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Japan’s Toei Company has closed key deals on Muromachi Outsiders, a historical action adventure by Yu Irie, which it will showcase at AFM ahead of a local release in January.

The film has been sold to Well Go USA for North America, Splendid Film for German-speaking territories and Pro Films for Bulgaria. A release in Japan through Toei is set for January 17.

Set in 1461, the story takes place when the elite of Kyoto were enjoying their wealth while allowing their subjects to die of plague and famine. Incensed, a vagrant named Hasuda Hyoe rallies a group of outlaws – including...

In comparison to other Asian countries, Japan is relatively progressive when it comes to the recognition of LGBT rights, with the March 2021 district court ruling in favor of same-sex marriage being one of the latest developments in that regard. At the same time, as in many other countries and cultures, theory is one thing, but practice is something entirely different, and it might take quite a while before a society which traditionally favors conformism realizes that a same-sex couple not only has the same right, but can be parents just as much. In the past, Japanese director Rikiya Imaizumi has repeatedly discussed the theme of love and social traditions within his home country, for example in his aptly named feature “What is Love?” which talks about how love can possibly bridge prejudices and norms. In “his” the director tackles the issue of same-sex couples, about parenthood and images of gender within his home country.

The official website for for the upcoming film trilogy in the Cho Den-o series entitled Kamen Rider × Kamen Rider × Kamen Rider The Movie: Cho Den-o Trilogy was recently updated with a new full trailer. The three films, titled simply “Episode Red”, “Episode Blue”, and “Episode Yellow”, will be released separately by Toei over the summer.

“Episode Red”, directed by Osamu Kaneda, will be released on May 22nd. In the film, the time-traveling train, “DenLiner”, becomes impossible to control. A young version of protagonist Yuto Sakurai (Yuichi Nakamura) is forced to preserve the screwed up timeline when a rival attempts to woo his future wife, Airi Nogami (Wakana Matsumoto). Meanwhile, Momotaros also requires his assistance.

“Episode Blue”, directed by Kenzo Maihara, will be released on June 5th. Kotaro (Dori Sakurada) must deal with family issues and later sees his friendship with Teddy (Daisuke Ono) tested as they attempt to regain control of the DenLiner.