#Shinichirou Ueda

[breezybeej]

One Cut of the Dead (2017) - dir. Shinichirou Ueda

[mashleverse]

Mashle: Magic and Muscles - BBBB Dance CAST SPECIAL Ver. (Creepy Nuts - Bling-Bang-Bang-Born)

A special video featuring all the dances from the 20 Mashle seiyuus has been released! Enjoy the final episode and the final Bling-Bang-Bang-Born!

[444lpblue]

Stardust Telepath #3 - Explosive Mechanic

Screenplay: RinRin Storyboard/Episode Direction: Shinichirou Ueda Animation Direction: Megumi Nagayama, Ryoutarou Takamura, Yuuta Masaki, Ken Mukaigawara Key Animation: Hiroyuki Shimizu, Megumi Nagayama, Maya Yoshida, Tatsuya Urano, Yuuta Masaki, Hiroshi Tanabe, Yousuke Sotoyama, Haruka Sakai, Manabu Kushibuchi, Takanori Suzuki, Satoshi Horisawa, Michitaka Yamamoto, Takahiro Ninagawa, Lilin Zhao, Haruki Ebisu, Yoshiko Nakamura, Kanoko Sakurai, Ryoutarou Takamura, Tetsuya Sunaga, Ken Mukaigawara, Junichi Hashimoto, Yuuichirou Kamura (Eyecatch: 街早智子)

I've wanted to talk about this show since I watched the first episode, but I couldn't find the time. Now we're at episode 3, and guess what? It's pretty great still. Kaori has been at the helm of the whole series at Studio Gokumi, showcasing the studio's in-house staff in a very strong way. Kaori's approach to adapting this series is fantastic; the show is very colorful, especially in its character designs. There are so many fun reactions and expressions that I just can't help but love. It's been a lot of fun so far, and Kaori's expressive and colorful direction is a great match for the series' character designer, Takahiro Sakai. You might have already seen his designs in Yuki Yuna is a Hero, or perhaps you've watched the recent Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon (I know I didn't). The designs are very flexible and simple, which works great with the more expressive moments. I mean, it's just so cute, and when combined with the color design, they really stand out to me as a big selling point of this anime.

The story itself is somewhat comparable to the recent Bocchi the Rock, if I had to mention something to compare, if you're a fan of shows dealing with social anxiety and featuring fun visuals, I would definitely recommend giving this a try.

Since the title does say this is a write-up on episode 3, I should probably start talking about episode 3. This is actually the first episode so far that Kaori didn't have a hand in from a boarding perspective, but the expressiveness and reactions were still present in this episode. While the usage of them and the colors weren't as bold as Kaori's usual style, I believe Shinichirou Ueda did a really good job, especially for the more serious or emotional moments of the episode.

Kaori relies on a lot of contrast or bright and simple elements over detailed backgrounds to make things pop. Every time they're a bit quirky or making a funny face, you'll notice it. Ueda's approach is a bit more cohesive, and I couldn't really find a word for it until I talked to my friend this morning, who mentioned that he noticed it, and he's absolutely right. Ueda takes a more environmental approach compared to Kaori, incorporating more variety in distance and layout size. For instance, he uses long empty halls to emphasize the distance Umika must cross to connect with Raimon. When Umika runs during the night, it's subtly matched by the soft stars in the sky. In contrast, Kaori might have been a bit more heavy-handed in how brightly the stars shine or how much they pop out. I think Ueda's approach is different in that he likes to make the entire scene a bit more unified in its look rather than having one element stand out more than the others. I like both Kaori and Ueda's styles very much, and I don't have a strong preference between the two. I just wanted to mention the differences I see in their approaches.

Returning to the production as a whole for a moment, I completely forgot to mention that, aside from the aesthetic direction and character designs, the show animates quite well. It's a very pleasing-looking show, at least to me. The production is very solid, and I think credit should be given to the talented in-house animators at Gokumi and the animation producer, Kenta Washikazi. He has only held this role for two shows prior to this one (Yuki Yuna is a Hero: The Great Mankai Chapter and Seton Academy), both of which also had solid production, so it's clear he knows what he's doing. He has brought on people like Kouta Sera, who appears to be fairly heavily involved in this show as a key animator so far, and he's extremely talented. For instance, he did the cut of Umiko floating up in the opening. It's a perfect mix of in-house staff and the talent Washikazi decided to bring on.

[aksaracandrimenyinari]

Jatuh Cinta Seperti di Film-Film (2023) Diarahkan oleh Yandy Laurens

Jika kamu bertanya mengapa aku suka sekali dengan sinema, film ini akan menjawabmu. Kau akan mengerti bagaimana serunya keliling kota bersama teman-temanmu pakai tossa ditengah malam sepi. Angin sepoi-sepoi sementara kau dan temanmu membicarakan shot-shot film yang mungkin bisa kalian ambil di langit-langit sana. Ah, menyenangkan sekali rasanya. Hatiku terenyuh saat menontonnya. Aku tidak menyangka akan semenyenangkan ini. Long Live Sinema!

"Jatuh Cinta Seperti di Film-Film" adalah film luar biasa yang dibalut dalam kesederhanaan rom-com. Kau akan melihat bagaimana film dengan standar global ini menjelma dirinya ke dalam format yang kurang dihargai di sinema lokal: hitam-putih yang membosankan, kisah romansa orang tua dengan pemain yang dianggap kurang menarik, konflik yang dianggap kurang dramatis, dan tidak menarik simpati. Pengarah Yandy Laurens, yang juga menulis kisahnya, berusaha mematahkan stigma audiens kita dengan menaruh dan mengkombinasikan sekaligus semua format yang kurang disenangi oleh audiens, dan meramunya menjadi sajian yang meluluhkan noda bandel.

Bagi Yandy Laurens, "Jatuh Cinta Seperti di Film-Film" mungkin juga ungkapan cinta; sebuah surat dan kisah cinta antara ia dengan sinema. Dalam suratnya, Yandy membuka ruang untuk berbenah; mengkritisi hal-hal tabu dan salah dalam internal industri kita, dimana para produser dan pihak-pihak yang mengorganisir terlalu terpaku pada komersial dan memilih untuk mengikuti pasar yang buruk dengan konsumsi film-film hiburan yang tidak bermutu. Aku suka bagaimana film ini dengan halus menyindir film-film adaptasi Wattpad buatan anak 13 tahun, dan menguliti kualitas penonton kita dengan komedi terstrukturnya yang baik sehingga tidak ada yang tersinggung olehnya. Hitam-Putih tak sebatas gimik, tapi plot device. Dan aku baru sadar kalau poster loopnya itu bukan cuma-cuma, tapi metanarasi.

Banyak jokes aside dalam film ini dimana candaannya dibuat dan mungkin hanya dipahami oleh kita saja yang menggemari film. Misalnya seperti Happy Ending, Lebah Ganteng, HD adalah legal, dan perseteruan antara La La Land dan Before Sunrise. Itu referensi-referensi yang cukup jenaka sih menurutku. Dan menghibur tentunya.

Nah, sekarang mari kita jelajahi bagian berat dari film "Jatuh Cinta Seperti di Film-Film," dan alasan mengapa tadi aku bilang film ini memiliki standar global. Film ini mengusung konsep "metanarasi" dalam tiga lapisan cerita. Metanarasi adalah teknik bercerita di mana cerita tersebut tidaklah nyata; dalam dimensi lain, ada yang mengontrol dan mengendalikan kita. Misalnya seperti sebuah karakter yang menyadari bahwa mereka ada dalam sebuah cerita fiksi.

Namun, penggunaan metanarasi dalam film ini sungguh mengagumkan, karena yang dipaksa untuk sadar kalau semuanya itu fiktif bukanlah karakter dalam cerita, melainkan penontonnya sendiri. Bagaimana hal ini dapat terjadi? Yandy Laurens menghadirkannya dengan meramu dan mengombinasikannya dengan konsep lain, yaitu "Breaking the Fourth Wall".

Jika biasanya "Breaking the Fourth Wall" itu karakter yang berbicara dengan penonton, dalam film ini, adalah film itu sendiri yang mencoba berkomunikasi dengan kita.

Kalian ingat gak di akhir sekuens ketiga saat Bagus mencoba menjelaskan ke Hana tentang ke-8 sekuensnya? Nah disana sebenarnya film ini sedang berbicara dengan kita loh. Saat sekuens ke-4 tiba, film ini dengan ganas terus menghadirkan foreshadowing kepada kita untuk menyadari kalau semuanya fiktif. “Ayo sadar, ada Bagus yang lain dibalik semua ini,” seolah film ini berbicara kepada kita. Itulah mengapa sekuensnya dinamai "Klimaks Pertama".

Film tentang filmmaking itu sudah biasa, tapi yang bisa membuatnya begitu segar dan kreatif itu hal yang langka. Terakhir kali aku lihat yang sekreatif ini itu tujuh tahun lalu melalui filmnya Shinichirou Ueda, One Cut of the Dead. Dan sekarang kita menemukan hal yang bahkan jauh lebih segar.

Lima pemain utama (Ringo, Nirina, Alex, Sehila, Dion) tampil luar biasa. Mereka berhasil menghidupkan karakter-karakter mereka dengan sangat gemilang. Terutama, penampilan tiga pemain yang terlibat dalam tiga lapisan cerita sangat mengesankan. Saya sungguh kagum dengan Ringo yang memerankan penulis yang naif, Nirina yang begitu mendalam dalam menyampaikan ekspresi duka, dan Alex yang menghadirkan komedi dengan sempurna dalam perannya sebagai pak produser.

Jatuh cinta tak akan sama seperti di film-film, tentu saja. Tak seindah apa yang ada di kepala Bagus. Tapi Bagus benar: dengan film, kita mungkin bisa jatuh cinta. Seperti Hana yang mencintai dukanya; mencintai deritanya; mencintai lelahnya. Tapi apakah benar itu cinta? Orang-orang selalu membicarakan cinta, sebenarnya, cinta itu apa?

Ketika pertanyaan ini diajukan kepada anak-anak, remaja, dan orang dewasa, responsnya tentu akan berbeda-beda, atau lebih tepatnya, beragam. Beberapa orang mungkin menganggapnya sebagai kasih sayang dan perhatian, sementara yang lain melihatnya sebagai impian. Bagi sebagian lainnya, cinta baru sebatas harapan. Tapi dalam film "Jatuh Cinta Seperti di Film-Film", cinta digambarkan begitu tulus dan apa adanya. Apa itu?

Setelah menyelesaikan ke-8 sekuensinya, jawabannya adalah penerimaan.

Ada satu percakapan mereka yang menurutku begitu matang: saat Bagus menasihati Hana untuk tidak apa-apa jika belum bisa move on. Dalam hidup setiap insan, Illahi pasti akan mendatangkan seseorang untuk membagi kehidupannya dengan kita; membagi hari-hari baiknya, tawanya, kebahagiaan dan dukanya. Dan ketika insan itu tiada, ia tak sepenuhnya pergi dan menghilang dari kita; kenangannya akan menetap abadi. Simpanlah kenangan itu sepenuh hati, tidak apa, itu berharga, asalkan jangan larut dan terjebak seperti Joel Barish.

“Kalau tidak bisa move on, setidaknya kita harus move it,” kata Bagus. Ucapannya itu aku ingat sekali; dorongan yang baik dalam kedewasaan emosional dan penerimaan. Bagiku, itulah cinta: sebuah penerimaan.

[inprogresstoday]

Thank you all who came to the first Movie Night on the Patio at In Progress. The evening was filled with talks of film, art, and storytelling. We watched Joua Lee-Grande's short documentary, "On All Fronts" and "One Cut Of The Dead," directed by Shinichirou Ueda.

Our next film will be "Kubo And The Two Strings," directed by Travis Night, on Friday, August 11th, 2023.

Check out our movie list and more information at: https://in-progress.org/movienights

--Kazua Melissa Vang

In Progress / St. Paul / Movie Nights

[kazarinn]

Digimon Adventure LAST EVOLUTION Kizuna movie pamphlet interviews

I’ve finally translated all of the cast and staff interviews from the official LAST EVOLUTION Kizuna movie pamphlet! I highly recommend them as a read for anyone interested in the creative background and process behind the movie, so please do check it out if you’re interested!

Since these were sold directly at the theatrical screenings, do be warned that there are major spoilers!

Mayu Matsuoka (Voice actress for Menoa Belllucci)

Natsuki Hanae and Chika Sakamoto (Voice actors for Taichi Yagami and Agumon)

Other voice cast members

Creator group talk (Director Tomohisa Taguchi, chief animation director Seiji Tachikawa, unit directors Kazuki Oohashi and Shinichirou Ueda, and key animator Takuya Miyahara)

Akatsuki Yamatoya (Scriptwriter)

Harumi Fuuki (BGM composer)

Ayumi Miyazaki and AiM (Music artists)

Yousuke Kinoshita (Producer)

[ansatsu-sha]

One Cut of the Dead (2017) / Director Shinichirou Ueda

[may8chan]

One Cut of the Dead

[leenaevilin-stage-market]

[Video] 2.5次元ダンスライブ「ALIVESTAGE」Episode4 『WYD』(2.5jigen dance live alive stage episode4 wyd)

the Blu-ray will be released on August 27th, 2021☆ ☆ ☆

☆ Blu-ray ♪ Amazon ☆ Blu-ray ♪ CD Japan

[ywpdtwittertl]

Pedasute Starting Line BD/DVD Event Repo 9/2/17

Pedasute Starting Line BD/DVD Event was on Sep 2! Daigo’s birthday was on Sep 1 so they also surprised him with cake *(*´∀｀*)☆

Participating cast: Yashima Ryou (Aoyagi), Kujirai Kousuke (Teshima), Daigo Kotarou (Onoda), Akimoto Ryuutarou (Kuroda), Iiyama Yuuta (Shinkai Yuuto), Amou Shougo (Komari), Tagawa Hiroki (Koga), Ueda Shinichirou (Danchiku), Higashi Keisuke (Ashikiba), Kanesaki Kentarou (Doubashi) and Director Nishida Shatner

Made a twitter thread yesterday but will write it better here xD Info is from these (x, x, x, x) jp twitter repos (please take w/ a grain of salt as I’m not 100% on all my interpretation and the repos differ a little on the info as well xD)

This is not a full report, just a few of the funny/interesting bits!

In the day part of the event, they came on stage saying their favorite lines (their own character’s). So in the evening part, they came on stage saying the other character’s lines that they wanted to say:

Daigo: I’m alive! (Manami’s line) Kujirai: This time, I’ve made the strongest team! (his own line lol) Yasshi: I’ve gotta work hard, or nothing can be expected of me! (Teshima’s line) Tagawa: Garuaaa! Kujirai: Who was that? Tagawa: It’s Danchiku. Tonchan: Is that a ‘yes’? (Yuuto’s line) Audience: YES! Ryuu: Impressive, Kojima-kun! (Manami’s line) Kujirai: IT’S TESHIMA! *Ryuu whispers something to Kujirai* MC: Let’s hear what they had to say later.. now who was next… Kane: It’s Teshima! Oi! You’re messing it up! Kujirai: Ah, something happened there, huh. My bad.  Ryuu: You really did it huh, Kujirai-san Yuuta: It’s because I’m Teshima Kujirai: So it was already set up this far, huh. Sorry. Amou: Hey… run more, Bambi-chan! (Doubashi’s line) Shatner-san: The goal this year is consecutive victory (Teshima’s line)

They had a “ultimate choice” question corner: Who would you rather have as a senpai? A. Imaizumi B. Naruko

Shatner-san: A Tagawa: A Yasshi: B Kujirai: B Daigo: B Tonchan: I can’t pick. Yuuta: A and B is ABU! Daigo: Naruko-kun seems more friendly. Tonchan: Imaizumi is a disagreeable guy Kujirai: I feel you Shatner-san: IMAIZUMI IS DOING HIS BEST OK Ryuu: Because I don’t want Wada, by process of elimination I guess I have to pick Naruko (t/n: Wada Masanari, who plays Imaizumi.. don’t worry they are really good friends xD)

At the ending, Kane was talking about how Tonchan/Ryuu were gonna change, and how frustrating/regrettable it was for them (t/n: they are busy with other projects conflicting w/ Pedasute schedule)

Kane: But they might come back! Like Taizo! (t/n: Shiina, who will be playing Kaburagi again) Kujirai: Why are these guys taking a break at the worst time? Don’t take it easy! Entire audience: *CRYING* Kane: Sorry it’s all gloomy now cus of what I said… Tonchan/Ryuu: BUT WE *COULD* COME BACK AGAIN!! (loudly, as if to sound convincing)

For their closing remarks, repo said Ryuu said “The Interhigh was special. To stay connected to the history that’s went on since the very beginning, I want to go.” One repo said they remember Tonchan saying “I don’t want to hand over Ashikiba’s role to anyone” (MY HEART….); another repo said he said “Honestly, I wanted to make it to the goal. But, I’ll go cheer on the new person. But it’s possible I’ll be back!”

Yep, I’m still not over Tonchan and Ryuu changing ｡･ﾟﾟ･(>д<)･ﾟﾟ･｡ but good to know they’d like to come back for future pedasutes, and if dramapedal goes on, they could be in that too! 🙏

[rz-jocelyn]

List of Birthdays: The Cast of the Live Spectacle Naruto (Updated)

Born in the 1990s Character - Actor (Age) - Date of Birth

Uzumaki Naruto (1st gen) - Matsuoka Koudai (25) - 1997.08.09 Jugo (2nd gen) - Emoto Kouki (25) - 1997.06.03 Shizune / Samui - Kojima Sari (25) - 1997.02.05 Uzumaki Karin - Nanaki Kanon (25) - 1997.02.07

Uzumaki Naruto (2nd gen) - Nakao Masaki (26) - 1996.11.27 Inuzuka Kiba - Iiyama Yuta (26) - 1996.07.29 Akimichi Chouji (World Tour 2016) - Taniguchi Takuto (26) - 1996.05.02 Yamanaka Ino (1st Gen) - Inami Anju (26) - 1996.02.07

Sai (2nd gen) - Sadamoto Fuuma (27) - 1995.11.23 Hyuuga Hinata (2nd gen) / Karui - Sena (27) - 1995.09.01 Sabaku no Gaara (2nd gen) - Naya Takeru (27) - 1995.08.07 Hyuuga Hinata (1st gen) - Takahashi Saki (27) - 1995.07.30 Hozuki Suigetsu (2nd gen) - Maeda Ryuutarou (27) - 1995.05.27 Uchiha Sasuke - Sato Ryuji (27) - 1995.01.17

Nara Shikamaru (3nd gen) - Yasue Kazuaki (28) - 1994.12.19 Sabaku no Gaara (1st gen) - Suga Kenta (28) - 1994.10.19 Hozuki Suigetsu (1st gen) - Hagio Keishi (28) - 1994.09.28 Rock Lee - Sato Yugo (28) - 1994.08.29 Nara Shikamaru (2nd Gen) - Kobayashi Tatsuya (28) - 1994.08.19 Haruno Sakura - Ito Yui (28) - 1994.04.26 Yakushi Kabuto (World Tour 2016) - Takahashi Ryo (28) - 1994.02.18

Yakushi Kabuto (1st Gen) - Kimura Tatsunari (29) - 1993.12.08 Uzumaki Naruto (World Tour 2016) - Motoki Seiya (29) - 1993.10.06 Aburame Shino & Sabaku no Gaara (World Tour 2016) - Ueda Shinichirou (29) - 1993.10.01 Haku / Hyuuga Hinata (World Tour 2016) - Imamura Miho (29) - 1993.07.29 Jugo (1st gen) - Yamaguchi Tomoya (29) - 1993.07.08 Uchiha Sasuke (World Tour 2016) - Sakurai Keito (29) - 1993.02.08

Namikaze Minato - Kitazono Ryo (30) - 1992.02.09

Uchiha Madara - Ise Daiki (31) - 1991.05.15 Sai (1st gen) - Kitamura Ryo (31) - 1991.01.25

Inuzuka Kiba (World Tour 2016) - Samukawa Shougo (32) - 1990.10.23 Akimichi Chouji - Katou Ryo (32) - 1990.02.13

Born before the 1990s Character - Actor (Age) - Date of Birth

Yamanaka Ino (2nd Gen) - Fujiki Kaoru (33) - 1989.11.28 Deidara - Tsuji Ryo / Ry☆ (33) - 1989.11.27 Nara Shikamaru (1st Gen) - Hattori Tsubasa (33) - 1989.09.13 Pein/Pain - Teruma (33) - 1989.06.06

Yamato / Tenzou - Fujita Ray (34) - 1988.09.06 Yakushi Kabuto (2nd Gen) - Okada Ryosuke (34) - 1988.02.16 Jiraiya (World Tour 2016) - Hisamatsu Ryouta (34) - 1988.02.06

Sarutobi Hiruzen, The Third Hokage (World Tour 2016) - Shirasaki Seiya (35) - 1987.08.11 Aburame Shino (World Tour 2016) - Honda Takaya (35) - 1987.04.12 Killer B - Koyanagi Shin (35) - 1987.03.14

Momochi Zabuza (World Tour 2016) / Tobi - Katayama Hironori (36) - 1986.04.22

Nagato - Tamaki Yuuki (37) - 1985.12.17 Hatake Kakashi - Kimisawa Yuki (37) - 1985.01.31

Konan / Terumi Mei - Kobayashi Yuka (38) - 1984.04.21

Uchiha Itachi - Rachi Shinji (39) - 1983.03.16 Tsunade - Daigo Seshiro / Cecile Daigo (39) - 1983.03.08 Zetsu - Kawai Ryuunosuke (39) - 1983.05.23

A - Kitamura Keigo (40) - 1982.08.08 Momochi Zabuza - Uchida Asahi (40) - 1982.05.30

Hoshigaki Kisame - Hayashino Takeshi (40) - 1980.01.05

Orochimaru - Hiro Yuumi (46) - 1976.11.05

Umino Iruka / Hatake Kakashi (World Tour 2016) - Ichinose Hidekazu (47) - 1975.03.16

Jiraiya - Umegaki Yoshiaki (63) - 1959.07.12

Sarutobi Hiruzen, The Third Hokage - Hirakawa Kazuhiro (64) - 1958.08.13

Year Unknown Character - Actor (Age) - Date of Birth

Orochimaru (World Tour 2016) - Ranma Yu - XXXX.09.12

[dylnsohbrien]

movies  watched  in  2021  →   One Cut of the Dead (2017) dir. Shinichirou Ueda.

Don’t Stop The Camera! 

[medea10]

My Review of Flowers of Evil

How did I get into this anime? Because Flowers of Evil is something no one says, “Oh I want to see that, this looks like a masterpiece”! Oh, I was well familiar with the rotoscope nightmare stories from this and hoped to God my randomizer wouldn’t curse me with watching Flowers of Evil. I was however intrigued to learn that there was a yandere in this anime that’s on Yuno Gasai AND Shion Sonozaki levels. But intrigue can only get me so far when you spend 13 episodes watching…

THIS!

No this is not an exaggeration. Everyone has this kind of cringe face throughout the entire anime series. Be afraid children.

So the story is about this guy named Takao Kasuga. He loves to read and he loves the class smarty-pants Nanako Saeki. He doesn’t just love her, he sees her as his muse and his Venus and all that bullshit. But this is an admiration from afar. Pretty sure Saeki doesn’t even know he exists! One day, Kasuga forgets his book in his classroom. And on the ground, he notices a gym bag that belongs to Saeki. Oh come on, he’s not gonna go down the perverted route and steal a girl’s gym…

So he steals Saeki’s gym uniform. And surprise, one person knew what happened. The class loner, Nakamura! She forces Kasuga to form a contract with her. It wasn’t written or anything, just verbal. However, that doesn’t stop Nakamura from forcing Kasuga to do whatever she wants. But does Nakamura really like Kasuga or is she just into torturing this shit-faced pervert?

BETWEEN THE SUB AND THE DUB: You know, I’m too thrown off by the animation here that it has temporarily paralyzed me from catching voices or even giving a damn. I’m familiar with only two of the cast mates and the rest is literally my first time hearing it. Okay, I have one comment here. I often forget Mariya Ise could do some damn-ass scary characters like Nakamura. And when she does those murderous screams, forget about it! Here’s what you might recognize these folks from.

*Kasuga is played by Shinichirou Ueda

*Saeki is played by Yoko Hikasa (known for Bea on Pokemon Journeys, Rias on High School DxD, Mio on K-ON!, Hina on Domestic Girlfriend, Kirigiri on Danganronpa, Frieda on Attack on Titan, and Diana on Little Witch Academia)

*Nakamura is played by Mariya Ise (known for Bonnie on Pokemon XY, Levy on Fairy Tail, Ray on The Promised Neverland, Stocking on Panty & Stocking, Mika on Durarara, Dorothy on Black Clover, and Yuuko on Yuri on Ice)

SHIPPING: Oh please, anime Gods, do not turn this into another School Days fiasco. I find myself praying for this a lot these days. But in this anime’s case, please do not go down that route!

So, it was clear from episode one that Kasuga had a crush on Saeki. But this got very perverted very fast when he stole her gym clothes and that lead to the contract with Nakamura. Now is Nakamura romantically invested in Kasuga or is she just a crazy bitch. Let’s chalk this up to a 50-50 split here.

It wasn’t until the fourth episode where Kasuga and Saeki actually spoke to each other. And one episode later, they go on a date and end up in a relationship. One has to wonder if Kasuga would have one day acted on his own and ask Saeki out. All of this happened because he was being forced by that psychopath Nakamura. She tortured this kid and forced him to do so many unethical things. Stripping him naked and putting Saeki’s uniform on him for one! Who does that? So would Kasuga have done these sporadic actions if Nakamura wasn’t in the picture? After he stole that uniform, anything is possible. Now here’s the crazy shit here, Saeki loves Kasuga and she doesn’t care that he stole her gym uniform and did fuck-knows-what with it. She’s mad that Kasuga hid it, but still loves him.

Girl, the fuck is wrong with you?! You must be some special kind of crazy!

By the end of this series, you do see a shift in Kasuga and who he wants to chase after. Saeki or Nakamura?! Let’s just say that during a running away scene, Kasuga was going to go home with Saeki until he saw Nakamura and he chases after her. That’s a pretty good sign that Kasuga has switched gears on who he likes. I won’t delve any further than that as the anime only gives us so much and the rest of this love turmoil between these three characters is covered only in the manga. Probably a sign I should read the manga!

LOOOOOONG NO DIALOGUE MOMENTS: Dude, I know you’re trying to set the mood for certain moments, but I think you can dial it back a bit. This complaint isn’t just what happened at the beginning of episode 9; it took forever to get the main gist of this story in the very first episode. I had no idea what the main premise of the story was until the last five minutes of the first episode when Kasuga stole Saeki’s gym uniform.

Now I’m not knocking serious moments where there is no dialogue between characters for a long period of time and we just watch the animation of them walking or doing something. Hell, Neon Genesis Evangelion had famous scenes like that. But the elevator scene didn’t last six fucking minutes. Neither did the scene where Shinji kills Kaowru. In episode 9, we watch Nakamura and Kasuga walking from the school to home and watch the whole walk after destroying the classroom. I guarantee you, you could leave this episode running, fix yourself a bowl of cereal and toast, eat it up, go to the bathroom to have a good yank, then finish it off with watching a Che Guevara documentary…and Nakamura and Kasuga would still be walking home! I’m exaggerating and I don’t care. I feel like being an asshole here.

OH DEAR GOD, WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!: Very rarely will I ever look at an opening or ending theme song in literal fear. In fact, the last one to be so morbid was with Attack on Titan’s second season ending. I mean, the imagery alone should tell you that this is full of spoilers and possessed by the devil itself. Now that I think about it, that’s still undefeated. But Flowers of Evil’s ending theme is a close fucking second. Have you heard this thing? It sounds like Bjork singing in Japanese, synthesized, while a cat walks on a keyboard and having a seizure at the same time. Thank God there are no actual visuals for this other than the flower featured on Kasuga’s book. I don’t think we can handle anymore animation from this nightmare fuel.

ENDING: The writing is on the wall!

And the floor, the ceiling…that classroom is just a fucking mess!

Kasuga’s one bad deed led to another and another in a domino effect. And instead of a little devil on his shoulder, he has a classmate that’s a sociopath. Kasuga has guilt about hiding so much from Saeki in this relationship and he wants to tell her everything he did. Nakamura says, “Nah, you’re going to write it all over the classroom and let the whole world know what a piece of shit you are”. Let’s just say Nakamura and Kasuga went overboard and completely destroyed their classroom. Kasuga gets a bit of a lucky break as the other vandalism covered up his name on the chalkboard confession. But two people have caught onto Kasuga’s crime, Saeki and Kasuga’s mother.

Saeki put two and two together when she noticed the ink smearing on the ground resembled the flower art work on Kasuga’s book “Flowers of Evil” and her stolen gym uniform was placed right there. As for Kasuga’s mother, she put two and two together when she heard what happened to his classroom and noticed Kasuga’s behavior and dirty clothes from the night of the crime. Won’t be long before everyone knows what Kasuga did.

What now, shit-face?

Run away with Nakamura to the next town. Yeah, why the fuck not?! Saeki ends up tracking them down and tried to convince them to come back and for Kasuga to be truthful. Saeki wants Kasuga and I almost want to say the same, except hanging around this psycho-bitch for a while has caused him to try to stop Nakamura from leaving. Having Saeki see Kasuga go after Nakamura isn’t really a good look! At this point, it really feels like his love for Saeki was nothing more than lust.

Dude, isn’t there a rule about not messing with crazy…like, don’t stick your dick in crazy?! This dude has got one crazy bitch on psycho-yandere levels and the other that’s about to turn into Kotonoha from School Days in about five seconds. Well, no one left town today as the police were called to look for Saeki because her parents are overprotective types and they take the other kids in.

We get a small time-leap of one month after the night in the police station. Nakamura’s been ignoring Kasuga and Kasuga ends his relationship with Saeki. Dude, stop trying to stick your dick in crazy! Kasuga tries to speak to Nakamura again and it fails. So he visits her at home and meets Nakamura’s father and grandmother. Then, he sneaks into her room and reads her private journal that talks about Kasuga a lot. Dude, you are stepping in uncharted territory! Drop the journal and get the fuck out before Nakamura comes home. So Nakamura comes in her room and finds shit-face reading her journal.

*sighs*

First, I would like to acknowledge that Mariya Ise has one hell of a throat to scream as much as this crazy bitch does. Second, the fuck did I just say, ya dumbass?! Here we get another chase scene between Kasuga and Nakamura. What follows is…I can’t place my thoughts on this. Weird imagery, out of place dialogue, and possible scenes of future stuff to happen! A rape scene involving Saeki, a festival, a hideout, a knife, and fire! Thanks for the cryptic message guys, really appreciate it! Either the anime ran out of money or they’re fucking with the audience. Kasuga says he wants to form a contract with Nakamura and that’s the end!

Hmm, this anime came out in 2013 and it is now 2021. All the buildup and no word on a sequel! We all know that sequel ain’t ever coming. You have a better chance of a continuation to Haruhi Suzumiya than you do with this hunk of shit.

Okay, maybe ‘hunk of shit’ is too mean. This wasn’t a terrible anime. It was weird as fuck, the animation leaves a bad impression, but overall it wasn’t that bad. Now the manga to Flowers of Evil is a favorite to many. Probably because the characters don’t look like a cringey meme and there aren’t so many awkward pauses with no dialogue. Unless there’s a whole volume of Flowers of Evil out there where we just look at pictures of Nakamura and Kasuga walking home where they don’t say a fucking thing! I am not letting that go! Charlie Brown movies didn’t go to that level you guys did!

I was interested with each passing episode to see what Nakamura was going to do next and what she was capable of. I couldn’t make out if she was going to be homicidal or suicidal or just impact psychological warfare on her prey. It was the latter for this series, but I heard of some attempted seppuku going down in the manga. I’d like to think maybe one day a different studio would pick up this series, but I seriously doubt it with the rotten reception this adaptation received. It was said that the director to the anime saw this more as a live-action series than an anime and that’s why we have the rotoscope animation. It wasn’t until 2019 that we got a live-action adaptation to Flowers of Evil. Not sure how people felt about that adaptation, but even I have a feeling that it was much better than the anime. Hell, a Netflix adaptation probably would have turned out a better product. It would be nice for this to get a reboot, different studio, different director, and smash everything that has the word ‘rotoscope’ on it

Yeah, if you can get over watching the animation, give it a watch. Episode one drags, but it picks up the second Nakamura confronts Kasuga.

If you would like to watch Flowers of Evil, Crunchyroll and Hidive have all 13 episodes available for streaming.

Okay, now that I’m finished with that sociopathic nightmare let’s pick another Sentai Filmworks anime.

HELL NO! I am not reviewing, “My Teacher Accidentally Made Me Horny”. That’s what I’m calling it and you should all do the same. NEXT!

Okay…I have no idea what the hell this anime is, but it looks harmless enough.

[starwarsnonsense]

Top 10 films of 2019

Here’s my very belated top 10 films of 2019! Note that this is a list of films that were released in the UK theatrically in 2019, meaning it includes certain releases that would be considered to belong to 2018 by others.

Honourable mentions: Joker, Hustlers, Booksmart, A Private War, Fighting With My Family

(And don’t worry - Little Women, 1917 and Uncut Gems are all already on my list for 2020.)

Look out for my most anticipated films of 2020 list, coming soon!

With that out of the way, here’s my list (in ascending order)! Do share your picks in the comments!

10. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)

This is clearly the work of a master filmmaker with much on his mind. In telling the story of Frank Sheeran, Scorsese is telling the story of a man who makes his trade in violence. Instead of elevating Frank as a hero or a figure of glamour, he’s consistently shown to be rather pathetic. He stumbles into the role of hitman for various factions of the criminal underworld, and sticks to it seemingly because it’s what comes most easily to him. The violence enacted by Sheeran is inane and routine, with no thought given to the personal cost until it is far too late. The final 15 minutes of this film show a life petering out with a whimper, laying bare the indignities of old age and the cold, empty horror of enduring it with no company besides your own regrets. The Irishman is a portrait of a life lived badly, and in the hands of anyone besides Scorsese it could have been dry and tedious. Instead, the filmmaking is incredibly assured and the editing is whip-sharp (in Thelma Schoonmaker we trust), making it a pleasure to watch even with the lengthy runtime. 

9. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)

The Farewell is a personal story about a young Asian-American woman (Awkwafina) struggling to reconcile her heritage with her current situation and values - specifically, she is tested when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer and the wider family make the decision to hide the truth from her. The Farewell does a fantastic job of generating empathy for all the different perspectives and positions in play, but it’s truly anchored by Awkwafina’s amazingly nuanced and tender performance - basically, anyone who’s ever loved a grandparent should leave this feeling incredibly moved and inspired. The themes of The Farewell are both specific to the Asian-American experience and general to anyone who has struggled with maintaining bonds over a vast distance, whether physical or cultural. Lulu Wang is an exciting new voice in cinema, and I will watch her career with great interest.           

8. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)

Almodóvar is one of my favourite filmmakers, and one of the reasons I love his work so much is its wild diversity. My favourite from him is The Skin I Live In, a film that could not be more different than Pain & Glory. This is a small, very personal film telling the story of a middle-aged director (Banderas, clearly playing a version of  Almodóvar himself) who’s struggling with his legacy as a filmmaker and the increasing privations attached to middle age. Suffering in the present, Salvador finds himself retreating into memories of his childhood - particularly of his mother (Penelope Cruz) and his first crush. The childhood sequences were where the film really sung for me, perfectly capturing the sun-dappled glow of reminiscences of childhood. And the ending, where  Almodóvar truly shows his hand, is delightfully mischievous and the perfect cap on this very personal picture.

7. Once Upon a Time in ... Hollywood (dir. Quentin Tarantino)

This is a slice of life movie, but while that might call to mind ‘kitchen sink’ dramas, this is unabashedly a ‘slice of life’ movie about Hollywood and the mythology that has developed around it. It’s meandering and feels rather aimless for the bulk of its runtime, but that’s kind of the point. It’s exactly what the title promises in that it recaptures what life was like in a very specific time and in a very specific place - it’s an idealised, loving depiction of the Hollywood of the time, with the movie stars, flawed and fading as they are, cast as heroes menaced by the drugged-up hippies poised to dismantle the status quo. It ends in the fashion you’d expect from Tarantino, but here I found his revisionist approach to history remarkably poignant and effective. Film is a magic medium, with Hollywood serving as the ultimate dream factory - it feels completely right that Tarantino would attempt to use celluloid to right one of the great tragedies of Hollywood history.

6. One Cut of the Dead (dir. Shinichirou Ueda)

I went into this with no expectations whatsoever - and what a treat it was! One Cut of the Dead is easily one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in years, taking what initially seems like a trite concept (a crew is filming a zombie movie at a desolate location ... only to discover that the zombies are real!) and twisting it in a truly ingenious way. The comedy is very broad, but it is consistently delightful and always manages to avoid becoming crass - the movie even has some really sweet family dynamics at the centre of it, which gives it some real emotional heft. The success of this film is heavily reliant on a major twist that occurs part-way through, so the best advice I can give you is to stay as far away from spoilers for this one as possible - go in blind, and you will be amply rewarded for your faith.

5. Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)

I went into this film with reservations, since I wasn’t a huge fan of Hereditary (by the same director), which I found to have extraordinary moments but iffy execution overall. This movie, however, wowed me. While marketed as a freaky/arty horror film, the director has described it as a fairy tale, which is the level on which is spoke to me. Midsommar follows Dani (an incredible Florence Pugh), a young woman who has suffered a terrible loss, as she travels with her boyfriend and his friends to a pagan festival in the Swedish countryside. Dani is painfully isolated, and her grief is hers to shoulder alone since her boyfriend is un-receptive and entirely unprepared to help her. Over the course of the film, destruction and creation are conflated in ways that are both beautiful and horrific - this film spoke to me on a profound level, and the way it ended gave me an incredible sense of catharsis. This won’t be for everyone, for I found it to be a deeply special film. Let’s all raise a toast to the imminent, and much welcome, reign of Florence Pugh.

4. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-Ho)

Parasite is that rare film that more than lives up to the massive hype surrounding it (you don’t get more hyped than winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards!). It’s hard to write about this film without spoilers, since so much of the joy of Parasite lies in discovering what the hell is going on. This is an ‘upstairs downstairs’ movie for the 21st century, where the downstairs people have fierce designs on the lives and pleasures enjoyed by their social superiors. The rich people here are not vilified, though they are depicted as vapid and shallow, perpetually searching for new ways to fill their lives with meaning. Their struggling counterparts from the rough side of the city are struggling only to get by - their lives too hard to allow time for such indulgences. This is a film about the fantasy of social advancement, and the power that dreams have to hold us in thrall to hopeless ambitions. It’s masterfully directed, acted and designed, and it has been extremely gratifying to see it receive such widespread recognition.

3. Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)

I was always going to see this (hey Adam Driver!) but I was entirely unprepared for how great Marriage Story was. Easily Baumbach’s best film, Marriage Story is a masterclass in acting and character writing - it’s fiercely intelligent in how it constantly forces you to reassess what you’re seeing and where your sympathies lie. Does Charlie seem like an oblivious, navel-gazing asshole? Sure, but he’s also confused and vulnerable and thrown entirely off balance by his awakening consciousness of his wife’s dreams and ambitions. Nicole is self-effacing and self-denying, as so many women are, which makes her emerging confidence and newfound sense of direction incredibly satisfying to witness. In the second half of Marriage Story, Driver’s Charlie undoubtedly takes the spotlight - it’s clear to me that he becomes the focus largely because he continues to flounder as Nicole finds her footing. Baumbach, wisely I feel, is most interested in his characters when they’re lost, struggling to be better but barely understanding what that means. Even if you don’t sympathise with Charlie by the end of Marriage Story, I can promise you will come away with a thorough understanding of him thanks to Driver’s extraordinary performance. Superlative work, all round. (It’s also, just for the record, the only film of 2019 to make me cry.)

2. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)

This is the 2019 film I am most excited to see again (it’s coming out in a week in the UK - I’m so excited!). Sciamma’s film is an incredibly moving and deeply beautiful love story, depicting how a female artist in 18th century France falls in love with the woman she has been covertly employed to paint. Portrait is very much a film about the act of looking, and in many ways it’s the ultimate female gaze film - it’s all about women looking at women, as depicted by a female filmmaker. Gazes are political as much as they’re romantic - here, our two heroines drink each other, aware of exactly how dangerous and forbidden their mutual intoxication is. The woozy thrall of their relationship is exquisitely conveyed through the cinematography and direction, and the final shot - which I won’t spoil - is an all-timer that serves as an exquisite coda to the entire film. This is a truly superb film, and I’m still incensed that it received no substantial awards recognition. Let’s hope it goes down in film history as the masterpiece it is, yet another omission proving the limitations of the Oscars as a metric for great art.

1. The Favourite (dir.  Yorgos Lanthimos)

This completely wowed me, and against all the odds it stuck with me as the best film I saw in 2019 - it features a trio of magnificently compelling female characters (played by Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone) operating at the court of Queen Anne (Colman is Anne, Weisz and Stone are courtiers), and is laser-focused on the shifting sands of the power dynamics between them. The script is savage without sacrificing poignancy, witty without ceasing to be emotionally honest. And while I’ve seen some react to this film as a comedy (and it certainly has laughs, most of which are tightly packaged with shock), for me it was very clearly a drama about the inscrutable and complicated relationships that exist between women. Specifically, it is about how those relationships run the gamut from sincere affinity to ruthless manipulation. This is a spectacular movie, visually and thematically rich in every frame, and it also has the best use of an Elton John song in 2019 (sorry, Rocketman!).

Fly away, skyline pigeon fly, towards the things you’ve left so very, so very far, behind.

[newsintheshell]

So I’m a Spider, So What?: svelati un nuovo trailer, cast e staff dell’anime in arrivo a gennaio

La serie animata tratta dal fantasy isekai di Baba Okina verrà distribuita in simulcast da Crunchyroll.

Pubblicati una nuova locandina e un secondo trailer di “So I’m a Spider, So What?” (Kumo desu ga, Nani ka?), il quale ci dà un altro assaggio dell’attesa serie animata (sono passati più di due anni dal suo annuncio) tratta dal romanzo fantasy isekai di Baba Okina, confermandone il debutto per l’8 gennaio 2021.

L’anime verrà distribuita in simulcast da Crunchyroll e andrà in onda per due cour consecutivi, quindi possiamo aspettarci un format da 24 o 25 episodi.

Svelati anche i bozzetti e i principali membri del cast.

Kumoko: Aoi Yuuki (Tanya Degurechaff in Saga of Tanya the Evil)

Schlain Zagan Analeit (Shun): Shun Horie (Kazuya Kinoshita in Rent-A-Girlfriend)

Karnatia Seri Anabald (Katia): Nao Touyama (Rin Shima in Laid-Back Camp)

Hugo Baint Renxandt: Kaito Ishikawa (Naofumi Iwatani in The Rising of the Shield Hero)

Suelecia Zagan Analeit (Sue): Yui Ogura (Sana Futaba in Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story)

Feirune (Fei): Eri Kitamura (Made in Abyss)

Filimøs Harrifenas: Kaya Okuno (Karen Araragi in Bakemonogatari)

Yurin Ullen (Yuri): Aimi Tanaka (Umaru Doma in Himouto! Umaru-chan)

Julius Zagan Analeit: Junya Enoki (Yuuji Itadori in Jujutsu Kaisen)

Annunciato ufficialmente anche lo staff al lavoro sull’adattamento presso lo studio Millepensee (Cop Craft, Wake Up, Girls!). La serie è diretta da Shin Itagaki (Teekyū, Berserk 2016, Cop Craft) con l’assistenza di Shinichirou Ueda (direttore generale di One Room Second Season), la sceneggiatura è curata da Yuuichirou Momose (Infinite Dendrogram, My Sister My Writer) con la supervisione di Okina Baba stesso, mentre il character design è ad opera di Kie Tanaka (Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu, Hinomaru Sumo) . Le parti in computer grafica sono prodotte da Exsa e ENGI. Le musiche per la colonna sonora sono invece composte da Shuji Katayama (Overlord, Saga of Tanya the Evil). 

Ho sentito un dolore intenso, ho chiuso gli occhi... e quando li ho riaperti non ero più una liceale, ma un ragno in un dungeon di un altro mondo! Ehi, di solito non è così che vanno queste storie! Non solo sono un ragno - la specie sul gradino più basso della scala alimentare -  ma mi sono ritrovata sperduta nel peggior luogo possibile, un labirinto in cui scorrazzano rane velenose, serpenti giganti e perfino draghi?!

Questa è la storia della straordinaria strategia per la sopravvivenza di una ragazza dalla volontà d’acciaio!

La light novel viene serializzata dal 2015 ed è corredata delle illustrazioni realizzate da Tsukasa Kiryuu. L’opera si è posizionata al secondo posto nella classifica Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! del 2018 e attualmente conta 13 volumi.

Sempre dal 2015 viene pubblicata anche una versione manga, disegnata da Asahiro Kakashi e giunta da poco al 9° volumetto, edita in Italia da J-POP Manga. 

* NON VUOI PERDERTI NEANCHE UN POST? ENTRA NEL CANALE TELEGRAM! *

Autore: SilenziO))) (@s1lenzi0)

[FONTE]

[ansatsu-sha]

One Cut of the Dead (2017) / Director Shinichirou Ueda