Friday, June 4, 2010
Story of Young Elephant (子象物語・地上に降りた天使）
Directed by KINOSHITA Ryo （木下亮）
1986
106 mins.

During the Pacific War, the Government ordered Ueno Zoo to kill all dangerous animals, including elephants, to protect the citizens of Tokyo. Elephant keeper Shota cares for a little elephant and its mother. He tries everything to save their lives, but the mother elephant dies of starvation. The little elephant survives thanks to being fed secretly by Shota. He manages to ship it to the countryside of Nagano Prefecture in a crate marked as a grand piano. Forty years after the war, the no-longer-little elephant is returned to Ueno Zoo and has a daughter and grandson.

Saturday, June 5, 2010
The Old Bear Hunter (マタギ）
Directed by GOTO Toshio （後藤俊夫）
1981
103 mins.

The story of an old man who fought with a great bear when he was young and who still bears the scars. He tells his young grandson stories of this mighty animal. Then one day a bear attacks and kills a girl in the village. The old man examines the tracks and believes that this is the bear he fought years ago. Taking his hunting dog with him, he sets off into the mountains with his grandson.

Friday, June 11, 2010
The School in the Woods （森の学校）
Directed by NISHIGAKI Yoshiharu
2002
108 mins.

The story happens during the 2nd World War, telling about Kawai family with Masao as their third son and a leader of the boys in the village. Masao wants to have a zoo at his backyard so he gathers many animals. One day, Miyoko, a girl who lost her father in the war move to the village from Tokyo, befriended by the local children help she forgot her sadness.

Friday, June 18, 2010
Forest of Little Bear (イタズ)
Directed by GOTO Toshio （後藤俊夫）
1988
117 mins.

The original story was written by director GOTO Toshio. The story is about the close relationship between a boy and his little bear friend. But when the little bear grown up, they cannot live together anymore.

Saturday, June 19, 2010
Hachiko （ハチ公物語）
Directed by KOYAMA Seijiro （神山征二郎）
1987
107 mins.

This heart-warming film about a dog’s devotion to his master is based on a true story. Hachi belongs to Prof. Ueno of Tokyo University. The dog makes it a practice to accompany the professor to Shibuya Station in the morning and also to trot back to wait for him there in the evening. Even after Prof.Ueno’s death, Hachi still makes his way to Shibuya Station without fail. The persistence of this faithful dog touched the hearts of the people in Shibuya deeply. Following his death they commissioned a bronze statue to be erected in front of the station where it has become the most famous meeting place in Tokyo.

Friday, June 25, 2010
What the Snow Brings (雪に願うこと)
Directed by Negishi Kichitaro (根岸吉太郎)
2004
132 mins.

Manabu Yazaki, who had big dreams of success in Tokyo, loses his high-class lifestyle as well as his family and returns home to the Hokkaido heartland in midwinter. There his elder brother Takeo managers a stable for “Banei horserace”, a sleigh-pulling race unique to Hokkaido. Their long overdue reunion exposes the gap between them even more. Takeo does not let his brother meet their aging mother who is living in a nursing home. However, while he watches Manabu interact with the sometimes quirky stable workers and the horses as they face the challenges of racing day in and day out, Takeo decides to have his brother met their mother. Gradually the two men develop an understanding between them. In the end, Manabu puts his all into taking care of horse that was supposed to be killed for not taking home the prize money in its rode to recovery. For Manabu, this becomes his chance to “reset” his own life and a hope for his new start.