Tag Archives: japanese

Akira Kurosawa on Netflix Instant Play: Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Yojimbo, Sanjuro, The Hidden Fortress, Ikiru

As recently as last month, I was disappointed with Netflix’s Japanese film selection on Instant Play. But it looks like they’ve remedied the shortage a bit with these classics from Akira Kurosawa, perhaps Japan’s finest director. I’ve seen most of them already. I own Ikiru on Criterion DVD but haven’t even opened it yet. I know it’s one of those movies you have to be the right mood to watch. Actually, having these movies on Instant Play probably isn’t that helpful…IP’s quality isn’t nearly good enough for the best movies; I feel sorry for anyone who has their first viewing of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly on it.

Seven SamuraiSeven Samurai RashomonRashomon YojimboYojimbo

Previously, there were a few good Japanese gems on Instant Play, including Twilight Samurai and The Great Happiness Space, a fascinating and ultimately depressing documentary about the male escort/geisha service.

The Great Happiness Space

The Great Happiness Space

Apple has 46& of Japanese smartphone market

From TUAW:

Impress Corporation of Japan is reporting that Apple now controls almost half the smartphone market in Japan with over 3 million iPhones sold to date. Keep in mind, it has taken the iPhone little more than a year to accomplish this.

Impress reasons that the major shift towards the iPhone is because of its ease of use and the Japanese App Store.

One of the predictions I distinctly remember an analyst making a the iPhone announcement launch was that it would reach Apple’s 1 percent of market share goal but it would have no impact in Japan, where the phones were so allegedly advanced.