Elisheva:
Rikuoh. I have to give them a try for her. Hopefully with 10 hours instead of 2, there will be enough focus on other things as well. If it's 10 hours of work environments, I won't make it :) I am topping up on some Thai in preparation ;)

That's the one I was eyeing as well -- I don't think I can finish both dramas, and Rikuoh looks a bit lighter.

 Elisheva:
I am topping up on some Thai in preparation ;)

Good idea. I don't mind business dramas, but I notice that I'm losing steam. I'll see how I'll feel next week, there are some airing dramas I've put on the backburner, which are now waiting for me. 

 Elisheva:
I Go GaGa was too long and repetitious for me (J-docs usually are)

Hm. I haven't watched a lot of documentaries from Japan. I should probably give I Go GaGa a try, just because of that.

 Elisheva:
Jungle Emperor Leo - from the 1960s school of What were they on? animation.

There are films that age well, and there are films that don't. Leo did not. It's more of historical interest, as a manga / anime series that was influential for decades. But that's it.
I've been watching a few minutes each day, and only made it to minute 25. I can't enjoy it. Too many inaccuracies of the biology kind, and of course era-typical racism and gender roles. One of those I could endure, but all three? That's just too much.
The style of animation, I do not mind -- reminds me of early Astérix films at times.


P.S: I noticed that there are now 9 people who have voted in the JFF voting list. It's really interesting to watch films go up and down, and how some have more watchers and others only one.

 i watch too many dramas:
That's the one I was eyeing as well -- I don't think I can finish both dramas, and Rikuoh looks a bit lighter.

I had thought I'd try both and was thinking to save the likely better one (Rikuoh) for second but given my frustations with the business setting films I think I'll just see how I get on with Rikuoh. I should probably post a new thread to get attention for the dramas.

 i watch too many dramas:
I notice that I'm losing steam

Films are harder for me that way than series. So many more characters to care about and beginnings and endings.

 i watch too many dramas:
P.S: I noticed that there are now 9 people who have voted in the JFF voting list. It's really interesting to watch films go up and down, and how some have more watchers and others only one.

Oh wow, there had been six for a long while. I'm glad there's been so much involvement even if most have left the thread. Thanks for keeping me company :)

BL Metamorphosis -- I don't know. It's good, the story is nice, the acting is great, I like the way they do the timeskips and weave the manga and the story of Yuki and Urara. There's nothing I dislike, and yet ... the film doesn't captivate me.

Is it me? Is it something in the film? Is it me in connection with the film? I don't know.

Well, there's about 50 minutes left, maybe it'll change.

 Elisheva:
I should probably post a new thread to get attention for the dramas.

I think the JFF has got quite a bit of attention. I've followed the feed for the My Drama List Group for a few days -- there have been people regularly posting about the films they've seen. I think, if somebody has not yet heard about the JFF via the feeds and this forum thread (which was in Hottest Discussion for several days), it's unlikely they will with a new thread. I feel that the comment section of the drama itself would be the more natural place, since there will only be two dramas to choose from?
I admit, I'm always thinking of people looking for discussions in the future; will they find what we have said? 

I mean, I'll follow your decision, whatever you think is best.

 Elisheva:
Films are harder for me that way than series. So many more characters to care about and beginnings and endings.

On the other hand, if I pause a drama, there's a not insignificant probability I will not pick it up again. But I can finish a film in one or two sittings.
I think it's more the self-imposed pressure to at least watch the films I really want to see until Wednesday, so I feel as if I need to watch one film a day.

 i watch too many dramas:
the comment section of the drama itself would be the more natural place, since there will only be two dramas to choose from?

I was talking about a post to draw attention to their availability in the first place as there will likely be some who weren't interested in films but will watch a drama. 

Don't look to me to figure out where's the best place to talk about an on-going series. I see things so differently from most MDLers I've never tried in-depth conversations on a series here (except for one very misguided attempt in the BL Lovers Club thread). There are pros and cons to the comments sections though, like posts getting pushed into oblivion by later traffic. It would be great if threads were collapsible there. If we have enough to talk about, we could try the Discussion section on the drama page even though a lot of users seem to ignore it.

 i watch too many dramas:
Is it me? Is it something in the film? Is it me in connection with the film? I don't know.

Don't know. I resonated with both Yuki (who I'd like to be if I were healthy enough to have that much spark and energy) and Urara (especially in her fears) so it worked well for me. It also appealed to the former community ed and youth worker in me. And I really liked how they let it be so much about women at different stages of their lives.

 Elisheva:
Don't look to me to figure out where's the best place to talk about an on-going series.

Sorry ;)
I'm also not the best person to ask. I got the impression that the people who post in Feeds, those who regularly look into the forums and those who hang out in the comments belong to different crowds. But I've not done anything resembling reliable research ;)
Until JFF started, I've usually checked the comment section of a title if I wanted to talk about it. I like the nested comments there, and used the spoiler tag if I felt that the discussion got too long, although collapsible threads would be preferable.
The forum doesn't have that either, but it has html markup.
The discussion section from the drama page might be a good compromise.

Maybe we should choose whatever is best suited for our own needs?

 Elisheva:
And I really liked how they let it be so much about women at different stages of their lives.

Yes, another thing to like. I'll see how I'll feel about the film after I've finished.
My questions were more rhethorical than anything else :)

 i watch too many dramas:
Maybe we should choose whatever is best suited for our own needs?

You have more experience, so I'm happy with your choice.

Finally took on and made it through Twenty-Four Eyes. I'm just a puddle of grief right now.

Wedding High - Sometimes endearing comedy with a kitchen sink plot of several people's stories touched on before it dances away again. It's over full but does tie things together and is ultimately heartfelt.

And I'm done, with a day to go :)  Only dropped three.

It's been great to have company in this. Thank you to everyone who joined in :)

Rikuoh on Wednesday.

My update since my last login:

Anime Supremacy 8/10 - quite liked it as it shows behind the scenes of anime industry. I wish they translated the on-screen text too so it would be easier to know the job position of the characters without the need to decode them as the movie progresses. I was too lazy to rewind just to check on those so assumed some of them...lol

Zen Diary 7.5/10 - yeah very relaxing and comforting movie with beautiful, poetic writing on life. Many moments in the movie were too calmed you could easily fall asleep if you watched this after a hectic day. 

My Broken Mariko 7.5/10  - The synopsis tells it all. I am neutral about it.

The Lines that Define Me 8/10 - Great showcase of Japanese ink art. The movie buildup and climax just about perfect you would feel happy coming out of theater. I wish the characters were not too stereotyped and not so cliche-ed backstories.

KIBA 7.5/10 - My kind of theme. It was interesting but this kind of plot could have served better in Series format instead of a 2 hours movie. 

We Made Bouquet 7.5/10 - Pretty weak to be honest, considering this was written by Sakamoto Yuji. I was expecting a more dramatic turns of event. I still liked it though because I'm biased with all those Sakamoto's writing traits....lol 

 TimiZero:
I wish the characters were not too stereotyped and not so cliche-ed backstories.

The sort of bothered me too, until I thought about the way Sumi-e painting is built on traditional forms and the film was about finding your own lines to express them. Maybe I'm giving the film-makers too much credit but it felt to me like they did the same thing - they made their own story with traditional characters.

 Elisheva:
finding your own lines

This is actually applicable to almost every form of art. Similarly for writing characters, it would be amazing if you can create something original but of course it's a hard thing to achieve. Maybe some unpredictability element on a typical one could make a difference? I only speak from viewers point-of-view though and I know nothing about writing.

 Elisheva:
You have more experience, so I'm happy with your choice.

But no pressure, right? :D
I admit, I had hopes for someone to pop up and tell us what to do ;) but that didn't happen.

If nobody has a better idea within the next 24 hours, I'll make a discussion thread via the drama's page, and title it something like "Discussion thread for "Rikuoh" during the Japanese Film Festival Online 2024 (19th June to 3rd July 2024)".
I'm not good with titles.

 TimiZero:
Anime Supremacy 8/10 - quite liked it as it shows behind the scenes of anime industry. I wish they translated the on-screen text too so it would be easier to know the job position of the characters without the need to decode them as the movie progresses.

Yes! That would have been very helpful. 

 TimiZero:
KIBA 7.5/10 - My kind of theme. It was interesting but this kind of plot could have served better in Series format instead of a 2 hours movie.

That's what I thought about Anime Supremacy, but you're right, with a series format for KIBA the story could have shown more of the secondary characters and their connections.

 i watch too many dramas:
title it something like

The title doesn't need to be that long or specific. If someone shows up in a year with something worthwhile to read, they'd be welcome. Even if I'm scratching my head trying to remember :)

Maybe we should see if we have anything to say about it first and that will inspire a thread title.

 Elisheva:
Maybe we should see if we have anything to say about it first and that will inspire a thread title.

Okay! Let's do that!


My brain had decided it had enough of watching anything from Sunday evening onwards until tonight, so for me, the film section of the JFF is over. (Except for the two reviews I still want to write.)

Some stats:

  • finished: eleven films plus the four horror shorts. 
  • started, then paused: three films 
  • not tried: five films

I watched all of the films I really wanted to plus some more, so I'm very satisfied.

My top three:

  1. I am What I am
  2. The Lone Ume Tree
  3. Twenty-four Eyes
 i watch too many dramas:
My brain had decided it had enough of watching anything from Sunday evening onwards until tonight,

Mine was similar. It was a bit of a struggle to convince myself to go back to try Wedding High again but it was worth it.

I dropped three for different reasons but saw at least 35-50 minutes of everything. Finished 20 of the 23. There were only four of those, including one of the horror shorts, that I'm meh about giving the time to so it was a very good festival for me. Thanks to everyone in the thread for your company :)

My top three: We Made a Beautiful Bouquet/My Broken Mariko (tied); The Lone Ume Tree

I'm only managed to watch 12 of them. (Sucks!)

My top 3 would be:
1. Twenty-Four Eyes
2. We Made a Beautiful Bouquet
3. Father of the Milky Way Railroad