Date

Films

December

Wednesday, December 21

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Emotional Movies" - Vol. 2

Quill

A Labrador Retriever puppy is born and taken in by Mr. Towada for training to be a seeing-eye dog. For the first year of his life he lives with the Nii family and is named Quill. On his first birthday he leaves their home and begins his training with Mr. Towada as a seeing-eye dog. At first, Quill does not perform well in his training, but eventually he manages to become a seeing-eye dog for a blind man named Watanabe and becomes his guide. Watanabe was a stubborn man who didn't want to depend on the dog, but eventually he opens his heart to Quill and they spend happy days together. But in the end death comes, and Quill leaves surrounded by the care of everyone.

Directed by Sai Yoichi / Production Year: 2004 / Running Time: 100 min

November

Wednesday, November 16

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Emotional Movies" - Vol. 1

Hinokio

Iwamoto Satoru is a young boy who has shut himself off from the world. When his mother died in an accident, he was traumatized. He refuses any human contact and has shut himself in his room. His father is a scientist who helps to design robots. In order to help his son have some contact with the outside world he designs a robot for him. Using his computer and a specially designed device, the robot goes to school in Satoru’s place. In some ways, Satoru is inside the robot, even though he is still in his room. The children at the school are fascinated by the “robot.” They nickname the robot Hinokio because it resembles Pinocchio and a part of its body is made of Japanese cypress (hinoki). Hinokio soon develops a friendship with a tomboy named Jun, pretending to be a boy. Satoru gradually learns how to communicate with people again through Hinokio. A rumor starts to spread that Hinokio is a demo robot being tested for military purposes. Satoru rebels against his father and has Hinokio throw itself into the railroad crossing, after being blamed in the class for that. Unfortunately, Satoru had secretly installed a “emotional feedback” system in Hinokio that sends sensations back to Satoru. As a result, the trauma that Hinokio experienced was sent back to Satoru and it leaves him hospitalized and in a coma. Jun sets out to save him. Satoru recovers and no longer needs Hinokio to interact with the real world.

Directed by Takahiko Akiyama / Production Year: 2005 / Running Time: 111 min

October

Wednesday, October 26

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Director Yamada Yoji" - Vol. 4

The Rainbow Seeker

After having a fight with his father, Ryo leaves home and wanders around Japan doing odd jobs. His travels eventually take him to Hikari-machi in Tokushima, where he finds a job at a small theater run by Shirgane Katsuo, a man who lives and breathes the movies. Not only does he show classic films every Saturday, he can recount almost any scene from any famous movie if the occasion demands it. One of the first people he introduces Ryo to is Tonari Yaeko, a widow who runs a local coffee shop and is the object of Katsuo's secret admiration.

Directed by Yamada Yoji / Production Year: 1996 / Running Time: 120 min

September

Wednesday, September 21

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Director Yamada Yoji" - Vol. 3

My Sons

Tetsuo is a young man living alone in Tokyo. One day after work, his father calls him and tells him to hurry home to the countryside for his mother's one year death anniversary. After the ceremony everybody returns to Tokyo except Tetsuo, who stays with his father to keep him company. While helping his father out on the farm, he admits he's jealous of the attention his brother always gets. His brother got to go to college and find a good job, but Tetsuo only went to high school and is now stuck with low-paying, manual labor jobs.

Directed by Yamada Yoji / Production Year: 1991 / Running Time: 121 min

August

Wednesday, August 17

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Director Yamada Yoji" - Vol. 2

Torajiro Hibiscus

Once again Torajiro comes back to Shibamata, Tokyo, where a letter from Lily the singer awaits him. It says she is ill, alone and helpless in Okinawa. She wants to see him before she dies. Despite his acrophobia, he flies to Okinawa to help the woman he once loved.

His unexpected visit to her hospital delights her. Thanks to his devoted nursing, she gradually recovers. After she is released from the hospital, they go to a village near the sea.

Directed by Yamada Yoji / Production Year: 1980 / Running Time: 104 min

July

Wednesday, July 20

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Director Yamada Yoji" - Vol. 1

A Class To Remember

Kuroi is a teacher at a different kind of school: a middle school which operates at night, offering classes to working people, many of whom are not Japanese, who have not yet finished school.

With graduation close at hand, Kuroi begins to recall his experiences with each of his students as he asks his class to write essays in commemoration of graduation. Omoni, a Korean resident of Japan who entered night school when she already had grandchildren, spent long hours struggling in the classroom learning to write Japanese. Midori, a wild girl who dyes her hair, talked about how she wants to become a hairdresser. Kazuo, despite doing hard, physical labor in the day before school, never lost his cheerful smile when arriving a bit late. Zhang, who was born in China of a Chinese father and Japanese mother and came to Japan five years before, spoke of his anger and sadness at being unable to feel at home in either land. Kuroi finally looks at Eriko, the youngest in the class who had suffered so much at her regular school that she had refused to attend it anymore... 

One member of the class, however, is missing: Inoda, a middle aged laborer who had been absent for a few weeks. During the break, Kuroi gets news that Inoda has died.

Directed by Yamada Yoji / Production Year: 1993 / Running Time: 128 min

May

Wednesday, May 25

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Uplifting Spirit" - Vol. 2

Sumo Do, Sumo Don't

Yamamoto is called to the office of Professor Anayama. The proressor points out the anomalous fact that even though the role says he was present at every class, he’d never set eyes on the student before. He then announces that he has been appointed Yamamoto’s thesis advisor, and points out that, even though Yamamoto has a job arranged, he needs to pass the thesis to graduate. With the power relations thus defined, he strikes a deal with Yamamoto: join us sumo club, or you won’t graduate.
Professor Anayama was a grand champion in college sumo, and he watched the club deteriorate into a one-man team. Now students were more interested in football and scuba-diving. Now if they don’t at least at meels with a team, the club will be closed down. With his beautiful (female) graduate student Kawamura as club manager, Prof. Anayama begins recruitment with poor Yamamoto. Eventually, they find enough students to qualify as a team: Aoki (the incompetent club veteran), Tanaka (an lonely, overweight boy who’s never been invited to be on a club before, Haruo (Yamamoto’s brother, who’s sick of wresting in drag in the pro-wrestling club), and Smiley (who agrees only for the free rum and board).

Directed by Suo Masayuki / Production Year: 1992 / Running Time: 103 min

April

Wednesday, April 20

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Uplifting Spirit" - Vol. 1

Osaka Story

Cute "Wakana",14, is the daughter of a couple who have been in show business for 20 years as a standup comedy act without ever making the big time. While Wakana studies for her high school entrance exams, Mother and Father quarrel ceaselessly at home, with the latter always threatening to leave. Wakana's father "Ryusuke" falls in love with a younger woman. He leaves home and moves into a nearby apartment. Wakana's mother "Harumi" who has put up with years of philandering, finally decides to get a divorce. Despite this, they still remain a working comedy duo.

　
Directed by Jun Ichikawa / Production Year: 1999 / Running Time: 119 min

March

Wednesday, March 23

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Teen Spirit" - Vol. 2

Linda Linda Linda

This film about youth is set in modern-day high school just outside of Tokyo. In the days just before the school’s culture festival, a girl’s music group is facing a dilemma. They planned on playing an original piece of music but…three days before the festival, the guitarist appears to have broken her finger (actually she doesn’t want to break her nails) and an argument breaks out between the vocalist and Kyoko. They need to find a new guitarist and a new vocalist. While the remaining three girls are pondering who to ask to be the new vocalist, they hear the song, “Linda Linda Linda” by the famous Japanese rock band Blue Hearts and decide they want to sing it instead of an original song. A Korean exchange student, Song, is sitting in the next room and they take the chance to ask her to be their vocalist.

　
Directed by Yamashita Nobuhiro / Production Year: 2005 / Running Time: 114 min

February

Wednesday, February 10

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Teen Spirit" - Vol. 1

Don't Look Back

Akira and Koichi, ten year olds in the fifth grade of primary school, are best friends who always seem to get into trouble. They live in the outskirts of Tokyo. When the new term starts they find out that they have been placed in different classes. At first, this doesn't really bother them. They consider it a minor obstacle to their deep friendship. But, as is often the case with a separation, their relationship gradually begins to change. Akira becomes friends with Shun, a fatherless child who is very good at making plastic models. Meanwhile, Koichi starts hanging around with the newly transferred Samajima, and they start getting into mischief.

　
Directed by Akihiko Shiota / Production Year: 1999 / Running Time: 75 min

The Voices of a Distant Star

Middle school students Mikako Nagamine and Noboru Terao are close friends and members of the same club activities. But in the summer of 2046, Mikako tells Noboru that she has been chosen as a Select Member of the United Nations Space Army. Mikako leaves Earth in the winter of 2047, while Noboru goes on to high school in Japan. Separated by space, the two try to stay in touch by mobile mail. However, as Mikako goes farther out in the solar system on board the Lysithea spaceship, it takes increasingly longer for each to receive the other's mail. Noboru stays on Earth, frustrated by his situation and resigned to the fact that he can only wait for Mikako's emails. As time goes by, the Lysithea fleet approaches a time warp, a situation that make both Mikako and Noboru acutely aware of the time gap separating them.

Directed by Makoto Shinkai / Production Year: 2002 / Running Time: 25min

January

Wednesday, January 20

From 6 P.M.

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Special Feature "Japanese Martial Arts" - Vol. 2

Love and Honor

Mimura Shinnojo is a lower-class samurai serving his lord. His primary job is to eat and test the lord’s food for poison. While disappointed with his position, he still enjoys a happy family life with his beautiful wife, Kayo. But one day, he gets a horrible case of poisoning from some clams meant for his lord. Shinnojo recovers but he is unable to see and loses his job. Kayo tries to plead to someone in power to have the clan keep Shinnojo on, even at half stipend. She first thinks of Shimada Toya, an up-and-coming official from a prominent family whom she’s known since before she married and who just the other day offered to help. But he had demanded her body in exchange for helping Shinnojo, and she agrees. Their relation is discovered and Shinnojo declares a divorce and sends her out. Determined to restore his honor, Shinnojo begins practicing with the sword again, and calls for a duel with Shimada.

　
Directed by Yoji Yamada / Production Year: 2006 / Running Time: 121 min