James Hadfield
@jameshadfield.bsky.social
Tokyo-based word mangler. [email protected]
I post gig listings and the other drivel at https://tokyodross.blogspot.com/
I post gig listings and the other drivel at https://tokyodross.blogspot.com/
So psyched for Season 5 of Stranger Things.
November 9, 2025 at 8:49 AM
So psyched for Season 5 of Stranger Things.
I spoke to Paul Schrader and Alan Poul about the Japan premiere of MISHIMA: A LIFE IN FOUR CHAPTERS for the JT. There will be additional screenings of the film in Tokyo this weekend, tickets for which go on sale at noon today.
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
A 40-year wait for ‘Mishima’ ends at TIFF
Paul Schrader’s 1985 biopic of the radical author Yukio Mishima finds its Japanese audience at last.
www.japantimes.co.jp
November 7, 2025 at 1:12 AM
I spoke to Paul Schrader and Alan Poul about the Japan premiere of MISHIMA: A LIFE IN FOUR CHAPTERS for the JT. There will be additional screenings of the film in Tokyo this weekend, tickets for which go on sale at noon today.
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
I thought Oudai Kojima’s FLAMES OF A FLOWER (火の華) was flawed but interesting the first time I saw it. Fortunately I had to wait nearly a year to review it, because I liked it more the second time around.
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘Flames of a Flower’: A bold interrogation of Japan’s pacifist identity
Oudai Kojima’s PTSD drama turned politically charged thriller takes aim at Japan’s postwar contradictions.
www.japantimes.co.jp
November 1, 2025 at 12:40 AM
I thought Oudai Kojima’s FLAMES OF A FLOWER (火の華) was flawed but interesting the first time I saw it. Fortunately I had to wait nearly a year to review it, because I liked it more the second time around.
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
I’m not going to be able to watch as much as I would’ve liked at Tokyo International Film Festival this year, but here are some disjointed thoughts on what I’ve seen so far…
October 31, 2025 at 7:13 AM
I’m not going to be able to watch as much as I would’ve liked at Tokyo International Film Festival this year, but here are some disjointed thoughts on what I’ve seen so far…
I had a blast watching Toshiaki Toyoda’s TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS (次元を越える), which opens in Japan tomorrow. Here's my review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘Transcending Dimensions’: A wild trip to enlightenment
Toshiaki Toyoda’s latest feature is a spiritual odyssey with punk energy and cosmic chaos.
www.japantimes.co.jp
October 16, 2025 at 11:32 AM
I had a blast watching Toshiaki Toyoda’s TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS (次元を越える), which opens in Japan tomorrow. Here's my review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Made an effort to get to Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival early this year but didn’t factor in the monster jet lag. Let’s see if I can actually stay awake through anything.
October 10, 2025 at 3:58 AM
Made an effort to get to Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival early this year but didn’t factor in the monster jet lag. Let’s see if I can actually stay awake through anything.
The punning title of HOKUSAI'S DAUGHTER (おーい、応為) got lost in translation, but Tatsushi Omori's biopic has plenty going for it, including strong performances by Masami Nagasawa and Masatoshi Nagase. My review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘Hokusai’s Daughter’ captures the ferocity of a forgotten painter
Masami Nagasawa delivers one of her most compelling performances yet in Tatsushi Omori’s historical biopic.
www.japantimes.co.jp
October 9, 2025 at 9:21 AM
The punning title of HOKUSAI'S DAUGHTER (おーい、応為) got lost in translation, but Tatsushi Omori's biopic has plenty going for it, including strong performances by Masami Nagasawa and Masatoshi Nagase. My review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Reposted by James Hadfield
repost this if an editor has ever saved you from yourself
An actual hot take: Too many authors are afraid of editors watering down their voice or whatever and not afraid enough of editors letting you put any old slop on the page.
October 8, 2025 at 10:44 PM
repost this if an editor has ever saved you from yourself
Realised on our final day in Madrid that we were staying near the venerable Cine Doré, so naturally that’s where we ended up spending the evening. Watched the restored version of José Antonio Nieves Conde’s EL INQUILINO, which was a cracker (even with my cruddy Spanish comprehension).
October 6, 2025 at 6:13 AM
Realised on our final day in Madrid that we were staying near the venerable Cine Doré, so naturally that’s where we ended up spending the evening. Watched the restored version of José Antonio Nieves Conde’s EL INQUILINO, which was a cracker (even with my cruddy Spanish comprehension).
Kakuhan and Adam Golabiewski at Unsound Osaka. Videos are a bit crap, but this was one of the highlights of the festival for me.
September 8, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Kakuhan and Adam Golabiewski at Unsound Osaka. Videos are a bit crap, but this was one of the highlights of the festival for me.
I’m staying in Osaka this weekend and had time to kill, so I went to watch 28 Years Later at a rundown cinema near my hotel. Thought there was something amiss when they played the first 10 minutes of the film with the sound and visuals way out of sync and nobody got up to complain.
September 6, 2025 at 5:33 AM
I’m staying in Osaka this weekend and had time to kill, so I went to watch 28 Years Later at a rundown cinema near my hotel. Thought there was something amiss when they played the first 10 minutes of the film with the sound and visuals way out of sync and nobody got up to complain.
Since I seem to spend most of my time on here talking shit about Japanese films, let me just say that Mipo Oh's HOW DARE YOU? (ふつうの子ども) is delightful, and gets surprising mileage out of a 6-year-old Greta meme. Here's Mark's review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘How Dare You’ turns environmental activism into a youthful adventure
In her latest film, director Mipo Oh brings a serious edge to the lighthearted hijinks of three kids trying to save the world from environmental collapse, one prank at a time.
www.japantimes.co.jp
September 5, 2025 at 5:34 AM
Since I seem to spend most of my time on here talking shit about Japanese films, let me just say that Mipo Oh's HOW DARE YOU? (ふつうの子ども) is delightful, and gets surprising mileage out of a 6-year-old Greta meme. Here's Mark's review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Good to see Netflix Japan acknowledging one of its proudest legacies: keeping Pierre Taki in regular work when the big TV networks wouldn’t touch him.
September 4, 2025 at 5:47 AM
Good to see Netflix Japan acknowledging one of its proudest legacies: keeping Pierre Taki in regular work when the big TV networks wouldn’t touch him.
Kei Ishikawa's A PALE VIEW OF HILLS comes out in Japan this week, and it's a good example of the "new literalism" Namwali Serpell wrote about in that notorious New Yorker article from earlier in the year (probably better than most of the examples Serpell actually cited). gaga.ne.jp/yamanami/
映画『遠い山なみの光』
『遠い山なみの光』広瀬すず 二階堂ふみ 吉田羊 原作：カズオ・イシグロ「遠い山なみの光」（ハヤカワ文庫） 監督・脚本・編集：石川慶 9.5（金）
gaga.ne.jp
September 3, 2025 at 1:26 AM
Kei Ishikawa's A PALE VIEW OF HILLS comes out in Japan this week, and it's a good example of the "new literalism" Namwali Serpell wrote about in that notorious New Yorker article from earlier in the year (probably better than most of the examples Serpell actually cited). gaga.ne.jp/yamanami/
Weird bit of synchronicity today, when the book I was reading on the way to the cinema contained a reference to the source novel of the film I was about to watch.
August 26, 2025 at 1:48 PM
Weird bit of synchronicity today, when the book I was reading on the way to the cinema contained a reference to the source novel of the film I was about to watch.
Kokesaku at Koenji Awa-Odori yesterday.
August 24, 2025 at 4:20 AM
Kokesaku at Koenji Awa-Odori yesterday.
I liked Yoshihiko Taniguchi’s HAPPY LIFE (嬉々な生活) when I saw it during SKIP City last year, but wondered if it would stand up to a repeat viewing. Turns out I needn't have worried. Here's my review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘Happy Life’ brings dignity to family’s struggle with grief and poverty
Yoshihiko Taniguchi’s film balances realism and compassion in its depiction of a family adrift after a sudden death.
www.japantimes.co.jp
August 22, 2025 at 2:33 AM
I liked Yoshihiko Taniguchi’s HAPPY LIFE (嬉々な生活) when I saw it during SKIP City last year, but wondered if it would stand up to a repeat viewing. Turns out I needn't have worried. Here's my review: www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
What’s a classic novel that you consider a banger? Asking because I just finished “Middlemarch” and it absolutely qualifies.
August 20, 2025 at 1:29 PM
What’s a classic novel that you consider a banger? Asking because I just finished “Middlemarch” and it absolutely qualifies.
This year's Soul Beat Asia (aka 橋の下大盆踊り) was a glorious experience. Not sure photos can do it justice, but here are a few.
August 18, 2025 at 8:14 AM
This year's Soul Beat Asia (aka 橋の下大盆踊り) was a glorious experience. Not sure photos can do it justice, but here are a few.
We've got an absolutely stacked lineup for the next edition of Fashion Crisis on Friday 29th, with live music by David Thomas Broughton and Rob Noyes (presumably not together, but who knows?), and guest DJs Sawari On and Kyo.
August 18, 2025 at 1:13 AM
We've got an absolutely stacked lineup for the next edition of Fashion Crisis on Friday 29th, with live music by David Thomas Broughton and Rob Noyes (presumably not together, but who knows?), and guest DJs Sawari On and Kyo.
I sat through YUKIKAZE twice just to make sure it deserved a one-star review. It did! www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
‘Yukikaze’ turns fabled warship into floating snoozefest
The story of a “lucky” Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer that survived World War II is given a lightly fictionalized treatment in Toshihisa Yamada's first feature.
www.japantimes.co.jp
August 14, 2025 at 4:53 AM
I sat through YUKIKAZE twice just to make sure it deserved a one-star review. It did! www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Damn, Shinjuku's Cinema Qualite is set to close next January. It's insanely cramped and has one of the most peculiarly shaped auditoriums in the whole of Tokyo, but I'm going to miss this place. qualite.musashino-k.jp/news/26804/
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qualite.musashino-k.jp
August 7, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Damn, Shinjuku's Cinema Qualite is set to close next January. It's insanely cramped and has one of the most peculiarly shaped auditoriums in the whole of Tokyo, but I'm going to miss this place. qualite.musashino-k.jp/news/26804/
I binge watched Netflix's Glass Heart so you don't have to. www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
'Glass Heart’: A flashy rock fairytale scrubbed of grit
Netflix’s drama series about a musical genius forming Japan’s hottest new band is glossy, shallow and strangely sanitized.
www.japantimes.co.jp
August 7, 2025 at 3:49 AM
I binge watched Netflix's Glass Heart so you don't have to. www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Faceb**k just reminded me of the most epic moment I've ever witnessed at Fuji Rock. 15 years ago!
August 6, 2025 at 6:52 AM
Faceb**k just reminded me of the most epic moment I've ever witnessed at Fuji Rock. 15 years ago!
Just watched MAHANAGAR and ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT back to back at Bunkamura Le Cinéma and I’ve got to say, that was an absurdly good double bill.
August 3, 2025 at 10:01 AM
Just watched MAHANAGAR and ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT back to back at Bunkamura Le Cinéma and I’ve got to say, that was an absurdly good double bill.