Talking Movies and Japan in a Room with a View!

The view from the sixth floor of the Palace Hotel Tokyo. Photo by Brett Homenick.

In the evening on Tuesday, July 7, I had the distinct privilege of spending some time in the company of actor Mike Starr, who recently visited Japan with his family. I met Mr. Starr at the Palace Hotel Tokyo, which I'd never visited before. After meeting in the lobby (where he gave me a big hug!), we made our way to a bar on the sixth floor and shared some non-alcoholic drinks.

I gave Mr. Starr a DVD copy of Gloria (1999), a Sidney Lumet movie in which he appears. I found it in a Book Off a few weeks ago. It was one of the CD-size releases from back in the day, and not only is Mike Starr credited on the back, but his photo also appears there. I thought it would make the perfect gift, so I picked it up for him.

I really enjoyed hearing about how much he was enjoying his trip to Japan, as well his stories from the old days. In particular, I loved hearing about the direction Tom Kotani gave his actors on the set of The Bushido Blade (1981) -- "Don't smile." I wish that had been included on our interview!

With Mike Starr.

While we were sitting and chatting, I was fascinated by the realization that my approaching his autograph table at the Hollywood Show in January 2025 eventually led to our hanging out at a fancy hotel bar in Tokyo a year and a half later. Suffice it to say, that's something I never would have predicted.

One thing I also lamented about my previous stay in Tokyo was that relatively very few friends came over from the U.S. and hung out. I've only been back a couple of months, and I've already hung out with two who came from the U.S. So far, so good!

You'd never guess it by the characters he played in many of his films, but Mike Starr is one of the nicest gentlemen you'll ever meet. He introduced me to just about everyone we encountered as his friend who lives out this way. All I can say is, I'm grateful.

The Land of the Rising Starr!

Mike Starr. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Wednesday, April 9, I got to spend an enjoyable afternoon with actor Mike Starr. The conversation focused mostly on his work on The Bushido Blade (1981), his very first movie, but of course we touched on several other topics, as well.

It was great to spend time in the company of a person who loves Japan about as much as I do. I have to thank Mr. Starr for his hospitality, and I hope we can meet up again in the future!

It's a Scorsese Movie Marathon in Tokyo!

Signage for a Martin Scorsese triple feature at the Shin Bungeiza theater in Tokyo. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today, I spent a fun time at the movies at the Shin Bungeiza theater in Ikebukuro. However, all three movies I watched were American, not Japanese. They were the Martin Scorsese classics Raging Bull (1980), GoodFellas (1990), and Taxi Driver (1976), which were screened in that order. Raging Bull and GoodFellas were digital projections, but I was surprised to find that Taxi Driver was actually a 35mm print. Overall, the print was in good shape, but the Japanese subtitles seemed to be a bit worse for wear. 

I'd seen all three films multiple times, so there were no surprises. Well, there was one surprise, I guess. I'd never noticed before just how much dialogue was dubbed into both Raging Bull and GoodFellas when the actors who were supposedly speaking were obviously out of sync with their mouth movements or weren't even moving their lips at all. And folks complain about the dubbing in Godzilla movies!

I'd say Raging Bull is the best (and most emotionally impactful) of the three, GoodFellas is the most entertaining, and, as for Taxi Driver, well, I still don't see the greatness there that others do. I've always felt I should like the movie a lot more than I do, but I just never have, which has always been the case (going back to when I first saw it in 1997). Don't get me wrong -- I like the film and all, but I don't regard it as an all-time classic or one of Scorsese's best. 

In any case, I really enjoyed revisiting these Scorsese films, and it was a blast seeing all three on the big screen for the first time.