With box office-breaking anime blockbusters and Golden Globe nominees, 2021 was an impressive year in Japanese cinemas. There’s no sign of slowing down in 2022. Many anticipated Japanese movies that will be released upcoming year have been announced and include some awe-inspiring productions that you don’t want to miss.
To name a couple of the movies, the documentary of the Tokyo Olympics 2020 comes out next year which takes us behind the scenes of how it came to happen. Another behind the scenes movie is Dai Kaiju no Ato Shimatsu, which takes you behind the scenes of what happens in the aftermath when a superhero or the military defeats an exceptionally large monster such as godzilla. And another amazing movie in the lineup is the next anime movie from the animator for Your Name, and Weathering With You. Put these dates on your calendars now.
Suzume no Tojimari
The renowned animator Makoto Shinkai has released films every three years since the release of his masterpiece in 2013 ‘Garden of Words’. Then came his ‘Your Name‘ in the year 2016 and then ‘Weathering With You’ three years later. Even though production schedules worldwide are delayed due to the Covid-19 compilations, Shinkai seems to be on course to release a fresh anime in 2022. called “Suzume no tojimari”.
The story is about a 17-year old teenager from Kyushu named Suzume who meets up with a mysterious time-traveller looking for a specific door. Although the film is yet to reveal an official trailer, the poster, which features an iconic image of Makoto Shinkai’s iconic blue skies, suggests that it will be a spectacularly stunning film that will delight the crowd.
Dai Kaiju no Ato Shimatsu
We’ve all heard of the traditional Kaiju film formula, in which an enormous monster terrorizes the city until it is destroyed by Japanese Self-Defense Forces (‘Godzilla’) or a similarly bad-ass superhero such as Ultraman.
What happens after the monster is tossed over and perishes? Who takes care of the aftermath? This is the question this bigger-than-life comedy aims to find out.
Written by Satoshi Miki the film stars Ryosuke Yamda Tao Tsuchiya and Gaku Hamada. They form part of an unusual special team responsible for eliminating fallen Kaiju off the streets after the superheroes have defeated their battles. After seeing what these folks have to endure, you might start loving your job if you didn’t before.
Hell Dogs in the House of Bamboo
The next film is the Director Masato Harada (‘The Last Samurai’), a hybrid film that’s a live-action adaptation of a manga and an updated remake from the classic 1955 American Noir film ‘House Of Bamboo’.
The film features Junichi Okada as a former detective Shogo Kanetaka who abandoned justice after many tragic incidents. Kanetaka realizes the best winning strategy is to get into the yakuza and engage in the dangerous game of cat and mouse in his search for revenge.
Tokyo 2020 Olympics
The year of 2021 will be remembered for hosting the year late event, Tokyo Olympics 2020; that too without any audience. This summer, the director Naomi Kawase is set to release the official “Tokyo 2020 Olympics” documentary that chronicles the amazing sporting events which took place in the shadows of closed-door venues. The film will also explore the challenges that event organizers and athletes overcame in the months leading up to the Games.
This documentary will bring sports fans close to Tokyo Games, held without spectators. The documentary also offers the opportunity to learn more about Japan’s involvement and past with this year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games, with footage captured from 1964’s Summer Olympics.
Shin Ultraman 2022
After the initial 2021 release was postponed, Hideaki Anno’s ‘Shin Ultraman is now scheduled to release in the month of May 2022. Anno, the creator of the “Neon Genesis: Evangelion” franchise, spoke about the great sense of obligation while making the film as an avid enthusiast of Ultraman since his early days.
He assured fans that he’d give the most recent instalment a fair shot. Expect stunning special effects and awe-inspiring Kaiju fights. This one is definitely worth the long waiting.
Source: TimeOut
Also read about Tokyo Games 2020 Cost $1.3 Billion Less Than Estimated