Winners of the 34th Japan Movie Critics Award (2024)

The award ceremony will be held at Tokyo International Forum on 9 June 2025.

For the full list of the winners, please refer here.

Best Movie: "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best Director: Irie Yu - "An no koto"

Best Leading Actor: Yoshizawa Ryo - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best Leading Actress: Kawai Yumi - "An no koto"

Best Supporting Actor: Ayano Go - "Maru" / Mori Yuusaku - "Missing"

Best Supporting Actress: Oshidari Akiko - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best New Director: Yamanaka Yoko - "Namibia no sabaku"

Best Male Newcomer: Saito Jun - "Karaoke iko!" / Motoyama Chikara - "Juuichinin no zokugun"

Best Female Newcomer: Nagasawa Itsuki - "Ai no yukue"

Best Scriptwriter: Kai Sayaka - "Adabana"

Best Editing: Tabata Hanako - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Golden Glory Award: Negishi Toshie - "Sayuri"

Diamond Award: Kusabue Mitsuko - "99-sai, nani ga medetai"

Excellence Award Winners of the 48th Nippon Academy Awards (2024) - Film & individual acting awards

Unlike other awards, the Nippon Academy Awards selects 5 "winners" in each category for the excellence awards and presents the grand award to the No.1 among these 5 in the 15 main categories during its prize-giving ceremony. As such, the list here represent actually winners of the excellence awards and not nominees as explained by the organiser. 

The prize-giving ceremony for the 48th edition will be held on 14 March 2025. For the full list of winners, please refer here (currently, the official website is down due to high traffic).

Best Movie

- Kingdom 4 Daishogun no kikan

- Samurai Time Slipper

- Shoutai

- Yoake no subete

- Last Mile

Best Director 

- Sato Shinsuke (Kingdom 4 Daishogun no kikan)

- Tsukahara Ayuko (Last Mile)

- Fujii Michihito (Shoutai)

- Miyake Sho (Yoake no subete)

- Yasuda Junichi (Samurai Time Slipper)

Best Scriptwriter

- Irie Yu (An no koto)

- Ohshima Satomi (99-sai. Nani ga medetai)

- Kodera Kazuhisa / Fujii Michihito (Shoutai)

- Nogi Akiko (Karaoke iko!)

- Nogi Akiko (Last Mile)

- Yasuda Junichi (Samurai Time Slipper)

Best Leading Actor

- Ayano Go (Karaoke iko!)

- Kusanagi Tsuyoshi (Gobangiri)

- Yamaguchi Makiya (Samurai Time Slipper)

- Yamazaki Kento (Kingdom 4 Daishogun no kikan)

- Yokohama Ryuusei (Shoutai)

Best Leading Actress

- Ishihara Satomi (Missing)

- Kamishiraishi Mone (Yoake no subete)

- Kawai Yumi (An no koto)

- Kusabue Mitsuko (99-sai. Nani ga medetai)

- Mitsushima Hikari (Last Mile)

Best Supporting Actor

- Uchino Seiyo (Hakkenden)

- Oosawa Takao (Kingdom 4 Daishogun no kikan)

- Okada Masaki (Last Mile)

- Sato Jiro (An no koto)

- Yamada Takayuki (Shoutai)

Best Supporting Actress

- Ashida Mana (Hataraku saibou)

- Kiyohara Kaya (Gobangiri)

- Tsuchiya Tao (Hakkenden)

- Yamada Anna (Shoutai)

- Yoshioka Riho (Shoutai)

Newcomers

- Saito Asuka (Oshi no ko - The Final Act -)

- Shibuya Nagisa (Ano ko wa daare?)

- Yamada Anna (Golden Kamuy / Shoutai)

- Akaso Eiji (Rokunin no usotsuki na daigakusei / Moshimo Tokugawa Ieyasu ga souridaijin ni nattara)

- Itagaki Rihito (Hakkenden / Hataraku saibou / Onmyouji 0)

- Koshiyama Keitatsu (Boku no ohisama)

- Saito Jun (Karaoke iko!)

- Morimoto Shintaro (Shoutai)

Association Honorary Award 

- The late Nishida Toshiyuki

Nominees of the 49th Hochi Movie Awards (2024)

Here are the nominees of the 49th Hochi Movie Awards (2024) as announced on 12 November 2024. The numbers in brackets refer to the number of nominees in that category and the list is in the Japanese alphabetical order. Winners will be revealed in late November:

Best Japanese Movie (15)

PERFECT DAYS

Karaoke iko!

Yoake no subete

52 hertz no kujiratachi

Missing

An no koto

Kakushigoto

Hebi no michi

Samurai Time Slipper

Last Mile

Boku ga ikiteru, futatsu no sekai

Goman to zenryou

11 nin no zokugun

Aimitagai

Shoutai

Best Director (14)

Irie Yu - An no koto

Wim Wenders - PERFECT DAYS

Okuyama Hiroshi - Boku no ohisama

Katayama Shinzo - Ame no naka no yokujou

Kusano Shogo - Aimitagai

Shiraishi Kazuya - 11 nin no zokugun / Gobangiri

Sekine Kousai - Kakushigoto

Tsukahara Ayuko - Last Mile

Narushima Izuru - 52 hertz no kujiratachi

Hagiwara Kentaro - Goman to zenryou / Blue Period

Fujii Michihito - Shoutai / Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi

Mitani Koki - Suomi no hanashi wo shiyou

Miyake Sho - Yoake no subete

Yoshida Keisuke - Missing

Best Leading Actor (13)

Ayano Go - Karaoke iko!

Ikematsu Sousuke - Honshin

Nakano Taiga - 11 nin no zokugun

Narita Ryo - Ame no naka no yokujou

Hiraizumi Sei - Ashita wo tsuzuru shashinkan

Fujigaya Taisuke - Goman to zenryou

Matsumura Hokuto - Yoake no subete

Yakusho Koji - PERFECT DAYS / Hakkenden

Yamaguchi Makiya - Samurai Time Slipper

Yamazaki Kento - Golden Kamuy / Kingdom Daishogun no kikan

Yamada Takayuki - 11 nin no zokugun

Yokohama Ryuusei - Shoutai

Yoshizaqa Ryo - Boku ga ikiteru, futatsu no sekai

Best Leading Actress (13)

An - Kakushigoto

Ishihara Satomi - Missing

Eguchi Noriko - Amarokku / Okaasan ga issho / Ai ni ranbou

Kamishiraishi Mone - Yoake no subete

Kawai Yumi - An no koto / Namibia no sabaku

Kiyohara Kaya - Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi

Kusabue Mitsuko - 90-sai. Nani ga medetai

Kuroki Haru - Aimitagai

Shibasaki Kou - Hebi no michi

Sugisaki Hana - 52 hertz no kujiratachi / Ichiko / Kuchinai sakura

Nao - Goman to zenryou / Sensei no shiroi uso

Nagasawa Masami - Suomi no hanashi wo shiyou

Mitsushima Hikari - Last Mile

Best Supporting Actor (13)

Aoki Munetaka - Missing / Hebi no michi

Ikematsu Sousuke - Boku no ohisama / Baby Walkure Nice Days

Okada Masaki - Last Mile / Angry Squad Koumuin to 7 nin no sagishi

Okuda Eiji - Kakushigoto

Shison Jun - 52 hertz no kujiratachi

Nakamura Tomoya - Missing / Last Mile

Fuji Tatsuya - Ooinaru fuzai

Matsumura Hokuto - Dear Family

Mitsuishi Ken - Yoake no subete / Dear Family

Yasuda Ken - Kuchinai sakura

Yamada Takayuki - Shoutai

Yoshizawa Ryo - Kingdom Daishogun no kikan

Wakaba Ryuuya - Ichiko / Boku no ohisama

Best Supporting Actress (14)

Kawai Aoba - Kakushigoto / An no koto / Route 29

Kawaei Rina - Hen na ie / Dear Family / Angry Squad Koumuin to 7 nin no sagishi

Kuroki Haru - Gold Boy / Seishun 18 x 2 Kimi e to tsuzuku michi / Hakkenden

Sakura Yuno - Samurai Time Slipper

Takaishi Akari - Shinmai kisha Torokko Watashi ga yaraneba dare ga yaru!

Nakamura Yuri - Ichiko / Amarokku / Onihei Hankacho Kettou

Nishida Naomi - Ienai himitsu / Goman to zenryou / Aimitagai

Fujima Sawako - Yoake no subete / 90-sai. Nani ga medetai / Chacha / Aimitagai

Furukawa Kotone - Ienai himitsu / Cloud

Maeda Bibari - Goman to zenryou

Miyoshi Ayaka - Honshin / Sensei no shiroi uso

Yamada Anna - Golden Kamuy / Shoutai

Yoshioka Riho - Shoutai

Yoshine Kyoko - Karaoke iko!

Best Newcomer (8)

Kubozuka Airu - Happiness / Koi wo shiranai bokutachi wa

Koshiyama Keitatsu - Boku no ohisama

Saito Jun - Karaoke iko! / Karakai jouzu no Takagi-san / Muroi Shinji Yaburezarumono / Muroi Shinji Ikitsuzukerumono

Shiramoto Ayana - Hako Otoko

Nakasu Touma - Kakushigoto

Nakanishi Kiara - Boku no ohisama

Hamura Jinsei - Gold Boy

Hayase Ikoi - Ikoku Nikki / Ano ko wa daare?

Quick Review #77: Missing (movie)

Title: Missing / ミッシング

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a documentary-style story with realistic and raw emotions and/or are fans of Ishihara Satomi

* Currently showing on Netflix (subject to geographical restrictions)

Liked:

- Stories about parents grappling with the aftermath of their children being the victims of crime aren't new so what made this quite different was its singular focus on displaying the raw emotions felt by the parents and those around them as time went by rather than finding out what happened or what was the outcome. From the initial shock and panic to that of denial, anger, despair before trying to cope with the situation while getting on with life, this movie was certainly not meant to entertain but a realistic depiction of the emotions felt by the characters who were related and unrelated to the child. This somehow helped the movie become easier to relate to even if you aren't a parent or haven't gone through a similar experience of loss.

- Ishihara Satomi was definitely the highlight of the movie as the story focused a lot on her emotions. Perhaps in the traditional sense, a mother should be entirely devoted to her child and make sure that the child's well-being is her utmost priority. That being said, a mother is still a human being who deserves to take a break from time to time because if she's not well in any way, it will affect her ability to take care of her child. The issue in this movie was that, just because she went for her idol's concert for a couple of hours and asked her younger brother to take care of her daughter briefly, this decision indirectly led to the disappearance of her child. Stuck in an endless spiral of self-blame, self-doubt, the what-ifs and consumed by the anger she unleashed on the people around her, Ishihara's acting managed to show the spectrum of emotions felt by the mother although it may seem a bit hysterical at times and certainly not too pleasant to watch.

Disliked: 

- The lack of a cause and resolution in the story may not go down well with some viewers who want answers so this no doubt makes this story feel incomplete. In reality, a lot of child disappearance cases actually have no outcome and parents are stuck in a forever abyss of not knowing what happened to their children. And since the movie's focus was on the things that happened after the child went missing, it was understandable although I would have preferred a more complete story.

- Due to the overly heavy focus on the mother in the story, the other characters in the story did not get enough attention. I thought that the scenes showing the father's (Aoki Munetaka) emotions under his calm facade were very good but they were too little. As for the reporter played by Nakamura Tomoya, it wasn't very clear why he was so focused on helping the family or the reason why he was troubled over the gap between what he was supposed to do and what he wanted to do. There could be more exploration of these "side characters" to give a bit more insight on the whys about their actions and thoughts.