20 Film you cannot miss at the 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival (Part 1)

By Asian Film Festival on October 11, 2019 • ( Leave a comment )

We present a list of twenty films you shouldn’t miss at the 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival which will take place from October 28th until November 5th in Tokyo, Japan.

About the festival:
The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF), the only Japanese ﬁlm festival accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF). TIFF started in 1985 as Japan’s ﬁrst major ﬁlm festival. Since then, it has grown to become one of the biggest ﬁlm festivals in Asia. TIFF seeks out excellent ﬁlms from around the world and brings them to Tokyo, where ﬁlmmakers and ﬁlm fans can enjoy them, meet emerging ﬁlmmakers, and be inspired.

Selected Films:

37 Seconds by Hikari – Japan | 2019 – 115 minutes
Section: Japan Now

Yuma has cerebral palsy and is emotionally smothered by her overbearing mother. She embarks on an unusual path to sexual awakening when she tries illustrating erotic manga.

Screenings:
October 29th (Tuesday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 9 | 10:15 am

Teaser:

A Beloved Wife by Shin Adachi – Japan | 2019 – 117 minutes
Section: In Competition

The screenplay writer of the award-winning 100 Yen Love directs this film, based on his autobiographical novel “A Beloved Wife”, about an unemployed screenplay writer and his troublesome wife.

Screenings:
October 29th (Tuesday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 7 | 18:00 pm (Stage Greeting)
November 1st (Friday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 10:00 am (With Q&A)

A Sun by Chung Mong-Hong – Taiwan | 2019 – 156 minutes
Section: World Focus

A-ho is a boy from an ordinary family. His father is a driver education instructor, his mother is a hairstylist, and his older brother is a high school student set to enter college. A-ho’s brother A-hao is a model student, and his father has high expectations of him. On the other hand, A-ho is a troublemaker and the black sheep of the family. One day, a terrible misfortune befalls A-ho’s family, and A-ho, who learns about his girlfriend’s pregnancy, gets into serious trouble because of his friends and ends up in a juvenile detention center. His father’s anger and contempt for A-ho grow extreme, and a series of crises completely shatter the family. Released from the detention center, A-ho tries his best as the head of his family, but society does not accept him and his life continues in a downward spiral. A Sun presents a realistic portrayal of the process in which an ordinary family pushed to the brink of their limits comes to embrace each other. (CHAE Bohyun)

Screenings:
October 28th (Monday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 19:20 pm
October 31st (Thursday) | EX Theater Roppongi | 14:15 pm

Trabiler:

Aewol – Written on the Wind by Bak Cheol-u – Korea | 2019 – 100 minutes
Section: Asian Future

So-wol, unable to move on from the accident which killed her boyfriend, ends up living in on Jeju Island, site of the tragedy. Three years later, old friend Cheol visits… Debut director’s drama about love and friendship.

Screenings:
October 30th (Wednesday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 3 | 17:40 pm (With Q&A)
October 31st (Thursday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 21:25 pm (With Q&A)

Trailer:

I Was a Secret Bitch by Koichiro Miki – Japan | 2019 – 112 minutes
Section: Special Screenings

Hiromi is an attractive young woman who finds entertainment in making men fall for her. But when she gets a taste of her own medicine, she realizes there is something lacking from her life.

Screenings:
November 4th (Monday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 9 | 17:45 pm

Trailer:

I: Documentary of the Journalist by Tatsuya Mori – Japan | 2019 – 120 minutes
Section: Japanese Cinema Splash

This documentary from the producer of The Journalist and director Tatsuya Mori, known for A and Fake, follows the real-life female journalist, Isoko Mochizuki, on whom the protagonist was loosely based.

Screenings:
November 1st (Friday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 1 | 10:30 am
November 4th (Monday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 1 | 17:15 pm

Trailer:

Killed My Wife by Kim Ha-ra – Korea | 2019 – 109 minutes
Section: Asian Future

Jung-ho, whose estranged wife is found dead, is suspected of murder but remembers nothing about the evening. Will his memory return? Is he innocent? A sensational debut film by a Korean director.

Screenings:
October 29th (Tuesday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 21:35 pm (Stage Greeting and Q&A)
November 1st (Friday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 3 | 14:30 pm (With Q&A)

Trailer:

Life: Untitled by Kana Yamada – Japan | 2019 – 98 minutes
Section: Japanese Cinema Splash

This is a film about female escorts who are living life as best they can. Kana Yamada makes her feature directorial debut, adapting her own stage play. Sairi Ito stars as the protagonist, Kanou.

Screenings:
November 2nd (Saturday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 1 | 20:25 pm (With Q&A)
November 4th (Monday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 1 | 13:55 pm (With Q&A)

Mañanita by Paul Soriano – Philippines | 2019 – 143 minutes
Section: In Competition

Bearing a facial bruise, the heroine is a shooter who served in the military. But after losing her job, she spends her nights getting drunk in a bar – until a phone call changes everything. This superb film turns a series of unassuming shots into an emotional drama.

Screenings:
October 31st (Thursday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 14:20 pm (With Q&A)
November 5th (Tuesday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 4 | 10:20 am

Trailer:

Motel Acacia by Bradley Liew
Philippines, Slovenia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand | 2019 – 87 minutes
Section: Asian Future

Malaysia-born, Philippines-based Bradley Liew’s second feature is a horror film with a multi-national crew and cast. A man confronts a demon haunting a motel he has taken over from his father.

Screenings:
November 1st (Friday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 2 | 21:35 pm (With Q&A)
November 3rd (Sunday) | TOHO Cinemas Roppongi Hills Screen 3 | 18:10 pm (With Q&A)

Trailer: