Shinkansen (Bullet Train)

I took this picture on our last visit at the National Railway Museum in York. It is a Shinkansen, also known as Bullet Train. An old version of it of course, the new ones look much leaner. When you enter this one, you can see a video about it and you can have a Shinkansen experience, as if you were traveling there in the 60s. I love old fashhion European luxury trainsand old steamies, but I have also developed inr ecent a fascination for this marvel of Japanese technology. It's just really gorgeous and impressive. If we ever visit Japan, I want to use the Shinkansen.

Bullet Train Explosion

If Netflix has its flaws, sometimes it allows us to find real gems. I discovered one recently, a Japanese action thriller, part survival action flick, part crime fiction. It's titled Bullet Train Explosion in English. A bit of a blunt title, but while it does what it says on the tin, it has way more soul and character than any Hollywood equivalent. In fact, there is no real Hollywood equivalent to it. Yes, the premisse is similar to Speed: a mysterious terrorist places bombs on the Shinkansen, bombs that will explode if the train goes below100KM/hour. The terrorist also demands a ridiculous amont of money to defuse the bomb. But instead of one cliché hero, you have an ensemble cast playing men and women of different walks of life, all doing their jobs in a time of crisis. It's an action movie with a soul, as I said above. And with all the cultural flavours and colours of Japan. In spite of its sometimes far fetched premisse and execution, it feels real. The film is a sequel to a more obscure film from the 1975, The Bullet Train, which from what I understand has a cult following in Japan. You don't need to have seen it to enjoy its sequel. Of course, I like every movie when a train is featured (extensively or not), but this one truly is something worth watching.

Three Assassins in the Bookshop

 I blogged here and there about Japanese crime writer Kotaro Isaka, who wrote the novel that inspired Bullet Train, a wacky film which I enjoyed thoroughly. I enjoyed it enough to want to buy the source novel and, while I wasat it, the first novel of what is a trilogy. So I ordered Three Assassins from... the bookshop. I could have gone through Amazon, but I wanted to support my favourite local business. So... yeah. I received a phone call from the bookshop two days ago, saying the book had arrived. I don't know when I will be able to go there and get my hands on it, but I'm am happily surprised it arrived so quickly, in less than a week.

Looking for Three Assassins

Don't panic reading the title of this post, I mean figuratively speaking, of course. If you read this post from earlier this month, you know that I recently watched and enjoyed d Bullet Train. Which is based on a novel by Kotaro Isaka. it is actually the second book of a trilogy, starting with Three Assassins (or 3 Assassins, I have seen the title spelled both ways). Okay, so this novel will not feature extensively a train, which is one of the appeals of the film, but all the same, I love crime fiction and I want to read the trilogy in order. I could order it on Amazon, but I think I will buy it at the local bookshop.

Bullet Train (the book)

I recently watched Bullet Train on Netflix. And I loved it. Because it was a wacky action movie set in a train with just enough silliness and heart to be enjoyable. And in spite of the sillier elements, I did not feel like a complete braindead idiot watching it. I mean death and violence in a Japanese train, what's not to like? And I was happily surprised tosee that it was adapted from a novel by Kotaro Isaka. It is the second book of a series actually, so I am thinking, in spite of my TBR list, to buy it and maybe the first book as well. I read crime fiction from all around the world, so it would be nice to add Japan to the list of exotic crime location.