SECTION23 FILMS announces its August 2019 releases

Home video distributor Section23 Films has announced its August slate of releases featuring Sentai Filmworks’ new TV animation adapted from Ryo Hanada’s best-selling manga, Devils’ Line, available on Blu-ray and in a special Limited Edition Premium Box Set.

Product details in order of release:

Title: BPS: BATTLE PROGRAMMER SHIRASE
Published by: Maiden Japan
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 125 min.
Street Date: 8/6/2019
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $39.98

SYNOPSIS: What is it that passes behind those dry, sorrowful eyes? Akira Shirase, the solitary programmer who has an unusual aptitude for problem solving: He is called a legendary hacker, and few know his true identity. What has he lost, what has he gained, and what has he seen in pockets of the vast internet? How now does he feel, on what is false and what is true and what exists in code? This is the man they call Battle Programmer Shirase - also known as BPS!


Title: SAKURA WARS TV
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 625 min.
Street Date: 8/13/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $29.98

SYNOPSIS: In 1918, a giant demon appeared in Tokyo, and although the monstrous creature was finally defeated, the Imperial forces knew that something had to be done in anticipation of future attacks. The solution was the development of the Imperial Assault Force, an assembly of secret teams of dedicated young women gifted with a unique spiritual power that enables them to operate Kobu, steam-powered mechanical armor that combines the attributes of humanoid robots and tanks. While pretending to be normal, ordinary girls in everyday life, these brave battle maidens and their international counterparts stationed around the world must remain ever vigilant for assaults by demons sent by the leagues of evil magic users. Get ready for the wildest monster versus mecha fantasy ever in the incredible alternate history that is SAKURA WARS!


Title: THE BIG O STEELBOOK EDITION
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 650 min.
Street Date: 8/20/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $79.98

SYNOPSIS: Forty years ago, the minds of Paradigm City's inhabitants were wiped clean of all recollections of the past. Now, ruled by a powerful corporation and cut off from the rest of the world by desolate wastelands, Paradigm has become a virtual police state where Negotiators like Roger Smith keep the wheels of progress, commerce, and society turning. As a combined hybrid of detective, mediator, and enforcer, Smith's primary resource is his keen, analytical mind, but it doesn't hurt to have a mansion filled with gadgets, his butler Norman, and his attractive assistant Dorothy to fall back on. Additionally, for those times when cases end up "in dispute," he also has the biggest, baddest back-up that any cop or small army could ever hope for: the Big O, a giant robot loaded with all the extras. Film noir thriller meets mecha mayhem masterpiece as the acclaimed classic series returns in the complete collection of THE BIG O!


Title: ORPHEN
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 1175 min.
Street Date: 8/20/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $49.98

SYNOPSIS: When an experiment goes horribly awry and transforms the Sorceress Azalie into a monstrous dragon, the sorcerers of the Tower of Fang callously decide to pretend that Azalie died in order to preserve the Tower's reputation. And to make sure that the magic beans never get spilled, they also decide that Azalie needs to be destroyed. Disgusted by their cravenly actions, Azalie's friend Krylancelo renounces his allegiance to the Tower, changes his name to Orphen and sets forth to save the damsel/dragon in distress. It won't be easy: there'll be minions with nefarious plans to defeat, and along the way Orphen will pick up an apprentice, a spoiled rich girl and a couple of trolls. But it wouldn't be a heroic journey without a few bumps in the road, would it? The epic quest is on in Sorcerous Stabber Orphen!


Title: WAITING IN THE SUMMER
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 325 min.
Street Date: 8/20/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $69.98

SYNOPSIS: When a group of friends decide to make a movie over a long summer holiday, they end up learning a little about filmmaking and a lot more about each other and themselves. What begins as a simple way to avoid the summer doldrums quickly turns into something much more complex, intimate, and downright revealing. As the summer heats up, so do the maturing relationships between the young cast members, taking some new, and sometimes unexpected, turns. Get ready for a whole new look at summer romance as hidden emotions get captured and secrets meant to be kept hidden inside young hearts instead spill off the screen for your viewing pleasure in WAITING IN THE SUMMER!


Title: DEVILS' LINE
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 325 min.
Street Date: 8/27/2019
Format: BD, PBS
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $69.98, $129.98

SYNOPSIS: Everything you thought you knew about vampires is wrong. They can walk in the daylight and holy water doesn't burn them. In fact, vampires can pass as normal humans so perfectly that even other vampires have trouble spotting them. Until they drink human blood, that is; then they transform into monstrous beasts who mindlessly rape and murder. But not all vampires are evil. The secret task force that patrols Tokyo's vampire population has several fanged operatives, including half-human Yuki Anzai, who believes that his human heritage lets him resist his species' basest cravings. But after Yuki rescues college student Tsukasa Taira from a vampire stalker, he realizes that he's succumbing to urges he's never felt before. And like moths to the flame, he and Tsukasa find themselves being pulled into a potentially fatal attraction in DEVILS' LINE!

THE GUN - a NYAFF 2019 review

Murakami Nijiro in The Gun (Photo: © YOSHIMOTO KOGYO)

The Gun / Jû

Directed by Masaharu Take

Japan, 2018, 97 minutes

On a dark and rainy night, college student Toru Nishikawa (Murakami Nijiro, Destruction Babies) comes across a handgun. Without much thought, he picks it up and takes it to his home. Later he sees a television news item that the body of a male in his 40s or 50s had been found near the Arakawa River in Itabashi Ward. The deceased had been shot in the head and been dead for about five days.

Undeterred by the gun’s apparent association with a homicide, Toru continues to covet it. Initially he’s satisfied with just taking it out and polishing it occasionally. However, it gradually begins to take greater and greater hold on his somewhat fragile and damaged psyche and he begins to carrying it around with him, gradually becoming more obsessed with the idea of actually firing it.

The situation also takes a toll on his love life, interfering with his relationship with one girl that he’s just sleeeping with and with his more romantic one with Yuko Yoshikawa (Alice Hirose, Kamen Rider Movie War 2010), a fellow student.

Most disturbing is the appearance of a detective (Lily Franky, Shoplifters) who is sure that Toru is in possession of the weapon. He’s basically certain that the young man is not a murderer and tries to convince him to disassemble it and disperse the pieces, lest he be eventually tempted to use it, with disastrous consequences.

Director Masaharu Take displays a sure hand in moving this slow-burner of a psychological thriller/drama along. Another of his films, 100 Yen Love (2014) was showcased at the 2015 JAPAN CUTS Festival of New Japanese Film, so he’s no stranger to the New York Asian film festival scene. The film is shot for almost its 97 minute running length in beautiful, high contrast black and white. (Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to ascertain the cinematographer.)

The Gun will have its North American Premiers at the New York Asian Film Festival on Sunday, June 30th at 6:15 pm. Tickets for The Gun can be purchased here.

AsianCIneFest Rating: 3 out of 4 stars; a solid noir-ish, psychological thriller.

MOJIN: THE WORM VALLEY debuts on Digital, Blu-ray™ Combo Pack & DVD on July 9th, 2019

Well Go USA

Presents

Mojin: The Worm Valley / Yun nan chong gu

Directed by Fei Xing

China, 2018, 111 minutes

Following in the footsteps of the blockbuster Mojin: The Lost Legend and based on the bestselling novel series, critically-acclaimed mystical action-adventure MOJIN: THE WORM VALLEY debuts on digital, Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD July 9th from Well Go USA Entertainment. Hu Bayi and the Mojin Six set off on another adventure seeking out a hidden tomb that holds the key to breaking an ancient curse.

Directed by Fei Xing (Silent Witness) MOJIN: THE WORM VALLEY introduces Cai Heng (Shaolin), Cheng Taishen (Legend of the Demon Cat), and newcomers Gu Xuan, Yu Heng, Chen Yusi, and Ma Yuke to the Mojin series.

Synopsis:
In this mystical action-adventure, legendary tomb explorer Hu Bayi sets off on a dangerous mission.

Crime/Thriller UNSTOPPABLE coming to digital on June 25th

Well Go USA

Presents

Unstoppable / Seongnan hwangso

Directed by KIM Min-Ho

South Korea, 2018, 115 minutes

Language: Korean w/ English subtitles

Don Lee (Train to Busan) brings the heat in the crime-thriller Unstoppable, which is available on digital June 25th from Well Go USA Entertainment. The film follows Dong-Chul (Don Lee) who has given up his gangster ways to lead a quieter life. However, all of that changes when his wife is kidnapped, and he has to return to who he used to be to get her back. Kim Min-Ho makes his directorial debut, Unstoppable also stars Song Ji-Hyo (Fugitive), Kim Sung-Oh (“A Korean Odyssey”).

Synopsis:
In this hard-hitting action-thriller, Don Lee stars as a legendary gangster enjoying a quiet retirement. But when his wife is kidnapped, he must once again become the brutal criminal he left behind in order to get her back.

SWING KIDS coming June 18th, 2019

Well Go USA

Presents

Swing Kids / Seuwingkizeu

Directed by Hyeong-Cheol Kang 

South Korea, 2018, 134 minutes

This swinging musical drama will debut on Blu-ray™ this coming Tuesday, June 18th, 2019. K-pop star Do Kyung-soo and actor Jared Grimes star.

Synopsis:
During the Korean War, the soldiers at a POW camp plan a tap show to distract both themselves and the prisoners from the hardships of war. Led by a former Broadway dancer and a rebellious North Korean soldier, the band of prisoners find a new sense of freedom in dancing.

FURIE coming June 25th 2019

Well Go USA

Presents

Furie / Hai Phuong 

Directed by Le Van Kiet

Vietnam, 2019, 98 minutes

Veronica Ngo (Star Wars: The Last Jedi) fiercely stars in this thrilling, action-packed film, Furie, which debuts on digital, Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD June 25th from Well Go USA Entertainment.

After putting her criminal past behind her, Hai Phuong’s (Ngo) daughter is kidnapped and Hai will do anything to get her back. Directed by Le Van Kiet (The Rich Woman, The Lost Tour: Vietnam) and with a rich color palette of neon from cinematographer Morgan Schmidt, Furie also stars Phan Than Nhien and Mai Cat Vi.

Synopsis:
When a little girl is kidnapped by a trafficking ring, they soon find they messed with the wrong child. Her mother, a notorious former gang leader, is close on their trail and will go to any lengths to bring her daughter home.

SECTION23 FILMS announces its JULY 2019 releases

Home video distributor Section23 Films has announced its July slate of releases featuring Sentai Filmworks’ new retrofuturistic series that relaunches Japan’s most legendary cyberpop heroine, CUTIE HONEY UNIVERSE, available on Blu-ray and in a special Limited Edition Premium Box Set on July 23rd.

Product details in order of release:

Title: THOSE WHO HUNT ELVES BLU-RAY
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 600 min.
Street Date: 7/2/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $49.98

SYNOPSIS: When an unlikely trio of humans find themselves transported to a world populated by elves and other mystical beings, all they want to do is go home. Fortunately, the sorceress Celsia has a spell that can send them back! Unfortunately, things go horribly wrong and the spell is scattered to the winds, with different parts attaching like tattoos to the bodies of elves across the entire planet! Now, the only way to put it back together is for strongman Junpei, actress Airi and teenage gun-fanatic Ritsuko to travel around the world in a T-74 tank, convincing random elves to strip down for a "spell check"! Get ready for the weirdest, most un-PC road trip ever as the tank treads hit the road and the elf-clothes go a-flying in THOSE WHO HUNT ELVES!


Title: PET SHOP OF HORRORS BLU-RAY
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 100 min.
Street Date: 7/9/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $19.98

SYNOPSIS: Are you seeking something unusual in a pet to fill an empty space in your heart? Then venture, if you dare, into a strange little pet shop in Chinatown, where the mysterious proprietor knows your every need and desire. But watch out. When you buy from Count D, what you get may be what he thinks you deserve rather than what you want. So even if that rare rabbit does somehow look just like your lost child, perhaps you'd be safer shopping somewhere else. That's certainly what Detective Orcot of the LAPD would advise, as nightmarish things seem to keep happening to the shop's customers. Unfortunately, there's never been quite enough evidence to implicate the Count. And until there is, business will continue to boom at the PET SHOP OF HORRORS.


Title: ASURA CRYIN' BLU-RAY
Published by: Maiden Japan
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 650 min.
Street Date: 7/16/2019
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $89.98

SYNOPSIS: Some people are haunted by memories, but Tomoharu is haunted by his friend Misao, who died in a horrible plane crash that Tomo somehow survived. While having a girl that no one else can see hanging around is a little odd, it's not until Tomo's mom gets remarried, leaving Tomo alone, that things get really weird: A mysterious girl appears with a package that Tomo is supposed to guard. A second girl breaks into the house, demanding something called an "extractor". And both girls can inexplicably see Misao! As more people target the package and Tomo, the mystery only deepens. What's in the package, why are so many people after it, and is it connected to the plane crash or something even more sinister? The shocking answers will be unleashed in ASURA CRYIN'!


Title: ARMORED TROOPER VOTOMS OVA 2
Published by: Maiden Japan
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 290 min.
Street Date: 7/23/2019
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $59.98

SYNOPSIS: The fires of war don't create heroes, only legions of the wounded and the dead. For a pilot of an easily-destroyed VOTOMS unit, every foray into battle is one more calculated bet with your own life as the prize, another day of cheating death. When your commanding officers send you into a fight that can't be won, or set goals that can only be achieved through massive sacrifice, then a decision has to be made. Are you going to be a hero? Or a survivor? The brutal realism of the acclaimed anime series returns, as men and machines are thrown into the meat grinder of war, in the epic second Original Video Animation collection of ARMORED TROOPER VOTOMS!


Title: CUTIE HONEY UNIVERSE
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 300 min.
Street Date: 7/23/2019
Format: BD, PBS
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $69.98, $129.98

SYNOPSIS: The girls at Saint Chapel Academy all think Honey Kisaragi is just another sweet, kind and incredibly beautiful girl, but what they don't know is that Honey is actually the world's most advanced android, with the capability to transform her lovely body into multiple forms with their own special abilities! Unfortunately the evil Sister Jill, head of the sinister organization Panther Claw, knows Honey's secret, and the malevolent mistress of mayhem will stop at nothing in her attempts to capture Honey and use her body for her own twisted purposes. With Jill's army of half-human hotties on one side and Honey and her stalwart allies at the PCIS (Panther Claw Criminal Investigation Service) on the other, it's going to be the wildest, sexiest battle ever! Watch out evildoers! The original magical girl is back in CUTIE HONEY UNIVERSE!


Title: ELFEN LIED STEELBOOK BLU-RAY
Published by: ADV Films
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 325 min.
Street Date: 7/30/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $99.98

SYNOPSIS: Critics have described Elfen Lied as "weird," (Anime Planet), "surprisingly sadistic," (Gamers Edge), and "addictive"(Animesou). No wonder, when you consider what makes this series hum! Lucy, a beautiful young mutant, is bred by the military to be the ultimate weapon. Now, with government killers on her trail, the disposition of a five year old, and a hair trigger for ultraviolence, Lucy and her young friends must unravel the dark secret of her legacy before it's too late.


Title: LOVE STAGE BLU-RAY
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 275 min.
Street Date: 7/30/2019
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $69.98

SYNOPSIS: As a child actor, Izumi Sena was following the rest of his family into the entertainment business until he quit after a humiliating incident while shooting a certain commercial. Now, ten years later, Izumi's trying to juggle college and becoming a manga author, but nothing seems to be working out for him. Until he's asked to reprise his part in that infamous commercial opposite one of Japan's most popular up-and-coming actors! Which wouldn't be so bad… except for the fact that Izumi was dressed as young girl in the ad, and everyone, including his infatuated potential co-star Ryoma Ichijo, still thinks that he's a she! Is Izumi going to have to kiss a guy and will he like it? And what will Ryoma think when the girl of his dreams turns out to be a guy in jeans? Get ready for a tale of crossed stars and shifting alignments as a completely unexpected drama unfolds in prime time across the LOVE STAGE!!

Encore presentation of JAPAN CUTS 2018 Audience Award winner BORN BONE BORN at Japan Society NY on Friday, June 14th

Japan Society NY

Presents

A Japan Cuts Encore

Born Bone Born © 2018 'Senkotsu’ Production Committee

Born Bone Born / Senkotsu

Directed by Toshiyuki Teruya

With Ayame Misaki, Eiji Okuda,

Michitaka Tsutsui, and Yoko Oshima 

Japan, 2018, 111 minutes 

In Japanese with English subtitles

When: Friday, June 14, 2019 at 7:00 PM

Where: Japan Society NY

333 East 47th Street, NYC

Map

Tickets: $14/$11 seniors & students/$5 members

Winner of the JAPAN CUTS 2018 Audience Award, this moving, comedic family drama returns to Japan Society for an encore screening in anticipation of the upcoming 13th edition of JAPAN CUTS: Festival of New Japanese Film (July 19—28). A visibly pregnant woman returns home to the remote Okinawan island of Aguni four years after her mother's death to find that her alcoholic father is still in mourning. As the gathered family works through lingering resentments and village gossip, they make preparations for the island's ancient senkotsu ritual in which the remains of the deceased are exhumed and the bones are washed clean.

"Mountain Monks" reviewed; one of the shorts at NY Japan CineFest

Mar Creation

and

Asia Society NYC

Present

Mountain Monks

Dir. Fritz Schumann

Japan, 2018, 10 minutes

The short documentary Mountain Monks will be one of the films included in Program 2 of this year's New York Japan CineFest. The mini-festival runs Wednesday, June 5th and Thursday the 6th at Asia Society, located at 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street. (Click here for map.) Each night's program is scheduled to run from 6:30 - 8:15 PM.

Synopsis:
The Yamabushi in northern Japan practice a once forbidden ancient religion. While their tradition is at risk of disappearing, it offers a way for those seeking a different path in Japan‘s society.

AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; highly recommended documentary about a small Japanese sect.

"Miss u, Love" reviewed; one of the shorts at NY Japan CineFest

Mar Creation

and

Asia Society NYC

Present

Miss u, Love

Directed by Toko Shiiki

USA, 2018, 7 minutes

Miss u, Love will be shown on Thursday, June 6th as one of the shorts included in Program 2 of this year's New York Japan CineFest. The mini-festival runs Wednesday, June 5th and Thursday the 6th at Asia Society located at 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street. (Click here for map.) Each night's program is scheduled to run from 6:30 - 8:15 PM.

Synopsis:
Rei is working as a “Mail-Lady” for the “Mental Health Mail-Lady Service” in Japan. Her job is to exchange emails with clients who have mental health disorders. According to her, she is the most popular “Mail-Lady” in Japan. But recently, she relocated to the United States, after a troublesome exchange with one of her clients.

AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; an intriguing film that is highly recommended.