Status Updates From Japanese Cinema

“Tampopo likewise inspired Western appetites for Japanese cuisine, a cuisine long and falsely assumed to have been monopolized by raw fish. It would not be an exaggeration to state its shots of lovingly prepared ramen —especially a sequence where a man fries up an intoxicating omuraisu (an omelet-type dish with rice)— were single-handedly responsible for the Nipponese cuisine boom in America.”

“Japanese filmmakers have been remarkably adept at looking inward, at casting an unflinching, reflective gaze at the country’s culture, its traditions, and ordinary life. If you want to understand the Japanese psyche, Japanese cinema is full of insight on how the Japanese see themselves.”