Tag Archives: critique

Japanese movie review: “百瀬、こっちを向いて” (My pretend girlfriend)

I’ve seen my share of Japanese movies, especially romances. There are those with dramatic tragic settings (like a fatal heart condition,etc.), or those with a fantasy element, but what most of these movies share in common is they usually extremely unrealistic. What I loved about “My pretend girlfriend”, released in 2014 by Suurkiitos, is that it… Read More »

Japanese Novel Review: ”オレたちバブル入行組” (Oretachi baburu nyuukougumi) [Hanzawa Naoki Series]

In the continuing quest to improve my Japanese reading skills and experience various facets of Japanese culture, I’ve been reading different types of books over the last few years. The genres range from children’s picture books to classics like Ningen Shikkaku. My latest challenge was the book “オレたちバブル入行組” (Oretachi baburu nyuukougumi) by Jun Ikeido (池井戸潤), which began serialization… Read More »

Japanese book review: 99 Tears (99のなみだ)

We received “99 Tears” as a gift and since it was a relatively thin paperback book I decided to try it out. It’s a set of 12 short stories, each written by a different Japanese author.  The settings and characters are all different, but they all share an emphasis on interpersonal relations, especially those with family.… Read More »