Philip Brasor
@philipbrasor.bsky.social
Japan media watcher, blogger of Japanese housing philipbrasor.com catforehead.com
The hill I will die on: Games are the opposite of fun, and I’d ban them for anyone over 12 | Emily Watkins
The hill I will die on: Games are the opposite of fun, and I’d ban them for anyone over 12 | Emily Watkins
Get your balls, pucks, Scrabble boards and packs of cards away from me – all I want is space to be together, ideally with a coffee or a glass of wine, says writer Emily Watkins
theguardian.com
"Tiger Stripes" opens today in Tokyo. bit.ly/4xfAGcl @tigerstripes_81 #タイガー・ストライプス
Review: Tiger Stripes
It’s difficult to screw up a coming-of-age story if you have good intentions. The indignities of puberty immediately lead to internal conflict, and while the physical changes an adolescent go…
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Additional context bit.ly/4pQSt79
Media watch: Government keeps its distance from Japanese language learning for foreigners
Foreigners attending night junior high school (Withnews) In Japan, compulsory education stops after junior high school, and though the vast majority of Japanese people now graduate from high school…
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · 6d agoCommentary: The education establishment's monolingual approach is putting students' learning and success at risk.
Masako's Story 26: night high school and day job drudgery in Japan ca. 1972; making do with what you don't have bit.ly/4pMLT1n #昭和
Work-study
Not enough hours in the day
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Some background bit.ly/4bhNOFt
Condo corruption | FCCJ
The Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ) is one of the world leading press clubs, providing a forum for journalists and public figures in Tokyo.
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · last wk.The Japan Fair Trade Commission on Tuesday conducted an on-site inspection of more than 20 firms on suspicion of rigging bids for condominium repair projects in Aichi, Gifu and Mie prefectures.
Fuji Rock report: Thursday pre-fest and Friday. bit.ly/4xmlOsX #FujiRockFestival26
Fuji Rock Festival ’26
Friday morning The weather forecast for this year’s Fuji Rock Festival hasn’t been encouraging. Rain pretty much every day, but right now the sun is out and the temperature is quite bearable. It wa…
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On the responsibilities of being a member of Japan's imperial family, where 100% of the job is showing up. bit.ly/4bUlcSG #皇室の公務
Media watch: What is the point of the imperial family’s official duties?
Princess Kako (Instagram) Last week the Diet enacted a bill that would reinstate former lines of the imperial household into the chain of succession so that male descendants can be adopted and fill…
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"A Private Life" opens tomorrow in Tokyo. bit.ly/4hsmEPS @privatecase724 #プライベート・ケース
Review: A Private Life
Though clearly a vehicle for Jodie Foster and her Francophone talents, this chamber piece, directed by Rebecca Zlotowski, attempts to split the difference between Christiesque murder mystery and ps…
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On the responsibilities of being a member of Japan's imperial family, where 100% of the job is showing up. bit.ly/4bUlcSG #皇室の公務
Media watch: What is the point of the imperial family’s official duties?
Princess Kako (Instagram) Last week the Diet enacted a bill that would reinstate former lines of the imperial household into the chain of succession so that male descendants can be adopted and fill…
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Last picture show: Japan's reputation as a leader in world cinema is in jeopardy. bit.ly/4bmtmDt #国立映画アーカイブ #文化庁
Media notes: Government to Japan’s cinema legacy: Get a job
National Film Archive of Japan in Kyobashi, Tokyo On June 25, the National Film Archive of Japan (NFAJ) announced it was launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for its continuing operatio…
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Some context bit.ly/4yvd6tC
Media watch: Welfare recipients have to choose between benefits and cars
In June the Supreme Court ruled that government cuts to welfare carried out between 2013 and 2015 were unlawful in a decision that undermined much of the welfare ministry’s rationale for how …
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Unseen Japan@unseenjapan.com · 3w agoPoverty is rising in Japan, but the welfare rolls are shrinking. Applications have climbed five years running, yet only about 22.6% of eligible people actually receive benefits, versus 91.6% in France.
"So Long" opens today in Tokyo. bit.ly/4fdnY6o @contesjuillet #また会えるよね
Review: So Long (Ce n’est qu’un au revoir)
Guillaume Brac came to filmmaking relatively late in life in that he didn’t study movies as an undergraduate (he went to business school). Consequently, his work has always betrayed a cautiou…
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More background bit.ly/3TjMQlK
Media watch: Japan’s selective history on display again with new UNESCO World Heritage site
On July 27, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee agreed to register the Sado Island Gold Mines off the coast of Niigata Prefecture as a World Heritage Site, the 26th for Japan. Sado was at one time …
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · 3w agoConcluding that progress was not sufficient, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee developed a draft recommendation that urges Japan to reform exhibits at gold mines on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture.
Some background bit.ly/4vtURBZ
Off the rails | FCCJ
The Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ) is one of the world leading press clubs, providing a forum for journalists and public figures in Tokyo.
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · 3w agoLDP and JIP decide on Kyoto route for Hokuriku Shinkansen line extension
Masako's Story 25: An obsession with foreign films feeds Masako's desire to know the world outside of hers, a need her formal education didn't satisfy. bit.ly/4w3Pmem #昭和
Extracurricular education 2
It was all happening at the movies
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"The Great Arch" opens Friday in Tokyo. bit.ly/4wHIhA4 @shingaisenmon #新凱旋門物語
Review: The Great Arch
It seems axiomatic to say that stories about architects are inherently monumental. People who design buildings contend with the future in ways that are different from how other artists work, simply…
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Are condo prices pushing upper middle class households out of central Tokyo? bit.ly/44sG8wa #晴海フラッグ #新築マンション
Straight outta Tokyo
Harumi Flag As we’ve written here numerous times, the cost of a new condominium in Tokyo has risen beyond the reach of most middle class households and even quite a few upper middle class one…
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Are condo prices pushing upper middle class households out of central Tokyo? bit.ly/44sG8wa #晴海フラッグ #新築マンション
Straight outta Tokyo
Harumi Flag As we’ve written here numerous times, the cost of a new condominium in Tokyo has risen beyond the reach of most middle class households and even quite a few upper middle class one…
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"A Useful Ghost" and "The President's Cake" open today in Tokyo. bit.ly/4f7fgGZ @usefulghost_jp #ユースフル・ゴースト #大統領のケーキ
Review: A Useful Ghost and The President’s Cake
Thai director Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke’s debut feature, A Useful Ghost, has the opposite effect of being haunting. In tone and pace, it’s closer to the work of Aki Kaurasmaki, with ac…
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"Bring Her Back" and "Good Boy" open tomorrow in Tokyo. bit.ly/4vTeV1B @bhb_movie #ブリング・ハー・バック @goodboymoviejp #グッド・ボーイ
Review: Bring Her Back and Good Boy
The Australian Philippou brothers, Danny and Michael, quickly followup their hit debut, Talk to Me, with Bring Her Back, an even more disturbing horror film that relies less on supernatural spookin…
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More background bit.ly/4wnvnqI
Make mine maglev (5)
Heita Kawakatsu At the end of March, JR Tokai admitted something that we have been writing about for a number of years, which is that the inaugural Shinagawa-Nagoya leg of the Chuo Shinkansen, more…
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · 4w agoThough the closely watched high-speed maglev line project has cleared a major hurdle with much-awaited consent from Shizuoka Prefecture's governor, challenges that include soaring costs and worker shortages remain. 👉 ebx.sh/iU1yad
Some background bit.ly/4wnvnqI
Make mine maglev (5)
Heita Kawakatsu At the end of March, JR Tokai admitted something that we have been writing about for a number of years, which is that the inaugural Shinagawa-Nagoya leg of the Chuo Shinkansen, more…
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The Japan Times@japantimes.co.jp · 4w agoLong-stalled maglev line finally gets green light from Shizuoka Prefecture
"Nouvelle Vague" opens Friday in Tokyo. bit.ly/4y96PDL @nouvelle_movie #ヌーヴェルヴァーグ
Review: Nouvelle Vague
Richard Linklater is much too practical a director to make a movie that doesn’t attempt to entertain, regardless of the subject matter or mode of expression. As the title of his latest film a…
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As Japan's agricultural sector falls by the wayside, its overall national security situation weakens. bit.ly/4gYa1f7 #食糧不足 #食料自給率
Starvation scenario | FCCJ
The Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan (FCCJ) is one of the world leading press clubs, providing a forum for journalists and public figures in Tokyo.
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"The Love That Remains" and "Good Valley Stories" open today in Tokyo. bit.ly/44bWZTT #きれっぱしの愛 @guerinmoviejp #よき谷の物語
Review: The Love That Remains and Good Valley Stories
The Icelandic filmmaker and visual artist Hlynur Pálmason requires his audience to put in some effort—not a lot, but enough to force you to pay close attention—in order to make sense of the domesti…
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"Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes" opens tomorrow in Tokyo. bit.ly/4oXgnh3 @du_cinema_ #カウント・ベイシー
Review: Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes
This documentary purports to reveal a more intimate side of the legendary pianist and big band leader through “private correspondence and home movies” that, supposedly, have never been …
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