“Blue Period” is the third film I’ve reviewed this summer about young people struggling to break into the art world. Is there something in the water? To be fair, “Blue Period” came first, in a way: This live-action film is based on an ongoing manga of the same title by Tsubasa Yamaguchi, which debuted in … Read more
Japan’s “idols” — musical entertainers (usually performing in groups) with specific cultural mores — have long been fodder for anime, from psychological thriller “Perfect Blue” to mega-franchise “Love Live!” The latest entry to the canon, “Trapezium,” which hits theaters in Japan tomorrow, lays claim to a certain amount of authenticity: It’s based on a book … Read more
Less than a week after octogenarian Hayao Miyazaki scored his second Academy Award, another 80-something anime legend, “Gundam” creator Yoshiyuki Tomino, greeted a packed auditorium at the second annual Niigata International Animation Film Festival (NIAFF). Striding onstage in a funky black-and-white jacket, billowing slacks and a baseball cap, Tomino urged the artists in the audience … Read more
After scooping up seven Oscars — including best picture — and grossing over $950 million at the box office, Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” has definitely earned its place among the most successful biopics in cinema. A sweeping tale about the so-called father of the atomic bomb, which was used to destroy two Japanese cities and killed … Read more
Studio Ghibli’s “The Boy and the Heron,” directed by Hayao Miyazaki, won an Academy Award for best animated feature film at the 96th edition of the U.S. film awards ceremony on Sunday evening in Los Angeles. It is the second time the revered Japanese director has won an Oscar. He won his first, in the … Read more
Akira Toriyama, the influential creator of the Dragon Ball manga and anime franchise, has died at age 68, it was announced on Friday. Dragon Ball’s official website said Toriyama died on March 1 due to a blood clot in the brain. A funeral service was held with members of Toriyama’s immediate family. Dates for official … Read more
Akira Toriyama, the influential creator of the Dragon Ball manga and anime franchise, has died at age 68, it was announced on Friday. Dragon Ball’s official website said Toriyama died on March 1 due to a blood clot in the brain. A funeral service was held with members of Toriyama’s immediate family. Dates for official … Read more
Cars and anime are a time-honored pair. They go together like chocolate and peanut butter, as generations of shows from Speed Racer to MF Ghost have demonstrated, so it’s only natural that studios keep making beautiful shows about racing. Now, though, a new trend is cropping up again and again: Anime car ads. The 2024 … Read more
By Mari Yamaguchi | Associated Press TOKYO — A Japanese court sentenced a man to death after finding him guilty of murder and other crimes Thursday for carrying out an arson attack on an anime studio in Kyoto that killed 36 people. The Kyoto District Court said it found the defendant, Shinji Aoba, mentally capable … Read more
An animated fantasy film directed by renowned artist Hayao Miyazaki and the latest Godzilla movie were among the Japanese films nominated for U.S. Academy awards on Tuesday. Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” took the prize for best animated feature at the U.S. Golden Globes earlier this month. The 83-year-old anime giant won an Oscar … Read more