Books 115
Crouching Tiger II: Sword of Destiny
By Jonathan Clements. Jiaolong, (Zhang Ziyi’s character from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) has suffered since the events of the movie. Her new-born son is stolen from her and substituted for a baby girl, and she ends up as a wealthy sword-for-hire in the desert city of Dunhuang, guarding Silk Road caravans and raising her adopted […]
Books: The Films of Seijun Suzuki
By Jasper Sharp. The term manga-esque is so readily applied to Japanese live-action cinema as to have little meaning beyond indicating the country of origin of the work or filmmaker in question. However, in the case of the iconic Seijun Suzuki the label seems apt, although Tom Vick wisely shies away from direct analogies to paint a […]
Books: Manga & Anime Go To Hollywood
By Jonathan Clements. Northrop Davis’ opening gambit is a good one – much as many animals share 95% of their DNA, the Japanese and American media industries are almost exactly the same. It’s that vital 5% that makes all the difference between, say, a cow and a kangaroo, a difference that he intends to uncover. […]
Books: Innovating Out of Crisis
By Jasper Sharp. Ask anyone what Japan’s greatest contribution to the world of film is, and few would offer “film itself” as an answer. Nevertheless, by the end of the twentieth century, one of the country’s best-known brands, Fujifilm, had successfully managed to corner the global market for raw print and negative stock with its […]
Anime Studies: Ten Books To Own
By Andrew Osmond. So you love Japanese animation, and want to make yourself an expert. Of course you use Google and Wikipedia to broaden your knowledge, but web sources are reliably unreliable, especially when discussing a medium rather older than the internet. Sometimes there’s no alternative to hitting the books.