Lost In Translation

American Honey

Andrea Arnold's latest film American Honey (2016) calls to mind the work of other directors who have tried to look at contemporary youth culture in films like Kids and Spring Breakers. But it is an idealized or rather lowered version-I think the truth is much less cinematic and is much less interesting. There is great cinematography in this film, but I am not sure what message Arnold is trying to convey and it seems as it if it could have been revealed in less than two hours and and forty five minutes.

Iroha

I was reading Timeout Tokyo's list of The Best 20 Ramen Restaurants of 2016 and came across a local favorite, Isshou, as well as another on the north side of Asagaya, Iroha. It isn't anywhere near a station, but the word has gotten out and there was a line-up on Thursday afternoon. The thin noodles and refreshing broth of the chuka soba (¥680) is excellent. It's a bit of a hike so won't be sure how often I'll return.

Alfie (1966)

A friend was recently talking about Michael Caine's film Alfie (1966), and I realized that I've ever seen it-I have seen the updated version with Jude Law, not so memorable. So I checked it out, and Caine has much more presence than Law and the film seems to be representative of the "angry young man" movement of the 60s and a little misogynist-much darker than I anticipated. I think breaking the fourth wall is quite effective in this film as well-since it's the charming Caine that does it.

Ishi No Hana

The last time I went to one of my favorite cocktail bars, Bar Tram in Ebisu, I read through a free paper that mentioned a couple of other cocktail bars that they endorsed-Bar Qwang in Roppongi and Ishi No Hana in Shibuya. After dinner in Shibuya I decided to track down Ishi No Hana and try it out. I decided to try the Bouvieler-essentially a Negroni with Rye whisky (plus Campari and sweet vermouth). My companion got a cosmopolitan with ginger. These are professional mixologists, so it's not cheap, there's a seating charge and cocktails are generally price around ¥1500 and up.

Gonpachi (Shibuya)

The Gonpachi in Nishi Azabu is famous for two things-being a film location for Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill and for begin the location where George W. Bush had dinner with Koizumi. There's a Gonpachi branch in Shibuya that has a nice atmosphere and reasonable priced Japanese food specializing in sushi and grilled meats and fish.

New Places Visited 2016

For various reasons (searching for a new job, moving house, starting a new job, canceling a vacation, new opportunities to travel for work,etc.) I didn't visit any new countries this year. However, I always hope to visit at least one place I've never been to before and this year I had the opportunity to visit 15 new places:

    1. Saga-ken (Yoshinogari Koen)

    2. Kumamoto, Kumamoto

    3. Yufuin, Oita (I have now been to all seven prefectures in Kyushu)

    4. Daiyuzan Saijo-ji, Kanagawa

    5. Odawara-jo, Kanagawa

    6. Nago-shi, Okinawa

    7. Fushimi District, Kyoto

    8. Kanzawa, Ishikawa

    9. Davis, Califonia

    10. Sacramento, California

    11. New Orleans, Louisiana

    12. Yamadera, Yamagata

    13. Sendai, Miyagi

    14. Matsushima, Miyagi

    15. Onjuku, Chiba

Jame Jam

Jame Jam is a Persian restaurant near Asagaya station that I've been meaning to try for some time. They have a reasonable lunch set with soup, salad, rice, and main dish-this week's special was eggplant and potatoes in a tomato sauce with a drink for ¥1000.

Kiss Of The Spiderwoman

I suppose like most people I had my first exposure to the story, Kiss of the Spiderwoman, from the 1985 Hector Babenco starring William Hurt and Raul Julia. It seems like the kind of film that Roger Ebert would endorse and persuade me to search out. Since that time I have become a fan of the author Mauel Puig-his novel were a major source for inspiration for the films of Wong Kar-wai. After reading a couple of his other novels I finally got a copy of Kiss of The Spiderwoman (1976). Of course it is known for the excellent dialogue that slowly reveals the psychology and past histories of the two main characters-Valetin, the freedom fighter and Molina the homosexual. Puig is somewhat know for his experimental prose style-and I see here he adds scientific footnotes on the psychology of homosexuals through out the text and records the conversations between the warden and prisoners as ply text rather than unattributed as it is when the two prisoners are having a dialogue. Moreover, there are several stream-of-consciousness passages that describe films that Molina has seen that he recounts to pass the time while in the prison.. It is a powerful story that has historical antecedents in Argentina's "Dirty War" in the 1970s.

Tokyo Metropolitan Museum Of Photography

The Tokyo Metropolitan Museum Of Photography got a renovation, so I though I'd go check it out. I deiced on "Apichatpong Weerasethakul: Ghosts in the Darkness" exhibit-since he's a Thai film maker/artist I have had exposure to in the past.

Across from the museum there's several brick standing bars, Brick End Stand Yokocho, that look out over the Yamanote line-should be nice when it warms up in the spring.

Margaret

I am a fan of director Kenneth Longerman who has a hit this season with Manchester by the Sea and I have also seen his powerful debut You Can Count On Me. Somehow I missed another powerful drama Margaret (2011) about a Manhattan teen, Anna Panquin, who witnesses a tragedy and it changes her life and the life of people around her. There is an all star ensemble cast with the likes of Matt Damon, Jean Reno, and Matthew Broderick among lesser known stars. I suppose some people may have found the story somewhat too melodramatic by some, however, I found it complex and fluid.