Japanese Cinema: The Essential Handbook, 4th Edition [Paperback]

Yuko Mihara Weisser (Author), Thomas Weisser (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1996

The largest, most complete English language listing of contemporary Japanese films. Every major theatrical film released in Japan between 1965-1998 is listed along with capsule reviews, background information, director and cast credits, and alternate titles.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Japanese Film Critic

Product Details

• Paperback: 397 pages
• Publisher: Vital Books, Inc.; 4 edition (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1889288500
• ISBN-13: 978-1889288505
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,948,646 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars 'Survey' would be a better title, sometimes inaccurate., January 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Japanese Cinema: The Essential Handbook, 4th Edition (Paperback)

There is _alot_ in this book that can (and will!) captivate you about Japanese cinema. While the Weissers, like most critics dwell a lot on their personal favorites, the bulk of the book is left with brief 2 and 3- paragraph summaries I found all too brief for the movie(s) in question.

Occasionally I also ran into outright errors.

Here's one of those that I would not expect in a 4th edition. Example: Entry for NIGHTHEAD: Actor Toyokawa Etsushi's name is misspelled, the summary and analysis are _totally_ wrong. NIGHTHEAD: The Trial was a sequel/conclusion to the TV series, NOT re-edited snippets as they say in the review. The brothers are NOT therapists, they are working with the research group that trained them and fighting a corporation that wants to enslave psychics, the girl is not retarded, et cetera). I would have to say that 10% of the book contains these 'drive by' reviews that have very little to do with the movie in question, or that contain significant translation/spelling errors. I have to wonder if this book really is a 4th edition, or if it is the fourth time that it went to press....

Second beef: If you pick up this book, and then obtain one of the Weissers' 'Japanese Cinema Encyclopedias,' be prepared for redundancy. Basically, the movie reviews found in _Essential_ copied and pasted verbatim. (I found this to be true in the JCE of Horror, Fantasy, and SF).

Errors (when present) and all.

To be fair though this book does cover a lot of ground, and for those of us who are either first timers or old hands, it is great for introducing movies that would perhaps remain unseen to the general (non-Japanese-speaking) public. However, in my humble opinion the title should have been 'A Survey of Japanese Cinema.' For the sheer volume of movies surveyed, this book is (probably) unique, and worth a look.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Maybe it's too essential, December 20, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Japanese Cinema: The Essential Handbook, 4th Edition (Paperback)

First I apologize for my English. As a Reference book it can be good, but I don't think this is a "gap-filling" reference, as someone say. The listing is complete, but the critique is too short; I expected much more. There are some mistakes in text and lack of data (for instance, where is the review of "Tokyo Decadence" ?)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you liked ASIAN CULT CINEMA (which I did), then......., March 12, 2002

By 

Oliver L. (Toronto) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Japanese Cinema: The Essential Handbook, 4th Edition (Paperback)

Being fairly uninformed about Japanese cinema (the vast cultural differences often make me shy away from it), I did not notice the errors (aside from the occasional typo) mentioned by other reviewers. Nor did I detect any racism or misogyny, as alleged by others.
This review guide, along with the critically-maligned ASIAN CULT CINEMA, also by Weisser, is just plain fun reading. It introduces the reader to many heretofore unheard-of films. The reviews are spirited, and the ever-popular 4-star rating system augments them. Whether one agrees with the stated opinions or not is of course entirely personal.
I must say though: Shame on the author for giving the masterpiece WOMAN IN THE DUNES (1964) only 3 and 1/2 stars.