Live Long and Prosper

Well, it's time. I have considered the other options for a week in a Zen cave, but it is time. The wind is not favourable. 

When I was looking at the schedule of the posts for the second season adventure, I noticed that the topics are probably not beneficial to the readers. That means they are also not beneficial to the project. That means they are also not beneficial to me. If it were my personal blog, the topics would be fine. But it isn't. If it were the proper time, there would be no problem. But this is unfortunately epilogging. This is about how I've been doing since the last season. This is about what I've been dealing with since the last "spring". Sorry, I have failed to eliminate Ban-nan 万難(all the obstacles). This is not just about the topics, this decision has been made based on my comprehensive assessment of the situations. In short, the wind is not favourable.

I selected the topics because they were the best thing I could show you. They were the subjects that I could write with passion. Just shutting everything down is a bit tasteless. So let me digest the second season and share the adventure one last time.

REVIEW: Jason Bourne

Well, let's talk about JB. Jelly Beans? Oh, thanks, that's sweet, but no, not that one. Jack Bauer? That's close. To me, it's Jason Bourne.

The Bourne series

Bourne series is a Hollywood blockbuster movie franchise which consisted of 'The Bourne Identity''The Bourne Supremacy''The Bourne Ultimatum'. Starring Matt Damon. Based on the novels of the same titles, written by Robert Ludlum, but the story was arranged so much and quite different from the original. And recently, the series got a new sequel, that is the film 'Jason Bourne'. 

Why So Bourne

  

I love this series; first, the story has attractive elements — an assassin, a thirty-million-dollar multilingual human weapon, who lost his memory fights alone with the government agency all around the world so as to gain the lost memory and his life. Second, the score fit like a condom — sorry about the indecent figure of speech, but that's because — music by John Powell who also scored 'Face/Off'. The variety of location led to the variety of sound. Last, 'The Bourne Supremacy' was excellent as both an action movie and a sequel. 'The Bourne Identity', the first film of the series, had a fine harmony between story and actions. For instance, a man who has amnesia in the darkness-coming, conspiracy-hiding, melancholic atmosphere of rainy snowy winter John-Powell European places, and a dynamic car-chase on wet streets. The action scenes were rich in variety — CQC, gunfight, car stunt. Then they escalated action scene brilliantly in the sequel 'The Bourne Supremacy'. And Jason Bourne always survives in adverse conditions.

REVIEW: Hans Zimmer Live Show in the Arena of Nîmes

His film music compositions to be felt with the whole body. An awesome show, a memorable night.

On 24th June 2017, in the Arena of Nîmes, a Roman amphitheatre. The theatre was filled to capacity. 08:30 pm, it began on schedule. I visited the event all the way from Kyushu, Japan. My seat was in the stage-right area, on the third level (in France, the second level). The live concert by German film music composer Hans Zimmer who has a successful career in Hollywood big movies was held in the historic city that is located in Southern France, near the Mediterranean Sea. It was a hot day.

44E

"Trains" that run underground the big city. Creak, squeak, screech, motor noise, and I hear the sound of dark past, dark future, serious threat.  4:37 pm. The threat is imminent. The clock is ticking. However, the subway appears to be running on schedule. All I can do now is just to wait as the train jolt us, passengers. I cannot fail this mission. I need to be focused. One mistake could jeopardise the mission.

4:43 pm. "Revenge", well, yes, this thing might be. To have substantial experience. Revenge for hollow illusions. Morale is getting high.

REVIEW: Woman In Gold

'Woman in Gold' is a film, based on the true story of Maria Altmann, an elderly Jewish refugee, who took on the Austrian government to reclaim Gustav Klimt's iconic painting of her aunt, 'Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I', which was plundered by the Nazis.

The trailer of the film caught my attention because it was gold, Klimt, Helen Mirren. The film was compelling.

In the film, young Maria says that the painting is gold but her aunt somehow looks blue. And this is a film of "Blue and gold". The contrast between blue and gold gave me a unique sensation, it made this film alive. "A brisk elderly woman and a young lawyer who has difficulty in his career", "American accent English in a European court", "Painful memories of the defilers in a magnificent city Vienna" and so on. The score has the same characteristic and made this film memorable. Music by Martin Phipps and...Hans Zimmer. I couldn't notice him while I was watching because there was no his signature. In early spring, I heard the news that Hans was saying Auf Wiedersehen to the Spandex, and I've been thinking if he really has retired from "super hero business" what is going to be the next stage? This score might be a hint of it. I am looking forward to his future works.

Hans in the Wind 3: A wind of Japanese Poetry of Spring 2

REVIEW: The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

Introduction of the films about Heian part 2

A short review of 'The Tale of the Princess Kaguya かぐや姫の物語' as a long appendix to the previous post REVIEW: 'The Tale of Genji'.

Film / Director

The film is based on the classic work of the Heian period, 'The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter 竹取物語', and the plot is basically the same as the original.

Directed by Isao Takahata 高畑勲 belonging to Studio Ghibli, the Mochi director, and my Mochi brother. He has the same type of personal qualities as me. I have sympathy for his philosophy of nature and life. His conclusion is obvious; Mochi. It's everywhere in his works. O-Kiyo おキヨ of 'Pom Poko 平成狸合戦ぽんぽこ' is my ideal girl. 

And again he made this film Mochi, this is Mochi film expect the grown-up Princess and Mikado the Emperor. The Emperor is portrayed as the symbol of Money, Power, Vanity. The Emperor's chin and outfit are designed to be the complete opposite quality of Mochi. Maybe Takahata needed to face this motif as a Mochi director before he ends his career.

REVIEW: The Theory of Everything

I had never imagined that I would pay for a love story until I saw this film. 'The Theory of Everything' is the first love story film that fascinated me. 

This is a love story--of three, based on a true story of the theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking. Starring Eddie Redmayne as Stephen Hawking, Felicity Jones as Jane Hawking, Charlie Cox as Jonathan Hellyer Jones. The story describes love in a not overly romantic way, which is very comfortable, and yet there is certainly the excitement of the new relationship. "We are not normal family", Jane says. Yes, their relationships are not simple. But their love was a light, a hope, an inspiration to me.

Acting

Their acting is brilliant. Eddie Redmayne's portrayal is very detailed, and it carries strong conviction. Professor Stephen Hawking has ALS. Eddie Redmayne realistically portrays the progress of the disease, and the character's feelings and traits by limited physicality. Felicity Jones is also a formidable actor, but the delicious part of their performance is not in individual talents or skills, that is in dialogues, face-to-face communications. Their performances resonate with each other, amplify each other. The croquet sequence, for instance, is something beyond play.

A Brief History of me and Hans Zimmer

I'm sorry about the slightly fanatical title. I just summarised this article. We are not related to each other. I just listen to his music a lot.

So, well, let me introduce our history, from 'Peacemaker' to 'Interstellar'.


A TEENAGER BOY MEETS HANS ZIMMER

When I was an elementary school student, I couldn't understand why my classmates were so excited about music--especially Japanese Heisei pop music. I had never given it any serious thought until MJ hit me.

When I'm first grade at junior high, Michael Jackson suddenly gave me a great inspiration, like lightning. He started music inside me. 'History(1995)' is the first music CD that I've purchased.

I love motion pictures, grew up with Hollywood movies and Disney animations. I watched action movies a lot.

In 1997, "What is good film?", "How do I define good music?", "Film music? How does it work? It all feels similar to me. What's the difference?", a third-grade 15-year-old boy kept thinking about sensuous things logically and started to classify cultural things to answer his own question. 


Then I met "Peacemaker",