Think Again, Al Jolson: Japan’s Silent Movie Culture Is Still Going Strong
There was a cultural divide in benshi preferences, rather like the difference in taste between those who enjoy the latest Tom Cruise movie and those who favor “Drive My Car”
“Allez, Les Brave Blossoms”: Japan’s Special Sporting Footprint
Planet Rugby is very different from the world of geopolitics. The United States is not a superpower but a minnow that failed to qualify for the World Cup
The Intelligent Ambiguity of Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer”
When a friend mentions an underground route for getting atomic secrets to Moscow, he responds “that would be treason”.
Ian Buruma’s “Collaborators”
And sometimes, there really are conspiracies — or at least crucial decisions taken far from the public eye
Hans Sautter’s “Japan”: A Photographer’s Lifework
The Sacred is there to balance the profane. We need them both.
An Excremental Film Review
We are a long way from the anality taboo that underpins much Freudian psychoanalysis.
Flowing into the Future: Tokyo by Water
“It is all but forgotten today that Tokyo’s low city was once a city equal to Venice in its charms,”
The Real Musical Magic of Ryuichi Sakamoto
Listening to the jazz-funk of Herbie Hancock’s Head Hunters band revolutionized his thinking about music
Big Time Gambling Boss: Yukio Mishima’s Favourite Yakuza Movie
When Tsuruta heard what had happened, he unsheathed his ceremonial sword and wept.
Guilty Pleasures: Tokyo Vice
Having an ex- Mormon missionary as the most formidable of the nightclub hostesses is excellent.