Drive (2002)

Drive is the story of a Japanese salaryman (Tsutsumi Shinichi) who is unexpectedly hijacked while out driving to work one day. Beginning as a fairly uninteresting dirge, this film soon winds up the tempo and ends as an exploration of the effects of fate and karma. The main characters in this film are all outside the boundaries of acceptable society, and all of them have their stories told and lives resolved by the end of the film. As for our salaryman Kenichi, despite some pretty frightening encounters, he lives to fight another day and is even rewarded for bringing peace to his troubled ancestors.

Directed by Hiroyuki Tanaka, also known as Sabu, this is a real gem of a film although at times it can be a little heavy going. Great for those who like to analyse and interpret, but may be a bit of a shock for those expecting a light-weight gangster action-comedy. Tsutsumi Shinichi is perfect in the role of oppressed and dominated Kenichi and Ren Osugi at home in his portrayal of the old-hand gangster who's seen everything and has formed his own unique view of life.
A different and surprisingly meaningful viewing experience.

Podcasting Part 2 (Task 21)

I've had another go at podcasting and this time I'm pleased to report success! I've subscribed to 2 podcasts using my Bloglines subscription and these have both worked wonderfully. I am currently enjoying Joseph Tame's tales on his "Year in Japan" podcast (and very professionally done too Joseph) and Dig TV's podcast. Dig TV is screened on ABC2 and I have watched it a couple of times, but usually I forget its on so this podcast will allow me to enjoy their reports at a more convenient time. Yay for podcasting! Haven't had another go using iTunes but I'll try to give it a go this weekend. Subscribing via Bloglines is soooooooo much quicker which I really like.

Second Life (Task 22)

There has been much written and said about the value of Second Life as an educational tool in recent months. I first learned about Second Life earlier this year when I watched a documentary featuring the program and interviews with its creator. The reporter demonstrated the creation of an Avatar and how it is moved around the Second Life world. While it didn't look easy at first, with practice the reporter was able to successfully navigate her way around. She was also able to update her avatar's look by paying for more sophisticated hair, skin, teeth etc.

I've been doing some general reading about the use of Second Life by librarians and in particular, the way in which librarians are using Second Life to meet and discuss industry issues virtually. Now, San Jose State University's, School of Library and Information Science is planning to deliver their off-campus courses via their own site on Second Life. The video they put together about the program is below.



I have to say, I'd love to hear more about the progress of this program and am planning to check for updates. I believe the program is currently underway.

The ABC has some information about Second Life on their website which features their own island. Some of this information isn't necessarily all good, however. See this link for further information http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/05/22/1930123.htm

It seems Second Life is becoming popular with more and more people and not surprisingly, behaviour there is much as it is here. The idea that safety is guaranteed is starting to lose popularity as incidents like the one above become more frequent.

I'm not sure what to think about Second Life so far. I've heard both good and bad and I just don't have enough information to make a decision. I can say however, that as a Piscean, I already have an active "2nd Life' going on in my head, so to a certain extent, Second Life is redundant for me! ;) However, the one difference between Second Life and my head is that the conversations are with other people and not just with myself and this offers a degree of unpredictability that the mental world just can't offer. Thinking about it further, I can see that Second Life offers another forum for human interaction and perhaps caters better for those who are physically located far apart. Perhaps the real strength of Second Life is its adaptability, that is, it can be used for real life and for play.

Find and listen to a Podcast or two (Task 21)

I got into podcasting a few months ago with a few attempts to listen to some J-Pop broadcasts, but gave up due to the inordinately long time it took for my ipod to be updated. I ended up finding that it was quicker to order J-Pop CD's via the net or take a walk to my local Sanity store, so for me, podcasting isn't what I would call convenient. Perhaps if I had more money I could update my hard drive capacity so that the ipod would update much faster, but a lotto win isn't likely at this stage. However, those with appropriate bandwidth etc, must find this very useful as radio programs, lectures, music etc can be listened to anywhere, anytime. It's technology that empowers the listener and makes information more widely available and would be great for information that is periodically updated. I might give podcasting another go, but I'll have to find the time (and my patience) first!

Fear and Trembling

Not strictly in the category of Asian cinema, this French/Japanese farce tells the story of Amelie, a Japanese-born Belgian national who spends a year working for a prestigious Japanese company. Set in 1990 (with no mention of the recession), we see Amelie achieve her dream of returning to Japan after spending her earlier childhood in the Kansai region. Originally employed as a translator, Amelie is first given the task of supplying her colleagues with morning/afternoon coffee which is then followed up by an endless round of photocopying and re-photocopying her supervisor's golf club rules. Amelie is soon bored by these meaningless activities and proceeds to make her first mistake. It soon becomes apparent that young, naive and inexperienced Amelie, has little knowledge of the world of office politics and soon becomes victim to both her ignorance and some very spiteful colleagues. Despite some harsh treatment and a seemingly never-ending slide down the corporate ladder, Amelie is determined to complete her contract in order to "save face". Sadly, she is stripped of all dignity by her experience and has precious little "face" to save by her contract's completion. By the end, Amelie is driven to display some outrageous behaviour which she admits would even be enough to get her dismissed from a Belgian company. Funny and tragic, this brilliant film is very much like not being able to tear ones eyes away from a car crash. A compelling and humorous depiction of the systematic destruction and removal of the well-meaning but very clumsy Gaijin, Amelie.

Fear and Trembling Official Home Page


Amelie Nothomb

April Story/ Shigatsu Monogatari (1998)

This is the film that kicked off my love affair with asian cinema and I'm really pleased to have finally located it's title after spending most of this year trying to remember what it was! April Story tells of the changes and challenges faced by first year university student, Uzuki Nireno. More like a 3D postcard than a film, this highly visual and peaceful film, sensitively draws a picture of Uzuki's move to Tokyo from the far away island of Hokkaido and the development of her relationships with good friend Saeko, her neighbours and "that boy who works in the bookshop". We soon learn the reason behind Uzuki's choice of university and we watch her life-skills and confidence grow. A short film with a pretty ending that hints at the beginning of romance, director Shunji Iwai (Love Letter, Hana and Alice and All About Lily Chou-Chou) provides a defining example of the contemporary Japanese social drama/romance.

Put a Photo of Your Pet on the Wiki (Task 19)

Of all the things I've been required to do for the "23 Things" program, this has been the most difficult and the least enjoyable. The Wiki is not intuitive when it comes to adding photos and I still can't work out how to delete items mistakenly added to it. The written instructions (yes, I'm one of those people who reads instructions) were just woeful and I hope they are improved. The Wiki concept is a brilliant one and its interactivity is its strength. Sadly, its just not that user-friendly. Perhaps I should get a pet instead!