Watch Free Movies At SM Baguio As Part Of Japanese Film Festival (August 10 To 13)

Twelve award-winning films from Japan will be shown for free at SM City Baguio from August 10 to 13 as part of the annual Japanese Film Festival. Eleven of the films have English subtitles while one is dubbed in Tagalog. Organized and presented by the Manila office of the Japan Foundation, the festival (popularly referred to as Eiga Sai) is part of the events celebrating Philippines-Japan Friendship month.

The films will be screened for free but seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Below is a quick overview of the films to be shown during the festival. [Source: Eiga Sai pamphlet.] You can find the screening schedule at the end of this article. The festival is also being held in Manila, Davao. Cebu, Bacolod, and Iloilo. [Note: the film lineup differs from city to city.]

1) Bakuman – High school student Moritaka (Satoh Takeru), whose manga artist uncle died from overwork, is talented but spends his days aimlessly. One day, he gets invited by his classmate Akito (Kamiki Ryunosuke), a wannabe manga writer, to team up and become manga creators together. From one Hitoshi, the same director of live action “Love Strikes!”, this movie graphically portrays the struggles of two friends to become successful in the world of manga.

2) The Long Excuse – Romance starring Motoki Masahiro from Departures with original story, script and direction from Nishikawa Miwa of SWAY. A bestselling author discovers the joys of living for others after his wife dies and he spends time with children who have lost their mother. Bestselling author Kinugasa Sachio’s (Motoki) wife dies in a freak accident. He was cheating on his wife at the time of the accident and has to put on a fake performance as bereaved husband. Sachio meets Omiya (Takehara Pistol), whose wife died in the same accident, and offers to help take care of his children.

3) The Magnificent Nine - A film adaptation of Isoda Michifumi's original novel which is based on a true story from the middle Edo Period. It comically depicts the efforts of Yoshiokajuku, an inn town in Sendai fief, to save themselves from impoverishment by running a money-lending enterprise against the fiefdom. At the helm is The Inerasable director Nakamura Yoshihiro. On the verge of financial crisis, the Sendai fiefdom levies a heavy tax upon its inhabitants resulting in bankruptcies and people fleeing town in succession. A merchant of Yoshiokajuku, Kokudaya Juzaburo (Abe Sadawo), devises a relief plan to loan money to the fief with a partner and distribute the interest among the people.

4) Chihayafuru Part 1 - Chihaya, Taichi and Arata are childhood friends, bound by their passion for "competitive karuta" (karuta: traditional Japanese playing cards). They part ways after graduating from elementary school, but Chihaya continues to play the game that Arata taught her, in the hopes of one day showing him how strong a player she has become.

5) What A Wonderful Family – A heartwarming comedy from director Yamada Yoji, known for his “It’s Tough Being A Man” (Otoko was Tsuraiyo) series, which reassembles the cast of his Tokyo Family. Hashizume Isao, Yoshiyuki Kazuko, and Tsumabuki Satoshi portray an entirely different family in a story about elderly parents considering divorce which send their whole family into a panic. In his fiftieth year of marriage to Tomiko (Yoshiyuki), Shuzo (Hashizume) decides to buy her a birthday present for a change. However, she tells him she wants his seal on an application for divorce. Their children swiftly convene a family meeting.

6) Creepy – Film adaptation of Maekawa Yutaka’s novel detailing the intertwining double enigmas of an unsolved missing family case and an odd, neighboring family. Directed by world-renowned director Kurosawa Kiyoshi, of the horro film Pulse among others, it screened at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. Criminal psychologist Takakura (Nishijima Hidetoshi) is asked by detective Nogami (Higashide Masahiro) to analyse a missing family case from six years ago. He questions the only living person who remembers the case, but cannot untangle the mystery. Meanwhile, having just moved, Takakura and his wife (Takeuchi Yuko) can’t seem to figure out their neighbour.

7) Sweet Bean (An) – The film adaptation of the identically titled Dorian Sukegawa novel by previous Cannes Film Festival award recipient, Kawase Naomi. Kiki Kirin exudes a compelling presence as a coarse sweet red bean paste artisan, while his first co-starring role with her real-life grandchild, Uchida Kyara is also worthy of attention. Sentaro (Nagase Masatoshi), the manager of a shop selling dorayaki (a sandwich of two small pancakes with a filling of sweetened bean paste) has entrusted the making of the coarse red bean paste to Tokue (Kiki Kirin), who answered a help wanted advertisement. The incredibly delicious flavour boosts the store’s business, but an unkind rumor causes Tokue to go away.

8) Tsukiji Wonderland – A documentary filmed over 16 months closely chronicling, including areas never before filmed, the Tsukiji Market which is due to be moved to Toyosu. Endo Naotaro, who has been involved in wide ranging works from advertisements to music videos, makes his theatrical film directing debut. The Tsukiji Market has continually sustained Japanese food culture for 80 years. There, intermediate wholesalers and chefs play out a duel among professionals, and each season’s fish mesmerize even tourists from around the world.

9) Her Love Boils Bathwater - A family drama about the intense feelings of a dying mother with a bombshell ending that breaks heart. It is written and directed by up-and-comer Nakano Ryota, who garnered attention with Capturing Dad. Futaba (Miyazawa Rie), whose husband suddenly left her one year ago, lives with her shy daughter, Azumi (Sugisaki Hana). When Futaba abruptly receives a diagnosis of a terminal illness, she aims to use the brief amount of time she has left to bring back her husband, restart the family's shut-down bathhouse business, and set Azumi on the path to independence.

10) The Anthem of the Heart - Nagai Tatsuyuki, Okada Mari, and Tanaka Masayoshi (respectively, the director, writer, and character designer of the popular anime series "Anohana") reunite for this original theatrical anime which delicately weaves a story about the rejuvenation of high school students bearing emotional scars. Second year high school student, Jun (voice: Minase Inori), uttered a remark that hurt her family and hasn't been able to converse with anyone ever since. In spite of this, Jun is assigned to the action committee for the community relations society at school and made the star of a musical.

11) Chihayafuru Part 2 - Chihaya and Taichi are reunited in high school, and together, they try to form a "competitive karuta club" to compete in the national championship. Chihaya believes that if they make it to the Nationals, they may see Arata again. Despite knowing how Chihaya feels about Arata, Taichi joins the club for her.

12) The Mohican Comes Home – A bittersweet family drama set on an island in the Seto Inland Sea. A Mohawk-sporting young man’s homecoming after seven years is rocked by the pronouncement of his father’s remaining time to live. The film is written and directed by Okita Shuichi who has created a unique worldview in films such as The Chef of South Polar and A Story of Yonosuke among others. Eikichi (Matsuda Ryuhei), the vocalist for a little-known death metal band, has decided to marry his pregnant girlfriend, Yuka (Maeda Atsuko). He returns to his family home on Tobi Island after several years. However, his headstrong father, Osamu (Emoto Akira), collapses and is diagnosed with cancer.

Short Film Set In A Mining Town In Benguet Currently Showing At The Cinemalaya Film Festival

If you happen to be within or near Manila this weekend, consider catching a screening of Butas, a short film that chronicles the struggles of a widow as she tries to raise her child in a sleepy mining town in Benguet. The film is part of the ongoing 12th edition of the Cinemalaya Film Festival which will wrap up this Sunday (August 14). Those who want to see Butas before the festival ends can catch a screening in the following dates and venues:

August 14, 2:00 pm at the Greenbelt 1, Cinema 1
August 14, 2:00 pm at the Up Town Centre, Cinema 3
August 14, 7:00 pm at the Ayala Center Cebu, Cinema 4

Here's the synopsis for the film: "Is a story of a woman miner from the Mountains of Benguet, who struggles to balance life as a miner and a single parent. Butas will take you to a journey in the life of a mother who is struggling to make ends meet but is hopeful of being able to provide a better life for her son. Due to poverty in her native land she was forced to work in a foreign country but comes back to the Philippines to take care of her son after the husband died from a mining accident."

And here's the trailer:

Film credits:
Main Cast: Jill Palencia Ibuyan, Jhaykien Nuyad, Skyzx Labastilla, Paul Temperante
Director: Richard H. Cawed
Producers: Richard H. Cawed / Andy Valenzuela / Erik Salvador
Colorist: Bernard Feliciano
Scoring: Chi Capulong
Production Coordinator:Em-em Parra
Drone Operators: Michael Andres Subido / Bobby CrisologoBarodi / Richard H. Cawed
Production Assistant: Yousef Abdul-Wahab
BTS Team: Martin Andres
Camera Operator/Gaffer: Edward Anastacio
Audioman/Gaffer: Rolly “Bigboy” Zuniga
Camera Lights and Audio Equipment provided by Bigtop Productions.
Poster Design: DodongDela Cruz
Editing: Anthony Hernandez
Written by: Richard H. Cawed

Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book Stories Come Alive In Live-Action Movie Adaptation By Disney

"Are you alone out here? What are you doing so deep in the jungle? Don't you know what you are? I know what you are. I know where you came from. Poor sweet little cub. I'll keep you close. Let go of your fear now. And trust in me."

Such is the voice-over for the first full trailer for The Jungle Book, a live-action movie adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's classic story collection of the same name. The humidity-coated voice belongs to Scarlett Johansson who plays the character Kaa in the film. Kaa is described in Kipling's stories as an exceptionally long and yellowish Indian rock python.

The trailer also showed glimpses of major scenes in the film as well as the main characters like Mowgli (the jungle boy), Baloo the bear, Bagheera the black panther, Shere Khan the tiger, and King Louie the orangutan. Directed by Jon Favreau - the man behind Iron Man and Iron Man 2 - The Jungle Book is scheduled to be released on April 15 next year. Playing the titular character in the movie is Neel Sethi. Also in the cast are Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idirs Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Christopher Walken, and Giancarlo Esposito (that poker-faced villain from Breaking Bad).

This is the second time that Disney has created a motion picture based on Kipling's stories. Their first foray in bringing the stories to the big screen was in 1967 when they released the now-classic animated film The Jungle Book.

Watch the trailer for Jon Favreau's adaptation below:

Warner Bros. Pictures is also working on a live-action film based on the stories called Jungle Book: Origins. Andy Serkis is directing as well as starring in the film which is penciled for a 2017 release. The main cast for the movie is currently composed of Rohan Chand, Matthew Rhys, Freida Pinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Jack Reynor, and Tom Hollander.

Why Can't Filipinos Accept The Fact That Mayweather Is A Much Better Boxer Than Pacquiao?

Yesterday, when the bell rang at the MGM Grand to mark the end of the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, majority of writers, journalists, observers and avid fans knew who deserved to have his hands raised by referee Kenny Bayless. That's Mayweather. The American clearly took his Filipino opponent to school. Mayweather's technical skills and ring-savvy was just too much for Pacquiao. In the words of Scott Christ, a highly respected boxing journalist, "it's now clear, beyond a shadow of a doubt that Pacquiao is not as good as Mayweather".

But a lot of Filipinos just can't accept that fact. And they would do or say anything to discredit Mayweather and his well-deserved victory. During the duration of the fight, Mayweather was always backpedaling. Yes, that's a fact. He was hugging Pacquiao a lot. That's a fact too. But these don't take away the most crucial fact of them all - who landed more punches and who eluded more punches from his opponent? 

The answer to that question is Mayweather. Based on Compubox statistics, Mayweather landed 148 punches while Pacquiao landed only 81. Mayweather landed 67 jabs, Pacquaio only 18. Mayweather landed 81 power punches, Pacquiao only 63. Looking at these stats alone, Mayweather is the clear winner.

Certainly, there were moments when Pacquaio was able to land shots to the elusive American's head and body but these were few and far in between. Pacquaio just can't be declared a winner based on what he was able to do that night because Mayweather did a whole lot more. Yes, Pacquiao was the constant aggressor. Yes, he was pushing the fight. But when it comes to landing actual punches, Mayweather bested Pacquiao nearly 2-to-1.

Let's take a look at what the boxing world thought of the fight. First of all, most of the pundits sitting at ringside had it for Mayweather. Sports Blog Nation scored the fight 117-111 for Mayweather. ESPN had it 116-112 for Mayweather. Michael Rosenthal of The Ring Magazine had it 116-112 for Mayweather. Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times had it 115-113 for Mayweather. Boxing Insider had it 117-112 for Mayweather.

Image credit: Showtime Boxing via Facebook.

Who is saying that Pacquiao won? Most of them are Filipinos. There's Ronnie Nathanielz who is arguably among the most influential boxing writers in the Philippines. Nathanielz had Pacquiao winning the fight. And then there are the thousands of Filipinos flooding Facebook with exclamations that Pacquiao has been robbed. That Mayweather didn't deserve to win because he ran and hugged. That Mayweather was scared. That Mayweather played dirty. That Mayweather didn't fight like a champion.

In the blink of an eye, millions of Filipinos became boxing experts. They think Pacquaio won. The irony in this is the fact that the real boxing experts - the ones working and writing within the sport - had Mayweather winning.

Then there are those Filipinos who resort to coming up with below-the-belt stuff. Mayweather became Gayweather. Floyd became Chicken. There are even those who criticize the color of his skin. Needless to say, this is simply unacceptable. Your sports hero doesn't get his hands raised and your reaction is to call the winner gay? Not classy nor sports-like at all.

Then there are those who come up with stuff like, "Pacquiao is the real winner because he fights for God and country's glory while Mayweather fights for pride and money." This is an ill excuse. What's wrong with fighting for pride and money? Most boxers fight for pride and money. Lennox Lewis beat up Mike Tyson for pride and money. Muhammad Ali fought for pride and money. George Foreman fought for pride and money. That's why they are called prize fighters. They fight for a prize. Filipinos saying that Pacquiao only fights for God and country seem to easily forget that one of the reasons why the fight didn't happen earlier is a conflict as to who would get paid the bigger amount of money.

Mayweather won. Pacquiao lost. That's the reality. Calling the winner gay, a chicken, a scared cat, a runner, a hugger, a marathoner (even if it makes you feel better about yourself) won't change the fact that Mayweather is the much better boxer. Enough of this "Filipinos can't lose, they only get robbed" mentality. And don't go the route of saying that Mayweather won because the referee is black or because the fight was held in his hometown. Of course, no one's stopping you to go these routes. You have your freedom of speech, after all.

P.S. The thing that Mayweather was doing? That's not called hugging. That's called clinching. And it's a huge aspect of the sport of boxing. And to those saying that boxing is dead, you are clearly not a fan of boxing. There are guys like Ruslan Provodnikov, Lucas Matthysse, Marcos Maidana, and Deontay Wilder (to name just a few) who have been and will continue to bring good and entertaining fights. If you don't know these guys, you don't have the right to say that boxing is dead. You've got to widen your horizon beyond Mayweather and Pacquiao.

[Note: this is an edited version of the original article. The major edits involve changing/adding words so as not to make the impression that I'm claiming that all Filipinos don't think Mayweather had the upperhand over Pacquiao. My stand as to who is the better boxer remains intact.]