The Dublin Film Critics Circle have awarded ‘The Boy and the Beast’ as Best Anime, and ‘Assassination Classroom‘ as Best Feature at the Dublin screenings of this year’s Japanese Film Festival.
The Audience Award for Best Anime also went to ‘The Boy and the Beast’, while Best Feature went to ‘Love and Peace’.
A stunningly animated adventure from JFF favourite Mamoru Hosoda,’The Boy and the Beast‘ explores loyalty, familial bonds, prejudice and friendship through imaginatively rendered parallel worlds. Mamoru Hosada’s previous film ‘Wolf Children’ was awarded the Best Anime at the 2013 Japanese Film Festival.
‘Assassination Classroom‘ is the smash-hit manga adaptation where everyone’s favourite teacher is also everyone’s favourite target. A fun, action-packed, irreverent and smart film with a yellow-faced octopus-like alien as its star – there is already a sequel in the pipe-line.
‘Love and Peace‘, one of the latest films from Japan’s prolific director Sion Sono, is a bizarre and brilliant clash of ideas and genres involving a disillusioned worker Ryo and his giant singing turtle Pikadon!
The 2016 edition of the Japanese Film Festival, finished in Dublin last Thursday after hosting 45 screenings of 22 films across 7 locations nationally.
The Dublin Film Critics Circle, established in 2006, offers the country’s full-time professional movie reviewers an opportunity to pool opinion on recent releases. The panel at this year’s Japanese Film Festival was chaired by Tara Brady of The Irish Times.