Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Yoji Yamada's Younger Brother


So, there's a new movie coming out at the end of this month from Yoji Yamada (山田 洋次), the Japanese director best known for Tora-san - he helmed 46 of the 48 Tora-san movies that popped up between 1969 and 1995, the year before lead actor Kiyoshi Atsumi's death.

In 1993 Yamada also directed A Class to Remember (学校, Gakko), the winner of best film and best director at the Japan Academy Prize the following year.

Personally I was pretty swayed by this director's 2002 outing The Twilight Samurai (たそがれ清兵衛, Tasogare Seibei), and not only for Hiroyuki Sanada's performance and Isao Tomita's soundtrack - it also won 12 Japanese Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay.


The new movie, Otôto (Younger Brother), stars Yu Aoi (the voice of Shiro in the cool anime Tekkonkinkreet), Ryo Case (Letters from Iwo Jima), and comedian Tsurube Shôfukutei - whom I previously met (alongside about a dozen MP extras he likely doesn't remember) on the set of I Want to Be a Shellfish.

Find out more at the official website. In the meantime, here's the preview for the movie.



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