Japanese Film Festival 2018

Overview

Zombies are invading this year's Japanese Film Festival. They're hitting Melbourne courtesy of horror-comedy One Cut of the Dead, but this isn't your average undead flick. It might be about a film crew trying to make their own zombie movie, as routine as that sounds; however the gleefully low-budget effort offers up plenty of surprises. Come for the found footage-style, one-take opening and stay as it veers into unexpected territory — and for the opening night celebrations that the fest is serving up with it, too!

That's just one of the movies on JFF's 2018 lineup, which also features two things that everyone loves: cats and ramen. The former comes in the form of The Travelling Cat Chronicles, about a cute feline hopping around the country. The latter is a part of foodie drama Ramen Shop, about a blogger sifting through his family's history, as well as absolute classic Tampopo, the iconic noodle western which has been given a 4K restoration.

Other standouts hitting up the Australian Centre for the Moving Image and Hoyts Melbourne Central include crime flicks The Blood of Wolves and My Friend 'A', as well as The Third Murder  — aka the other movie from Shoplifters Palme d'Or-winning filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda this year. Bowie fans will also want to catch Sukita, about rock photographer Masayoshi Sukita, who was a favourite of the star musician.

All up, Melbourne's leg of the fest boasts 31 films, screening across Thursday, November 22 to Sunday, December 2. And, JFF also has a free classics program, which runs for the duration of the main fest.