Bold is the filmmaker who would tackle the prose of cult novelist Haruki Murakami. Though Jun Ichikawa found success adapting the short story "Tony Takitani," most of Murakami's work is desolate and blackly humorous, centered on characters struggling with loneliness in a politically-troubled, often surreal world. That didn't stop Tran Anh Hung, the director of "The Scent Of Green Papaya," who brings us his long-in-the-works adaptation of the moody novel "Norwegian Wood." Set in Japan during the late sixties, "Norwegian Wood" follows Toru (Kenichi Matsuyama), a young man about to go to college despite recently losing his best friend to suicide. However, he gives his heart to his late friend's ex, a decision that throws his life into turmoil further when he meets another girl, as he is forced to make the biggest decision of his life. While "Norwegian Wood" has surfaced in other countries, it makes its domestic debut.
- 1/5/2012
- The Playlist
Carlos Cuarón, brother of director Alfonso Cuarón, co-writer of Y Tu Mamá También and writer/director of Rudo Y Cursi, has directed a new short film. The Second Bakery Attack is based on the story of the same name by Japanese author Haruki Murakami, and stands as one of a very few adaptations of the author's works. The film stars Kirsten Dunst and Brian Geraghty, and these are the first stills. Stills were found on Tumblr [1] (via The Playlist [2]) and the director told CNN [3], It's short, but there's meticulous attention to detail just like a Murakami story! ...To me, Murakami's works are universal, and at the same time very Japanese. This is what makes the project so intriguing for me -- I did set the story in the United States but the tone of the conversations, the situation … somehow it's very Tokyo. The Short Shorts Film Festival synpopsizes the film...
- 11/29/2010
- by Russ Fischer
- Slash Film
A Short Film Adaptation Of Haruki Murakami's Short Story Of The Same Name With Tran Anh Hung's adaptation of Haruki Murakami's "Norwegian Wood" debuting at the Venice Film Festival and a global release on the horizon, popular Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami might just find his catalogue the target of further adaptations in the filmmaking community future. Other than a few notable attempts by Kazuki Ōmori in 1981, Jun Ichikawa in 2005 and Robert Logevall in 2007, Murakami's enigmatic and beguiling work has--for the most part--evaded the Hollywood treatment. Though there is one upcoming project that has flown under the radar:…...
- 11/28/2010
- The Playlist
Japan is a land of extremes. While the Japanese are best known for their wacky (Symbol) or extreme (Grotesque) cinema, there's also plenty of room for subtle, stilted and human drama. Jun Ichikawa is without a doubt one of the masters of the genre, sadly his strengths are hardly recognizes outside of Japan. Time to change that, so I tracked down one of his more recent films and wasn't disappointed. Aogeba Totoshi turned out to be a neat little gem.
Ichikawa started his career in 1987 but it wasn't until he directed Toni Takitani in 2004 that the world took notice. Not because Ichikawa had all of a sudden accomplished a stunning masterpiece, but because the short story it was based on was written by Haruki Murakami, probably Japan's most famous contemporary novelist. With that in mind Ichikawa's relapse was to be expected and he quickly faded back into anonymity after the...
Ichikawa started his career in 1987 but it wasn't until he directed Toni Takitani in 2004 that the world took notice. Not because Ichikawa had all of a sudden accomplished a stunning masterpiece, but because the short story it was based on was written by Haruki Murakami, probably Japan's most famous contemporary novelist. With that in mind Ichikawa's relapse was to be expected and he quickly faded back into anonymity after the...
- 11/4/2010
- Screen Anarchy
Disney By Hand, London
Just because you can do something doesn't automatically mean you should. The success of the CGI Toy Story virtually destroyed the hand-drawn animation industry. Even Disney shut down their "old-fashioned" animation department in 2004, despite having almost entirely built their empire on the technique. Rather ironically it was Toy Story's director John Lasseter, now head creative at Disney, who pointed out how wrong they were, so now Disney is back in the hand-drawn business with The Princess And The Frog. Alongside it, this season includes such undisputed classics – not just of animation but of cinema – as Dumbo, Pinocchio, Bambi, The Lion King and Fantasia. Seeing the artistry, grace and sheer hard work that went into them clearly visible on the big screen makes them seem more magical and alive than any of the computer-generated fare. Free tickets for under 15s are available with every ticket bought for Princess And The Frog.
Just because you can do something doesn't automatically mean you should. The success of the CGI Toy Story virtually destroyed the hand-drawn animation industry. Even Disney shut down their "old-fashioned" animation department in 2004, despite having almost entirely built their empire on the technique. Rather ironically it was Toy Story's director John Lasseter, now head creative at Disney, who pointed out how wrong they were, so now Disney is back in the hand-drawn business with The Princess And The Frog. Alongside it, this season includes such undisputed classics – not just of animation but of cinema – as Dumbo, Pinocchio, Bambi, The Lion King and Fantasia. Seeing the artistry, grace and sheer hard work that went into them clearly visible on the big screen makes them seem more magical and alive than any of the computer-generated fare. Free tickets for under 15s are available with every ticket bought for Princess And The Frog.
- 2/6/2010
- by Phelim O'Neill, Andrea Hubert
- The Guardian - Film News
- Excuse me while I mop up my brains because my head just went kaboom. Jason Gray of Screen Daily broke word today that Franco-Vietnamese auteur Anh Hung Tran will adapt world-renowned Japanese author Haruki Murakami’s Norwegian Wood for the big screen. First published in 1987, the novel is a nostalgic rumination told through the eyes of college student Toru, a listless drama major who floats through life and relationships in a haze of melancholy. Set in the turbulent ‘60s, when political and social unrest was the order of the day, Murakami takes a hard view on the period as he juxtaposes Toru’s disengaged nature against largely misguided student movement. 8.7 million copies have been sold in Japan alone and it has been translated in 36 languages. Known for his emotionally complex tales of desire and loss, Murakami, who’s style is heavily influenced by the West, is Japan’s most highly regarded author.
- 7/31/2008
- IONCINEMA.com
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