Photosensitivity Warning: There are three instances of powerful strobing/flashing lights that may trigger a painful response in audiences: two shortly after the title card appears and one in the climatic sequence of the film. Japanese filmmaker Toshiaki Toyoda has built… Read More ›
In a landscape of recycled IPs, a never-ending torrent of superhero fever, and films that are made for adults being shoved to the wayside, original high-concept films (strong examples being Inception (2010) and The Matrix (1999)) seem to be a… Read More ›
In Keishi Kondo’s 2022 directorial debut New Religion, communal memory and grief intertwine in photographs to illustrate a haunted post-COVID world. The surrealist Japanese art house thriller follows Kaho Seto (My Identity; Beyond the Blue) as Miyabi, a prostitute trying… Read More ›
Content Warning: This film contains sexual violence and semi-explicit sex acts that may be unnerving for sensitive viewers. Mermaid Legend (1984) is the prize film in Third Window Film’s newest wave of their Blu-ray releases of The Directors Company movies…. Read More ›
“To have never gone to war is something to be proud of.” – Seiji Akitsu (Kuranosuke Sasaki) in Godzilla Minus One (2023) There’s this belief that the old ways are better than new. They’re tried, they’re true, and they meet… Read More ›
If you’re not familiar with Japanese theatrical troupe Europe Kikaku, they are the talent behind 2021’s lo-fi sci-fi comedy Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes and 2023’s lo-fi sci-fi rom-com River. Both directed by Junta Yamaguchi and written by Makoto Ueda,… Read More ›
After its world premiere during Slamdance 2023, the feature-length debut from writer/director Reiki Tsuno (Crying Bitch), Mad Cats, traveled the globe jumping from one film festival to another. At each stop, audiences were invited to enter a world in which… Read More ›
A typhoon’s coming… Typhoon Club (1985) that is! Arriving November 27th from Third Window Films, Shinji Sōmai’s youth cinema masterpiece debuts on Blu-ray. Note: This review is based on a pre-production check disc and will not cover any packaging or… Read More ›
*Disclaimer: Elements of Madness received check-discs of this product, and as such this review will not cover any box art, packaging, or included literary materials that are included with the product.* Katsuhito Ishii, Japan’s Robert Rodriquez, rebel V-Cinema wave filmmaker,… Read More ›
The concept of “punk” is a rebellion against the mainstream. As it relates to music, the term was used to describe rock bands of the late-‘60s to early ‘70s that played rock tunes fast, hard, and, often, in brief. For… Read More ›