First-day-screening of movie "Chuugakusei Maruyama"

The first-day-screening of movie "Chuugakusei Maruyama" was held on 18 May which was attended by cast members such as Kusanagi Tsuyoshi and Hiraoka Takuma as well as the director Kudo Kankuro. The film features Hiraoka as a junior high school student Maruyama who has a vivid imagination and meets a weird male neighbour Kusanagi who is full of mysteries. The movie has taken part in the Udine Far East Movie Festival from 19 April to 27 April and will also be a market film at the Cannes film festival. Kudo expressed confidence in his movie and hopes that many people will come to watch it which may give rise to other spin-offs or sequels for the Maruyama series in future.

Source: Sponichi

Public screening of "Soshite Chichi ni Naru" at Cannes Film Festival

The public screening of movie "Soshite Chichi ni Naru" at the Cannes Film Festival was held on 18 May which was attended by the director Koreeda Hirokazu and cast members Fukuyama Masaharu, Lily Frankie, Ono Machiko and Maki Youko as well as the child actors who play their children in the film. The movie which is due to be shown in Japan from 5 May, is the first time in 9 years that a Koreeda film took part in the competition category at Cannes since 2004's "Dare mo shiranai" which gave Yagira Yuya the title of the youngest Best Leading Actor at 14 years old.  150 members of the press from various countries attended the screening and interviewed the cast.

When asked about his first time playing a father, Fukuyama said that it felt as if he was doing a live performance where there are many ways to convey the same thing so he relished the feeling of being able to explore various ways of acting. As he is still in the midst of filming for his ongoing drama "Galileo", Fukuyama could only take 4 days and 2 nights off his filming schedule just to be in Cannes for the first time. He will return to Japan on 19 May. Fukuyama also commented that if he had to be surrounded by so many members of the press in Japan, he might have been a bit irritated but in Cannes, he found it an enjoyable experience.

This film also happens to be the last for late actor Natsuyagi Isao who passed away on 11 May due to pancreatic cancer. He played Fukuyama's father in this film where Fukuyama's character finds out after 6 years that his own son had been accidentally switched at birth with another couple's child and he had been raising a boy unrelated to him all this while. Results for the competition category will be announced on 26 May in Cannes.

Lily Frankie who was also in Cannes for the first time, commented that it was a very vibrant place and made him very excited. Ono who last came to Cannes in 2007 for her film "Mogari no Mori", said that it was difficult to come back to Cannes again because it took such a long time before she could have the second opportunity. Meanwhile, Maki who was a newbie at Cannes said that she hoped to come back again.

Source: Sanspo

Top 10 Fashion Leaders 2013 chosen by women in their teens and 20s (Oricon)

1) Kyary Pamyu Pamyu

2) Karina

3) Shinoda Mariko

4) Amuro Namie

5) Becky

6) Nishino Kana

7) Sasaki Nozomi

8) Rola

9)Kiritani Mirei

10) Masuwaka Tsubasa

Source: Oricon

Sakai Masato & Ueto Aya to star in TBS summer 2013 drama "Hanzawa Naoki"

Sakai Masato and Ueto Aya will be teaming up as a married couple in the TBS summer 2013 drama "Hanzawa Naoki" which begins its run from 7 July at 9pm on Sundays. The drama which is based on the popular novel "Oretachi Bubble Nyuukougumi" by Naoki award winner Ikeido Jun, features Sakai in the role of a salaryman named Hanzawa Naoki who works in a bank and is not afraid to stand up for his rights especially when his boss tries to push the blame to him when things go wrong. He goes by the motto of "an eye for an eye" when it comes to dealing with people and doesn't bat an eyelid when getting back at people who do him wrong. However, under his aggressive facade, Hanzawa is a man who treats his subordinates and family with gentleness. Ueto Aya will play his wife who dares to stand up against her husband. Co-stars include Kagawa Teruyuki, a director at the bank who understands why Hanzawa is the way he is as well as Kitaoji Kinya, Oikawa Mitsuhiro, Hey! Say! Jump! member Nakajima Yuto and Dan Mitsu.

Source: Sponichi

Sorimachi Takashi & Matsushima Nanako ordered to pay damages of JPY 3.85m for accident involving their dog

Sorimachi Takashi and Matsushima Nanako were ordered to pay JPY 3.85m as damages to a real estate management company on 14 May at Tokyo District Court after the company filed a lawsuit against the couple for damages of JPY 52.2m. The case arose from an incident in May 2011 at the apartment block where the couple live in. The couple's dog which was with their daughter at the time of the incident, bit a female neighbour's leg and caused the latter to suffer injuries and move out of the estate before the end of the rental period as she was traumatised by the attack. As a result, the company sued the couple for the loss of rental income which would have been paid by the neighbour. The judge ruled that the couple only needed to pay JPY 3.85m which included legal fees for the company and two months' worth of rent that the company had chose to waive for the neighbour when she moved out prematurely even though she had been liable to pay that as a penalty for terminating the rental contract early.

Source: Sponichi

Fukuyama Masaharu & Lily Frankie to attend Cannes Film Festival for "Soshite Chichi ni naru"

Fukuyama Masaharu and Lily Frankie appeared at Narita Airport on 17 May to depart for France to attend the Cannes Film Festival as their new movie "Soshite Chichi ni naru" is one of the nominated films in the competition category. The film will be screened in Cannes on 18 May and there will be a red carpet event before that. Fukuyama who is currently busy with the filming of his drama "Galileo", took time off to attend the festival and was greeted with cheers from female passengers and was interviewed along with Lily Frankie by 50 members of the press. Fukuyama will return to Japan once the red carpet event is over.

Source: Sanspo

Eita & Kimura Kaela expecting second baby in November

Eita and Kimura Kaela are expecting their second child to be born in November this year after announcing on 14 May that Kimura is currently 5 months' pregnant. Kimura who is celebrating her 9th anniversary as a singer, is currently busy with preparations to set up her own record label by 23 June and only found out about the pregnancy two months ago through a body checkup after she finished her concert tour in early April. The couple have a son who's two years old and have been frequently seen going to their neighbourhood park together. Eita is scheduled to appear in the Noda Hideki play "MIWA" between 4 October and 24 November when Kimura is due to give birth but he is expected to take some time off to witness the birth of his child like what he did in October 2010 during the birth of his son.

Source: Sanspo

Amami Yuki discharged from the hospital and recuperating at home

Amami Yuki who was hospitalised for myocardial infarction on 6 May and had to quit her stage play "Onore no Napoleon", was discharged from the hospital on 13 May which was earlier than the initial diagnosis of a week to 10 days of hospitalisation. Amami released her first official statement since her hospitalisation on 14 May where she apologised for the inconvenience and worry she caused by not being able to complete her stage run right to the final day. She recounted that when she was first told that she was down with the ailment, she was concerned about her condition but still hoped to finish her performances. Being the first time she has been seriously ill, she said that it was a very painful decision for her to decide to quit the play. Amami also thanked the cast and staff for doing their best to accommodate her situation and make the play a success in the end. She ended the statement by saying that she will return to work again once she's fully recovered.

Amami's agency revealed that she has been recuperating at home and going to the hospital for regular checkups and treatment. At the moment, she is recovering well and has been able to carry out her daily activities at home without any problems.

Source: Sanspo

Higashiyama Noriyuki to be co-leads with Vietnamese actor in TBS drama SP "Partner"

Higashiyama Noriyuki and Vietnamese actor Pham Huynh Dong will be co-leads in the upcoming TBS drama SP "Partner" due to be shown in September this year. The actors attended the production press conference held on 13 May for the drama which is meant to be the commemorative work to mark 40 years of diplomatic ties between Japan and Vietnam.This will be a joint production with Vietnam's national broadcaster VTN and features the friendship between Vietnamese independence activist Phan Boi Chau and Japanese doctor Asaba Sakitaro 100 years ago. Higashiyama who will be playing two roles i.e. Asaba in the Meiji era and a salaryman in the current era, admitted that he did not know about Phan and Asaba prior to taking on this drama but hopes to be able to convey the depth of their friendship through his acting. Co-stars also include Nguyen Lan Phuong, Takei Emi and Ashida Mana.

Source: Sanspo

Ishihara Satomi, Iura Arata & Tanaka Rena starring in TBS drama SP "Koi"

Ishihara Satomi, Iura Arata and Tanaka Rena will be starring in the TBS drama SP "Koi" which will be shown during this autumn and is based on the 1996 Naoki Award novel by Koike Mariko which has sold 900,000 copies to date. Straight after the novel won the award, there were many offers to make it into a drama or movie which Koike did not accept as it was felt that nobody could portray the lead character Fumiko. Scriptwriter Minamoto Takashi then started to prepare the script 5 years ago which finally made Koike decide to give the go-ahead.

The story is set in the 70s where Ishihara plays Fumiko, an university student, who gets involved romantically with her assistant professor Katase Shintaro (Iura) and his wife Hinako (Tanaka). However, on 28 February 1972, the police finds Shintaro seriously injured and a young man working in a electronics store (Saito Takumi) dead in a bungalow at Karuizawa while Fumiko and Hinako are also present at the scene. The truth behind the case is not known and the case is quickly classified as a crime of passion which leads to Fumiko being sent to prison. 40 years later, a report writer Torigai Mitsuhiko (Watabe Atsuro) comes to know about this case and goes to interview the elderly Fumiko (Harada Mieko) in prison which leads him to find out what really happened at the bungalow.

Filming has begun in the beginning of April primarily in Karuizawa and will also be shot at various places in Nagano, Tochigi and Chiba in order to show the passing of the seasons.

Source: Nikkansports

Production press conference of NHK drama "Gekiryuu ~ Watashi wo Oboete imasuka? ~"

The production press conference of NHK drama "Gekiryuu ~ Watashi wo Oboete imasuka? ~" was held on 13 May which was attended by Tanaka Rena, Kiritani Kenta, Kuninaka Ryoko and Tomosaka Rie. Yamamoto Koji who was originally scheduled to attend the press conference, did not show up at the event as he was unwell and needed time to recuperate especially since he had just finished his stage play "Onore Napoleon" on the previous day and had not slept for the past three days. The drama will begin its run from 25 June at 10pm on Tuesdays.

"Gekiryuu" features a group of 5 former classmates who are now 35 and reunite after a gap of 20 years. When they were students and went on a graduation trip together, one of their female friends disappeared. However, the bewildering thing is that, the 5 of them receive an email from the missing girl and then come together to find out what is going on.

As the cast members are close in age, they talked about how enjoyable the filming was since they had a great time chatting during breaks and learnt a lot from one another. Kiritani even commented that Tanaka is so frank that she speaks her mind freely and does not hide her thoughts.

Source: Sanspo / Nikkansports

PR event of movie "Kiseki no Ringo"

The PR event of new movie "Kiseki no Ringo" was held on 12 May which was attended by the lead cast members Abe Sadao, Kanno Miho and child actor Hatakeyama Tsumugi. The movie which is due to be shown in cinemas from 8 June, features Abe as a farmer who aims to grow his apples the organic way but is told that it's impossible. Kanno plays Abe's wife in the film. During the PR event, the three of them worked together to create an apple pie from the apples featured in the film which turned out burnt. When asked by the host about her signature dish, Kanno said that she had been praised by her mother for her gyozas which have more vegetables than meat.

Source: Sanspo

First-day-screening of movie "Tantei wa BAR ni iru 2 Susukino Daikousaten"

The first-day-screening of movie "Tantei wa BAR ni iru 2 Susukino Daikousaten" was held on 11 May 2013 at Marunouchi TOEI which was attended by cast members Ooizumi Yo, Matsuda Ryuhei, Ono Machiko, Watabe Atsuro and Gori. The movie is a sequel of the first part shown two years ago and features Ooizumi and Matsuda as a detective duo who solves a murder case while going places in the Susukino area at Sapporo City.

Source: Sanspo

Natsuyagi Isao passes away at the age of 73

Actor Natsuyagi Isao passed away at the age of 73 at his home in Kanagawa Prefecture in the afternoon of 11 May. According to insiders, Natsuyagi was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last year and kept working at his usual pace while undergoing treatment. Five of his movies are scheduled to be shown this year and he last appeared as a regular cast member in the autumn 2012 drama "Going My Home".

Natsuyagi was scheduled to have received an award at the Golden Glory Awards in February this year but was absent due to flu. As a result, his wife Mariko received the prize on his behalf and read out his statement that he was deeply humbled by the receipt of this award.

Throughout his career, Natsuyagi had appeared in more than 300 dramas and movies of various genres after he quit Keio University and entered acting school. His classmates in the same year included Harada Yoshio, Hayashi Ryuzo, Chii Takeo and Taichi Kiwako and they were collected known as the Hana no 15ki sei (The Flower 15th Batch). He made his acting debut in 1966 with the movie "Hone made Shaburu".

Source: Nikkansports

Review of Platina Data (novel)

Although I posted this in my other blog, I thought this should also be posted here now that Platina Data is scheduled to be shown in Singapore later this month. No, I didn't pay $25 for the premiere today (11 May) because I simply did not fancy paying this amount of money for the popcorn, drinks and a poster which I have nowhere to hang up. No doubt I'm absolutely dying to watch the movie and see how it differs from the novel, I'll have to hang on till the end of the month and find out for myself. If you've seen the movie today, please....do not tell me what you saw. ^__^

Even though I bought this book in September last year, I only managed to complete it in late March because I read a few pages and stopped for a long time because I was tied up with other things. It doesn't mean that this novel is bad in any way though so I would like to make this clear. I have a bad habit of wanting to buy new books even though I still have a huge number of unread stuff to go through so I'm trying hard to resist the urge to get new books and aiming to finish my waiting list first. Since the movie version was just released in March, I thought that I should finish this first in case the movie does come to Singapore anytime soon. Last time I heard, it should be coming to our cinemas in May! (UPDATE: It's scheduled to be shown from 23 May!)

Anyway, if you haven't read this novel and wish to avoid knowing how the story develops, I would suggest that you skip this review. I certainly do not want to spoil the fun for you especially if you are in the midst of reading it or haven't even started.

Before I begin sharing my thoughts on this, let me give a summary of the key characters involved and their relationships with one another. Note that there are some minor characters I've left out since they did not appear for too long:

Kagura Ryuuhei - the chief analyst of National Police Agency's Special Analysis & Research Institute. Develops a second personality named Ryuu after the suicide of his father.
Asama Reiji - assistant police inspector of Metropolitan Police Department's 1st section
Tokura - Asama's junior and partner
Nasu - the chief of MPD's 1st section
Kiba - subsection chief of MPD's 1st section
Shiga Takashi - chief of National Police Agency's Special Analysis & Research Institute
Kagura Shogo - Ryuuhei's father, a ceramic artist
Tateshina Saki - the programmer who developed the DNA Investigation system
Tateshina Kousaku - Saki's elder brother
Minagami Youjirou - a professor in neurology at Shinseiki University Hospital and Ryuuhei's doctor
Shiratori Risa - a American-Japanese who is doing research on DNA profiling
Suzuran - Ryuu's girlfriend
Chikushi - a former architect who lives at a remote settlement in Borero City
Sasori - a former bartender who used to work at a bar operated by a gang and lives in the same settlement as Chikushi

Despite the fact that there are so many characters in this story, the movie version chooses to make some changes to the lineup and only showcases the characters I've put in bold as the main cast (based on what I see from the movie's official site). I am guessing some of the characters above may also appear in the movie. Besides this, Tateshina Kousaku's character is also missing from the lineup while Minagami is changed to become a female (Suzuki Honami) in the movie.

The novel can be largely broken up into three main arcs i.e. the events leading up to the development of the DNA Investigation System, the Tateshina siblings' double murders and the manhunt for Kagura. To begin with, the novel talks about how the police is developing this DNA Investigation System which uses DNA data to do matching in order to find criminals easily and accurately. Besides that, it can also help to project how the person may look like and even reveal specific physical characteristics about the criminal and his/her family members. However, Asama being the type of old-school police detective you see in most police dramas who believe in using his feet to find the criminals i.e. going around looking for clues or questioning people, he doesn't believe in the DNA Investigation System which is very strongly "promoted" by Kagura. Despite Asama's resistance and lack of faith in the system, it turns out to be a great thing after all as the police solve cases quickly and get their hands on the criminals easily. Kagura who strongly believes in the worth of his system and data then takes part in efforts in boosting awareness of the system and getting all Japanese citizens to provide their DNA to be included in the database despite concerns over privacy etc.

The second arc is set some time after the DNA system takes off and it is then revealed that the system is actually developed by the Tateshina siblings who stay in a VIP room at Shinseiki University Hospital. Kagura is also revealed to have a dual-personality by the name of Ryu so he has to seek treatment at the same hospital to allow Ryu to "appear" at designated times to do his thing. However, during one of the visits to the hospital, Kagura finds the Tateshina siblings dead in their room and starts to doubt whether Ryu could be behind it. In addition, he is horrified to see that his own DNA was found on Saki which will place him under suspicion as the culprit.


The final arc shows Kagura being aided by Shiratori as he goes on the run to find the truth. Asama who goes after Kagura, slowly realises that there is more to what it seems as they both arrive at the same conclusion...

I must say that the beauty of this novel lies in Higashino Keigo's ability to craft his characters in such a way that gets you fully emotionally invested in what happens to them and to surprise you with unexpected developments just when you least expect and that helps to keep the reader engaged instead of losing interest. Frankly speaking, I thought the first arc was a tad slow but given that it needed to show all the relationships between the characters, explain how the DNA Investigation System came about and why it was touted to be a lifesaver as well as show a contrast in Kagura and Asama's attitudes towards the system. One thinks that it is the solution to everything and can do no wrong while the other thinks that it is definitely not without its flaws. Of course, Kagura gets proven wrong at the end because the same system he believes in actually led to him being accused of something he did not do. No doubt he had suffered while being on the run, I think the experience helped to make him see things from different perspectives instead of being stubborn in everything. It was also good that Asama doubted the accuracy of the system or else he would have been tricked into believing that Kagura was responsible for the murders. Sometimes, a police detective's instinct works better than hard and cold data.

Things start to heat up in the second arc after the murders took place especially as Kagura also doubts himself or rather his other self about whether he is the murderer. Although Kagura and Ryu have been co-existing without much trouble, Kagura does not seem to think too favourably about his alter-ego while Ryu can't be bothered with Kagura either. The amount of faith that Kagura has in his DNA Investigation System can be seen from the fact that he chose to doubt Ryu first instead of the system. With Shiratori's assistance, he begins his journey of being on the run before the police can catch up. During this period, Kagura finds out more things about Ryu and that he even has a girlfriend Suzuran who seems to appear and disappear at will.

The third arc offers a lot of revelations and unexpected twists as Kagura is fighting with an invisible enemy i.e. the real culprit while Asama is investigating the case through his own ways. Although they appear to be going in different directions, they manage to arrive at the same conclusion somehow or so it seems. I won't give away the ending because it is really gripping and very interesting. As for how the main characters end up, I would say that it's a happy ending after all although I think there's a tinge of regret and it's not an ideal fairy tale conclusion. It's something more in tune with the circumstances described in the novel and really more believable as something which might happen in the real world.

On the whole, I think this is a great novel from Higashino which is truly a classic piece of work. I'm not sure if this has been translated into other languages yet but if you can read Japanese, do pick this up and have a go at it. I don't know if the movie follows the novel very closely but I'm guessing it might not, going by some telltale clues in the cast.

Miyazawa Rie stands in for Amami Yuki in stage play "Onore Napoleon"

Miyazawa Rie successfully completed her first performance as Amami Yuki's stand-in in the stage play "Onore Napoleon" on 10 May held at Tokyo Geijutsu Gekijou and was met with thunderous applause for her efforts. As Amami Yuki was ill due to myocardial infarction, Miyazawa was asked by the lead actor Noda Hideki to stand in for Amami who needs to rest for about 1 week to 10 days.

Given the fact that Miyazawa only had two days to practice before going on stage, it was extremely tough for her but she still accepted the offer because of her benefactor Noda. Back in late 2008 when Miyazawa was in the early stages of her pregnancy and had not married her then-husband yet, she was about to quit from one of Noda's plays then as it was supposed to run for 2 months and her condition would not allow her to act in it. After hearing that, Noda secretly changed parts of the script so that Miyazawa would have an easier time on stage and that her pregnancy would not be known until she made the announcement herself. According to insiders, Miyazawa only received the script for "Onore Napoleon" in the early hours of 8 May and started rehearsals that afternoon. On the following day, she had to attend the press conference for another play and only continued rehearsals after she was done with that event. Knowing how much Amami, Noda and the rest of the cast and crew wanted the play to finish its run and having watched the play as a member of the audience, Miyazawa then took on the difficult task of standing in for Amami as a way to repay the favour to Noda.

Source: Sponichi

Nagase Tomoya caught dating a woman in her early 20s by FRIDAY

TOKIO's Nagase Tomoya was caught on a yakiniku date with a beautiful woman in her early 20s as reported in the 9th May issue of FRIDAY. According to the magazine, the two of them met up for a meal at a yakiniku restaurant and spent the night together at Nagase's place. When asked about this, Johnny's Jimusho said that they had nothing to comment about. Nagase was last romantically linked to actress Aibu Saki before they reportedly broke up in November 2012.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi

First-day-screening of movie "Kenchou Omotenashika"

The first-day-screening event of movie "Kenchou Omotenashika" was held on 11 May 2013 at TOHO Cinemas Nigeki 2 which was attended by cast members Nishikido Ryo, Horikita Maki, Funakoshi Eiichiro, Koura Kengo and Seki Megumi. Nishikido plays an employee of the Kochi Prefectural Government's newly set-up hospitality department where he has to work with Horikita & Co. to promote tourism to Kochi. As such, he also took on the role of being the first-day-screening event's host and even reminded the audience before the screening of important things such as switching off their phones and not taking any pictures during the screening. Since Nishikido was not used to hosting events on his own, he called upon his co-star Horikita for help since she had been the Kouhaku host last year. With response to his "plea" for help, Horikita jokingly said that she would help if Nishikido paid her for it which the latter responded in the affirmative.

Source: Sanspo

Winners of the 4th Nippon Theatre Staff Film Festival

Grand Shario Award: Ookami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki
Best Leading Actor: Abe Hiroshi (Terumae Romae)
Best Leading Actress: Kiki Kirin (Waga Haha no Ki)
Best Supporting Actor: Kagawa Teruyuki (Kagidorobo no Mesoddo)
Best Supporting Actress: Hashimoto Ai (Kirishima, Bukatsu Yamerutte yo)
Grand Shario Newcomer Award: Higashide Masahiro (Kirishima, Bukatsu Yamerutte yo)
Best Director: Hosoda Mamoru (Ookami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki)
Best Script: Uchida Kenji (Kagidorobo no Mesoddo)
Best Music: Ueno Koji (Nobou no Shiro)

Source: Nippon Theatre Staff Film Festival

Nakatani Miki to play Okada Junichi's wife in 2014 Taiga "Gunshi Kanbee"

Nakatani Miki will make her first appearance in a NHK Taiga drama when she takes on the role of Okada Junichi's wife in the 2014 Taiga "Gunshi Kanbee". In the upcoming Taiga, Okada plays the role of Kuroda Kanbee while Nakatani will play the only woman who Kanbee loved in his lifetime i.e. Teruhime who he married at the age of 22. Teruhime who was also the niece of Kodera Masamoto, was described in the Kuroda family books as a woman with looks and virtue. In the Sengoku era where many warriors had multiple wives, Kanbee was one of the few who had one wife only.

In addition, Tanihara Shosuke will take on the role of Takenaka Hanbee who was one of the advisors to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In contrast to Kanbee who was seen by Hideyoshi as an ambitious man with a desire to be the ruler of the world, Hanbee was regarded as a quiet man who had no interest for power but was known for his strong friendship with Kanbee. Tanihara had appeared in previous Taigas such as 2004's "Shinsengumi!", 2007's "Fuurin Kazan" and 2010's "Ryomaden".

Other cast additions announced on the same day include Kuroki Hitomi, Kataoka Tsurutaro and Shibata Kyohei.

Source: Sanspo