1. Tamako in Moratorium

Year: 2013
Director: Yamashita Nobuhiro (Also directed The Drudgery Train in 2012)
Cast: Maeda Atsuko, Yasuko Tomita, Suzuki Keiichi

Tamako, who is the heroine of this movie, is 23-year-old college graduate. Instead of getting a job, she stays at her father's place and doesn't do any work. She plays games and read comics all day and let her father do all the house chores and cook for her.

However, when her father is not looking, she searches for what she really wants to do: She applied to idol audition etc.

I guess the movie delivers a message to a young generation who are not sure with their future dreams.

And the most important thing is that Maeda Astuko who played Tamako in the movie was the most famous member of the prestigious Japanese idol girl group AKB48. She graduated from the group now, but she was my favorite member....and she is really cute hahaha.




2. Helter Skelter

Year: 2012
Director: Ninagawa Mika
Cast: Sawajiri Erika, Mizuhara Kiko, Ayano Gou

The movie is based on Okazaki Kyoko's comic book with the same title, Helter Skelter.  It is about a girl who became a superstar after grandiose plastic surgeries. She becomes so obsessed with staying as "the fairest of them all" and destroys herself at the end.

The movie is violent, obscene, and grotesque, but those elements are portrayed really beautifully since the director, Ninagawa Mika, is the prestigious photographer in Japan and she is talented in using colors in her films. Ninagawa definitely made enchanting images in this video.




3. Rurouni Kenshin

Year: 2012
Director: Otomo Geishi
Cast: Sato Takeru, Aoi Yuu, Takei Emi

This movie is also based on the comic book with the same title, Rurouni Kenshin. It was the masterpiece that was published serially via one of the most renowned comic magazines in Japan, Shonen Jump. It gained a great popularity in Japan because it is based on Japanese history about Meiji era.

The main character, Kenshin, is the one who hates to kill people after he killed so much in the war. The movie basically follows the formula of typical hero movies: Hero fights with villains and the hero meets a girl and finds out that the life is worth living.

But if you want to watch an oriental Japanese style action scenes in high quality, you should definitely watch this movie.

This is the 2000 Academy Award Winner for Short Animated Film.

It expresses the power of short films -- and since we read a few short stories during last week's meeting, you can see the differences between short films and regular films, and the differences between novels and short stories. What is this difference, in your opinion? What strengths and flaws do both have? 

I found this so touching. As someone with a strained relationship with her own father, it definitely struck a few heartstrings within me. Check it out :) 

Our meeting today is taking place in the computer lab of Academic Building A (A704). 
We are to discuss random topics pertaining to our club, and post to the blog.
Please post your thoughts about books, film, or life in general in the comments section below.