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Monthly Screenings

Aki-no: Japanese Film Festival 2023

Love Life

Dir.: Kōji Fukada
| 123 minutes

Taeko and Jiro lead a peaceful life together with Taeko’s 6-year-old son. When tragedy strikes the young family, her ex-husband reinserts himself into their lives. In this remarkable family drama, Kōji Fukada creates an emotional vortex with flawed characters that one cannot help but feel sympathy for.

Small, Slow but Steady

Dir.: Sho Miyake
| 99 minutes

A hearing impaired woman’s path to becoming a professional boxer is threatened by the looming closure of her boxing club. Small, Slow but Steady is a small and reflexive work, a “tender heartbreaker of a boxing movie” (Variety).

A Man

Dir.: Kei Ishikawa
| 121 minutes

A recent widow discovers that her husband was an impostor. In the guise of a detective film, A Man takes us on a journey through questions of identity and belonging. The result is a drama that explores the motives that actuate its heroes.

A Hundred Flowers

Dir.: Genki Kawamara
| 104 minutes

After his mother is diagnosed with dementia, Izumi is forced to accompany her in her descent into oblivion. This is a tender and compassionate depiction of the process of dealing with the aging and forgetfulness of a parent, evoking multifaceted thoughts and emotions.

My Small Land

Dir.: Emma Kawawada
| 114 minutes

Through the story of 17-year-old Sarya, a Kurdish refugee, and her family seeking refugee status in Japan, Emma Kawawada successfully turns the refugee question from a principled and political matter into a human and heartfelt account that captures the heart and mind.

Just Remembering

Dir.: Daigo Matsui
| 115 minutes

A former couple looks back at the significant and intimate times they shared. In this tribute to Jim Jarmusch’s Night on Earth, Daigo Matsui treads between the timeline, keeping a reflective style that offers moments of couplehood and tenderness.

Plan 75

Dir.: Chie Hayakawa
| 112 minutes

Japan, in the near future, government program Plan 75 encourages senior citizens to be voluntarily euthanized to remedy a super-aged society. “This dystopian debut about aging and euthanasia in Japan is moving and understated” (Screen), a remarkable, thought-provoking, and elegant work.

Let Me Hear It Barefoot

Dir.: Kudō Riho
| 128 minutes

Two young men embark on an imaginary journey around the world, from which they send voicemails. This is a gentle film depicting the Japanese millennial generation trying to find itself in a tangle of indecision, social pressure, and a sense of abnormality.

Popuran

Dir.: Shinichiro Ueda
| 96 minutes

An unidentifiable object zips through the sky. A suspicious looking man holding a net suddenly appears, trying to catch the thing that ran away from him. He must catch that high-speed "buddy" within six days or he will lose it forever.

Off-Beat Cops

Dir.: Eiji Uchida
| 119 minutes

When a tough veteran Japanese police detective breaks the rules one too many times, he is sent to a special department: the police band. Eiji Uchida blends the detective genre and the musical into a delightful and charming comedy.

The Zen Diary

Dir.: Yuji Nakae
| 111 minutes

A writer, who lives alone in a cabin in the mountains and cooks his meals from the ingredients he collected, struggles to part with the ashes of his deceased wife. A beautiful and heartfelt film that extraordinarily explores life and death.

The Wandering Moon

Dir.: Sang-il Lee
| 150 minutes

A young student that gives shelter to a 10-year-old girl is arrested on suspicion of pedophilia. When they meet again 15 years later, their relationship rekindles. The emotionally saturated cinematography and the tremendous performance elevate this moral melodrama into an exceptional and powerful film.