Kis-My-Ft2 idol Yuta Tamamori and NYC idol Yuma Nakayama will play rivals to 9nine member Umika Kawashima in the live action adaptation of Pin to Kona, according to Anime News Network.

Tamamori will play Kyōnosuke Kawamura, the handsome son of a noble family who is also a kabuki actor, same as his father. Nakayama is Ichiya Sawayama, a fellow actor but from an ordinary household. Kawashima is Ayame Chiba who seems to be at odds with the handsome Kawamura, and is also his classmate.

Getting into the world of Japanese dramas is nothing short of a slippery slope. It might start with an interest in a band member or a recommendation from a friend, but getting pulled into the drama addiction is easy, if you start with the right ones. For all of you who have yet to dip your toe into the world of Japanese entertainment, here are some of my suggestions for you to get your feet wet.

Kie Kitano (Bandage, Love Come) and Sousuke Ikematsu (The Last Samurai, Dive!) play lovers in the new movie Joukyou Monogatari.

Natsumi (Kitani) is an aspiring fine arts student who met Ryosuke (Ikematsu) in Tokyo. They immediately fell for each other but in order to sustain a living, Natsumi has to work in a bar. Ryosuke remains unattentive to their needs - he's a good-natured kinda guy but he can't seem to find a job that would help Natsumi. Soon, they parted ways. Natsumi also draws and illustrates and her book was published to much fanfare and success.

Ikematsu is such a terrific actor and I'm pretty excited that he has 2 amazing movies coming up - the other movie is with Satoshi Tsumabuki (where he plays the younger brother) in Our Family (Bokutachi no Kazoku).

Daigo Kurei (Shinji Takeda) is about to face the death penalty for the murder of four women twelve years ago. His serial killing caused widespread panic - where he put flower decorations as his signature mark on his victims. Before his sentence, he contacted Ippei Akabane (Takaya Kamikawa), a novelist of no stature for an interview and to write his memoir. Deaths began to occur during this time, by which Ippei is now accused of being a copycat.

Suspected by the police, the novelist must track and hunt the real killer and prove his innocence... Is Daigo responsible for the deaths and is he using Ippei for his own evil agenda? Is there a third party involved in the murders?

Directed by Nobuaki Izaki, it stars Takaya Kamikawa and Shinji Takeda, with supporting roles featuring Nana Katase, Rina Koike and Aya Hirayama. Scheduled for a June 15, 2013 release.

The melancholic melody of a piano ends the first 5 minutes of Makoto Shinaki's The Garden of Words. The acclaimed filmmaker stated that this is his first animation that deals with love, and the beautiful garden setting is simply amazing!

No need for words... just watch it!

In our freshman year, we mixed popular idols with talented movie actors - not really something to be upset about since the idols on the hitlist are not bad actors... In fact, most of them are great! But as a sophomore in our collective adventures of watching Japanese movies, we elevated and developed our acting tastes to suit a more distinct and discriminating flavor. The idols are having a separate hitlist, so stay tuned for that!

Click this link if you want to see last year's rankings. 

In Part 2 of our 30 Hottest Japanese Actors, we're into the top 20 territory. These guys are already known in the biz and have worked with some of the best filmmakers today and made some amazing films that both fans and critics enjoyed.