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A stage adaptation of Orb: On The Movements Of The Earth (Chi: Chikyu No Undo Ni Tsuite), based on Uoto’s manga, has been announced.

The production will premiere in October at Tokyo’s New National Theatre, with a tour scheduled for November.

The play will be directed by Avshalom Pollak, with a script by Keishi Nagatsuka. The music is composed by Umitaro Abe, while Ella Rothschild will handle the choreography.

A visual was revealed to commemorate the announcement.

While the cast members have also been revealed, the roles they will play are yet to be revealed. The cast can be viewed below:

Masataka Kubota Toko Miura Yusuke Onuki Mitsuru Fukikoshi Songha Mirai Moriyama

Commenting on the adaptation, original author Uoto expressed excitement about seeing the manga’s panels transformed for the stage.

“I am truly honored. I’m simply looking forward to seeing how the ‘panels’ of the manga transform into a ‘stage’ production!

Uoto's historical mystery manga Orb: On the Movements of the Earth is wrapping up its anime adaptation as the winter season comes to a close. But the story will come to life once again later this year—this time as a stage play! The upcoming stage adaptation will feature talent from around the world, bringing renowned creative minds together to tell the story of scientific discovery in Medieval Europe. A poster for the production has been revealed: Related: Requiem of the Rose King Stage Musical Unveils New Key Visual Six cast members have also been attached, although their specific roles have not yet been confirmed: From left to right, the cast so far consists of: Top Row Masataka Kubota Toko Miura Yusuke Onuki Bottom Row Mitsuru Fukikoshi Songha Mirai Moriyama Israeli actor-director Avshalom Pollak is attached to direct, with Keishi Nagatsuka penning the script. Penguin Highway composer Umitaro Abe...

The Orb: On the Movements of the Earth manga ran from 2020 to 2022 and was compiled in just eight volumes; a much smaller number than most major titles. Still, the manga became a proper cult classic with a loyal and devoted following, which was increased thanks to the anime adaptation.

And while the anime never reached the level of popularity of major mainstream titles, it drew solid numbers and while the anime ended on March 15, 2025, the franchise will continue, as a stage play has been confirmed for October.

Related: ‘Orb: On the Movements of the Earth’ Anime Adds Shōya Ishige

The stage play, titled Butai Chi -Chikyū no Undō ni Tsuite- (Stage Orb: On the Movements of the Earth), will have its premiere in October at the New National Theatre in Tokyo. The official poster has been revealed:

The cast will consist of Masataka Kubota, Tōko Miura, Yūsuke Ōnuki, Mitsuru Fukikoshi,...

Hideo Jojo's career began directing pink films before gradually expanding beyond erotic productions. Projects like “On the Edge of Their Seats” would demonstrate his range as a filmmaker whose work can reach a wider audience. However, a recent feature of his, “Twilight Cinema Blues,” is a mixed bag. It's a well-intended, feel-good drama with a promising set-up that occasionally delivers, yet it comes out being, at best, passable.

Twilight Cinema Blues is screening at Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme

Kondo returns to his hometown and is down on his luck, currently homeless and in debt. Yet, he forms a friendship with similarly struggling locals, including a homeless man and a group of people desperately trying to keep a movie theater in business. Things pick up when the lead takes a part-time job in the theater and is allowed to live there. Despite their differences, they warm up to each other,...

Following the success of “Noise”, Yusaku Matsumoto had some trouble coming up with his next movie, instead opting to deal in shorts and TV. This changed in 2022, with “All My Fault”, which was, though, definitely on a lower level than his aforementioned debut. As such, it is with great pleasure to see that he is back in form with “Winny”, a court drama focusing on the homonymous copyright infringement criminal case, the first in which a computer program developer faced a criminal charge for assisting in the copyright infringement of the program's users.

Winny is screening at Japan Cuts

The film follows the actual events quite closely, starting with the two arrests of Winny users, which eventually led to the apprehension of the actual developer of the program, Isamu Kaneko, a 33-year-old assistant professor at the University of Tokyo who is also the main protagonist of the movie. At the same time,...

On the occasion of his film “Winny” screening at Japan Cuts, we speak about his career after “Noise” and until now, the actual case the movie is based on, his opinion on copyright and the web, the research he did for the movie and his interactions with the actual team of lawyers, shooting the court scenes, working with Masahiro Higashide (particularly after the scandal involving him), Takahiro Miura and Mitsuru Fukikoshi, the editing of the movie, the Japanese movie industry and his plans moving forward.

彼の映画「Winny」がJapan Cutsで上映されることを記念して、「Noise」以降から現在までのキャリア、映画の実際の事件に基づく興味、著作権とウェブに対する彼の意見、映画のためのリサーチと実際の弁護士チームとの交流、裁判場面の撮影、東出昌大（特にスキャンダル後）、三浦貴大、吹越満との仕事、映画の編集、日本映画産業、そして今後の計画について話し合います。...

Despite the fact that Kenichi Ugana usually follows genre paths in his filmmaking, his will to change styles is also evident throughout his body of work, which we have been covering since 2018 and “Good-Bye Silence”. His latest work, “Love Will Tear Us Apart” amusingly goes into slasher territory, in a movie that had its world premiere at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival and won the Grand Prix at the Portland Horror Film Festival.

“Love Will Tear Us Apart” review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative

The film begins in an elementary school, where we are introduced to Wakaba, a girl who has to face her father's aggressive behavior, along with her mother. Probably due to this, when she sees one of her classmates, Koki, being bullied in school, she decides to help him, in a decision, though, that ends up with both of them being bullied by two particular students,...

A tragicomedy about the relationships of a group of people set in a movie theatre that is about to go under. Kondo (Keisuke Koide) is a penniless young man who returns to Ginpei-cho, a town where he spent his youth. He meets Sato (Shohei Uno), who is homeless but loves movies, and Kajiwara (Mitsuru Fukikoshi), the manager of a movie theatre. After deciding to work part-time at the theatre, Kondo faces his past and his own demons through encounters with his co-workers, customers, experienced projectionists, unsuccessful actors and musicians as well as junior high school students dreaming of the world of movies.

Hideo Jojo certainly enjoyed a successful 2022 with three movie releases: Love Nonetheless, To be Killed by a High School Girl and Believers. His latest movie is scheduled to open in Japan on February 10, 2023.

How much our lives can get destroyed just by plain coincidence or the particularly bad string of coincidences? It is an ages-long philosophical question that has been treated in movies practically from the beginning. Japanese auteur Koji Fukada, however, does not take the usual path to tell this kind of story. It is not a mystery or a thriller, it is a psychological drama focused on one singular character in the midst of the turmoil. “A Girl Missing” premiered in Locarno and we caught it at Viennale.

“A Girl Missing” is screening at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema

The character here is Ichiko, whom we meet as Risa Uchida, a widow looking for a change in her life. She says that directly to her hairdresser Kazumichi (Ikematsu Sosuke), explaining that she chose him because of his last name he shares with her late husband. The two of them...

Throughout the history of the genre, from literature to film, the samurai has always been a representative of a strict hierarchical social order but also a code, the bushido, which defines him, and he has to obey. While also repeatedly seen as a victim of both of these concepts, it has often been the case the samurai was regarded a hero-like figure, at times precisely because he obeyed the bushido or would not let his master down. In many ways the samurai is a reflection of Japanese society and its virtues, and also how these have changed in each decade. One of the most interesting entries because of its portrayal of this particular warrior and fighter has to be Yoji Yamada’s 2002 feature “The Twilight Samurai”, a movie which has been repeatedly praised by critics and received a plethora of awards, such as 12 Japanese Academy Awards. With its story taking...

One of the most intriguing careers to track this past decade has been that of Kōji Fukada. Gaining international acclaim with his Cannes prize-winning family drama Harmonium, the Japanese director followed it up with A Girl Missing, a slow-burn mystery thriller that premiered at Locarno Film Festival last year and went on to play at the Toronto International Film Festival and the New York Film Festival. Now set for a release in Virtual Cinemas nationwide beginning this Friday, we’re pleased to debut the exclusive trailer courtesy of Film Movement.

The film follows two timelines, both featuring Mariko Tsutsui’s character. In one, she works as a home nurse for a family, but one of their granddaughters goes missing and someone in the family may be involved. In another timeline, she forms a relationship with a younger hairdresser. One of the film’s many pleasures lies in Fukada’s specific...

A Girl Missing director Kôji Fukada seated in front of posters for James Crump’s Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex Fashion & Disco and Atsuko Hirayanagi’s Oh Lucy! at Film Movement Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Kôji Fukada’s A Girl Missing (Yokogao), shot by Ken'ichi Negishi (Akihiro Toda’s Neko Ni Mikan), stars Mariko Tsutsui with Mikako Ichikawa, Miyu Ogawa, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Sôsuke Ikematsu, and Ren Sudo. Fukada’s Harmonium won the Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury Prize in 2016 and he is also the director of The Man From The Sea and Au Revoir L’Été. At Film Movement in New York I spoke with Kôji about his love of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, how some say his heroine resembles Golden Globe winner Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker in Todd Phillips’ movie, unravelling societal conventions, and what he did to create the sound design in post-production.

Motoko (Mikako Ichikawa) with Ichiko (Mariko...

How much our lives can get destroyed just by plain coincidence or the particularly bad string of coincidences? It is an ages-long philosophical question that has been treated in movies practically from the beginning. Japanese auteur Koji Fukada, however, does not take the usual path to tell this kind of story. It is not a mystery or a thriller, it is a psychological drama focused on one singular character in the midst of the turmoil. “A Girl Missing” premiered in Locarno and we caught it at Viennale.

“A Girl Missing” is screening at Viennale

The character here is Ichiko, whom we meet as Risa Uchida, a widow looking for a change in her life. She says that directly to her hairdresser Kazumichi (Ikematsu Sosuke), explaining that she chose him because of his last name he shares with her late husband. The two of them commence a friendly relationship that might turn into something more romantic,...

Mariko Tsutsui stars as home-care nurse embroiled in kidnapping aftermath.

Film Movement has snapped up North American rights to Kôji Fukada’s Tiff selection A Girl Missing ahead of its North American premiere tomorrow (9).

The acquisition bulks up the distributor’s slate of Tiff titles that includes Dian Yi’nan’s Chinese gangland noir The Wild Goose Lake, Bertrand Bonello’s horror-fantasy Zombi Child, and Hlynur Palmason’s A White, White Day.

Mariko Tsutsui plays a home-care nurse to an elderly matriarch whose relationship with the family is threatened when her nephew is arrested for the kidnapping of one of the family’s daughters.

The intriguing ambiguity suffusing Kôji Fukada’s “Harmonium” returns to a certain degree in “A Girl Missing,” but this time the writer-director neglects to reinforce onscreen relationships, resulting in a disappointing and unmoving drama of how a good woman’s life is shattered by keeping quiet. Thankfully, actress Mariko Tsutsui, who played the wife in “Harmonium,” exudes an intriguing off-kilter combination of sympathy and mystery as a visiting nurse whose world is changed drastically when her nephew abducts a girl she’s been mentoring, yet unfortunately the lack of script support undercuts audience involvement far more than the parallel timelines. Fukada’s reputation on the festival circuit guarantees a certain amount of play but is unlikely to win the director new fans.

An excellent opening ramps up expectations through a gratifying combination of confident filmmaking and skilled performances, playing on the potential for intimacy between a hairdresser and a first-time client.

Loosely based on the Saitama serial murders of dog lovers, a case of a married couple who owned a pet shop and murdered at least four people, “Cold Fish” gave Sono the opportunity to present his version of how a serial killer film ought to be like.

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Syamoto is a humble and guileless exotic fish shop owner who is taken advantage of by both his spoiled daughter, Mitsuko and his second wife, Taeko. His daughter is an underage delinquent who spends her time flirting and sometimes beating her stepmother. One night, a grocery shop attendant catches her stealing; however, a peculiarly friendly man, Murata, manages to convince the clerk not to call the police. Furthermore, he is also an exotic fish shop owner and offers to hire Mitsuko in his establishment, which is far larger than Syamoto’s. Moreover, when Murata, who has become a friend of Syamoto,...

“It’s bad for your health thinking about revenge and killing all the time.”

Japanese director Hiroyuki Nakano had directed several music videos for artists like Tomoyasu Hotei (who also plays the part of the villain in “Samurai Fiction”), Dee-Lite and Bjork but had always wanted to make a feature film. During the shooting of a music video for drum and bass artist Photok, Nakano was reminded of the great samurai Musashi Miyamoto, who has developed his famous two sword-technique observing drummers during a village celebration. With the additional inspiration from the works of Shugoro Yamamoto, whose work had also inspired the film by Akira Kurosawa, Nakano slowly developed the idea for a modern samurai film, which would blend the ideas the samurai and the times they lived in stood for but which would also use a modern sensibility, music, editing and use of camera.

The second...

Stars: Takayuki Yamada, Howard Harris, Fumi Nikaidô, Shôta Sometani, Hideaki Itô, Ruth Sundell, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Rio Kanno, Yukito Nishii, Ken’ichi Takitô, Daniel Genalo, Noriko Nakagoshi, Erina Mizuno, Fujiko Kojima, Kento Hayashi | Written and Directed by Takashi Miike

I learnt from watching Audition that you never take Takashi Miike movies at face value, he won’t let you. That movie was my introduction into the twisted world of the director, and this is the reason he has quickly become one of my favourites. From horror to gangsters, historical and even school movies like Crows Zero he shows a flexibility and an ability to bring fun to his work, while also masterfully handling the extremes. Lesson of Evil is a movie that risks coming across as boring especially in the first half when it is setting the scene for the violence to come. Whether you find it dull or the characters interest you,...

After walking into the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year with his utterly awful thriller/police procedural "Shield Of Straw" (our review), it was a reminder that for all of the Japanese auteur's frenetic, groundbreaking films, he has just as many that are forgettable stinkers. The hit to miss ratio for the filmmaker tends to be pretty balanced, and while we'll have to see just where "Mogura no Uta" ends up, there's no denying it hints at the energy and verve of some of his better movies. Based on the manga by Noboru Takahashi, the premise is right up his alley, with Toma Ikuta, Shinichi Tsutsumi, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Ren Osugi, Takayuki Yamada, Takashi Okamura, Yusuke Kamiji and Riisa Naka starring in the "The Departed"/"Infernal Affairs"-esque plot about a cop infiltrating a criminal organization from the inside. As these teaser bears out, stuff will apparently get pretty wild and colorful,...

Last year, director Shion Sono chose to film his live-action adaptation of Himizu in an area devastated by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, incorporating the effects of disaster into the story. With his next film, The Land of Hope, he’s going a step further by making a human drama about a family living within the evacuation radius of a damaged nuclear power plant during the disaster.

It was previously known that the story would focus on three primary couples played by Isao Natsuyagi, Naoko Otani, Jun Murakami, Megumi Kagurazaka, Yutaka Shimizu, and Hikari Kajiwara—with Denden playing someone with important ties to the main family. Today it was revealed that Daikichi Sugawara, Takashi Yamanaka, and Kenzo Kawarazaki would also star.

Additionally, the film will boast a fairly large cast of established actors in smaller supporting roles including Yusuke Iseya, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Fusako Urabe, Gitan Ohtsuru, Satoshi Matsuo, Shiro Namiki,...

“Tsumetai Nettaigyo” is Sion Sono’s and Yoshiki Takahashi’s latest screenplay directed by Sono himself. I’ve always really liked the way Sono films his scenes. It often feels as if we, the audience, see what his characters see; kind of like seeing directly through their eyes, standing where they stand, etc. He manages to put you in the scene with his actors. Amazing technique.

“Cold Fish” is apparently based on a true story and it starts like this: Nobuyuki Shamoto, a tropical fish store owner (Mitsuru Fukikoshi); Taeko, his new wife (Megumi Kagurazaka); and his daughter Mitsuko (Hikari Kajiwara) line up for a cozy little supper. The daughter then goes out to meet her Pontiac-Firebird-driving boyfriend, the wife turns down her husband when he tries to get frisky and well, the poor guy goes out in secret to puke in his bathroom.

“Drring! Drring!” The phone rings, Nobuyuki...

The Film:

I honestly can say I have never seen a serial killer film like Cold Fish before, and can’t imagine I will again. This film can lay claim to being one of the most bizarre viewing experiences I’ve had this year. This was my first film of Sono’s, I had wanted to see his other films having heard mixed things, I just had not had the chance to yet. The film is loosely based on the ‘Saitama serial murders of dog lovers’ (a couple who murdered and dismembered four people in 1993). I had not heard of this case, and upon further research I can clearly see that Sono and Takahashi have taken the basic idea and done their own thing with it.

The film has a very odd start, we meet the Shamoto family, consisting of the head of the family Nobuyuki (Mitsuru Fukikoshi), his young...

Directed By: Sion Sono

Starring: Makoto Ashikawa, Denden, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Megumi Kagurazaka, Hikari Kajiwara

It's hard to know where to begin with Sion Sono's Cold Fish. If you've ever experienced one of his film's (Suicide Club, Noriko's Dinner Table) then I have a feeling you know exactly what I mean. It's like all the answers to all the questions in the world are contained in each one of his movies. The only problem is---we will never be able to uncover them. It's simultaneously the most frustrating and exciting thing about the films, the idea of knowing that something miraculous is happening on several different levels but we never seem to be able to precisely describe what that miraculous thing is. We are never able to fully put all the pieces together.

Cold Fish is no different only this time the level of confusion seems to be a bit greater than in the past.

Today marks the first day of the 68thVenice Film Festival (La Biennale di Venezia 2011). The festival continues through September 10th and will include films from all over the world making their debut before curious eyes. This year’s line-up includes a wide range of films from talented directors that have worked in genre films before or are taking the first step into the world of horror, sci-fi, cult, or bizarre cinema. Some of these directors include David Cronenberg (The Fly, Videodrome), William Friedkin (The Exorcist, Bug), Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In), Steven Soderbergh (Traffic, Ocean’s Eleven), Roman Polanski (Rosemary’s Baby, Repulsion), and Abel Ferrara (The Driller Killer, Ms. 45, Bad Lieutenant). All of these directors have clearly made an impact on the genres that we know and love, and I look forward to seeing what they have to offer us this year. Keep reading to hear...

As one of the horror films that got its brief theatrical run this summer as part of Bloody Disgusting’s AMC Horrorfest, Cold Fish doesn’t feel like a typical horror at first and instead feels like a nod to Eugene Ionesco’s “The Lesson” with its overbearing host played by Denden and the unsuspecting fish salesmen, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, drawn into his world of unexpected violence and deceit. For the first 30 minutes, there’s something mesmerizing about Denden’s performance and Cold Fish seems like it could go just about anywhere, but eventually the thriller elements take the helm and the film explodes into a rather bloody mess representative of the main characters forever altered mental state. Cold Fish could have had a more satisfying payoff according to the promise of the earlier elements, though what we get still represents a solid outing in the thriller genre.

Read more...

Cold Fish (aka Tsumetai nettaigyo), a Japanese film directed by Sion Sono (Suicide Girls aka Jisatsu sâkuru) is now available on DVD and several VOD options. Cold Fish only showed in limited art house theaters since it was released unrated. Starting today you can grab Cold Fish on DVD, ITunes, VOD, Xbox, PS3, Amazon Instant, Vudu, Cinema Now and Zune. Starting September 23, 2011 you can see Cold Fish on TV VOD channels. Cold Fish stars Makoto Ashikawa (Ju-on 2), Denden (Ju-on) and Mitsuru Fukikoshi (Samurai Zombie). Cold Fish captures the macabre in a way that is both tounge-in-check and terrifying in its levity. I thought that Cold Fish was both brilliant and interesting. Horror freaks should>>...

Editor’s Note: This review originally ran during Fantastic Fest 2010, but every word of it still applies today as Cold Fish sees a limited release this week. The key to making someone disappear is to cut up the body into tiny bite sized chunks and to separate the meat from the bone. From there, you can burn the bones in an industrial barrel and drop the diced human into the river to be eaten by the fish. It takes a time commitment, but it’s really a simple procedure. This is just one of the many lessons presented in the movie Cold Fish, the new work from Sion Sono that tells the story of Shamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi), a timid tropical fish store owner who is bullied by his daughter and shut out from sexual intercourse by his wife. Murata (Denden), a fellow entrepreneur in the fish world, helps the family out by employing the rebellious daughter, leaving...

Coming on the heels of Phase 7 in Bloody Disgusting’s AMC Horrorfest, Cold Fish doesn’t feel like a typical horror at first and instead feels like a nod to Eugene Ionesco’s “The Lesson” with its overbearing host played by Denden and the unsuspecting fish salesmen, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, drawn into his world of unexpected violence and deceit. For the first 30 minutes, there’s something mesmerizing about Denden’s performance and Cold Fish seems like it could go just about anywhere, but eventually the thriller elements take the helm and the film explodes into a rather bloody mess representative of the main characters forever altered mental state. Cold Fish could have had a more satisfying payoff according to the promise of the earlier elements, though what we get still represents a solid outing in the thriller genre.

Read more...

Cold Fish (aka Tsumetai nettaigyo), a Japanese film directed by Sion Sono (Suicide Girls aka Jisatsu sâkuru), will begin playing in art house theaters on August 5, 2011. (See below for listing). The film will be available on DVD and iTunes August 23, 2011 and on VOD September 23, 2011 through November 22, 2011. Cold Fish stars Makoto Ashikawa (Ju-on 2), Denden (Ju-on) and Mitsuru Fukikoshi (Samurai Zombie). Cold Fish is not exactly horror, and not really a horror comedy, yet manages to capture the macabre in a way that is both tongue-in-cheek and terrifying in it’s levity. Cold Fish starts out as a bit of a farce, and seems to >>...

The Melbourne International Film Festival is celebrating its 60th year, and I made it my duty to try and catch at least a few films. I like to see films that are weird and different, and as much as I wanted to see some more main stream films at the fest, I decided to pick some of the stranger ones. None come more strange and off beat than Sion Sono’s (who also wrote the screenplay with Yoshiki Takahashi) Cold Fish. I honestly can say I have never seen a serial killer film like this before, and can’t imagine I will again. This film can lay claim to being one of the most bizzare viewing experiences I’ve had this year. This was my first film of Sono’s , I had wanted to see his other films having heard mixed things, I just had not had the chance to yet.

Cold Fish will be released for a special New York City run starting on August 5, ahead of the DVD release on August 23. We have a contest running where we're giving away tickets for this special event in New York to our readers. These tickets will certainly go fast, so enter this contest today.

Winners Receive:

Cold Fish movie tickets in New York City

Here's How To Win!

Just "Like" (fan) the MovieWeb Facebook page (below) and then leave a comment below telling us why these prizes must be yours!

If you already "Like" MovieWeb, just leave a comment below telling us why these prizes must be yours!

Cold Fish has won acclaim at both the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals. In the film, mild-mannered Shamoto's teenage daughter gets caught shoplifting. A generous fellow fish-store owner and his wife appear to help resolve the situation by having her work at their fish store.

Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, The Ides of March Tomas Alfredson – Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy UK, Germany, 127' Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt Andrea Arnold – Wuthering Heights UK, 128' Kaya Scodelario, Nichola Burley, Steve Evets, Oliver Milburn Ami Canaan Mann – Texas Killing Fields USA, 109' Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jeffrey Dean Morgan George Clooney – The Ides Of March [Opening Film] USA, 98' Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood Cristina Comencini – Quando La Notte Italy, 116' Claudia Pandolfi, Filippo Timi, Michela Cescon, Thomas Trabacchi Emanuele Crialese – Terraferma Italy, France, 88' Filippo Pucillo, Donatella Finocchiaro, Giuseppe Fiorello, Claudio Santamaria David Cronenberg – A Dangerous Method Germany, Canada, 99' Keira Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, Michael Fassbender, Vincent Cassel Abel Ferrara – 4:44 Last Day On Earth USA, 82' Willem Dafoe, Shanyn Leigh, Paz de la Huerta, Natasha Lyonne William Friedkin – Killer Joe USA, 103' Matthew McConaughey,...

The Melbourne International Film Festival (Miff) is in its glorious 60th year and if the initial days of screenings are anything to go by, it will definitely be one to remember. I have outlined some Miff picks, and hope after reading this you will seek out these films at the other sessions they are playing or elsewhere if you are not in Melbourne. Cold Fish tells the semi-true accounts of a tropical fish owner Shamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) and his fractured family who meet an entrepreneur in the same business. Murata (Denden) is the hugely successful owner of amazon Gold, he hires Shamoto's daughter Mitsuko (Hikari Kajiwara) after she is caught stealing from a convenience store in an effort to keep her out of further trouble....

After debuting at Venice Film Festival last year, Sion Sono‘s crazy horror/comedy/thriller Cold Fish has been picked up for Us distribution by AMC and Bloody Disgusting Selects. They will be released the uncut versions in limited theaters next month before hitting VOD in September. The trailer seems twisted, just what I like from my Japanese horror films. Bloody Disgusting has the Us trailer, which can be seen below for the film starring Makoto Ashikawa, Denden, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, and Megumi Kagurazaka.

Synopsis:

“In the film, mild-mannered Shamoto’s teenage daughter gets caught shoplifting. A generous fellow fish-store owner and his wife appear to help resolve the situation by having her work at their fish store. Too good to be true? You bet! Shamoto soon discovers the horrific truth about this seemingly perfect couple…who inextricably weave him into their grisly rituals. Inspired by true events, Cold Fish is a twisted,...

Cold Fish (aka Tsumetai nettaigyo), a Japanese film directed by Sion Sono (Suicide Girls aka Jisatsu sâkuru), will be making its way to the Us unrated. In the film Cold Fish mild-mannered Shamoto's teenage daughter gets caught shoplifting. A generous fellow fish-store owner and his wife appear to help resolve the situation by having her work at their fish store. The inspiration for Cold Fish came from real events known as the "Saitama serial murders of dog lovers". Cold Fish stars Makoto Ashikawa (Ju-on 2), Denden (Ju-on) and Mitsuru Fukikoshi (Samurai Zombie). Since Cold Fish will be presented unrated it have a limited art house release (see below for listing) >>...

Director: Sion Sono. Review: Adam Wing. From Sion Sono, the critically acclaimed director of ‘Love Exposure’, comes the deeply disturbing tale Cold Fish. Sono’s latest oddity is based on a real life murder case that became known as the ‘Saitama serial murders of dog lovers’. A case involving dog-breeder Gen Sekine and ex-wife Hiroko Kazama, who murdered & dismembered four people including a disgruntled client. Cold Fish is available on DVD and Blu-ray courtesy of Third Window Films. In Sono’s movie, Shamato (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) runs a small tropical fish shop with second wife Taeko (Megumi Kagurazaka). Taeko doesn’t get on with Shamato’s daughter Mitsuko (Hikari Kajiwara), who’s brief encounter with crime introduces them to a man called Murata (Denden). Murata helps to resolve the issue and establishes a bond with the family, offering Mitsuko a job at his own tropical fish shop across town as they all become friends.

Director: Sion Sono. Review: Adam Wing. From Sion Sono, the critically acclaimed director of ‘Love Exposure’, comes the deeply disturbing tale Cold Fish. Sono’s latest oddity is based on a real life murder case that became known as the ‘Saitama serial murders of dog lovers’. A case involving dog-breeder Gen Sekine and ex-wife Hiroko Kazama, who murdered & dismembered four people including a disgruntled client. Cold Fish is available on DVD and Blu-ray courtesy of Third Window Films. In Sono’s movie, Shamato (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) runs a small tropical fish shop with second wife Taeko (Megumi Kagurazaka). Taeko doesn’t get on with Shamato’s daughter Mitsuko (Hikari Kajiwara), who’s brief encounter with crime introduces them to a man called Murata (Denden). Murata helps to resolve the issue and establishes a bond with the family, offering Mitsuko a job at his own tropical fish shop across town as they all become friends.

Armadillo (15)

(Janus Metz, 2010, Den) 105 mins

After last year's Restrepo, another fine documentary from the Afghanistan front line, bringing us closer than we'd like to a war we'd rather not think about. Again we track a tour of duty with its mix of boredom, adrenaline and futility, but the key differences here are that they're Danish soldiers (who seem a lot less uptight about access) and the camerawork is better than in most fictional war movies. As a result, we're brought right into the soldiers' lives, and pitched into the heart of battle when things really heat up.

Cold Fish (18)

(Sion Sono, 2010, Jap) Makoto Ashikawa, Denden, Mitsuru Fukikoshi. 146 mins

Not your average serial killer, this one's sociable, presentable and a big fish in the fishkeeping world – even if there's a grisly explanation for his success. As we follow a meek colleague drawn into his demented orbit, proceedings get uglier and messier,...

This weird, gruesome Japanese story that is – tenuously – based on reality is certainly freaky, but is far too long and wearying, writes Peter Bradshaw

Japanese writer-director Shion Sono is the cult master of extreme freakiness; his colossally long, colossally weird 2008 film Love Exposure luxuriated in its own perviness and weirdo humour. Cold Fish substitutes nasty for funny, though, in a bizarre, ultraviolent black-comedy horror which overstays its welcome massively. Incredibly, it is based on a real case from the 1990s: a dog-breeder who scammed buyers into paying over the odds for rare breeds, then murdered them when they complained and disposed of their dismembered remains. For fictional purposes, he has here become a breeder of tropical fish. Veteran Japanese character actor Denden plays Murata, who runs his own highly profitable aquarium, and induces timid competitor Shamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) to help him in both his con-tricks and his psychopathic murdering. Poor,...

Rating: 4.5/5

Writers: Shion Sono, Yoshiki Takahashi

Director: Shion Sono

Cast: Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Denden, Shinya Tsukamoto, Asuka Kurosawa

Working (loosely) from the details of a real life serial killer case, Shion Sono (no newcomer to violence and insanity in film) has crafted a character study that will at once please and divide longtime fans and Sono “newbies” alike. It is a difficult film to watch at times and even harder to fully process afterwards. For those intimately familiar with Sono’s previous work, the film will open up much more quickly. Those making their first trip into a world crafted by Sono (and first time writing collaborator Yoshiki Takahashi) will be less prepared for what they will witness and feel but by giving in to the themes the film wears very proudly on its sleeve will find the impeccably well-executed film rewarding in unexpected ways.

Read more on Fantastic Fest 2010 Review: Cold Fish…...

After his last feature "Love Exposure" being screened in Berlin, yesterday night Sion Sono's newest work called "Tsumetai Nettaigyo" ("Cold Fish") had its world premiere at Venice's Pala Darsena as part of the fest's Orrizonti section. This time Sono brings a horrific murder story based on the Saitama murders from the eighties committed by a dog kennel owner. Sono however logically made interesting changes, for example by transferring it to January 2009 at a tropical fish shop and added other made-up parts to it, while he still "...wanted to remain faithful..." to what once happened.

Opening up with what seems to be a family dinner on a rainy night, viewers are introduced to the dysfunctional family of father & tropical fish shop owner Shamoto (played by Mitsuru Fukikoshi, "Twilight Samurai", "Love Exposure"), stepmother Taeko and daughter Mitsuko, three characters Sono made up for his film to so express all his feelings in them.

#10. Cold Fish Director: Sion SonoCast: Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Denden, Asuka Kurosawa, Megumi Kagurazaka, Tetsu Watanabe Distributor: Rights Available. Buzz: From the maker behind 2001's Suicide Club and the four-hour opus 2009's Love Exposure comes this messed up piece that is based on a true story. Showing in Venice and Tiff, the public screenings for this will be considered film events at the festival itself with many Sono fans packing the seats.  The Gist: Equal parts black humour and bloody dementia in this true crime portrait of a Japanese tropical fish dealer responsible for over forty murders. Tiff Schedule:Sunday September 12 10:00:00 Pm AMC 6 Friday September 17 8:30:00 Pm AMC 3 Sunday September 19 12:00:00 Pm Scotiabank Theatre 2  ...

[Updated with a better quality version of the image and a brief synopsis]

We knew Love Exposure director Sion Sono would be doing his next feature as part of Nikkatsu's Sushu Typhoon line but beyond that details were sketchy in the extreme.  And while they still are, really, we now at least have a title.  Cold Fish is Sono's upcoming feature for Nikkatsu, a true-life serial killer story. 

Here are some plot details courtesy of Screen's Jason Gray:

Cold Fish tells the story of a tropical fish seller named Shamoto (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) who becomes an accomplice to a string of grisly homicides committed by a fellow seller (Denden) and his wife after they hold Shamoto's daughter hostage. Promoted as an unflinching portrait of violence and madness, the story is partially based on a true case.

Fukikoshi and Denden both appeared in Sono's more orthodox 2009 drama Be Sure To Share. The cast also includes Asuka Kurosawa and Megumi Kagurazaka as the daughter.

Goody. It is time once again for copious amounts of blood to rain down from the sky above. Here we have the trailer for Tak Sakaguchi’s Samurai Zombie, his second foray into film direction. It is of no concern to us that it is obviously a low budgeted affair it certainly does make up for it with dismemberment and blood letting.

This Japanese low-budget action drama follows a family on a trip that encounters a man threatening them with a gun on a desolate mountain trail. At a moment of maximum tension, a couple shows up out of nowhere, kills the man and disappears again, and shortly after a lunatic old lady comes and warns them of death. The frightened family is headed for a showdown for no reason with samurai zombies resurrected from their graves.

Samurai Zombie is a so-called fusion-style film that has established itself as a trend.

Well, would you look at this. That there is the new poster for Tak Sakaguchi’s upcoming Samurai Zombie. We’re fans of Tak, that much should be obvious to regular readers. He is a regular presence amongst lo-budget productions in Japan which doesn’t mean that he isn’t damn impressive or entertaining. He is both. In spades. And so it came as no surprise that this regular on the Japanese action film circuit would start to helm his own films. With Be A Man! Samurai School! already under his belt we are eager to see what he can come up with in Samurai Zombie. It stars comedian Yakkun Sakurazuka, Nana Natsume [Sasori], Keiko Oginome, Issei Ishida, Mitsuru Fukikoshi [Samurai Fiction, Stereo Future and The Twilight Samurai], and Kyôsuke Yabe [Crows Zero and Crows Zero II].

This Japanese low-budget action drama follows a family on a trip that encounters a man threatening them with a gun on a desolate mountain trail. At a moment of maximum tension,...