"Always" screening received huge applause in New York

As the kick-off of New York Asian Film Festival organized by our friends Subway Cinema, "Always - Sunset on Third Street" screening was held last night in New York, jointly with Japan Society.

It was my first time at NYAFF, and the only time this year unfortunately, but it certainly worth travling all the way there.  My friends at Japan Society told me that their tickets were sold out way before the show, which is a rare case for their Japanese movie events.  On the evening, stand-by people were forming a looooong line outside of the building, which also was unheard of.

Director Takashi Yamazaki spoke on the stage briefly before the show starts.  Then when the film was over, there was a huge applause and NOBODY stood up during the ending roll.  When the last credit of the director appeared, there was another round of even huger applause, and people still would not leave when the lights were up.  At last, Director Yamazaki stood up and bowed again to the packed-house audience to thank them, and EVEN THEN, nobody left for a while.  It was just an AMAZING scene.  Japan Society people have never seen such a sight in their event.

I had an honor to interview Director Yamazaki before the event, and will write an article on Hoga Central soon.  He was really friendly and was open to speak about different things, so it was quite an interesting talk.  Please stay tuned.

"Always - Sunset on Third Street" Region 2

Buy Japanese DVD at Fujisan.com "Always - Sunset on Third Street"

Comments

[Chris]

Well, this is really great news from NYC.

Was it word of mouth that attracted so many people to the screening of "Always - Sunset on Third Street"? I'm just curious.

The cast of this film is top notch, featuring Koyuki, Shinichi Tsutsumi, and even TV's Doctor Koto (Hidetaka Yoshioka), among others.

When I read Mark Schilling's review of this film over at The Japan Times, I did not know that "Always" was based on a long-running manga that has been in print for at least 20 years or so. That's quite an impressive run. Therefore, I'm sure there was some pressure on the filmmakers to deliver a high quality film.

Can't wait to read the interview with the film's director, Takashi Yamazaki.

With this kind of response in NYC, is it possible that this film will be released Stateside? Or, will it be only on the film festival circuit?

Lastly, it is interesting to note that the only major award that "Always" didn't win at the Japanese Academy Awards this year was Best Actress. Sayuri Yoshinaga beat out Koyuki for the award. Darn!!! Still winning 12 awards out of a possible 13 or 14 categories is still pretty good, I'd say.

Chris
Seoul, South Korea