Fehhh I’m so tired but I still have some work to do. Having no money sucks! I have to take even the shittiest jobs. I haven’t done anything much besides work so there’s really nothing to update about. I’m hoping that I can watch Brokeback Mountain tomorrow night or watch a film in the Eiga Sai. If you’re in the Philippines and is into Japanese films, you might want to check that out. Here’s the schedule:
A. UP Film Institute:
Feb 13 (Mon)
2 PM Memories of You
5 PM Young Girls In Love
Feb 14 (Tue)
2 PM A Summer Page
5 PM Tsugumi
Feb 20 (Mon)
2 PM Waterboys
5 PM Gomen
Feb 21 (Tue)
2 PM First Love
5 PM Swimming Upstream
B. Shangri La (Cinema 3):
Feb 15 (Wed)
2 PM Gomen
5 PM First Love
8 PM A Summer Page
Feb 16 (Thu)
2 PM Young Girls in Love
5 PM Swimming Upstream
8 PM Memories of You
Feb 17 (Fri)
2 PM Waterboys
5 PM First Love
8 PM Gomen
Feb 18 (Sat)
8 PM Waterboys
Feb 19 (Sun)
2 PM Tsugumi
5 PM Young Girls in Love
8 PM A Summer Page
Feb 20 (Mon)
2 PM Memories of You
5 PM Swimming Upstream
8 PM First Love
Feb 21 (Tue)
2 PM A Summer Page
5 PM Tsugumi
8 PM Gomen
LINEUP & SYNOPSIS:
1. Gomen
Color / 2002 / 103 mins
Directed by: Togashi Shin
Nanao Seiichi, or Sei for short, is a sixth grader
living in the suburbs of Osaka. One day, a sudden
sexual ejaculation during class makes him aware of the
physical changes that accompany growing up. Around
that time, Sei falls in love with a girl he meets when
he visits his grandparents in Kyoto. Sei goes to see
her, only to find out with shock that she, Naoko, is
an eight grader, or an “older woman.” Nevertheless, he
manages to arrange a date with her, only to upset her
talking about her divorced parents. His
once-in-a-lifetime performance asking her to got out
with him falls through when she bluntly refuses. This
is Sei’s most discouraging experience of his life.
Still, he continues to overcome all difficulties,
perseveres, and is finally rewarded by Naoko’s kiss on
the cheek.
2. First Love
Color / 2000 / 115 mins
Directed by: Shinohara Tetsuo
The life of Satoka is complicated by her mother’s
cancer and the fact that she and her father could
never communicate well and now she is thrown in with
him everyday. In going thru her mother’s things Satoka
discovers a love letter written to Shinichiro, her
mother’s first love. Satoka determines to fulfill her
mother’s wish to see him again. She finds him but he
is no longer the man her mother knew. Still, she
persists and eventually grooms him back to something
like his former self. At the long planned reunion –
under the blossoming cherry tree, just as her mother
had imagined – things do not turn the way she expected
them to.
3. Waterboys
Color / 2001 / 91 mins
Director: Shinobu Yaguchi
Suzuki, a high school senior, is the last remaining
member of the Tadani High School swim team. If no new
members join the team this year, it will be cancelled
altogether. Fortunately, a pretty teacher, Sakuma, is
picked as the swim team’s new coach. After class, 30
young men gather at the poolside. Many of them, like
Sato, who was forced to quit basketball because of an
injury, want to join the team for reasons other than a
love of the water. Despite the huge crowd, however,
Sakuma wears a frown. She had dreamed of coaching a
synchronized swimming team, an ambition that was
shattered when she was assigned to work at a boy’s
school. She announces to the students that she plans
to teach them synchronized swimming in spite of their
gender. Most of the young men flee instantly. When the
daunt settles, only five students are left: Suzuki,
Sato, Ohtu, Kanazawa, and Saotome. Hoping to cheer
Sakuma up, they launch into a silly intention of
Olympic style women’s synchronized swimming moves. An
overjoyed Sakuma decides that the team will present a
synchronized swimming performance at the school
festival. The five members are taken aback…
4. Tsugumi
Color / 1990 / 105 min
Directed by: Ichikawa Jun
Born with a weak heart and spoiled from the word go,
Tsugumi is a precocious 18 year old girl. Her daily
life is clouded by a fear of death and she always
behaves selfishly, making her friend Maria feel very
sorry for her. Off in Tokyo studying at a university,
Maria was invited by Tsugumi and her sister Yoko for
summer vacation to meet at Izu where they all grew up
and went to high school.
Walking around the streets they have passed together,
the girls calmly drift in nostalgic memories. As they
bathe in their nostalgia, a young boy named Kyoichi
goes by, capturing their collective attention.
Later, as guided by fate, Tsugumi and Kyoichi happen
to meet. The two are naturally attracted to each
other, and things proceeded from there. However, other
boys have their own ideas about Tsugumi, and they are
not the nicest kids. They’ve got a crush on her, and
don’t like seeing Kyoichi enter the picture. Finally,
the young delinquents assault Kyoichi, and in the end
they kill Tsugumi’s beloved dog. Thinking of revenge,
Tsugumi gathers all her strength to dig a pit trap,
but drops in a dead faint, foiled by her weak body.
This is the way the summer ended, and Maria returned
to Tokyo. One day, Maria receives a letter from
Tsugumi containing her will. Maria is pretty upset,
but she has to go to her part-time job. At work, she
gets a call, and immediately assumes it’s news of
Tsugumi’s death. Worried she picked up the receiver
and hears, “Hey! Ugly Hag!” It’s Tsugumi’s cheerful,
joking voice.
5. Swimming Upstream
Color / 1990 / 95 min
Directed by: Matsuoka Joji
One day after school, Kaoru glances at Sonoko at the
poolside…Thus begins the story of one-sided love,
Kaoru immediately joins the swim team. Sonoko quickly
realizes his unusually simply naiveté, and resign
herself to his presence. Kaoru has borrowed a
motorcycle from his girl friend Pooh. She likes him,
but he comes around only when he’s in trouble. Kaoru
has his eye on Sonoko, so he comes around every
morning and tries to offer her a ride to school. Much
to Sonoko’s surprise, he even makes friends with her
mother, bringing her over to his side.
Kaoru is determined to go to the Olympics, if only to
impress Sonoko. He begins going to swimming club
often, and comes under the coaching of a rather
strange old woman that always wears a gold medal on
her neck. One day, Kaoru is called to a dry steambed,
where he sees Sonoko walking arm in arm with Nagai,
the school’s ace swimmer. On their first match-up,
Kaoru lost to Nagai and hasn’t forgotten it. Little
does he know, this is exactly Sonoko’s strategy. If he
saw her with Nagai, certainly Kaoru would lose his
presence of mind and resolve to stay away from her.
But Kaoru did not give up and the rivalry between the
two swimmers heats up day by day. Sonoko was unable to
maintain her mental composure, and begins to gain
weight from over-eating. It’s at this moment that
Kaoru experiences for the first time the severity of
struggling on one’s own. He resolves to stay away from
her. As for Sonoko, before she knows it, her thoughts
are drawn toward Kaoru. Kaoru, who has been avoiding
the swimming pool, communicates his own feelings to
Sonoko.
6. A Summer Page
Color / 1990 / 92 mins
Directed by: Oikawa Yoshihiro
Ippei is hovering between boyhood and young manhood.
His best friends, Hiroshi and Taiheiyo, already seem
to be well on their way in this transition. One
morning, the three boys set out for Mt. Myojin-dake on
their bicycles on what turns out to be an adventurous
camping trip. Their beloved teacher, Mr. Sasa, had
promised to take them their the year before, but his
untimely death prevented him.
They have some interesting experiences but remember
what their teacher had always told them: They could
achieve many things just because they were three,
together and united.
Mountain weather is changeable, and what begun as
sunny and cloudless days became stormy as they
approach the mountain summit. They are rescued by Mr.
Machida, a friend of Mr. Sasa, who was collecting
fossils on the mountainside with his wife and
daughter. The cottage they took refuge in begins to
collapse so they evacuate to a nearby cave, and Mr.
Machida braves the storm to go to the village for
help.
But soon after he leaves his wife, who was pregnant,
suddenly feels the beginnings of labor pains. With
Mrs. Machida suffering before their eyes, the boys,
confused and bewildered, realize how helpless they are
in this completely unknown situation. Then Mr. Sasa’s
often repeated words come to their mind: “They could
achieve many things just because they were three,
together and united. Although uncertain that what they
are doing is correct, through trial and error they
finally succed in brining a new life into the world.
The storm blows itself out, and sunlight streams into
the cave, Bicycling back home in the cool breeze that
hints the end of summer. They decide that throughout
life the three of them will retain their bond.
7. Memories of You
Color / 1988 / 104 mins
Directed by: Sawai Shinichi
On a street in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Akira Kamijo, a
university student, happens to meet Yumi Hirose. He
had tutored her some years ago and is surprised that
the once little girl has grown into a lovely fourteen
year old high school student.
Not long after, however, Tomoko, Yumi’s mother, si
told by her doctor that Yumi has leukemia and has onlu
six months to live. Tomoko, who is separated from her
husband, has been raising Yumi by herself.
Though totally confused and bewildered by her
daughter’s illness. She wishes Yumi to pass her
remaining days as enjoyable as possible, and entreats
Akira, whom Yumi adores like a brother, to be her
friend. Akira naturally says that he will do what he
can.
For awhile, Yumi’s condition is stable. Then on an
early summer day she suddenlu falls ill at school –
the same day Akira is leaving for his home in Nagano
Prefecture for practical training as teacher.
To recuperate, Yumi goes to a friends villa in the
resort town of Karuizawa in Nagano. From time to time
she visits the school where Akira is teaching. Just
being with Akira makes her happy and eases her anxiety
and fear about her illness. Akira seeing her so
cheerful and relaxed with hi, determines to stand by
her till the end.
Summer is over, and when Akira returns to Tokyo he
finds Yumi about to be hospitalized. He therefore
takes her to a dinner party with a group of
mountaineering friends. After an enjoyable evening,
Yumi breaks down on the way home and tells him how
much she wants to live to be with him.
After a meeting with her father, Akira, with the
assent of her mother and doctor, takes her to Mt.
Hodoka, where she is content but unable to climb far
until he tenderly carries her. As she falls into her
final delirium, they express their deep love for
other.
8. Young Girls in Love
Color / 1986 / 98 mins
Directed by: Omori Kazuki
Takako is a senior high school girl. She lives in
Kanazawa with her older sister, Hiroko, who is in
college. She has three companions at school, Midoriko,
Teiko and Kinuko, who are rather strange. Teiko is the
smartest student in the class, but no one can keep up
with her. Kinuko, who spends most of her time
painting, has been held back a year in school.
Midoriko holds a funeral each time she has a shocking
experience. Takako has attended these ceremonies twice
before. The present funeral is for Midoriko’s broken
heart. After the funeral is over, Teiko tells Takako
about her love for an older man. Takako experiences a
strange stirring in her heart after Midoriko and Teiko
told her about their feelings for the opposite sex.
She has been in love without knowing it, and these two
friends have made her begin to realize what her
feelings mean. The boy whom she has feelings for,
Masaru, is a classmate of hers and member of the
school’s baseball team. However, Masaru likes someone
else. To him, Takako is just like one of his male
friends.
When she begins to realize she loves Masaru, Takako
also starts to notice that someone else has been
admiring her. It is Kanzaki Motoshi, a younger
student, whom her sister once tutored. It is a very
strange experience for her. Not only is she in love
for the first time, but someone is in love with her
too. She does not know how to deal with it, and is
driven more than one to resort to extreme measures.
One day when Takako is back visiting her parents in
the country, Kanzaki shows up. He came all the way to
ask her for a date. She sees in Kanzaki an ability to
express his love outwardly, and her feelings toward
Masaru begin to change in a subtle manner.
On the night of Hiroko’s graduation party, Masaru’s
girlfriend leaves him. Takako witnesses the scene, and
before she knows it, she is on her way to Kanzaki’s
house. She seeks his affection in tears. Through the
window of Kanzaki’s room, the two see Kanzaki’s father
and Hiroko parting. Takako feels she now understands a
little of what it means to love someone.
Takako, Midoriko and Teiko hold a Japanese tea
ceremony at the beach. Each girl, who experienced love
in her own way, seems to have advanced a step toward
womanhood.
I have the DVD of Waterboys and it’s one of the funniest films I’ve seen. I first watched it in Eiga Sai two years ago. If you’ve seen any of the films in this year’s fest, maybe you can recommend me which one to watch.
I finished watching Orange Days last night and I can honestly say that it’s a good dorama. Very light, sometimes bittersweet, sometimes funny too.
Another reason why I like Orange Days is because I became more aware of the feelings, fears, and struggles of deaf-mutes. Sae is a deaf-mute but she isn’t born that way. She was a child prodigy for violin and was asked to study at Julliard. While there, she caught a rare disease which damaged her hearing. It was a shock to her and the people who loves her. She is used to being the princecss. She’s very pretty, talented, admired by many and suddenly becoming deaf is a huge blow. She misses her old life, she feels so different from those with normal hearing. She’s angry but doesn’t know whom to blame. When she met Kai and his friends, she slowly learned that there are people who will support her and make her feel a part of their group. And through Kai, she learned how to love and to trust again.
