Written by Yuto Suzuki, the Sakamoto Days manga has been a marginal cult classic for years now; the manga debuted in 2020 and has quietly attracted a large fanbase who love the quirky action-comedy take on the hitman sub-genre. Fans have been demanding an anime adaptation for years now and recently, some outlets reported that Netflix listed the project as an upcoming one as part of its Netflix Anime brand. At the time, we did not report on it because it was just a rumor and a plain list with no official confirmation, so it did not seem overly reliable, and it turns out that our assumption was correct.
Namely, Netflix has officially removed the Sakamoto Days anime from its list of upcoming projects, but that does not mean that we don’t have any good news for you, as it has – indeed – been confirmed that the Sakamoto Days anime is happening,...
Namely, Netflix has officially removed the Sakamoto Days anime from its list of upcoming projects, but that does not mean that we don’t have any good news for you, as it has – indeed – been confirmed that the Sakamoto Days anime is happening,...
- 5/27/2024
- by Arthur S. Poe
- Fiction Horizon
Inspired by the annual “Manga We Want To See Animated” ranking in Japan, a Twitter user conducted a similar poll to find the most desired manga adaptations among Western audiences.
The poll, conducted over a two-week period in February, invited fans to cast their votes for manga series yet to receive an animated adaptation.
Notably, titles already slated for anime production or those with existing adaptations were excluded from consideration.
Here are top 25 manga western fans are most eager to see animated:
25. Kaoru Hana Wa Rin To Saku by Saka Mikami 24. Gokurakugai by Yuto Sano 23. I Am A Hero by Kengo Hanazawa 22. Chi No Wadachi by Shuzo Oshimi 21. Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint by Sing Shong, Umi, and Sleepy-C 20. Ruri Dragon by Masaoki Shindo 19. My Hero Academia: Vigilantes by Hideyuki Furuhashi 18. I Sold My Life For Ten Thousand Yen Per Year by Shoichi Taguchi 17. Jagaaan by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Kensuke Nishida...
The poll, conducted over a two-week period in February, invited fans to cast their votes for manga series yet to receive an animated adaptation.
Notably, titles already slated for anime production or those with existing adaptations were excluded from consideration.
Here are top 25 manga western fans are most eager to see animated:
25. Kaoru Hana Wa Rin To Saku by Saka Mikami 24. Gokurakugai by Yuto Sano 23. I Am A Hero by Kengo Hanazawa 22. Chi No Wadachi by Shuzo Oshimi 21. Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint by Sing Shong, Umi, and Sleepy-C 20. Ruri Dragon by Masaoki Shindo 19. My Hero Academia: Vigilantes by Hideyuki Furuhashi 18. I Sold My Life For Ten Thousand Yen Per Year by Shoichi Taguchi 17. Jagaaan by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Kensuke Nishida...
- 5/6/2024
- by Ami Nazru
- AnimeHunch
The PlayStation 5 exclusive, Rise of the Ronin, launched last month and has received mostly positive reviews from both gamers and critics. The game takes players to 19th-century Japan amidst the Boshin War and has been praised for its open world, fine-tuned combat, and more.
Rise of the Ronin also features several real-life historical figures of the 19th century that players come across during their playthrough and can interact with them as well. This has led to one unintentional crossover with one popular Sega game that is quite different from Team Ninja’s.
Rise of the Ronin Features a Crossover With Popular Sega Title Rise of the Ronin has an unintentional story crossover with Sega’s Like a Dragon: Ishin.
The game is set in Japan’s Bakumatsu era, 300 years into the tyrannical rule of the Tokugawa shogunate, where players play as a ronin. It features personalities including Ryoma Sakamoto, who...
Rise of the Ronin also features several real-life historical figures of the 19th century that players come across during their playthrough and can interact with them as well. This has led to one unintentional crossover with one popular Sega game that is quite different from Team Ninja’s.
Rise of the Ronin Features a Crossover With Popular Sega Title Rise of the Ronin has an unintentional story crossover with Sega’s Like a Dragon: Ishin.
The game is set in Japan’s Bakumatsu era, 300 years into the tyrannical rule of the Tokugawa shogunate, where players play as a ronin. It features personalities including Ryoma Sakamoto, who...
- 4/15/2024
- by Rohit Tiwari
- FandomWire
The official YouTube channel for voice actor/singer Maaya Sakamoto has started streaming a short version music video for her 34th single song "Dakishimete" ( Hold Me ). The ballad song is now featured as the ending theme for the second season of the TV anime The Fire Hunter , in which she has also played one of its main characters, Akira. "Mada Tooku ni Iru" ( You are still far away ), one of the two songs in her previous double A-side 33rd single, was used as the ending theme for the anime's first season. The lyrics and music for "Dakishimete" were written by Senri Oe, who created a sensation as a singer-songwriter in the 80s and 90s and is now active a jazz pianist based in New York. This is the first time he and Sakamoto have worked together. Maays Sakamoto "Dakishimete" music video The Fire Hunter season 2 creditless ending movie The CD...
- 1/26/2024
- by Mikikazu Komatsu
- Crunchyroll
As someone born in the early ’90s, it’s almost impossible to remember a time before the Sony PlayStation existed. Officially launching in Japan in December 1994, PlayStation has since grown into one of the most popular gaming platforms on the planet, even giving us the best-selling home console of all time, the PS2. The more recent PS4 rounds out the list of the top five best-selling consoles ever, with the original PlayStation just behind it in 6th place. The PS5 is now hitting some impressive sales milestones in Japan, too.
But before PlayStation was a gaming juggernaut, it went through many iterations and prototypes. The platform was first conceived as an upgraded CD-playing Snes system called “Play Station,” a failed partnership between Nintendo and Sony that would inspire the latter company to instead strike out its own and become the Big N’s biggest competition.
Just like with the hardware itself,...
But before PlayStation was a gaming juggernaut, it went through many iterations and prototypes. The platform was first conceived as an upgraded CD-playing Snes system called “Play Station,” a failed partnership between Nintendo and Sony that would inspire the latter company to instead strike out its own and become the Big N’s biggest competition.
Just like with the hardware itself,...
- 1/25/2024
- by John Saavedra
- Den of Geek
Stars: Julia Nagano, Yuichi Nakamura, Kohshu Kirano, Shun Nishime, Kanon Miyahara | Written by Junichiro Ashiki | Directed by Kôichi Sakamoto
With a title like Ninja vs Shark you might think this is another Mark Polonia film along the lines of Sharkula or Shark Encounters of the Third Kind. Or maybe one of the more bizarre Chinese kaiju films such as Land Shark. But you’d be wrong, it’s actually a Japanese film written by Junichiro Ashiki and directed by Kôichi Sakamoto.
During Japan’s Edo Period, Sayo, a pearl diver from the village of Okitsu, swims back to shore only to find the remains of one of her fellow divers washed up on the beach. This has been happening a lot since Lord Koshiro Mizuchi of the Crimson Devil Clan demanded the villagers hand over their pearls to him. When they refused he used sorcery to turn the sharks into living weapons.
With a title like Ninja vs Shark you might think this is another Mark Polonia film along the lines of Sharkula or Shark Encounters of the Third Kind. Or maybe one of the more bizarre Chinese kaiju films such as Land Shark. But you’d be wrong, it’s actually a Japanese film written by Junichiro Ashiki and directed by Kôichi Sakamoto.
During Japan’s Edo Period, Sayo, a pearl diver from the village of Okitsu, swims back to shore only to find the remains of one of her fellow divers washed up on the beach. This has been happening a lot since Lord Koshiro Mizuchi of the Crimson Devil Clan demanded the villagers hand over their pearls to him. When they refused he used sorcery to turn the sharks into living weapons.
- 1/23/2024
- by Jim Morazzini
- Nerdly
Tokyo’s International Film Festival returned this evening for its first completely unrestricted, post-covid-19 edition with a well-attended screening of Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days.
Fresh from an appearance at Thierry Frémaux’s Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, Wenders, who is also the head of the competition jury at Tokyo this year, was in attendance and introduced the pic alongside most of his cast, including leading man Koji Yakusho. Yakusho won the best actor award at Cannes for his performance in the pic.
During a comedic opening speech, Wenders told the audience inside Tokyo’s Takarazuka Theatre that he had long dreamt of completing a feature shot entirely in Japan, with Yakusho as the lead actor, and a premiere screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival. However, Wenders said there was one milestone he never thought the film would achieve.
“I didn’t dare dream that it was going to be...
Fresh from an appearance at Thierry Frémaux’s Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, Wenders, who is also the head of the competition jury at Tokyo this year, was in attendance and introduced the pic alongside most of his cast, including leading man Koji Yakusho. Yakusho won the best actor award at Cannes for his performance in the pic.
During a comedic opening speech, Wenders told the audience inside Tokyo’s Takarazuka Theatre that he had long dreamt of completing a feature shot entirely in Japan, with Yakusho as the lead actor, and a premiere screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival. However, Wenders said there was one milestone he never thought the film would achieve.
“I didn’t dare dream that it was going to be...
- 10/23/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Before being widely known through his two “Baby Assassins” movies, Yugo Sakamoto has also shot a grittier, somewhat darker movie, “The Janitor”, who still implements, though, the chaotic narrative approach his later movies included.
on Hi-Yah!
The titular character is actually Akira Fukami, a man whose father was murdered and was taken in by his sworn blood brother, Majima, a yakuza leader who trained Fukami into becoming his most formidable assassin. As the movie begins, and as a side job, the young man poses as a janitor in a high school where Majima’s daughter, Yui is attending, secretly functioning as her bodyguard. Despite some issues here and there, his life proceeds smoothly, until Majima announces that he wants to take his business to Hong Kong. This enrages one of the underbosses, Nishimori, who immediately starts plotting to have him killed, using Fukami, to whom he reveals...
on Hi-Yah!
The titular character is actually Akira Fukami, a man whose father was murdered and was taken in by his sworn blood brother, Majima, a yakuza leader who trained Fukami into becoming his most formidable assassin. As the movie begins, and as a side job, the young man poses as a janitor in a high school where Majima’s daughter, Yui is attending, secretly functioning as her bodyguard. Despite some issues here and there, his life proceeds smoothly, until Majima announces that he wants to take his business to Hong Kong. This enrages one of the underbosses, Nishimori, who immediately starts plotting to have him killed, using Fukami, to whom he reveals...
- 10/20/2023
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Hirokazu Koreeda returns to Japan for his latest feature, “Monster,” another outstanding entry in the director’s already impressive filmography. For “Monster,” Koreeda collaborated with screenwriter Yuji Sakamoto, who wrote the screenplay, and music composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who produced his final film score before passing away. As such, a dedication to the memory of Sakamoto is included. Upon making its world premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, competing for the Palme d’Or, the movie was met with an overwhelmingly positive reception, winning the Best Screenplay award and being honored with the Queer Palm. Its theatrical run has also been met with acclaim.
Monster is available from Wellgo USA
Regarding the story, single mother Saori Mugino grows concerned for her son Minato when she notices disturbing changes in his behavior. Things only become more concerning as time progresses. Upon learning that schoolteacher Michitoshi Hori is responsible for her child’s behavioral shifts,...
Monster is available from Wellgo USA
Regarding the story, single mother Saori Mugino grows concerned for her son Minato when she notices disturbing changes in his behavior. Things only become more concerning as time progresses. Upon learning that schoolteacher Michitoshi Hori is responsible for her child’s behavioral shifts,...
- 10/20/2023
- by Sean Barry
- AsianMoviePulse
Many artists appear to discover the power of minimalism in their older age: the beauty of paring their art down to bare essentials, the profundities that come with evoking more by saying less. That appears to be how the late pianist and composer Sakamoto Ryuichi approached his art in the last years of his life before passing earlier this year from throat cancer. The evidence of this can not only be heard in his final studio album, 12—dominated as it is by hauntingly austere piano and electronic textures—but it can also be heard and seen in his son Sora Neo’s concert documentary Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus.
This, though, is no ordinary concert film, beginning with there being no audience. Sakamoto, having by late 2022 sworn off live concerts as a result of his declining health, decided to perform 20 of his works on a piano in Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio in Japan,...
This, though, is no ordinary concert film, beginning with there being no audience. Sakamoto, having by late 2022 sworn off live concerts as a result of his declining health, decided to perform 20 of his works on a piano in Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio in Japan,...
- 10/11/2023
- by Kenji Fujishima
- Slant Magazine
Janus Films has acquired “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus,” a concert film centered around the late, great performer that premiered recently at the Venice Film Festival and is set to make its North American debut at the New York Film Festival.
Janus Films will release the film theatrically, followed by a streaming premiere on The Criterion Channel and a home video release on the Janus Contemporaries label, a new imprint of Criterion (its first releases come out next month).
Sakamoto was a singular musical force, from his early work with Japanese electronic pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra to his solo work and collaborative albums to his unforgettable work on film scores, from “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” to “The Last Emperor” to Brian De Palma’s “Snake Eyes.” (He also composed the score to “The Revenant” with Alva Noto and The National’s Bryce Dessner.) Sakamoto additionally worked on multiple television shows and video games.
Janus Films will release the film theatrically, followed by a streaming premiere on The Criterion Channel and a home video release on the Janus Contemporaries label, a new imprint of Criterion (its first releases come out next month).
Sakamoto was a singular musical force, from his early work with Japanese electronic pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra to his solo work and collaborative albums to his unforgettable work on film scores, from “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” to “The Last Emperor” to Brian De Palma’s “Snake Eyes.” (He also composed the score to “The Revenant” with Alva Noto and The National’s Bryce Dessner.) Sakamoto additionally worked on multiple television shows and video games.
- 9/25/2023
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
By Nubia Jade Brice
“As Mina struggles to find her place as Whitby School’s first and only female student, a devilish horror is unleashed upon the academy and its unsuspecting students: Count Dracula. However, when this unspeakable evil lays claim to her beloved Lucy Westenra, Mina stands ready to join forces with her fellow students and fight against it with everything she has.” (Viz Media)
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Released just in time for the spooky season, comes a tale of otherworldly terror and the ill-equipped children forced to confront these horrors head-on. In Shinichi Sakamoto’s latest release, #Drcl midnight children, he puts his spin on the Bram Stoker novel, adapting Dracula to make it more approachable for modern audiences, especially younger readers who may be unfamiliar with the original story.
From the opening pages, readers are immersed in the action aboard the Demeter.
“As Mina struggles to find her place as Whitby School’s first and only female student, a devilish horror is unleashed upon the academy and its unsuspecting students: Count Dracula. However, when this unspeakable evil lays claim to her beloved Lucy Westenra, Mina stands ready to join forces with her fellow students and fight against it with everything she has.” (Viz Media)
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Released just in time for the spooky season, comes a tale of otherworldly terror and the ill-equipped children forced to confront these horrors head-on. In Shinichi Sakamoto’s latest release, #Drcl midnight children, he puts his spin on the Bram Stoker novel, adapting Dracula to make it more approachable for modern audiences, especially younger readers who may be unfamiliar with the original story.
From the opening pages, readers are immersed in the action aboard the Demeter.
- 9/25/2023
- by Guest Writer
- AsianMoviePulse
Neo Sora’s concert documentary “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus,” a standout at the Venice Film Festival, has sold for theatrical distribution in North America to Janus Films ahead of its North American premiere at the New York Film Festival.
The theatrical release will be followed by a Blu-ray Disc release on the “Janus Contemporaries” label.
This is the latest deal inked by London and Paris-based production, finance and sales outfit Film Constellation, following a slew of sales to Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Midas Filmes), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), Baltics (Kino Pavasaris), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will release the film in Japan in 2024.
On March 28, 2023, legendary composer Sakamoto Ryuichi died after his struggle against cancer. In the years leading up to his death, Sakamoto could no longer perform live. Single concerts,...
The theatrical release will be followed by a Blu-ray Disc release on the “Janus Contemporaries” label.
This is the latest deal inked by London and Paris-based production, finance and sales outfit Film Constellation, following a slew of sales to Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Midas Filmes), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), Baltics (Kino Pavasaris), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will release the film in Japan in 2024.
On March 28, 2023, legendary composer Sakamoto Ryuichi died after his struggle against cancer. In the years leading up to his death, Sakamoto could no longer perform live. Single concerts,...
- 9/25/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
There was a time, maybe fifteen years ago, when a title like “Ninja vs. Shark” would have been enough to whip up some early-viral excitement. In those days, the tongue-in-cheek grindhouse homage was still a novel idea, and upstart filmmakers were in a rush to combine b-movie tropes into self-consciously “epic” packages. Now, after more than a decade of lazy faux-exploitation productions dropped on streaming, the freshness factor has worn off. Still, not all filmmakers are created equally, and it’s important to note that “Ninja vs. Shark” is directed by stunt legend Koichi Sakamoto, who has made a career crafting dizzying fight choreography and directing live action anime and Tokusatsu features. His reputation made the idea of yet another “[B-Movie Creature] vs. [“B-Movie Creature]” title a little more exciting, and the good news is that he’s created a legitimately entertaining and refreshingly brief movie that, for better or worse, plays a little...
- 9/22/2023
- by Henry McKeand
- AsianMoviePulse
Kore-eda Hirokazu returns to Japan for his latest film “Monster,” which poses this question to audiences: “Who really is the monster?” While location scouting, the filmmaker was looking down at a lake, dark and almost black, and “I thought of Sakamoto Ryuichi music. He was the only person who could do the music for this film.”
It would mark the first time in years that the legendary composer behind “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” had worked on a Japanese title
The film opens with Minato, played by Kurokawa Soya, an 11-year-old fifth grader who watches a burning building from afar. Kore-eda returns to this sequence three times, each from a different perspective. Is young Minato the monster? Or is it Mr. Hori (Nahayama Eita), the schoolteacher, or Minato’s mother, Saori (Ando Sakura)? The plot twists and turns in each retelling, as it’s revealed Minato has feelings for...
It would mark the first time in years that the legendary composer behind “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” had worked on a Japanese title
The film opens with Minato, played by Kurokawa Soya, an 11-year-old fifth grader who watches a burning building from afar. Kore-eda returns to this sequence three times, each from a different perspective. Is young Minato the monster? Or is it Mr. Hori (Nahayama Eita), the schoolteacher, or Minato’s mother, Saori (Ando Sakura)? The plot twists and turns in each retelling, as it’s revealed Minato has feelings for...
- 9/11/2023
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
To capture the breadth and depth of the musical career of Japanese composer and recording artist Ryuichi Sakamoto seems impossible, but somehow “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” almost accomplishes this herculean challenge. A document of Sakamoto’s final performance before his death from cancer last March, the film provides no commentary or context for the enormity of his body of work, yet somehow encompasses it all as he performs a curated set list in a Japanese recording studio for an audience of one — himself. Far more than a showcase of his talent and productivity, “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” lets Sakamoto deliver an elegy, and in the process, an autobiography of his creative journey, as captured through the precision and poetry of director Neo Sora’s camera.
Working from a set list personally selected by Sakamoto from his discography, Sora — Sakamoto’s son — recorded his subject’s performances over the span of a week,...
Working from a set list personally selected by Sakamoto from his discography, Sora — Sakamoto’s son — recorded his subject’s performances over the span of a week,...
- 9/7/2023
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Variety Film + TV
The concert film, directed by Neo Sora, premiered at Venice Film Festival on September 4.
Film Constellation has closed key distribution deals for Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, which captures the final performance of the late Japanese composer and received its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday (September 4).
The London and Paris-based firm has sold the feature to Spain (Filmin), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will handle the release of the film in Japan in...
Film Constellation has closed key distribution deals for Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, which captures the final performance of the late Japanese composer and received its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday (September 4).
The London and Paris-based firm has sold the feature to Spain (Filmin), Germany and Austria (Rapid Eye), Scandinavia (NjutaFilms), South Korea (Media Castle), China (Jl Vision Films), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (Cai Chang) and Singapore (Anticipate Pictures). Bitters End will handle the release of the film in Japan in...
- 9/6/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
The profound existential context of “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus” lays waste to the usual questions regarding concert documentaries, such as whether there is or is not a visual language to match the music. While there are moments in which one could close their eyes to concentrate on Sakamato’s otherworldly piano stylings and not miss much, there are glimpses of what it has all meant to the maestro that redeem a generally uneven split between sound and vision. Indeed, there are parallels to be made here with David Bowie’s music video for “Lazarus,” due to the mortal shiver of seeing a formidable musician playing himself off into the afterlife.
Sakamoto died aged 71 in March 2023 of a cancer that made touring and performing impossible during his final years. “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda” premiered at Venice Film Festival in 2017, shedding light on the musician’s process and values at a time when he...
Sakamoto died aged 71 in March 2023 of a cancer that made touring and performing impossible during his final years. “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda” premiered at Venice Film Festival in 2017, shedding light on the musician’s process and values at a time when he...
- 9/5/2023
- by Sophie Monks Kaufman
- Indiewire
Late Oscar-winning Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto was celebrated at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday with the Out Of Competition premiere of concert film Opus.
The moving black-and-white work captures Sakamoto delivering his final performance in the months leading up to his death in March after a seven-year battle with cancer.
Alone with his piano on stage, he performs twenty of his compositions, spanning the music of his pop-star Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his first film score for Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; his Oscar-winning music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and his final album, 12.
Sakamoto’s filmmaker and artist son Neo Sora, who directed the film, was in Venice to present the work.
“I think he would have really loved that the film plays in Venice. He came to Venice six years ago with for Coda (Ryuichi Sakamoto Coda) so it would have been a full circle for him as well,...
The moving black-and-white work captures Sakamoto delivering his final performance in the months leading up to his death in March after a seven-year battle with cancer.
Alone with his piano on stage, he performs twenty of his compositions, spanning the music of his pop-star Yellow Magic Orchestra period to his first film score for Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; his Oscar-winning music for Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and his final album, 12.
Sakamoto’s filmmaker and artist son Neo Sora, who directed the film, was in Venice to present the work.
“I think he would have really loved that the film plays in Venice. He came to Venice six years ago with for Coda (Ryuichi Sakamoto Coda) so it would have been a full circle for him as well,...
- 9/5/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Legendary musician and composer Ryuichi Sakamoto died in March 2023 of cancer at the age of 71 and much of the world mourned. While perhaps not the most famous musician/composer on earth, the Japanese musician was a musical icon nonetheless.
Sakamoto started his career as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra (Ymo), a late 1970s electronic band that is often overshadowed by Kraftwerk as the pioneers of electronic pop, but was still instrumental in helping the genre explode given the way the sound would take off in the 1980s with the electro-driven British New Wave of pop.
Continue reading ‘Opus’ Teaser Trailer: Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Son Crafts An Elegy Concert Doc For His Legendary Composer & Musician Father at The Playlist.
Sakamoto started his career as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra (Ymo), a late 1970s electronic band that is often overshadowed by Kraftwerk as the pioneers of electronic pop, but was still instrumental in helping the genre explode given the way the sound would take off in the 1980s with the electro-driven British New Wave of pop.
Continue reading ‘Opus’ Teaser Trailer: Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Son Crafts An Elegy Concert Doc For His Legendary Composer & Musician Father at The Playlist.
- 8/31/2023
- by Rodrigo Perez
- The Playlist
Oscar-winning Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s final performance is captured in posthumous documentary “Opus,” directed by his son Neo Sora.
Sakamoto, who was behind the scores of films like “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant,” died in March at age 71 after a years-long battle with cancer. His last piano performance was staged for “Opus,” which is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
In the concert film, Sakamoto performs 20 compositions; the teaser trailer shows Sakamoto playing the score of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky.”
Sakamoto issued a statement about “Opus” prior to his passing, saying that the film was “conceived as a way to record my performances — while I was still able to perform — in a way that is worth preserving for the future.”
“Opus” is filmed at the Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio, which Sakamoto said had the “finest acoustics in Japan.” Cinematographer Bill Kirstein shot the film using three 4K cameras,...
Sakamoto, who was behind the scores of films like “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant,” died in March at age 71 after a years-long battle with cancer. His last piano performance was staged for “Opus,” which is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
In the concert film, Sakamoto performs 20 compositions; the teaser trailer shows Sakamoto playing the score of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky.”
Sakamoto issued a statement about “Opus” prior to his passing, saying that the film was “conceived as a way to record my performances — while I was still able to perform — in a way that is worth preserving for the future.”
“Opus” is filmed at the Nhk Broadcast Center’s 509 Studio, which Sakamoto said had the “finest acoustics in Japan.” Cinematographer Bill Kirstein shot the film using three 4K cameras,...
- 8/29/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
"His last gift to the world..." A teaser trailer has debuted for the documentary film Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, which is premiering at the 2023 Venice Film Festival beginning this week (it screens on Sept. 5). The iconic Japanese composer passed away in March of 2023 from cancer at the age of 71. In the years leading up to his death, Sakamoto could no longer perform live but in the final months of his life he mustered his strength to deliver one final performance for the concert film titled, simply, Opus. It features Sakamoto and his piano alone on a stage, performing twenty of his compositions. The production featured a crew of nearly 30 people headed by American cinematographer Bill Kirstein, who shot the film using three 4K cameras. This magnificent, timeless doc film features a number of works that Sakamoto had not previously played as solo piano performances, including The Wuthering Heights (1992) and Ichimei – Small...
- 8/29/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
New York Film Festival will serve as the world premiere of Nathan Fielder and Benny Safdie’s genre-defying series “The Curse,” led by Emma Stone; and Garth Davis’s science-fiction drama “Foe,” starring Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal.
They will screen as part of Spotlight, which Film at Lincoln Center describes as a selection of “significant and surprising films, one-of-a-kind presentations including adventurous portraits of creative minds, one-night only events with live musical accompaniment, bold short films by acclaimed directors, and probing documentaries.”
As previously announced, Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” will hold its North American premiere on Oct. 2 as the Spotlight Gala screening. Additional highlights in Spotlight are Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron”; a late-night showing of Harmony Korine’s “Aggro DR1FT”; Richard Linklater’s existential comedy “Hit Man,” starring and co-written by Glen Powell; Sean Price Williams’s feature debut “The Sweet East”; and Trân Anh Hùng...
They will screen as part of Spotlight, which Film at Lincoln Center describes as a selection of “significant and surprising films, one-of-a-kind presentations including adventurous portraits of creative minds, one-night only events with live musical accompaniment, bold short films by acclaimed directors, and probing documentaries.”
As previously announced, Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” will hold its North American premiere on Oct. 2 as the Spotlight Gala screening. Additional highlights in Spotlight are Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron”; a late-night showing of Harmony Korine’s “Aggro DR1FT”; Richard Linklater’s existential comedy “Hit Man,” starring and co-written by Glen Powell; Sean Price Williams’s feature debut “The Sweet East”; and Trân Anh Hùng...
- 8/17/2023
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
This concert film chronicles the final performance of the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of ‘The Last Emperor’ and ‘Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence’.
London and Paris-based outfit Film Constellation has boarded world sales on Neo Sora’s Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
The concert film chronicles the final performance of Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of The Last Emperor and Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, who died on March 28 aged 71. It will premiere out of competition at Venice on September 5. A first-look image from the film can be seen above.
Featuring just Sakamoto and his piano,...
London and Paris-based outfit Film Constellation has boarded world sales on Neo Sora’s Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
The concert film chronicles the final performance of Sakamoto, the Oscar-winning Japanese composer of The Last Emperor and Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, who died on March 28 aged 71. It will premiere out of competition at Venice on September 5. A first-look image from the film can be seen above.
Featuring just Sakamoto and his piano,...
- 8/17/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSEvil Does Not Exist.The Venice Film Festival has unveiled its full lineup, featuring new films from Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Sofia Coppola, and Yorgos Lanthimos in competition, alongside buzzy titles like David Fincher’s The Killer and Michael Mann’s Ferrari.There's lineup news from Toronto as well. So far, TIFF has revealed its opening night selection, Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron (better original title: How Do You Live?), as well as its gala, special, Platform, and nonfiction presentations. On the docket are new films from Raoul Peck, Kitty Green, Atom Egoyan, and Richard Linklater, among others. The Platform section will open with Kristoffer Borgli's Dream Scenario, starring Nicolas Cage; he portrays an academic who begins appearing in people's dreams.Dream Scenario.REMEMBERINGPee-wee's Big Adventure.Comedian and actor Paul Reubens—best...
- 8/2/2023
- MUBI
One might be forgiven for being a bit confused at the opening of Sakamoto Yugo's Baby Assassins 2 Babies. There are indeed a pair of scrappy young killers casually approaching a murder for hire gig, they do handle it in a rather haphazard but ultimately effective and entertaining way, and they do share a witty repartee that definitely feels a part of the series. However, these two assassins are men, not the cutesy teen odd couple of Mahiro (Izawa Saori) and Chisato (Takaishi Akari) that we met in the vivacious first film. These two opposite pairs will battle for the duration of the film in spectacularly choreographed fight scenes, sometimes with and among each other, in this briskly paced, delightful sequel to Sakamoto's 2021 Japanese...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 8/1/2023
- Screen Anarchy
The passing of Ryuichi Sakamoto in March 2023 marked a sad and significant loss for the world of music. Debuting with his experimental solo EP Thousand Knives (1978) at the age of twenty-six, Sakamoto would go on to have a 45-year-long career as a musician, producing countless solo albums and film scores, as well as music with the Japanese electropop band Yellow Magic Orchestra. Tracing his blossoming career in the mid-1980s was French photographer Elizabeth Lennard, who directed the made-for-tv documentary “Tokyo Melody: un film sur Ryuichi Sakamoto” (1985). The film presents an economically prosperous Tokyo, along with an intimate portrait of Sakamoto as he works on his then-upcoming solo album, Ongaku Zukan (1984).
Tokyo Melody is screening at Japan Cuts
As far as documentaries go, “Tokyo Melody” is distinctly hands-off. We're introduced to Sakamoto as he fiddles with what is presumably a new piece of recording equipment in the park, although the...
Tokyo Melody is screening at Japan Cuts
As far as documentaries go, “Tokyo Melody” is distinctly hands-off. We're introduced to Sakamoto as he fiddles with what is presumably a new piece of recording equipment in the park, although the...
- 8/1/2023
- by Tom Wilmot
- AsianMoviePulse
Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda (2017) is now showing on Mubi in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Canada. Ryuichi Sakamoto: async at the Park Avenue Armory (2018) is showing in the United States and Canada.Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda.I think the inspiration to make Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda (2017) first came to me in April of 2012. Ryuichi Sakamoto had curated a series of performances at a space called the Stone in the East Village, and I went to see him perform there with the guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Otomo Yoshihide. The Stone is small, and the show was sold out. I was asked to sit on the floor somewhere between the two artists, literally close enough to touch Otomo-san's effects pedals and a leg of Ryuichi's piano—that's how intimate the Stone can be. As they explored the fringe between music and noise, their performance somehow evoked images of Fukushima in the aftermath...
- 7/31/2023
- MUBI
Hot off the Japanese action-comedy hijinks of 2021's "Baby Assassins" is writer and director Yugo Sakamoto's "Baby Assassins 2" (alternately titled "Baby Assassins: 2 Babies"). No, this isn't about toddlers with katanas accepting mercenary contracts. Sakamoto continues his story about an odd couple of trained assassins who'd rather be gorging on ice cream sundaes than pulverizing gangsters with a very slacker-humor vibe. Action can feel like an "afterthought" earlier on, but that's not a forever choice nor a detriment. "Baby Assassins 2" is as much a commentary about Japanese youths struggling to find work and nonsense bureaucracy as a flurry of furious fists, both of which find their place in this offbeat, uptempo, and quite funny sequel.
Returning as Sakamoto's "Babies" are Chisato (Akari Takaishi) and Mahiro (Saori Izawa), roommates with contradictory personalities shaped into expert killers. The excessively cutesy and squee Chisato discovers they haven't paid their gym membership in roughly four years,...
Returning as Sakamoto's "Babies" are Chisato (Akari Takaishi) and Mahiro (Saori Izawa), roommates with contradictory personalities shaped into expert killers. The excessively cutesy and squee Chisato discovers they haven't paid their gym membership in roughly four years,...
- 7/28/2023
- by Matt Donato
- Slash Film
Choirs Of Angels
Sakamoto Ryuichi, the Japanese film composer and music supervisor who died in March, has been posthumously named as the recipient of the Jecheon Film Music Award at the 19th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival (Aug. 10-15). Sakamoto won Academy Awards and Golden Globes for his score for “The Last Emperor” and has other credits including “The Sheltering Sky,” “Railroad Man,” “The Revenant,” “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Fortress.”
Abrai Joji from Commons the music label established jointly with Sakamoto, and Yutaka Toyama from Promax, which had produced Sakamoto’s concerts since 1986, will visit the festival. Additionally, a tribute concert will be held on Aug. 12 at the Jecheon Stadium.
Sports Production Fund
U.K. pay TV operator Sky has launched the New Focus Fund, designed to uncover fresh talent in sports content creation. Developed in recognition that traditional routes into sports media can be limited, and often attract narrow talent pools,...
Sakamoto Ryuichi, the Japanese film composer and music supervisor who died in March, has been posthumously named as the recipient of the Jecheon Film Music Award at the 19th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival (Aug. 10-15). Sakamoto won Academy Awards and Golden Globes for his score for “The Last Emperor” and has other credits including “The Sheltering Sky,” “Railroad Man,” “The Revenant,” “Call Me By Your Name” and “The Fortress.”
Abrai Joji from Commons the music label established jointly with Sakamoto, and Yutaka Toyama from Promax, which had produced Sakamoto’s concerts since 1986, will visit the festival. Additionally, a tribute concert will be held on Aug. 12 at the Jecheon Stadium.
Sports Production Fund
U.K. pay TV operator Sky has launched the New Focus Fund, designed to uncover fresh talent in sports content creation. Developed in recognition that traditional routes into sports media can be limited, and often attract narrow talent pools,...
- 7/13/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Japanese writer won the screenplay award at Cannes for Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘Monster’.
Japan’s Yuji Sakamoto, who won the best screenplay award at Cannes for writing Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Monster, has signed a deal is to develop projects at Netflix over the next five years.
Sakamoto had previously collaborated with the streaming giant as the writer and producer of In Love and Deep Water, a romantic mystery feature starring Ryo Yoshizawa and Aoi Miyazaki, which is set for release later this year.
Kaata Sakamoto, vice president of content at Netflix Japan, said: “Yuji Sakamoto continues to create a variety of masterpieces,...
Japan’s Yuji Sakamoto, who won the best screenplay award at Cannes for writing Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Monster, has signed a deal is to develop projects at Netflix over the next five years.
Sakamoto had previously collaborated with the streaming giant as the writer and producer of In Love and Deep Water, a romantic mystery feature starring Ryo Yoshizawa and Aoi Miyazaki, which is set for release later this year.
Kaata Sakamoto, vice president of content at Netflix Japan, said: “Yuji Sakamoto continues to create a variety of masterpieces,...
- 6/29/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Zhang Series Debut
Zhang Yimou, China’s most enduring filmmaker, is joining the worldwide shift by feature film directors into the streaming arena.
Zhang, who directed “Full River Red,” the most successful film of 2023 in China, is to be involved with his first TV series. He will executive produce “The First Shot,” his representatives confirmed to Variety.
The show is to be directed by Xing Lu and is backed by Tencent Video. It is currently in development, with a tentative air date in 2025. That’s because Zhang has a film directing project with an anticipated Chinese New Year release date, due to begin shooting this summer.
Sakamoto Deal
Award-winning Japanese screenwriter Sakamoto Yuji will partner with Netflix over the next five years to develop a range of titles to premiere only on the streaming platform. “In Love and Deep Water,” set to be released later this year, promises to be...
Zhang Yimou, China’s most enduring filmmaker, is joining the worldwide shift by feature film directors into the streaming arena.
Zhang, who directed “Full River Red,” the most successful film of 2023 in China, is to be involved with his first TV series. He will executive produce “The First Shot,” his representatives confirmed to Variety.
The show is to be directed by Xing Lu and is backed by Tencent Video. It is currently in development, with a tentative air date in 2025. That’s because Zhang has a film directing project with an anticipated Chinese New Year release date, due to begin shooting this summer.
Sakamoto Deal
Award-winning Japanese screenwriter Sakamoto Yuji will partner with Netflix over the next five years to develop a range of titles to premiere only on the streaming platform. “In Love and Deep Water,” set to be released later this year, promises to be...
- 6/29/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Fresh off his best screenplay win at Cannes, in-demand Japanese screenwriter Yuji Sakamoto has inked a 5-year collaboration agreement with Netflix.
Sakamoto was already in business with Netflix as the writer and producer of the streamer’s upcoming big-budget Japanese mystery romance film In Love and Deep Water, set to premiere later this year. That project, which co-stars Ryo Yoshizawa and Aoi Miyazaki, has already been dubbed Sakamoto’s biggest and most ambitious project to date.
“Yuji Sakamoto continues to create a variety of masterpieces, ranging from socially conscious works to lighter comedies and love stories, that capture our hearts and minds and keep us coming back for more,” said Kaata Sakamoto, Netflix’s vp of content, about the deal unveiled Thursday. “We look forward to bringing Sakamoto’s unique, original storytelling to a global stage, coupled with the very best production environment and creative partnerships to realize his vision.
Sakamoto was already in business with Netflix as the writer and producer of the streamer’s upcoming big-budget Japanese mystery romance film In Love and Deep Water, set to premiere later this year. That project, which co-stars Ryo Yoshizawa and Aoi Miyazaki, has already been dubbed Sakamoto’s biggest and most ambitious project to date.
“Yuji Sakamoto continues to create a variety of masterpieces, ranging from socially conscious works to lighter comedies and love stories, that capture our hearts and minds and keep us coming back for more,” said Kaata Sakamoto, Netflix’s vp of content, about the deal unveiled Thursday. “We look forward to bringing Sakamoto’s unique, original storytelling to a global stage, coupled with the very best production environment and creative partnerships to realize his vision.
- 6/29/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Japanese filmmaker Junji Sakamoto to receive the Screen International Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award.
The New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) has revealed the features that will compete for its Uncaged Award and announced that Japanese filmmaker Junji Sakamoto will receive the Screen International Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award.
The nine-strong competition for best feature film at the festival, running July 14-30, will include the world premieres of Hong Kong horror Back Home and Chinese films Flaming Cloud and Redemption With Life.
Back Home is a suspense horror that marks the feature directorial debut of Nate Ki and stars Anson...
The New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) has revealed the features that will compete for its Uncaged Award and announced that Japanese filmmaker Junji Sakamoto will receive the Screen International Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award.
The nine-strong competition for best feature film at the festival, running July 14-30, will include the world premieres of Hong Kong horror Back Home and Chinese films Flaming Cloud and Redemption With Life.
Back Home is a suspense horror that marks the feature directorial debut of Nate Ki and stars Anson...
- 6/23/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
North America's largest Japanese film festival presents two weeks of contemporary movies from Japan, including opening film The First Slam Dunk directed by Takehiko Inoue, centerpiece film Under The Turquoise Sky directed by Kentaro, closing film The Three Sisters Of Tenmasou Inn directed by Ryuhei Kitamura
Japan Society announces the full lineup of the 16th annual Japan Cuts: Festival of New Japanese Film, the largest festival of its kind in North America, set for July 26–August 6. This year's edition will present 29 films and mark the first fully in-person Japan Cuts since 2019. This year's festival spans 12 days and features 24 feature-length films and five short films across Feature Slate, Next Generation, and Short Film Spotlight sections, as well as a special tribute to Ryuichi Sakamoto. Among the festival's lineup are five International Premieres, 10 North American Premieres, seven U.S. Premieres, three East Coast Premieres and three New York Premieres. Additionally, Japan Cuts...
Japan Society announces the full lineup of the 16th annual Japan Cuts: Festival of New Japanese Film, the largest festival of its kind in North America, set for July 26–August 6. This year's edition will present 29 films and mark the first fully in-person Japan Cuts since 2019. This year's festival spans 12 days and features 24 feature-length films and five short films across Feature Slate, Next Generation, and Short Film Spotlight sections, as well as a special tribute to Ryuichi Sakamoto. Among the festival's lineup are five International Premieres, 10 North American Premieres, seven U.S. Premieres, three East Coast Premieres and three New York Premieres. Additionally, Japan Cuts...
- 6/22/2023
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
Highly skilled assassins lying in wait and trying to live a normal life have recently been portrayed to commercial success in cinema of late. When it comes to Japanese cinema, two such recent productions that immediately come spring to mind are “The Fable” and “Baby Assassins”. Since the former did get a sequel, which was also well received by the audience, it was only a matter of time that Yugo Sakamoto's action comedy about two young female assassins also got a sequel of its own. Two years since the release of the first and we are back in the world of our awkward but highly skilled pair of killing machines.
Tokyo Uber Blues is screening at Nippon Connection
Since we last saw them fighting and winning against the Yakuza, Mahiro and Chisato have become elite, high-ranking killers within the Guild but most importantly, they have learnt to live with...
Tokyo Uber Blues is screening at Nippon Connection
Since we last saw them fighting and winning against the Yakuza, Mahiro and Chisato have become elite, high-ranking killers within the Guild but most importantly, they have learnt to live with...
- 6/13/2023
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Two Japanese films by internationally renowned auteurs — “Monster” by Koreeda Hirokazu and “Kubi” by Kitano Takeshi — are in the Cannes lineup this year, and both carry with them big box office expectations in Japan.
“Monster,” which is screening in competition, will be released on June 2 by Gaga and Toho, the latter Japan’s largest distributor and theater chain operator. Koreeda’s two previous films — “The Truth” (2019), shot in France, and “Broker” (2022), filmed South Korea — were both box office disappointments in his home market. “Monster,” however, promises a return to the earnings form of his 2018 Palme d’Or winner “Shoplifters,” whose $34 million cumulative total was the fourth-highest among Japanese releases that year.
One reason: The screenplay is by Sakamoto Yuji, a veteran writer of hit TV dramas and films, including the 2021 smash romantic drama “We Made a Beautiful Bouquet.” The story of “Monster,” about a quarrel between elementary school children...
“Monster,” which is screening in competition, will be released on June 2 by Gaga and Toho, the latter Japan’s largest distributor and theater chain operator. Koreeda’s two previous films — “The Truth” (2019), shot in France, and “Broker” (2022), filmed South Korea — were both box office disappointments in his home market. “Monster,” however, promises a return to the earnings form of his 2018 Palme d’Or winner “Shoplifters,” whose $34 million cumulative total was the fourth-highest among Japanese releases that year.
One reason: The screenplay is by Sakamoto Yuji, a veteran writer of hit TV dramas and films, including the 2021 smash romantic drama “We Made a Beautiful Bouquet.” The story of “Monster,” about a quarrel between elementary school children...
- 5/19/2023
- by Mark Schilling
- Variety Film + TV
After making The Truth in France and Broker in South Korea, Hirokazu Kore-eda returns to a Japanese-language project for the first time since his justly lauded Shoplifters five years ago, working with another writer’s script for the first time since his head-turning 1995 debut, Maborosi. Many of the peerless humanist’s frequent themes figure in Monster (Kaibutsu) — loss, isolation, the elusive nature of happiness and the struggles of imperfect families — viewed through a somewhat imposing multi-perspective Rashomon-esque prism. The director’s customary delicacy, compassion and sensitivity ripple through the drama, though its affecting moments of illumination are more intermittent than cumulative.
With its fragmented exploration of childhood bullying, stigma, peer pressure and homophobia, as well as the age of its young protagonists, Monster vaguely recalls Belgian director Lukas Dhont’s Close from last year, albeit with more restraint and less sentiment, for better or worse. It’s a frustrating film in many ways,...
With its fragmented exploration of childhood bullying, stigma, peer pressure and homophobia, as well as the age of its young protagonists, Monster vaguely recalls Belgian director Lukas Dhont’s Close from last year, albeit with more restraint and less sentiment, for better or worse. It’s a frustrating film in many ways,...
- 5/17/2023
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hirokazu Kore-Eda is back in Cannes Competition after winning the Palme d’Or for Shoplifters in 2018 and last year presenting Korean-language Broker, which won best actor for Song Kang-ho. His new title, Monster, reteams him with Shoplifters actress Sakura Ando and is the last film to be scored by Oscar-winning composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who died in March at 71 following a battle with cancer.
Scripted by Yuji Sakamoto (We Made a Beautiful Bouquet), Monster revolves around a single mother (Ando) who suspects there is something wrong at her son’s school when he starts behaving strangely. She storms into the school and accuses a teacher of bullying her son, only to have the teacher claim the boy is bullying another pupil, an eccentric child who appears to be having problems at home.
The cast also includes Eita Nagayama (Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai) as the teacher and veteran actress Yuko Tanaka...
Scripted by Yuji Sakamoto (We Made a Beautiful Bouquet), Monster revolves around a single mother (Ando) who suspects there is something wrong at her son’s school when he starts behaving strangely. She storms into the school and accuses a teacher of bullying her son, only to have the teacher claim the boy is bullying another pupil, an eccentric child who appears to be having problems at home.
The cast also includes Eita Nagayama (Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai) as the teacher and veteran actress Yuko Tanaka...
- 5/17/2023
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
There’s allowing one’s work to commingle with one’s life, and then there’s ensuring your funeral has a good soundtrack. Yet one of Ryuichi Sakamoto’s greatest attributes was trying to make the world sound better––not simply through his art, but such as when his favorite restaurant played the world’s worst music (an experience any New Yorker knows too well) and he pro bono made them a splendid replacement.
Echoing that, and marking what is surely among the most graceful final notes any man could hope for, Sakamoto curated the soundtrack for his own funeral: a 162-minute collection including film scores, piano-led jazz, and Glenn Gould’s interpretations of Bach. Having found great nourishment in his restaurant playlist, I’ve hardly been happier to hear a funeral march.
Listen below:
The post Listen to Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Self-Curated Funeral Playlist first appeared on The Film Stage.
Echoing that, and marking what is surely among the most graceful final notes any man could hope for, Sakamoto curated the soundtrack for his own funeral: a 162-minute collection including film scores, piano-led jazz, and Glenn Gould’s interpretations of Bach. Having found great nourishment in his restaurant playlist, I’ve hardly been happier to hear a funeral march.
Listen below:
The post Listen to Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Self-Curated Funeral Playlist first appeared on The Film Stage.
- 5/15/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Before his passing in late March, the late Japanese composer and electronic music pioneer Ryuichi Sakamoto had been putting together a playlist of music to be played at his own funeral. Now, Sakamoto’s management has shared that “last playlist,” simply titled “funeral.”
“We would like to share the playlist that Ryuichi had been privately compiling to be played at his own funeral to accompany his own passing,” Sakamoto’s team wrote in an accompanying message. “He truly was with music until the very end.”
Opening with an 11-minute track by Sakamoto’s frequent collaborator Alva Noto, the 33-song playlist features classical music from Johann Sebastian Bach, Claude Debussy, and Maurice Ravel. It also includes the work of renowned film composers Ennio Morricone and Nino Rota, jazz music from Bill Evans Trio, and David Sylvian’s “Orpheus” — the latter of which features Sakamoto himself on piano and synths. Closing out...
“We would like to share the playlist that Ryuichi had been privately compiling to be played at his own funeral to accompany his own passing,” Sakamoto’s team wrote in an accompanying message. “He truly was with music until the very end.”
Opening with an 11-minute track by Sakamoto’s frequent collaborator Alva Noto, the 33-song playlist features classical music from Johann Sebastian Bach, Claude Debussy, and Maurice Ravel. It also includes the work of renowned film composers Ennio Morricone and Nino Rota, jazz music from Bill Evans Trio, and David Sylvian’s “Orpheus” — the latter of which features Sakamoto himself on piano and synths. Closing out...
- 5/15/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Music
Over the weekend, the management team of Ryuichi Sakamoto shared a final parting gift from the towering musician, who died in March — a playlist he compiled for his funeral.
The 33-song set runs for about two-and-a-half hours and primarily features compositions by prominent Western composers like Erik Satie, Bach, Ravel, and Debussy. Additionally, there’s a piece from famed Japanese composer Tōru Takemitsu, and the playlist opens with a work from Sakamoto collaborator Alva Noto. Sakamoto also included music by the Bill Evans Trio, Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, David Sylvain,...
The 33-song set runs for about two-and-a-half hours and primarily features compositions by prominent Western composers like Erik Satie, Bach, Ravel, and Debussy. Additionally, there’s a piece from famed Japanese composer Tōru Takemitsu, and the playlist opens with a work from Sakamoto collaborator Alva Noto. Sakamoto also included music by the Bill Evans Trio, Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, David Sylvain,...
- 5/15/2023
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI, and sign up for our weekly email newsletter by clicking here.REMEMBRANCERyuichi Sakamoto: Coda.Ryuichi Sakamoto died last week at the age of 71. He was the keyboardist for Yellow Magic Orchestra, who revolutionized techno in the early ’80s, and later became a pioneering composer for film—notably Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (1987) and Nagisa Oshima’s Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), in which he stars. It is impossible to sum up his impact in a bullet point, but we offer up a few finds: below, a clip from the 1985 film Tokyo Melody, in which Sakamoto shows us how to compose on the then-state-of-the-art Fairlight Cmi. Here, a 2018 New York Times piece about his quest to create the ideal background playlist for a beloved restaurant. “If I was an architect, I would be a bad one,...
- 5/3/2023
- MUBI
Celebrate Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Gifts to Cinema In Exclusive Trailer for Metrograph’s New Retrospective
Ryuichi Sakamoto’s death sent waves of shock and grief alike, the rare passing that suggested losing some necessary force in the universe. It would be true for his music alone, but the cinematic scale of Sakamoto’s contributions are equal with so many greats. Thus the list of films Metrograph are playing in their aptly named “Ryuichi Sakamoto: A Celebration” would be envy of any director: The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, an Apichatpong Weerasethakul short and presentation (about which more below), with maybe my favorite of the bunch being the great (and vastly underseen) Jun Ichikawa’s Tony Takitani.
After Apichatpong presents his short film “first light” produced for Sakamoto’s 2017 album async, Metrograph will host the U.S. debut of async surround, a surround-sound version of the album. Tickets are currently sold-out, but perhaps standby will be available day-of––surely an event waiting around Dimes Square for.
After Apichatpong presents his short film “first light” produced for Sakamoto’s 2017 album async, Metrograph will host the U.S. debut of async surround, a surround-sound version of the album. Tickets are currently sold-out, but perhaps standby will be available day-of––surely an event waiting around Dimes Square for.
- 5/2/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
The world mourns the loss of a man behind some of the most beautiful, mesmerizing, and transcendent music ever composed. On March 23rd, 2023, renowned composer Ryuichi Sakamoto passed away at 71. The cause of death was cancer, something he had battled for quite some time. Since his early days as a member and founder of the “Yellow Magic Orchestra,” Sakamoto demonstrated range as a composer and would be an influential figure covering a wide range of genres from electronic to classical. His work has often been fittingly described as atmospheric, emotional, hypnotic, beautiful, and majestic. He was also open about being an environmentalist, studying world culture, and advocating for peace. Journalists Gigova and Orie, in an article on CNN's website, detail his activism stating, “Outside music, Sakamoto was known for activism — and in particular for his anti-nuclear views, which saw him demonstrating against nuclear power plants and co-organizing a “No Nukes...
- 4/22/2023
- by Sean Barry
- AsianMoviePulse
Obviously it’s terrible news one woke to, but more than that it seems unfair, like a balancing presence has been taken. The outpouring of admiration and affection for Ryuichi Sakamoto at least is an avenue for emphasizing the work, of which he left us so much it would seemingly take a second lifetime to ingest in full.
My mind turned to Ymo Propaganda, Makoto Satō and Saito Shin’s remarkable concert film devoted to his remarkable band Yellow Magic Orchestra––through the combined efforts of Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, and the recently departed Yukihiro Takahashi, more or less the best ever––that rather boldly depicts them as a fascist entity in a dystopian landscape. It’s nice that it sits on YouTube, and its seemingly less-than-ideal quality rings right; it’s an object you discover in lesser-seen circles.
I’ve yet to watch Elizabeth Lennard’s Tokyo Melody: A Film About Ryuichi Sakamoto,...
My mind turned to Ymo Propaganda, Makoto Satō and Saito Shin’s remarkable concert film devoted to his remarkable band Yellow Magic Orchestra––through the combined efforts of Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, and the recently departed Yukihiro Takahashi, more or less the best ever––that rather boldly depicts them as a fascist entity in a dystopian landscape. It’s nice that it sits on YouTube, and its seemingly less-than-ideal quality rings right; it’s an object you discover in lesser-seen circles.
I’ve yet to watch Elizabeth Lennard’s Tokyo Melody: A Film About Ryuichi Sakamoto,...
- 4/2/2023
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
The Japanese composer won the Academy Award for ‘The Last Emperor’.
Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who won an Oscar for The Last Emperor and a Bafta for Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, has died aged 71.
He died on Tuesday (March 28) after first being diagnosed with cancer nearly three years ago.
A statement from his management, Commmons, said: “While undergoing treatment for cancer discovered in June 2020, Sakamoto continued to create works in his home studio whenever his health would allow. He lived with music until the very end. We would like to express our deepest gratitude to his fans and all those who have supported his activities,...
Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who won an Oscar for The Last Emperor and a Bafta for Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence, has died aged 71.
He died on Tuesday (March 28) after first being diagnosed with cancer nearly three years ago.
A statement from his management, Commmons, said: “While undergoing treatment for cancer discovered in June 2020, Sakamoto continued to create works in his home studio whenever his health would allow. He lived with music until the very end. We would like to express our deepest gratitude to his fans and all those who have supported his activities,...
- 4/2/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Oscar-winning Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who created the original scores for Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Last Emperor" and Alejandro G. Iñárritu's "The Revenant," has died at the age of 71. Sakamoto had been undergoing treatment for stage 4 cancer since June 2020, and his death on March 28, 2023, was announced via his official Twitter account and that of the record label he founded, Commmons.
The statement from Commmons notes that Sakamoto "continued to create works in his home studio whenever his health would allow. He lived with music until the very end." It concludes by sharing one of Sakamoto's favorite sayings: "Ars longa, vita brevis."
"The Last Emperor" swept the Oscars in 1988, winning in every category including Best Original Score, for which Sakamoto was nominated alongside collaborators David Byrne and Cong Su. "The Revenant" also led the pack at the 2016 Academy Awards, nominated in twelve categories and winning three. However, Sakamoto's score was...
The statement from Commmons notes that Sakamoto "continued to create works in his home studio whenever his health would allow. He lived with music until the very end." It concludes by sharing one of Sakamoto's favorite sayings: "Ars longa, vita brevis."
"The Last Emperor" swept the Oscars in 1988, winning in every category including Best Original Score, for which Sakamoto was nominated alongside collaborators David Byrne and Cong Su. "The Revenant" also led the pack at the 2016 Academy Awards, nominated in twelve categories and winning three. However, Sakamoto's score was...
- 4/2/2023
- by Hannah Shaw-Williams
- Slash Film
Ryuichi Sakamoto, a world-renowned Japanese musician and actor who composed for Hollywood hits such as “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant”, has died. He was 71.
Japan’s recording company Avex said in a statement Sunday that Sakamoto died on March 28 while undergoing treatment for cancer.
He was first diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. In 2022, he revealed that he had terminal cancer, a year after he disclosed suffering from rectal cancer.
Sakamoto was a pioneer of the electronic music of the late 1970s and founded the Yellow Magic Orchestra, also known as Ymo, with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi.
Takahashi died in January.
Despite his battle with cancer, Sakamoto released a full-length album 12 on his 71st birthday in January, stating that composing had a “small healing effect on my damaged body and soul,” according to the official statement released with the latest album.
He was a world-class musician, winning an Oscar...
Japan’s recording company Avex said in a statement Sunday that Sakamoto died on March 28 while undergoing treatment for cancer.
He was first diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. In 2022, he revealed that he had terminal cancer, a year after he disclosed suffering from rectal cancer.
Sakamoto was a pioneer of the electronic music of the late 1970s and founded the Yellow Magic Orchestra, also known as Ymo, with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi.
Takahashi died in January.
Despite his battle with cancer, Sakamoto released a full-length album 12 on his 71st birthday in January, stating that composing had a “small healing effect on my damaged body and soul,” according to the official statement released with the latest album.
He was a world-class musician, winning an Oscar...
- 4/2/2023
- by Brent Furdyk
- ET Canada
Ryuichi Sakamoto, one of Japan’s most influential and beloved composers, has passed away at 71 from cancer. The news broke on Twitter via the composer’s recording company:
pic.twitter.com/Fq0hRyp5F4
— commmons (@commmons) April 2, 2023
Sakamoto had a long, legendary career as a composer, famously winning an Oscar for his score to Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor. Sakamoto, who was a major celebrity in Japan, also co-starred in the film, as well as another movie he composed a famous soundtrack for, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, which starred David Bowie. In that one, Sakamoto gave a well-received performance as a Japanese Pow camp commander during WW2 who develops an unrequited romantic obsession with Bowie’s heroic Pow.
Additionally, Sakamoto also composed music for Martin Scorsese’s Silence, The Revenant, Snake Eyes, Femme Fatale, and even the recent Netflix thriller Beckett. Recently, he also wrote the theme for A24’s After Yang,...
pic.twitter.com/Fq0hRyp5F4
— commmons (@commmons) April 2, 2023
Sakamoto had a long, legendary career as a composer, famously winning an Oscar for his score to Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor. Sakamoto, who was a major celebrity in Japan, also co-starred in the film, as well as another movie he composed a famous soundtrack for, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, which starred David Bowie. In that one, Sakamoto gave a well-received performance as a Japanese Pow camp commander during WW2 who develops an unrequited romantic obsession with Bowie’s heroic Pow.
Additionally, Sakamoto also composed music for Martin Scorsese’s Silence, The Revenant, Snake Eyes, Femme Fatale, and even the recent Netflix thriller Beckett. Recently, he also wrote the theme for A24’s After Yang,...
- 4/2/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
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