Vancouver International Film Festival 2018 – Gateway

The 2018 Vancouver International Film Festival’s (VIFF) Gateway stream will once again illustrate that Vancouver’s ties to the Pacific Rim are not only geographic and economic; the city is also a vital port of call for East Asia’s finest cinema. Below is a list of films from Japan you don’t want to miss!

Asako I & II (dir. Hamaguchi Ryusuke, Japan)

Fri Sep 28, 4:00pm, International Village 10

Sat Sep 29, 9:15 pm, International Village 9

Hamaguchi Ryusuke’s film takes a staple of romance stories and makes it literal: here, the sexy, wild man and the handsome, stable one are actual doubles. Asako (Karata Erika) gets with the first of them (both played by Masahiro Higashide) in a hot, fast encounter, and winds up falling hard for him, but one day he disappears.

It’s Boring Here, Pick Me Up (dir. Hiroki Ryuichi, Japan) 

Tue Oct 9, 7:00 pm, International Village 10

Wed Oct 10, 11:15 am, International Village 10

WORLD PREMIERE Passing through the hometown she was dying to leave 10 years ago, “I” (Hashimoto Ai) tries to look up high school crush Shiina (Ryo Narita), the town’s golden boy. Meanwhile, “Me” (Mugi Kadowaki), who once dated Shiina, still wallows in nostalgia and regret. So what ever happened to him? Far from making your typical slushy Japanese teen drama, Hiroki Ryuichi (Vibrator, Kabukicho Love Hotel) juggles three romantic strands with his usual flair, pulling everything together in a revelatory ending.

**Filmmaker and Actress in attendance**

Mirai (dir. Mamoru Hosoda, Japan)

Sat Sep 29, 1:30 pm, SFU Goldcorp

Sat Oct 6, 3:30 pm, Vancouver Playhouse

Mamoru Hosoda’s anime tells the story of Kun (voiced by Moka Kamishiraishi), a little boy who lives a happy life until the arrival of a new sister throws everything off kilter. What follows is a retreat into a fantasy world, populated by some interesting characters: a prince (Mitsuo Yoshihara), Mirai’s deceased grandpa (Koji Yakusho) and even a future version of himself (Haru Kuroki). It’s a child’s adventure of the mind, portrayed with the superb animation we’ve long come to expect from Japan.

Mori, The Artist’s Habitat (dir. Shuichi Okita, Japan) 

Sun Sep 30, 4:00 pm, International Village 9

Sun Oct 7, 7:00 pm, International Village 10

CANADIAN PREMIERE For 30 years, painter Kumagai Morikazu (1880-1977) never left home, retreating to his garden, whose ecosytem provides infinite inspiration. Imagining one day in the life of the artist at 94, it is far from idle or monotonous. An eccentric duo, Mori and his wife (screen legends Yamazaki Tsutomu of Tampopp, Kiki Kirin of An) busily ward off a motley crew leeching off his fame, a medal from the Emperor, even an alien. Japan’s wittiest director Shuichi Okita’s minimalist comedy is enchantingly Zen.

The Scythian Lamb (dir. Daihachi Yoshida, Japan)

Fri Oct 5, 9:15 pm, International Village 10

Thu Oct 11, 1:30 pm, International Village 10

To repopulate a seaside town, six ex-convicts are released into it, unbeknownst to the locals. Genteel civil servant Tsukisue (Nishikido Ryō) strives to rehabilitate them, until charismatic Miyakoshi (Matsuda Ryuhei) seduces his dream girl. As violent pasts emerge, the curse of Nororo, the town’s Kraken-like mythic god, reawakens. Yoshida Daihachi, who made the VIFF 17 hit A Beautiful Star, slides from wry satire of Japanese country life to a frightening pagan realm of evil, chaos and retribution.

One Cut Of The Dead (dir. Ueda Shinichiro, Japan)

Fri Oct 6, 10:45 pm, The Rio

Sun Oct 8, 1:30 pm, International Village 9

Gory and goofy in equal measure, Ueda Shinichiro’s gonzomedy (gonzo-zombie-comedy) starts with an unbroken 37-minute shot, serving notice of the unhinged mayhem to come when the cast and crew of a low-rent zombie flick are set upon by a horde of the legitimately undead. But that’s just the beginning of the twists in Ueda’s wild romp, which seamlessly transforms into a showbiz satire and sympathetic character study while delivering thrills at every blood-soaked turn. “Marvelously inventive…”—Variety

Other films in Gateway’s stream: