Episode 13: Tony Takitani
In this episode, the VCinema boys are joined in the fourth chair by Dr. John Berra, a film scholar who has authored and edited books covering American Independent and Japanese cinema. Besides talking to us about these publications and a post that he has accepted abroad, John joins us in a discussion and review of Tony Takitani (2004, dir: Jun Ichikawa), a character study adapted from a short story by Haruki Murakami. Also included in this episode is an extended talk about Murakami, his style, works, films both inspired or adapted from his work including the upcoming Norwegian Wood (2010, dir: Anh Hung Tran), Hear the Wind Sing (1980, dir: Kazuki Omori), Starfish Hotel (2006, dir: John Williams), and more.
Also included in this episode is discussion about Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010, dir: Edgar Wright), Cool as Ice (1991, dir: David Kellogg), Punishment Park (1971, dir: Peter Watkins), One False Move (1992, dir: Carl Franklin), and more!
Directly download this episode here.
About The Author
Jon Jung
Jon Jung (aka “Coffin Jon”) is the producer and host of the VCinema podcast and editor-in-chief of the VCinema blog. He is an avid movie fan who specializes in Japanese cinema, but enjoys everything from artsy high-brow to mega-billion blockbusters to straight-to-video turds. As an Asian-American, he got the best of all cinematic worlds as a child by receiving mega-doses of Ozu, Bruce Lee, Kamen Rider, and American drive-in movies in addition to a steady diet of punk rock, Japanese literature, and Buddhism. He spent six years in Japan as an English teacher and translator. In 2004, he returned to the United States to complete his Masters in Language Education and continue his career as a language educator and cultural anthropologist with a focus on language policy and language shift. Jon is a former Myrle Clark Award recipient for excellence in creative writing and has contributed to World Film Locations: Tokyo (Intellect, 2011).