For my final screening of Japan Cuts 2025, I decided to go with the obligatory film about amateur filmmakers—a staple of the festival...

Promised Land  is an appropriate title for Masashi Iijima’s surprisingly mature directorial debut. It is, after all, a film about the...

The documentary has evolved in recent years; films like And Everything Is Going Fine , Tower , and (to a lesser degree) Witches of the...

[The following review contains MINOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] Japan Cuts frequently programs movies about amateur filmmakers—a...

[The following review contains MAJOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] When introducing Japan Cuts’ recent screening of Toshiharu Ikeda’s...

[The following review contains MAJOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] Kubi is a film of deliciously compelling contradictions. A period...

Nezumikozo Jirokichi—recently screened as part of Japan Cuts’ Shorts Program 2–managed to hit three major categories on my annual...

[The following review contains MINOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] Look Back opens with a shot that seems simple at first glance, but...

[The following review contains frank descriptions of sexually explicit material (albeit in a tasteful, artistic context); YOU HAVE BEEN...

[The following review contains MINOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.] The Box Man is based on a Kobo Abe novel that is—according to my...

[The following review contains MINOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] Back in 2020, Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes—Junta Yamaguchi’s...

[The following review contains MINOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] The opening scene of Kaz I Kiriya’s From the End of the World—an...

In her brief introductory speech preceding Japan Society’s screening of When Morning Comes, I Feel Empty, director Yuho Ishibashi claimed...

[The following review contains MAJOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!] Near the end of The Legend & Butterfly—a lavish period epic...

I went into Single8 hoping that it would recapture the magic of It’s a Summer Film!—which remains one of the best movies I’ve ever seen...

This one was kind of a cheat. The Japan Cuts screening of The First Slam Dunk sold out almost immediately after tickets became available...

I Am What I Am is the exact sort of pleasant surprise that defines Japan Cuts for me. The synopsis on the festival website led me to...

After taking last year off due to COVID-related concerns, Japan Cuts has finally returned to NYC! Since I’m feeling a bit out of...

Concluded Japan Cuts 2021 with a self-curated double feature: It’s a Summer Film! : This lighthearted ode to the spirit of creativity is...

If you still require evidence that Takashi Miike is a certified cinematic genius, look no further than his latest effort, The Great Yokai...