17th century as two Jesuit priests face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. Garfield will star as Father Rodrigues, a Portuguese Jesuit who travels to Japan...
- 5/7/2013
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Andrew Garfield will star in Martin Scorsese's Silence adapted from the book by Japanese novelist Shusaku Undo, report sources. After twenty years of struggling to get the project made, the film's landed financing and also a big name, getting a green light for production to start in June, 2014. Also starring is The Last Samurai and Inception's very talented Ken Watanabe. In Silence, Garfield will play 17th-century Portuguese Jesuit Father Rodrigues who travels to Japan with another priest, amid rumors that his mentor has abandoned the Church. In Japan, Christians are facing religious persecution, left to practice their faith in in hiding. Watanabe plays the priests’ interpreter in the film which also includes Issei Ogata.
- 5/7/2013
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Hitting movie theaters this weekend:
Limitless – Bradley Cooper, Anna Friel, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro
The Lincoln Lawyer – Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe
Paul – Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen
Movie of the Week
Limitless
The Stars: Bradley Cooper, Anna Friel, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro
The Plot: A copywriter (Cooper) discovers a top-secret drug which gives him super-human abilities.
The Buzz: Until recently, I couldn’t stand Bradley Cooper — and no, it wasn’t his role in A-Team that won me over, it was, hearkening back a decade, his role in the television series ‘Alias.’ Yes, I’m a total johnny-come-lately when it comes to that show, but I love it, and I love Bradley Cooper in it. He can act, I was surprised to see. His success with ‘Alias’ ultimately launched his career, and now, ten years later, here he is approaching A-list status, starring in a fine-looking action film,...
Limitless – Bradley Cooper, Anna Friel, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro
The Lincoln Lawyer – Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe
Paul – Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen
Movie of the Week
Limitless
The Stars: Bradley Cooper, Anna Friel, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro
The Plot: A copywriter (Cooper) discovers a top-secret drug which gives him super-human abilities.
The Buzz: Until recently, I couldn’t stand Bradley Cooper — and no, it wasn’t his role in A-Team that won me over, it was, hearkening back a decade, his role in the television series ‘Alias.’ Yes, I’m a total johnny-come-lately when it comes to that show, but I love it, and I love Bradley Cooper in it. He can act, I was surprised to see. His success with ‘Alias’ ultimately launched his career, and now, ten years later, here he is approaching A-list status, starring in a fine-looking action film,...
- 3/16/2011
- by Aaron Ruffcorn
- The Scorecard Review
A film that came out in 2005 to rave reviews during the Berlin Film Festival and is finally out on DVD here in the U.S. 5 years later sounds like an adventure all its own, but this is what happened to Aleksandr Sokurov’s ‘The Sun’. Add to that already ardent fact is it is a film about the Japanese dictator Emperor Hirohito and his last days in power before Japan surrendered to the Allies in World War II, mostly set in the basement bunker of the Imperial Palace.
Hirohito (Issey Ogata) is a bit insane and suffers from dementia. He needs constant reminding of his divinity (being one with God was why the people believed he was ordained in the first place) and he’s almost childlike, needing servants to dress him and they are shocked to see this once worshipped ‘deity’ believes he’s not “Tenno” (Heavenly Emperor), but...
Hirohito (Issey Ogata) is a bit insane and suffers from dementia. He needs constant reminding of his divinity (being one with God was why the people believed he was ordained in the first place) and he’s almost childlike, needing servants to dress him and they are shocked to see this once worshipped ‘deity’ believes he’s not “Tenno” (Heavenly Emperor), but...
- 7/13/2010
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
Tulpan
Sergei Dvortsevoy created an impressive coming-of-age tale with this majestic treatment of life on the Kazakh steppe, following the return of Asa, a young sailor eager to make a place of his own in the traditional nomadic lifestyle. But to do so he must woo and marry the only available woman for miles - an elusive and almost entirely symbolic girl named Tulpan, whose unambiguous rejection gives his life its first meaningful hurdle. The bleak, hardscrabble life endured by the protagonists, implicitly vied with by modern civilization's hedonistic pull, gives this allegory impressive, romantic, and heartbreaking dimensions.
Revanche
Götz Spielmann's arthouse noir is a deft and entertaining treatise on life in the margins of late-capitalism, a pitch-dark European take on The Postman Always Rings Twice. The bleak, predictable ending to a heist meant to bring two people away from the venal desolation of life in the city gives Revanche its initial momentum,...
Sergei Dvortsevoy created an impressive coming-of-age tale with this majestic treatment of life on the Kazakh steppe, following the return of Asa, a young sailor eager to make a place of his own in the traditional nomadic lifestyle. But to do so he must woo and marry the only available woman for miles - an elusive and almost entirely symbolic girl named Tulpan, whose unambiguous rejection gives his life its first meaningful hurdle. The bleak, hardscrabble life endured by the protagonists, implicitly vied with by modern civilization's hedonistic pull, gives this allegory impressive, romantic, and heartbreaking dimensions.
Revanche
Götz Spielmann's arthouse noir is a deft and entertaining treatise on life in the margins of late-capitalism, a pitch-dark European take on The Postman Always Rings Twice. The bleak, predictable ending to a heist meant to bring two people away from the venal desolation of life in the city gives Revanche its initial momentum,...
- 1/18/2010
- by Phillip Stephens
Following portraits of Lenin (Taurus) and Hitler (Moloch), Russia’s Aleksandr Sokurov shifts his gaze to the land of the rising sun, where bunker-bound Emperor Hirohito (Issei Ogata) is waiting out the end of the Pacific war. Shooting in candlelit half-dark so extreme that the subtitles often cast the brightest glow—an effect that will likely prove impossible to translate to the small screen—Sokurov zooms in on Hirohito’s U.S.-mandated un-deification, the key to breaking the will of Japan’s notoriously tenacious troops. Intriguingly, Sokurov takes Hirohito’s renunciation of divine status at face value; ceaselessly twitching ...
- 11/19/2009
- avclub.com
This article was originally published as coverage of the New York Film Festival in 2005, but is being re-posted due to The Sun finally achieving a theatrical release in the U.S.
***
Issei Ogata as Emperor Hirohito, in a tremendous, devastating performance, is the center, heart, and soul of Aleksandr Sokurov’s chamber film about the Japanese figurehead at the end of World War 2, The Sun. Secluded—or sequestered—in the wood paneled apartments and concrete bunkers of the Imperial Palace, and waited on with a minute attention to detail and formality by two attendants, the Emperor exists in a realm of inactive, mitigated reverence. The conflict between Hirohito’s existence for the Japanese—and for himself—as a divine god and Hirohito as a humble human (“we have the same body” he says to his chamberlain) is visible in every moment of Ogata’s emphatic performance. Reserved to a remarkable...
***
Issei Ogata as Emperor Hirohito, in a tremendous, devastating performance, is the center, heart, and soul of Aleksandr Sokurov’s chamber film about the Japanese figurehead at the end of World War 2, The Sun. Secluded—or sequestered—in the wood paneled apartments and concrete bunkers of the Imperial Palace, and waited on with a minute attention to detail and formality by two attendants, the Emperor exists in a realm of inactive, mitigated reverence. The conflict between Hirohito’s existence for the Japanese—and for himself—as a divine god and Hirohito as a humble human (“we have the same body” he says to his chamberlain) is visible in every moment of Ogata’s emphatic performance. Reserved to a remarkable...
- 11/19/2009
- MUBI
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