Lost In Translation

Tonta

Takadanobaba has two of the best tonkatsu restaurants in Tokyo, I've already sampled Narikura, so it was time to visit Tonta (a Michelin Bib Gourmand). I got there slightly before noon and had a good 40 minute wait, but had my Kindle so wasn't too upset by that it seems closer to1:00 is the time to arrive for lunch, since it seemed to have slowed down and people got seats immediately. Anyway, I went with the toku roast katsu teishoku (special roast loin set) for ¥2160 which included a pork cutlet, pickles, sesame, rice, and a choice of three types of miso soup. The pork was succulent, very moist and tender-the batter was light and tasty. Certainly one of the best tonkatsu restaurants in Tokyo.

The Famous Sword Bijomaru

It has been suggested that Kenji Mizoguchi's The Famous Sword Bijomaru (1945) was work for hire and has elements of propaganda in the story line. That being said this story of devotion to duty, vengeance, and giving one's all for the cause. Kiyone Sakurai (Shôtarô Hanayagi) has made a sword for his benefactor, Kozaemon Onoda (Ichijirô Oya). Onoda carries the sword on a visit to the emperor, but when his group is attacked the sword breaks.  As punishment for not doing his part to repel the attackers, Onoda is sentenced to house arrest.  Kiyone is overcome by shame and attempts seppuku, but Onoda’s daughter Sasae (Isuzu Yamada, known for Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood and Yojimbo) prevents him. A respected samurai offers to put in a good word for Onoda in exchange for Sasae’s hand in marriage. Onoda refuses, and the insulted Naito murders him. Sasae wants vengeance, and she asks Kiyone to craft an appropriate sword to carry out the deed. The female role of the avenger comes long before Lady Snowblood-it makes me wonder if this is the first major action role for a woman in Asian cinema-probably not. Because it is a Mizoguchi films it has many cinematic moments despite the fact that is among his minor works: the forging sword scenes, the palanquin scene, the final battle scene, as well as the epilogue on a riverboat. There is exquisite framing throughout as well. Even when up for hire Mizoguchibrings artitry and craftmanship to a film.

Sweet Bird Of Youth

Tennessee Williams hit the dramatic pay dirt once again with Sweet Bird Of Youth (1959). It has many of his essentials themes of damaged, self-sabotaging people looking for redemption and finding tragedy. It the kind of play that Williams excels at. It's notable that the original theater production stared Paul Newman as Chance Wayne the prodigal son returning home for his last chance with Heavenly. He is hoping his connection with the aging former superstar actress "The Princess Kosmonopolis"(who was played by Geraldine Page) can restore his vitality and give him the fame, success and life with Heavenly away from St. Cloud. It's also notable that the music was composed by frequent Williams collaborator and well-known writer in his own right -Paul Bowles. I am looking forward to seeing the film version and curious to see how much they left in from the play.

Kyu-Furukawa Gardens

The western-style residence and garden at Kyu-Furukawa was designed by the well-known English architect, Josiah Condor, and is located near Komagome station the opposite direction on Hongo-dori from Rikugien Gardens.

Ogawa Jihei, aka Niwashi-Ueji, a designer of Japanese gardens from Kyoto, created the equally impressive Japanese garden.

Taste of Cherry

Recently deceased Abbas Kiarostami's 1997 film Taste Of Cherry is generally considered one of his masterpieces. It is a simple story of a man under duress who drives around the outskirts of a city in Iran looking for someone who will assist him in his suicide attempt where he is planning on taking a large amount of sleeping pills and lie in a open grave he has dug. The assistant must come the next day and check to see if he has survived and if not he want the assist to bury him in the grave. There is much philosophical musing with his would be assistants. This was famously un-loved by Roger Ebert who called the film "excruciatingly boring"-but he gets almost universal praise from other critics. It is certainly an art film and of the "slow cinema" school, but it is great cinema-there are some amazing sequences throughout the film even though most of the film is people talking in a car. Furthermore, there is a controversial ending that serves as a sort of epilogue to the story that is likely to frustrate most viewers. It is certainly not for everyone.

The Housemaid

My introduction to director Kim Ki-young's celebrated film (called by many the greatest Korean film ever made), The Housemaid (1960) actually came via the 2010 re-make by Im Sang-soo. This film was chosen as one of six films released on by Criterion from Martin Scorsese's World Film Project (which restore films in countries where there are scare funds for such projects). The film seems as something of a prototype for Fatal Attraction-hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Here a popular music teacher at a woman's factory hires the wrong girl as a housemaid and she turns his life and household upside down. The period details show that there is a strong American military presence in the streets of Seoul where every other car is an army vehicle. The city itself also resembles Tokyo of that time. I also learned that Korean like Japanese prize curry rice (apparently a hold over from the Japanese occupation). The director reveals himself to be an expert craftsman with framing, camera movements, and exposition of the melodramatic story. I can see why it is so highly praised.

Ajimaru

I've been meaning to try Ajimaru, a Hokkaido style miso ramen shop, near Asagaya station for a while. On my first visit I had the regular style ramen set which included rice and two gyoza for ¥800. Next time I'll try the spicy miso, which looked really good.

Amanda Knox

The Amanda Knox murder trial resonated with me for several reasons, she was a University of Washington student and Seattle resident like I had been, and the celebrity circus-like atmosphere called to mind another notorious miscarriage of justice with O.J. Simpson. The documentary Amanda Knox (2016) looks at how the travesty ran out of control. The case should have been solved by Occam's Razor, the eventual convicted murderer was know for break-ins and sexual assault-his DNA was found all over the victim's room. The victim had been sexually assaulted, there were some oddities that the prosecution took to be a cover up and proceeded to make Knox and her short term boyfriend the principal suspect due to her "inappropriate behavior following the grisly murder. The police questioned the young, upset people under duress and mucked up the investigation from the get go. It was obvious that there was international pressure on them to solve the case quickly and this is one of the main factors that led them down the wrong road. The fact that most of the prosecution's cases rested on presumed theories without any solid proof stoked by an amoral scandal-monger press corp that would print anything whether or not it was true. That desperation led them to tell Knox that she had AIDS when in jail and then released her prison diaries-calls to question the legality of such an act as well. The smug prosecutor refuses to admit he made a mistake and today conspirator theorists types still believe she got away with murder. It is the obvious of O.J.-where a man clearly guilty with physical proof is set free for being famous-her an infamous woman is convicted for being an attractive, sexually active woman. In the end the Italian high court over turned the conviction and they were set free-so eventually justice prevailed.

Tanakaya Soba Special of the Week 10/14/2016

My Friday lunch treat near campus. Mushroom curry dipping sauce with deep fried vegetables, bean salad, jasmine rice and dessert: ¥880.

Crisis In Six Scenes

I think Woody Allen's been on something a streak with this year's Cafe Society and now his Amazon miniseries, Crisis in Six Scenes (2016) in which Allen appears for the first time in 16 years. Of course he wrote and directed it as well, it is a funny story about a mid-level author, SIdeny Musinger (played by Allen) who's wife (Elaine May) harbors a radical (Miley Cyrus) on the run during the 60s. It is a clash of cultures that resonates with me since I am in the midst of reading a book about the era just after in The Invisible Bridge: The Fall of Nixon and the Rise of Reagan. The joke may be vintage, but then agian i am a fan of vintage Allen.