Currently watching: Saigo kara Nibanme no Koi

When I started watching Japanese dramas about four years ago I made a special effort to remind myself that this was not a realistic representation of Japanese life. For the most part, it was easy. I was pretty sure that time didn't stop just before death, nor that university lecturers were solving clever mysteries. Even programmes that talked about everyday issues, such as Anego or At Home Dad, seemed too exaggerated to be taken seriously.

So now I've just started watching this show, and I find myself thinking "Is this how things really are?" This drama follows the life of a single woman in her forties as she buys a house outside Tokyo, and how this effects her life, work and friendships.

It's very well written and acted. I can't quite express how nice it feels to have a show which would rather have small things happen naturally than big things be forced into the story. The subplots are quirky enough to be unexpected, but small enough to be easily accepted. For example, a daughter inviting herself to her mother's o-miai meeting for a prospective husband. Or setting up fake profiles on dating agencies to see how popular your real profile is in comparison.

Plus, it's very refreshing to have a series about people my age talking about the kind of things that people my age talk about. I recognise some of these conversations from my life, despite the different culture in which they're set. Koizumi Kyoko is a lot of fun to watch and completely different from her lead role in Shokuzai. The rest of the cast are good too, but to list them would take too long. I'm yet to find a bad performance. This is a very enjoyable show, and I wish I'd started watching it sooner since the torrents are quite old now, and not as quick as they could be.

Zatoichi vs Ichi: FIGHT

In 2003 Zatoichi was the first major cinema release of the long-running blind swordsman character since 1989. Then in 2010, sort of sequel called Ichi was released, starring Ayase Haruka as the daughter of Zatoichi on a search for her father.

Although not a remake of the same story, it's worth comparing the two. The 2003 film was directed by and starred Kitano Takeshi. His version is as unique as you'd expect, giving Zatoichi blonde hair and a blood red cane where he keeps his sword. The 2010 film, directed by Sori Fukihiko (who also directed Ping Pong) is, in many ways, a more typical story of love, death and revenge.

Both films contain the scene set in a gambling den where Zatoichi/Ichi is able to tell which way up the dice have fallen simply by listening. In the 2003 film this is part of the story and begins a series of events leading to the climax, whereas in the 2010 version it doesn't seem to go anywhere. I suspect they put it in as an homage to the earlier films.

In terms of casting, both films are blessed with a very visual lead role. Takeshi is great as the blind swordsman and your eyes are naturally drawn to him when he's on screen. Haruka's striking beauty works surprisingly well as the blank face of a killer. Both films have strong supporting casts, too. Notably the 2010 version has Osawa Takao and Ayase Haruka together again, and the rapport they built up while making Jin means the chemistry between the two is very relaxed. Also worth mentioning is Kubozuka Yosuke (who worked with the director in Ping Pong) who impresses in his role.

The main difference between the two are in the attitude of the film. Ichi is quite a traditional movie, whereas Zatoichi is quite playfully shot. Takeshi often sets up the actions of the extras (carpenters or farmers) to syncronise with the music of the soundtrack. The background characters are village idiots or grumpy regulars at a sake bar. Plus, of course, the whole thing ends with a dance routine. Ichi looks nice and is well-made, but never really surprises.

Plus, Zatoichi tells a better story. There are few wasteful scenes and the finale is not a mass brawl between hordes of warriors, but a quick, tense stand-off between two people. This is far more low-key than Ichi's final battle against the overacted gang leader and his followers. So, although Ichi is a good movie that's worth a look, Zatoichi takes this battle quite easily. In fact, it wins with its eyes shut.

Ha ha. Do you see what I did there? Ha ha.

Recommended: Children of the Tsunami

This BBC documentary tells the tale of a year since the tsunami and Fukushima nuclear incident through the words of the children it affected.

The central premise is a smart idea and very touching. The children show a resilience which is quite admirable, even though they've been through so much. They continue to face difficulties with every day issues such as using radiation detectors before they can play, and staying away from puddles.

They face these new challenges with strength and humour. And this is the main message of the documentary – that from the events of 11th March, a new generation is growing up keen to face these problems in the future. If they don't get sick from the radiation, that is. And any psychological issues are only briefly touched upon, with a reference to a brother of one of the interviewees. Perhaps a little too briefly.

It's very nicely shot. Well, you can hardly not get affecting pictures from the ghost towns and wrecked buildings along Japan's east coast. And the stories from the children and the adults gives a glimpse of the different ways that people have been affected by the tsunami. It's a very moving and thoughtful piece of television and a worthwhile addition to the list of documentaries and films on the same subject.

Just finished: Seinaru Kaibutsutachi

* spoilers *

This drama was at times exciting and intriguing but it ends with a flaw that I've seen a few times with Japanese dramas. The criminals in this series are given noble reasons for their actions and, in some way, they all repent. It seemed as if the makers of this show could not bring themselves to punish the characters they'd created.

In a way, I can't blame them. The Chief Nurse, Kasugai Yuka, who is the most immoral of the main characters, is given such a strong portrayal by Nakatani Miki that I didn't want her to be caught. But when she wasn't caught, it didn't feel like a proper ending. Let's not forget that a woman was killed and now her ex-boyfriend has to raise a baby single-handed on child support.

Meanwhile, the punishment for the criminals is simply to lose their family. The couple, Keiko and Toshio, who received the baby, are banished from their prestigious family and have to start again. And Kasugai Yuka is last seen walking away to lead a life without the sister that she's loved and protected for all these years. In a way it's a cruel punishment, but I can't help thinking that a prison sentence is more appropriate for murder.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed this series. It wasn't particularly hyped before it began and if Nakatani Miki hadn't been in it, I might not have watched it at all. That would have been a shame, since this was a smart and well-made piece of TV that never quite became essential viewing, but came very close.

Just watched: Rabbit Horror

Shimazu Takahashi directed my favourite horror movie, Ju-On: The Grudge. However, the fact that between 2000 and 2006 he remade this film at least six times made me suspect he may be a one-trick pony. He also directed the TV drama Soil (2010), which is still unsubbed and my poor Japanese is not good enough to follow the story.

My Japanese, however, is good enough to follow this film. I watched because of the twin attractions of the director and the star, Mitsushima Hikari. And for the first half, I was quite impressed. Admittedly, rabbits aren't scary, no matter how hard you try, but in a sequence half way through the film Shimazu manages to conjure up some jumps and disturbing images.

After this promising start, though, the film starts to unravel. The story is about a small boy who kills a rabbit, and is later haunted by a large stuffed rabbit. This sounds absurd, and it is. The presence of a large white rabbit inevitably reminded me of Alice in Wonderland, complete with Mitsushima Hikari going through a "looking glass", or rather, going through a storage space under the stairs and coming out the other side back in her home again.

But mostly, the story (and there is one, just about. But there's no ending. Not a proper one) is hidden behind disjointed scenes designed to heighten the tension. And for every one that succeeds, there's another two that just look daft. Pity. Somewhere in here, there's a good film.

It's one of those films that relies too much on CGI. Prosthetics and blood capsules maybe be old-fashioned but at least the director has to stop and think about what looks good on the screen. CGI is too easy. Too lazy.

Recommended: All About Lily Chou-Chou

I've been trying to write this review for the past few days. Bit of a tricky one, this.

At its most basic, this is a dystopian vision of school life, where bullies prosper and anything fragile is crushed underfoot. At the same time, the film itself is both bullying and fragile. If some scenes are difficult to watch due to their content, they are also difficult to look away from because of the endlessly inventive way the film is shot.

Throughout the film, messages from an internet forum are flashed on the screen. While the authors of these messages may or may not be the same people in the film - that's left for the viewer to decide – but it shows the one space in their lives where teenagers can be honest with their emotions.

This film is at times unnervingly accurate with its portrayal of teenagers and how they react to their first musical love. There's a nice scene where someone starts a fight because they like the early work Lily Chou Chou did before she went solo. This reminds me a lot of various discussions I had when I was that age about The Mission/Sisters of Mercy or Joy Division/New Order. Although I never got into a fight over it.

The film is both free-form in its storytelling, with stories slowly blending into one another, and at the same time it feels quite episodic. It can also be quite confusing to watch – minor characters from earlier in the film pop up as pivotal characters later on. To be honest, I stopped trying to remember who each person was by the end of the film. But I don't think that really affected my enjoyment of the story. Instead the people involved became anonymous receivers of whatever events were unfolding. I'd become as dispassionate as the lead character, the bullied who becomes the bully.

A fascinating film.

Currently watching: Suugaku Joshi Gakuen

If you've ever wondered what it would be like if the International Mathematical Olympiad in Japan and Hello!Project decided to collaborate on a TV series, then today's your lucky day!

I mentioned this back in December as one of the dramas I thought might be worth watching, and then I promptly forgot about it until this morning. In this series an innumerate student finds he's enrolled at a school full of cute, maths-obsessed girls. Thus begins his life as the idiot of the class.

I only recognise one of the cast (the famous one from Morning Musume) so the Hello!Project aspect has largely passed me by. And although the acting never rises above comical, it's fine for the nature of the show.

Each week, a student gets into some amusing difficulty which is then solved by using mathematics. In episode one, for example, trigonometry is used to decide whether or not our hero (Sato Kazuki) really was able to see up a schoolgirl's skirt.

The episodes are only twenty five minutes long, so the stories move along at quite a speed. At least there's not much opportunity to be bored. It's funny and absurd and better than I thought it would be. However, sitting through the title sequence, complete with gawky dancing and overt attempts to be cute, is a bit of an ordeal. But once you're past that, you're fine.