Yamabuki (2022) review [IFFR 2022]

“A beautiful socially-engaged narrative that explores the very fact that, by being grasped within the societal network of relations, one cannot but influence the other and become influenced by the other’s speech and acts.”

Aristocrats (2021) review [IFFR 2021]

Beautifully evokes how women become victim of the traditional patriarchal elite and how subjective happiness is not found in the mere acceptance of one’s own exploitation

Sexual Drive (2021) [IFFR 2021]

An amazing and unconventional narrative that not only explores the eroticism of the oral drive in an enticing and visually pleasing way, but also succeeds to touch, in a lighthearted way, upon the complexity of sexual desire as such.

Domains (2019) review [IFFR 2019]

“Kusano is able to evokes nothing other than the very fact that one’s subjective truth is ever constructed in cyclic retro-active way.”

Japanese highlights at IFFR 2019.

While IFFR, like every year, has an amazing selection of world cinema to enjoy, we want to underline the Japanese highlights of this year.

The Hungry Lion (2017) review

“A confronting narrative (…), [exploring] the power of the imaginary and the destructive effects this imaginary can have on the position of the subject within society (…), that is now needed more than ever. “ Introduction If there is one contemporary Japanese director that is socially engaged, it is Ogata Takaomi. He proved this engagement with…