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July 11, 2026
 

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CULTURE

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‘Why Wait, Just Die’: A dead-eyed investigator takes on an unsolved murder
CULTURE / Film
‘Why Wait, Just Die’: A dead-eyed investigator takes on an unsolved murder
The single-named Nao offers a steamroller of a performance in Junichi Kanai’s film, which unfolds as an unconventional murder mystery with stylized flourishes.
CULTURE / Film
‘AnyMart’: A surreal parable about the dark side of convenience stores
Yusuke Iwasaki’s debut feature starts off as an observational comedy before being subsumed by creeping dread and shock horror.
CULTURE / Film
‘Piccola Felicita’: From formulaic drama to fever dream
Directed by Yutaka Mizutani, the four-part omnibus looks at love and loneliness in the big city, with some unexpected twists and turns.
After premiering in July 1966, the original “Ultraman” series gained a peak viewership of nearly half of all TV-owning households in Japan.
CULTURE / Film
Jul 2, 2026
The heroism and humanity of ‘Ultraman’: Documentary looks back on 60 years
By Sebastien Raineri
The iconic sci-fi franchise is the focus of a documentary, co-helmed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, that examines its cultural impact on generations of Japanese and international viewers.
A trio of women in need of cash (from left: Sara Minami, Kasumi Arimura and Haru Kuroki) starts smuggling gold from Singapore in Chihiro Amano’s “Magical Secret Tour.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 26, 2026
An implausible but engaging crime drama unfolds in ‘Magical Secret Tour’
By James Hadfield
In Chihiro Amano’s “Magical Secret Tour,” a trio of Japanese women becomes embroiled in a scheme to smuggle gold from Singapore.
Hayato Kohsaka (right) plays a violent teenager whose potential for redemption is the core inquiry in Keisuke Yoshida’s “Unchained.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 26, 2026
‘Unchained’ presents a grim portrait of a budding psychopath
By Mark Schilling
Keisuke Yoshida’s gritty drama concerns the misdeeds of a violent teenager and an ex-con’s efforts to rehabilitate him.
Director Yukiko Sode (center) poses with her lead actors Tadanobu Asano (left) and Yukino Kichii (right) at the 79th Cannes Film Festival.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 25, 2026
‘All the Lovers in the Night’ film adaptation brings ‘unstable beauty’ to the screen
By Blake Simons
During the Cannes Film Festival, director Yukiko Sode and actors Yukino Kishii and Tadanobu Asano reflected on the process of bringing Mieko Kawakami’s novel to life.
Ryusuke Hamaguchi spent two months in Paris conducting research for “All of a Sudden,” which centers primarily on a conversation between two women that unfolds over the course of a single evening.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2026
Ryusuke Hamaguchi wants to make the impossible possible
By Sebastien Raineri
An ethos of idealism is pervasive in the director’s first French-language film, which came with the challenge and exhilaration of shooting in Paris.
Provincial lord Araki Murashige (Masahiro Motoki, right) finds himself under siege and with a series of mysteries to solve in Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s “The Samurai and the Prisoner.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2026
‘The Samurai and the Prisoner’: A cerebral whodunnit in feudal Japan
By James Hadfield
Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s historical drama is a murder mystery in the Agatha Christie mold and driven by conversation rather than combat.
Budding artists Madoka (Mariko Ito, left) and Kazuma (Kai Inowaki) find themselves tangled up in a multiverse while at the movies in “You Are the Film.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2026
‘You Are the Film’ offers a multiverse on a microbudget
By Mark Schilling
Set in a real-life corner of Tokyo’s Shimokitazawa neighborhood, Makoto Ueda’s debut feature takes a refreshingly analog approach to a familiar concept.

China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Japan’s southwestern islands on high alert as Typhoon Bavi approaches
A woman walks out of a shop with duct-taped windows to prevent damage from Typhoon Bavi as it approaches, in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, on Thursday.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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