Japan Foundation Touring Programme review
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme provides an excellent opportunity to catch some lesser-known cinematic delights, and acts as a showcase of the variety available from a film industry most often lauded for its horror and thriller output. This year’s line-up, a selection of which comes to the Midlands Arts Centre and Warwick Arts Centre, is no different.
Let’s Go Karaoke! Dir. Nobuhiro Yamashita, 2024
Based on Yama Wayama’s manga series Karaoke Iko!, this is a gentle, slice-of-life dramedy in which high school choir leader, Satomi Oka (Jun Saito), strikes up a relationship with mid-level yakuza, Kyouji Narita (Gô Ayano). Narita wants to learn how to sing; terrified that he will come last in the upcoming karaoke competition. A competition held to honour the boss’s birthday, in which the loser is given an amateur tattoo by said patriarch.
The humour is built into the situation, and there are some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments such as Narita’s screams and falsettos as he belts out Kureni (written for the film by Little Glee Monster), or when a group of yakuza join these singing lessons only to be crushed by the dry feedback from Oka.
There’s a sweetness to the growing friendship between the two leads as well, one which never does anything revolutionary, but which remains entertaining. That is until the final third, which stretches credulity a little too far with whiplash-inducing twists that feel unearned. 2.5/5
Penalty Loop Dir. Shinji Araki, 2024
This inventive take on the Groundhog Day time loop, sees a young botanist (Ryûya Wakaba) take revenge against his girlfriend’s killer (Yûsuke Iseya), living out the same day time after time. Writer/director Shinju Araki piles the twists on throughout the running time, most of which we won’t spoil here, but the most interesting of these is the fact that our protagonist isn’t the only one experiencing the time loop. No, the murderer is also aware of events, creating a neat little cat-and-mouse exchange, which turns into something completely different by the end of the film.
It becomes something that moves beyond its obvious influences to incorporate far more humour and tenderness than the audience is initially expecting. Whereas this could have become an endless barrage of gory deaths; an extended chase sequence that never gives you a moment to breath; Penalty Loop succeeds because of the quieter moments, bolstered by strong performances and a gut-wrenching finale. 4.5/5
Bushido Dir. Kazuya Shiraishi, 2024
The game of Go hangs over Kazuya Shiraishi’s meticulously paced samurai story. Considered one of the four essential arts of aristocratic China, the game is about capturing territory and eliminating your opponent’s pieces. Adversely it also about how we react when we are backed into a corner. For disgraced samurai Kakunoshin Yanagida (Tsuyoshi Kusanagi), it is a game of honour, and he lives his life in accordance with the same rules he sets on the game.
This is a slow film. We’re more than halfway through before Kakunoshin discovers that he was framed for the crime that saw him exiled from his hometown, and his vengeance is told at the same pace. During this, there are some interesting story decisions that occasionally feel out of place with the rest of the film, but just about come together by the end.
Because of this, it won’t be for everyone, but the stunning visuals and deep thematic storytelling will be a treat for those who can let themselves sink into a very traditional story of honour. 3.5/5
In the Wake Dir. Takahisa Zeze, 2021
Set in 2020 and examining the aftermath of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, In the Wake is a socially conscious thriller that occasionally oversteps the line into heavy-handedness.
It follows a detective (Hiroshi Abe) who lost his family during the disaster, who is on the hunt to catch a killer responsible for the deaths of two people processing welfare benefit claims. It’s a particularly grim subject matter; highlighting the state’s responsibility of care for the population, but also the pride that many have and their refusal to accept help even its most needed. Nor is it forgiving of those who abuse the system for personal gain, forcing the system to treat each possible claimant with heightened suspicion.
All the performances are excellent here, and the story is engrossing, however, there are a few too many moments of exposition – often unnecessary exposition as the story is fairly easy to follow – which drags the pacing of an already slow film. 3.5/5
Day and Night Dir. Michihito Fujii, 2019
Day and Night has one of the most interesting premises from the slate of films this year but, unfortunately, is also the film that could most benefit from the editor’s scalpel. Shinnosuke Abe plays Koji Akashi, who finds himself drawn into a criminal gang after his father – an industrial whistleblower – commits suicide.
He uses his growing criminal experience try and clear his father’s name and take revenge on the employer, while spending his days working in an orphanage that the gang oversees. In this sense the title is literal and thematic. Koji is a different person in the day and the night, and his morality shifts in turn.
However, the film struggles because the nighttime activities create a far more kinetic atmosphere than the slower moments, leading to a seesaw in momentum that occasionally stalls everything. Tackling multiple big social issues within the film also leads to long stretches of dialogue, essentially handholding the audience. It’s an interesting watch, which looks incredible, but the pacing desperately needs work. 3/5
Matthew Tilt
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2025 takes place in Birmingham at the Midlands Arts Centre 14 - 20 March, and in Coventry at the Warwick Arts Centre 7 February - 6 March
