Itami touched some serious nerves in Japan, when he filmed "Minbo: The Gentle Art of Japanese Extortion" (Japanese title "Minbo Onna" - "Extortion Woman.") His choice to show the Yakuza as intimidating jerks, rather than the usual portrayal of the stylish, Robin Hood-like last remnants of the Samurai tradition, earned him a famously slashed face and possibly a murder. I admit that its history was the reason I sought the movie out.

In addition to its political bent and rather movie-like repercussions, however, "Minbo" remains an excellent film, showcasing Itami's biting wit and stinging satire of modern Japanese society. The same sharp eye he brought to Japanese family life in "The Funeral" is used to mercilessly let the air out of the yakuza's puffed shirts and throw back the curtain of the Great and Powerful Oz, revealing the scared little men for all to see.

Itami's skillful blend of comedy and drama is on strong display, and characters wax and wane between pathetic, noble, scared and ridiculous. His wife, Nobuko Miyamato is at her most beautiful and powerful in this film. Playing a lawyer who will not bow to the yakuza tactics, she is a lady full in command, it is hard to believe that this is the same scared woman behind the counter in "Tampopo."

Anyone who lives in Japan is familiar with the black trucks and their annoying, relentless loudspeakers, can appreciate the frustration felt by the characters in "Minbo." I for one am glad Itami made this film.

While reading this book I realized that I knew nothing about haiku. I had always thought that the form of haiku, the 5-7-5 pattern was important but I had never really considered why this pattern mattered, or what one tried to accomplish with a haiku that could not be accomplished with a more free-form style of poetry.

This book, "Matsuo Basho," not only supplies an interesting history of the undisputed master of Japanese haiku, but it also contains an introductory lesson on the different forms of poetry that Basho utilized, the haiku, the renku and the haibun. Many of Basho's poems are included, both in the original Japanese as well as with a translation, and then interpreted. The author puts the poem in historical context, as well as gives an idea of the scene that Basho was describing. It is truly amazing how complete a scene Basho could bring forth using such a limited palette of words.

Also included are descriptions of Basho's travel guides, that he wrote on his many voyages across Japan, some highlights of Basho's thoughts on poetry as well as the author's personal interpretation of why Basho has remained a relevant poet, and will continue to remain so.

A fascinating book overall, and one that has led me to become interested in haiku and seeking out more books by this amazing writer, Matsuo Basho.

Captain Harlock epitomizes what the Japanese call the "Hard School" of heroes. He is stoic and strong, unmoved by weak emotions and undistracted by women. Yokio Mishima ("The Sailor Who Fell from Grace With the Sea") would give a silent, grim salute to this space sailor, who coasts the pure and cold ocean of stars, accompanied by his boon companions who he shelters from the storms. High melodrama, complete with capes and scars.

There is no film that captures this essence more than "Arcadia of my Youth." Of all Matsumoto adaptations, this one remains the truest to the core of his work.

Here we get the origin story of Space Captain Harlock, most recent in a long line of Pirate-Knights sailing in ships they name "Arcadia." A manly heritage of struggle and stamina passed from the original Phantom F. Harlock to his descendants, across 3,000 years. Along with Harlock is the origin of many his familiar characters, such as Emeraldas, the female proponent of the hard school, and Tochiro, the diminutive mechanical genius looking for a hero to follow. A Wagnerian tale to be sure, a true Space Opera.

The DVD is an excellent presentation to this ode to the hard school. The animation is a bit dated, but not yet marred by the distracting CGI found in later Matsumoto adaptations. The original and uncut version is presented, as it should always be in every release. The extra features are enjoyable, but nothing spectacular. The main star is the movie itself.

Be sure to put on your most stoic face when watching "Arcadia of my Youth," and know that life is born of struggles and sacrifice and challenge. As Captain Harlock says, "It takes a man to understand these feelings..."

Matsumoto fills his universe with deep and mysterious characters, none more mysterious than Maetel. This 2-part series tells the origin of Maetel, the pirate queen Emeraldas, and the strange machine world from which they come. The planet La Metale drifts slowly towards a permanent ice age. Queen Promescium, along with her advisor Hard Gear, pushes the planet towards a solution that will guaranty immortality. She orders all the population to submit to the process of fully mechanizing the planet.

Maetel and Emeraldas resist. Hard Gear and his new mechanized army decide that it is not there choice. Drama ensues.

It is hard to see "Maetel Legend" as a stand alone. It really is a prequel to "Galaxy Express 999" which is currently unavailable. It does introduce some of the characters who appear in "Harlock Saga" and "Queen Emeraldas" and works well on that level.

An unfortunate draw back is the unnecessary combination of computer animation with cel animation. This is clearly a director that wants to embrace the new technology but doesn't really know how. All of Matsumoto's recent releases have this failing. It is also a bit hard to see Maetel and Emeraldes looking so...cute. Cute is one thing Matsumoto doesn't do very well. Beautiful, sure, but cute...

All in all, I enjoyed "Maetel Legend" enough to buy it. It is not the greatest of Matsumoto's work (That would be "Galaxy Express 999" or "Arcadia of my Youth") but it is good enough.

"Ai Yori Aoshi" (in English, "Bluer than Blue") is shaping up to be one of the best romance mangas, up there with "Maison Ikkoku" and "Love Hina." Japanese comics tend to fall firmly into "boy's comics" and "girl's comics," and this story is intended to be for boys, but I think it crosses gender pretty easily. The story is quite sweet, but with some wacky humor thrown in for good measure, and a few curveball characters.

Aside from the usual screwball antics, there is some real tenderness between the two main characters, Kaoru Hanabishi and Aoi Sakuraba, that sets this series apart from other romance-comics. Also, unlike most in the genre, the two characters are happily in love with each other and they both know it from the very beginning. This beginning volume sets the stage for the story, introducing the characters and such. When the full cast is assembled, the fun begins.

The inside art is really nice, much better than the covers lead you to believe. The style is pretty usual, but it is very nicely done. A great comic, one that you really can't go wrong with. Pick up this first volume and find yourself hooked!

From Ken Akamatsu, writer/artist of the popular "Love Hina," comes "Negima!: Magister Negi Magi." This comic follows the adventures of Negi Springfield, a young 10-year old magician from Wales who has been assigned to an all-girls school in Japan as an English teacher for his post-graduation assignment. The scenario of one guy surrounded by many girls sounds familiar to readers of Japanese comics, but this is quite different from your standard "harem" story.

Negi is an entirely likeable character, charming and in over his head, yet determined to do his best in an overwhelming situation. His dream is to become the Magister, a sort of wandering Master Magician who helps those in trouble. This being an Akamatsu comic, Negi has the habit of a powerful sneeze which blows girls skirts up, or blasts their clothes off entirely. His naivety presents this habit from being too silly, and he is always quite shy and embarrassed afterward.

He is joined in the regular cast by Asuna Kagurazaka, a 14 year old jr. high school student in Negi's class. She is a bit of a tom boy, with a powerful kick that can send Negi flying. Not so much a romantic interest, but a friendly foil for Negi. Asuna is the only one who knows that Negi is a magician, a fact which must be kept secret.

Of course, the Mahora school is no ordinary school, and is filled with all sorts of oddities such as a legendary bath that holds 100 people. Akamatsu also seems to have a thing for the baths in his comics! The large cast of characters sets the stage for a variety of adventures, although do to the young age of the characters these adventures are much less romance-orientated than "Love Hina."

This is my favorite Japanese comic being produced right now, and it is nice to see it getting an English release. Fans of "Love Hina" will find the same kind of humor, with a bit of a Harry Potter sling to it.

If another writer has written "The Master of Go", a true story about the competition between the "invincible" Master of Go and a much-younger opponent in the Master's retirement match, and intense single game that lasted for more than six-months, perhaps they could have used the game to launch a sweeping metaphor of the fading Meji-era of Japan giving way to the modern era, or a struggle of youth and age or something of the sort. The game itself might have taken second seat to whatever greater picture the author painted.

Instead, because this is Kawabata, we have an intimate portrait of three people, the two players and the author himself, basic and alive and honest human beings. Of course, there is a bit of metaphor and conclusions can be drawn, but ultimately the three people do not require any grandeur beyond there immediate status as human beings. It is enough.

The Master of Go himself, the highest available rank in the official Go association, is a portrait of obsession and dedication. He is only comfortable playing games, and even amidst his failing health and the demands of his retirement challenge, he ensnares anyone around him in any game possible, be in Mah Jong or Billiards. His opponent, a young yet high ranking challenger, has fought his way through a year-long tournament for the honor of being the opponent in the Master's final match. High strung, and with health issues of his own, he brings everything he has to defeat the Master in his last game. The author, a newspaper reporter assigned to cover the match which is being sponsored by his paper, unable to penetrate the minds of the two players, lays open his own feelings and interpretations while retaining a newspaperman's eye for reporting facts rather than speculation.

Kawabata, being the real-life newspaper reporter who covered the real-life game, uses his simple writing style and honest narrative to bring to life this competition in a more riveting manner than any metaphor. Charts of the games progress are used to explain the moves, details are brought forth regarding the health of the players, and the history of the match. In amazement, he manages to maintain tension in the story even though the outcome of the match is told in the first few paragraphs. The chapters are tiny, making the book as unable to put down as a bag of potato chips, as there always seems to be room for one more.

Knowledge of Go is not necessary for this book, although a basic understanding of the rules will help put things into perspective. The translation is good, but I don't like Seidensticker translates Japanese games like Shogi as Chess, even though they are not the same game. The notes at the end are very insightful however, and help fill in some of the gaps of Go-knowledge.

"Battle Royale" is a superb film, subtle and sad and over-the-top and loud all at the same time. The story is often compared to "Lord of the Flies," but that is a bit of a misnomer. "Lord of the Flies" was about reverting to primitivism, whereas "Battle Royale" is a futuristic cautionary tale in the tune of "1984" and "Brave New World." The caution at work here is the threat of absolute bureaucracy, and the dangers of the loss of the value of life and respect in a rules-dominated society. This is a threat quite apparent in modern Japan.

The actors in "Battle Royale" all deliver excellent performances, including the amazing talent "Beat" Takeshi Kitano playing the appropriately named "Kitano." The film was not directed by Takeshi however, so it lacks his beautiful visual style. It does however feature one of his riveting paintings. There is a good range of responses from the various actors playing the students, from outright suicide, to panic, to a drive to win to a drive to help. Unfortunately, the character of Kazuo Kiriyama (the machine gun boy) is woefully underdeveloped, and instead of the fierce, cold genius of the book he is a somewhat characterless villain.

While a violent film, I wouldn't characterize "Battle Royale" as an action film per se. Anyone looking for a Hong Kong-style action film should realize that Japan and China are quite different countries with different approach to movies.. "Battle Royale" retains the quietude and patient pacing that is the hallmark of Japanese cinema, and which leaves some viewers bored, who are used to a quicker pacing. The bloodshed, while in great quantity, is also more cartoony in nature, which is also more typical of Japanese films, which does not favor a naturalistic approach.

I think some familiarity with problems in modern Japan (ie: school violence, overwhelming bureaucracy) gives some necessary perspective to this controversial movie, and helps frame it as more than exploitation. It is a political statement, with a subtle message underlying the overt violence. Along with this, knowledge of Japanese culture deepens the understandings of certain scenes, such as when Kitano performs the prescribed exercises, and the training video shown at the beginning. Without understanding, these scenes might come off as merely quaint or odd.

"Fireworks" is a direct translation of the Japanese title "Hanabi," which combines the two words "fire" and "flower." The title was chosen due to the juxtaposition of the calm beauty of a flower, and the burning intensity of fire, which perfectly captures the feeling of this Beat Takeshi masterpiece.

I was expecting quite a different film, one more packed with violence and action, something more along the lines of a John Woo/Chow Yun Fat creation. Instead, this is a calm, understated and emotional film peppered with miniature explosions like...fireworks. The pacing of the film is typical of Japanese storytelling, patient and quiet allowing enough time for a story to build fully and characters to live and die on the screen.

Takeshi gives such a complete performance, saying everything with a glance or a movement. Dialog is almost unnecessary, although when it does come it punctuates the scene fluently. He is equal parts warrior and lover, tender and hard. Kayoko Kishimoto delivers an equally wonderful performance as Miyuki, Nishi's wife, dying of leukemia yet able to charm with a smile.

Visually, the movie is stunning, full of creative scenes and transitions. Takeshi knows when to have the action appear off-camera, and when to focus. The use of nature as an element in the film is beautiful, as the story moves from snow to sea to mountain.

Takeshi "Beat" Kitano is one of Japan's greatest modern filmmakers, and "Fireworks" is one of his greatest film. A stunning film.

Anyone seeking greater insight into the many and varied religions of Japan, and how they are practiced in actual daily life could not do better than "Religions of Japan in Practice." This book differs from most other texts on the subject by presenting translations of various religious documents, pamphlets, advertisements and religious stories rather than interpretations.

While the religious stories translated can be found in many sources, specifically the many Buddhist doctrines and such, nowhere else have I discovered a translation of the tourist's pamphlet of Yasukuni Shrine, the controversial Shinto shrine celebrating the honored "war heroes" of World War II, or the children's pamphlet describing the "Miraculous Tales of the Hasedera Kannon." It is these small touches that make this book so incredible.

The organization of "Religions in Japan in Practice" is also wonderful, focusing on the various aspects of religion in daily life rather than the differences between shinto and Buddhism's various sects. However, there are cross indexes of organization by chronology and religious tradition if needed.

The book is scholarly in nature, and would not be a valuable book for anyone seeking insights into their spirituality or to open their third eye. However, anyone with an interest in or making a serious study of the religions of Japan needs "Religions of Japan in Practice."