After handing in a report on the treatment of Chinese colonial labor, Kaji is offered the post of labor chief at a large mining operation in...

A celebrity photograph sparks a court case as a tabloid magazine spins a scandalous yarn over a painter and a famous singer.

In 17th century Kyoto, Osan is married to Ishun, a wealthy miserly scroll-maker. When Osan is falsely accused of having an affair with the best...

Nuclear tests create a radioactive man who can turn people into slime.

Originally released in Japan as "The Return of Godzilla" in 1984, this is the heavily re-edited, re-titled "Godzilla 1985". Adding in new footage...

Years of warfare end in a Japan unified under the Tokugawa shogunate, and samurai spy Sasuke Sarutobi, tired of conflict, longs for peace. When a...

An errant salaryman's son gets lost until a man from the Tokyo tenements brings him to vendor Tane, who's reluctant to let the kid board.

In eighth century China, the Emperor is grieving over the death of his wife. The Yang family wants to provide the Emperor with a consort so that they...

Two devious retainers are competing to take control of a fief when the current Lord dies, but involving Kyoshiro in the conflict against his will is...

Assassination begins with the events of 1853 when "four black ships" anchored at Edo Bay, sparking civil unrest and the major political manoeuvring...

A feverishly perverse 1969 film noir oddity starring female impersonator Akihiro Maruyama. When wealthy Kyohei hires transvestite singer "Black Rose"...

An ageing fishing boat, Dai-go Fukuryu Maru ("Lucky Dragon No. 5") sets out from the port of Yaizu in Shizuoka Prefecture. It travels around the...

A woman's struggle for equality in Japan in the 1880s. Eiko Hirayama leaves Okayama for Tokyo, where she helps the fledgling Liberal Party and falls...

An exciting tale of action on the distant northern island of Hokkaido around the beginning of the 20th Century starring two of the biggest names in...

A rural village elder plans an event on the return of a farmer's daughter from the city, unaware that she has become a Westernized burlesque artist.

Tied to a mountain between her brutalizing spouse and her secret lover, disaster strikes; the authorities accuse her of murder and prompt a...

A Japanese family weathers much hardship after their military uncle comes to live with them during WWII.

Famous detective Kindaichi solves a series of mysterious murders in a wealthy family. An excellent blend of intrigue and betrayal, set against the...

Like many women after the war, Toshiko works as a chorus girl; her boyfriend Tadashi wishes she'd join him more frequently, but she detests his...

Masaki Kobayashi directs this romantic drama concerning a family of florists.

A young man gets thrown into detention after an episode of sexual assault; he soon meets several impostors in the same situation.

This film is based on a real Meiji era performer -- and tells of Tochuken's partnership with his wife (played by Chikako Hosokawa) who played...

When an only child is struck by a car and dies, the child's mother seeks vengeance against the driver in this thrilling drama. The car was driven by...

Kinichi and Akiko meet when they visit their fathers in prison. After successfully gambling on a bicycle race, they spend an enjoyable day together...

In the 12th century, Buddhism was still a relatively new religion in Japan. At that time, one school (Shingon) offered extensive training in complex...

Onimasa is the egocentric boss of a small yakuza clan on Shikoku Island, whose criminal duties conflict with his self-image as a chivalrous samurai....

The sweet but naive denizens of a charming port town are hoodwinked by a couple of con men at the outset of World War II. But the hustlers’ plan...

Otowa is a former Seto Inland Sea island farmer who has moved to the mainland in order to find work, but instead ends up dead. The film begins with...

In 1976, a drifting star named Gorath is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth. Although it is smaller than Earth, its enormous mass is...

The struggles of a low-ranking samurai (Nakamura) coming to terms with the end of the Tokugawa shogunate and the end of Japan's feudal age with the...

The story of Kiyoko, a young woman who has successfully managed to make a break with her dysfunctional family who have been trying to arrange a...

UFOs appear on Earth, and people who actually see them suddenly find that their blood has turned blue. Soon panic and hysteria result in the new...

The life and travels of adventurer Naomi Uemura, who disappeared in Alaska in 1984. A member of the first Japanese expedition to reach the summit of...

A traditional bar mistress in Kyoto clashes with her Tokyo rival.

Michi's first encounter with Nobuyuki Ishida, secretary to the chairman of a private school, takes place in the drawing room, when she attempts to...

In Kyoto a young kimono maker with traditional ideas gets involved with a married professor.

Namiko gets a crush on Ishizuka, a young CEO of a nightclub, but he was plotting to destroy her husband’s company by greenmail.

A human drama of crew and passengers on a special express train named “Sakura” from Tokyo to Nagasaki...

The story contrasts the life of two doctors, former classmates and now both assistant professors at Naniwa University Hospital in Osaka. The...

A group of five rookie insurance salespersons, driven to desperation by the impossibility of their work in Japan's failing postwar economy, form a...

Taking the Chilean coup as an example, a group of young officers plan to overthrow the Japanese government on V-J Day. They aim to abolish the...

After a businessman is murdered, an investigation identifies a suspect who is then put on trial for that crime.

After a passenger ship sinks in 1954, Go Akutsu devises a life-saving project in the form of a tunnel under the Tsugaru Strait. While working on this...

The mistress of a crook real estate broker comes to terms with her soulless existence after an artist paints her portrait.

In the Meiji period, a schoolteacher tries to hide his lower-class upbringing as he supports a visiting liberal intellectual.

When the future of his construction company falls into danger, a controlling father pushes his children into unsatisfying marriages and careers in...

The ghost of a samurai's wife takes revenge on her husband.

When a wealthy, selfish family decides to take care of an elderly hobo who collapsed near their home, they are beset by visits from his numerous...

The story of a novelist whose wife is confined in a mental hospital. His love for her drives him to write about her, though he runs into trouble when...

1953 Toho adaptation of Natsume's novel.

A lifetime story of a woman who stubbornly lives in a poor mountain village in post-war Japan.

French docu-drama which chronicles the chain of events that lead to the hanging of German-journalist Richard Sorge, who was executed in 1944 after he...

Japanese action film.

Soichi Ataka is the eldest son of Ataka family. Although mentally challenged, he's a person with a gentle heart. Soichi's wife, Kuniko is devoted to...

Japanese film.

Japanese mystery thriller.

The monologue and mysterious death of a man who survived and returned from Iwo Jima. A newspaper reporter writes an article about "The Man from Iwo...

Keiko, whom everyone calls Mama, narrates her story: she's a hostess on the Ginza, 30, a widow. She describes life's vicious cycle: acting cheerful...

Shinkichi, a peasant employed as a cloth-dyer, has a dream: in the midst of the civil war which ravages Japan, he hopes to revive the long-banned...

Three men sentenced to death are spared and changed into “shadows executioners”, a group of ruthless ninja working for mysterious high ranking...

Kamiki (Sonny Chiba) is a career criminal who is given the chance to break out of prison for the 33rd time. Afterwards Kaimiki teams up with a bunch...

Drama which shows the struggle of Fumiko, a female teacher, at work and at home.

After a fishing boat is attacked, the sole surviving crew member realizes it is none other than a resurrected Godzilla. However, efforts to bring the...

Japan, 1701. A group of samurai become rônin after their lord is forced to commit seppuku for assaulting a court official, who will become the...

In postwar Japan a young woman is unable to marry her sweetheart because her family's in difficult circumstances and needs her income to keep afloat.

Provincial 14th century governor Moronao, attracted to the wife of a court magistrate, tries to seduce her and when she rejects his advances plots to...

Based on a true story, an elderly woman resiliently spends nine months attempting to retrieve her husband's dead body, fighting government...

Journalist Kuroki is investigating clandestine arms sales to Southeast Asia. He discovers that the point man in an arms trade was also involved in...

From Hokkaido to Tokyo, hunting dog Goro embarks on a long and grueling journey to reach home. With the loss of his master who held a secret to a...

The long awaited second film in the Wicked Priest series is a masterpiece of sword swinging fury as Shinkai is asked by a man on the run to bring his...

Japanese Warmovie

A young man, convicted of a crime and imprisoned in the penitentiary, comes to believe that his wife is being unfaithful to him. He contrives his...

This rarely seen gem from master Suzuki casts teenage heartthrob Koji Wada as a young misfit who suddenly finds himself the unwitting pawn in an...

When a tycoon passes away, he unexpectedly leaves the family fortune to outsider Tamayo on the condition that she marries one of the grandsons,...

A car going at 25 mph plunges into the sea at Shinko Harbour, Toyama prefecture. Inside is the local business magnate Fukutaro Shirakawa, who...

A gripping tale of friendship set against the backdrop of Hokkaido. Shinichi sets out to earn a few honest dollars with which to bail a friend out of...

Genji Kurô is a master swordsman and entrusted with protecting the ancient sword Kaen by the Otsubo family.

[Period covered: 1616] On May 8th, 1615 the summer campaign of Osaka has reached the climax. This film takes place immediately following 'Ninja 4:...

The story of two young men whose ambition is to become the personal bodyguards to the Shogun's uncle, Lord Mito Komon. Portrayed by a pair of up and...

Akiyama is an intern, disgusted with the noise pollution caused by the bullet trains and the heart attacks that noise has been causing in older...

Struggling to elevate himself from his low caste in 17th century Japan, Miyamoto trains to become a mighty samurai warrior.

Japanese drama film.

The eighth sequel of the series by the successful “Fukasaku and Bunta” collaboration revolves around the men of a lesser organization that are...

In 39 interviews with actors and actresses, writers, producers and staff members, interspersed with film excerpts and stills, Shindō recounts the...

Rainbow Over the Pacific is a tale of romance that moves from the streets of Tokyo to the islands of Hawaii as it weaves the story of two...

Kumokiri Nizaemon, a former samurai warrior, has abandoned his class to become the leader of a gang of thieves. He leads his outlaws in an attempt to...

Yoso is truly a lost classic, set in the Nara Era (710-794), from Kinugasa Teinosuke the same writer/director who gave us the recognized classic Gate...

Based on the novel of the same name by Seichô Matsumoto.

A notorious abortion doctor fell down from a night train and he was dead. A man who knows the truth of this accident starts to chase a up-and-coming...

"When human beings venture too far along a trail made by wild beasts, it is said, they quite often discover themselves on a road of no return." ...

A lavish retelling of the true story of the final voyage and ultimate destruction and sinking of the battleship Yamato, Japan's greatest flagship...

Japanese suspense film.

Nakata (Keiichiro Akagi) is a nihilistic young buck who is willing to do anything to get money in his pockets. As he knocks back a couple drinks that...

This film focuses on Koreans living in Japan. The filmmaker’s humanism comes across in the portrayal of a girl living in a shabby tenement, the...

[Period covered: 1616] Kirigakure Saizo (Mist Saizo) returns for the final time as he sets out to assassinate Tokugawa Ieyasu in order to avenge the...

Second part of the Zenka mono series.

An employee at an oil cartel (Mihashi) is haunted by an act years before when he euthanized a fellow soldier when the two were adrift at sea during...

One night, three wives, Matsuyo, Keiko and Mari, receive a mysterious telephone call. The voice tells them that she has their husbands with her and...

A beautifully told story of a woman hardened by marriage to a man she doesn't love, after giving herself to another. She dedicates herself to her...

The lives of two brothers, Kunio and Akira Kasahara, are changed forever when their father is murdered. Kunio sets out on a manhunt to avenge his...

This subversive period film features a hotheaded young samurai, Kurodo, who threatens to commit harakiri in response to the humiliation meted out to...

Ichi is staying at an inn when a woman dies. Her dying wish is that Ichi take her son to his father, an artist living in a nearby town. After...

Forced on the road by yakuza obligations, a man sets out on a reckless journey to Tsumagoi. Movie posters for local cinemas were often displayed at...

A selfish playboy uses rich women to pay off his debts. Divorcing his wife and marrying the woman he loves throws him into a spiral of destruction.

Adaptation of Fumiko Hayashi's novel.

A demon-faced monster seeking revenge appears in the forms of a gigantic ox and a huge spider! The young Genji warrior protects the Fujiwara Clan and...

This is one of the most powerfully effective ninja films that dispenses with the silly magic of earlier efforts, and concentrates on an excellent...

A story of unhappy youths and the perils of lack of sex education.

A detective sets out on a manhunt to catch a murderer before the crime's statue of limitations runs out.

In this exciting sequel to the popular samurai-ninja movie Ukyunosuke On Patrol, his mission to avenge his father's death continues. His discovery of...

Intrepid tax investigator Ryoko Itakura sets her sights on the mysterious and philandering Hideki Gondo, a suspected millionaire and proprietor of a...

Documentary about Japanese pearl fishers.

Two brothers seek revenge on the yakuza responsible for the death of their father.

The female members of the family of the Minister of Health and Welfare, who has just proposed a program of birth control, become pregnant one after...

Hiroshi, a small-time racketeer, makes a name for himself extorting vulnerable companies and their directors for financial gain.

Sonejiro sacrifices all comfort to devote himself to research. Young housewife Yachiyo is disappointed with her husband Kappei, who is more attracted...

This time, Kousuke investigates a murder in a hospital. The murderer leaves misleading evidence to divert Kousuke's attention on the case. Suspicion...

Otama, daughter of a poor candy vendor, becomes the mistress of a man whom she believes to be a widower and owner of a prosperous dry goods store....

A maiden is murdered by a mysterious ninja, unfortunately two young ladies witness this, good thing the bored Lord is walking by, he saved the girls...

Yasugoro, goes to live in a quiet town where he falls in love with the priest's daughter-in-law. His does not declare his love because she is...

In 16th century Japan, peasants Genjuro and Tobei sell their earthenware pots to a group of soldiers in a nearby village, in defiance of a local...

A group of rank-and-file Japanese soldiers are jailed for crimes against humanity, themselves victims of a nation refusing to bear its burdens as a...

The stage director Shimamura, who is bringing western theatre to Japan, falls in love with the outspoken actress Sumako Matsui, and leaves his family...

The story follows Oshino, a geisha who is trying to start a new life with a lover who is a painter. However, her past filled with debts and pimps...

A court fortune-teller loses his mind after a conspiracy leads to the death of his lover. Hope appears to be on the horizon after he becomes...

Mikami, a Japanese soldier, is captured by Chinese forces. Although able to escape, he is treated with contempt by his peers. After falling in love...

Three and a half years after Japan was bombed, the tax authorities organized the T-Men. Nango is in love with a girl called Mibu, and the two are...

A young lord joins gang of Robin-esque robbers.

A documentary about the lives of actors in the Sakura-tai theatrical troupe, which had arrived in the island of Hiroshima to begin preparations for...

A Girl isn't Allowed to Love is a 1955 Japanese film directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa.

Coinciding with the LDP presidential election of the entire national public, a masterpiece depicting the reverse side of Showa political history...

A young Japanese-American man arrives at his grandmother's old hometown in Yamaguchi, begins to stay at her family's elite but dysfunctional...

1957 drama from director Kôzaburô Yoshimura

The title of the film reflects the custom of writing poems and lyrics on paper lanterns. The film tells about the difficult relationship between the...

The film depicts the scarring of Yosaburo at the hands of yakuza thugs who catch him with mistress of the gang boss. Despite the physical and...

The president of the Japanese National Railways is found dead during a period in which train service is plagued by numerous layoffs, strikes and...

Kei and Atsuo were both enrolled in summer school. Kei was an honor student, and Atsuo was the polar opposite - but opposites attract. After school,...

Newly graduated Miyamoto Otone is to inherit a fortune from a distant relative on the condition that she marries Takato Shunsaku, a man she has never...

Dedication of the Great Buddha is a 1952 Japanese film directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa. It was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival.

A travelling theater troupe, led by Umagoro Ichikawa, comes to play in a mining town, and manages to sell every seat. Before the play begins,...

Industrial espionage in the pharmaceutical industry. Also know in English as “Black Parking Lot”.

A guilt-haunted samurai warrior attempts to stop a massacre taking place.

The secret of the Himalayas

The Glorious Days

Inochi uruwashi

A young journalist interviews an elderly woman about being forced into prostitution in Borneo at a brothel called Sandakan No. 8.

One of many adaptations of "Onna no isshō", this time by Yasuzo Masumura as a starring vehicle for famed actress Machiko Kyo.

Master swordsman and loyal vassal Saotome Mondonosuke goes on a mission to find a missing princess.

Based on Kakuko Mori's autobiography, about her life and retirement from acting due to her increasing blindness.

Japanese propaganda film about the Normanton Incident.

With plenty of action, and a strong story about the growth and development of an expert swordsman, who just happens to be from an extremely...

A dynamic woman who aspires to be a writer, living a wild life in constant search of freedom while indulging in lust with four men.

Every day a car accident happens in the city. The involved parties are prey to the settlement agents (jidanya), mediators between the parts and the...

A Dead Drifter / Hyoryû shitaî

The First Investigation Department is investigating a murder case that took place at a government agency, with particular attention to finding an...

A film by Kiyoshi Saeki

War film by Kon Ichikawa

Firefighter Sanji learns the secret of his birth.

Detectives of the First Investigation Division of the Capital Police Department are investigating the murder of a 15-year-old girl, whose strangled...

Third film of the yoidore hakase series

A playboy bartender pretends to be gay in order to approach women. He is in cahoots with another opportunist, a young woman who is trying to seduce a...

An ambitious young woman uses her sex appeal to solve financial problems in her family, including a brother in debt to the yakuza, and a father who...

Nitani is an undercover drug enforcement agent in Kobe who not only busts two rival drug gangs but also helps one of the more decent hoodlums find...

After their father dies, his children try to get by on a house boat.

In Osaka's slum, youths without futures engage in pilfering, assault and robbery, prostitution, and the buying and selling of identity cards and of...

Hayase, a schoolteacher, assists Sakai in editing a German-Japanese dictionary. Hayase owes much to Sakai, as Sakai raised him for 13 years after...

A girl rebels against her mother, who runs a brothel in Yokohama, and attempts to find freedom on her own.

A historical scroll depicting the story of the tragic fate of the young samurai Minamoto Yoshitsune, based on the novel by Genzo Murakami. The action...

The 21-year-old feudal on Sendai, Tsunamune Date, was prohibited to go out in the daytime for his misbehavior during his short stay in Edo. On the...

Saotome Mondonosuke is Hatamoto (a high-class warrior who is allowed to see the Shogun in person) who has a crescent-moon-shaped scar on his forehead...

Ken Watanabe, a young man from Tokyo, comes to the great plains of Rumo, Hokkaido to see his hometown with his own eyes. Ken, who was entangled in...

Children's movie about a dog that can type messages into a word processor. When his owner is kidnapped, the canine summons his fellow dogs to help in...

Young Lord Taihei goes to Edo to find the lost family treasure, a plover incense burner, under the disguise of a ronin.

1962 Japanese movie

A Nikkatsu sun tribe / youth film set in a small seaside town.

A Nikkatsu Action film with Yujiro Ishihara as the head of a small shipping company who gets harassed by the yakuza.

An ambitious Kansai yakuza don moves in on Tokyo using financial and political tactics, sparking conflict with a local criminal association.

Comedy of manners set on the "Kodama" train between Tokyo and Osaka, before the opening of the Shinkansen. In the leading role, Frankie Sakai plays a...

Based on the novel by Yoshie Hotta

A young Japanese-American comes from California looking for a bride, going on blind dates with three candidates from Osaka, Hiroshima and Nagoya.

In the nine part Wataridori series (1959-1962), Kobayashi played a wanderer on Japan’s back roads with most of the accoutrements of a Western hero,...

Hamakichi was a former detective respected by everyone but he was arrested after he helped a criminal flee for money, which he needed for his...

A film adaptation of the original novel by Kazuo Dan. This exciting film, set in Asia on the eve of violent changes, tells the story of a young man...

Shinpachi Morimura, who was born in a fusuma craftsman's house, wants to join the Japanese navy. However, his father wants him to continue in the...

Oshima’s magisterial epic, centering on the ambivalent surviving heir of the Sakurada clan, uses ritual and the microcosm of the traditional family...

1954 Theater of Life adaptation.

Japanese drama.

Chikuzen, a ronin named Yoh Daisuke, after pacifying some ruffians at the theater of Onna-Kata Ogino Sawanojiki, formed a bond with the theater's...

Watanabe Kazuma and Kawai Matagorō from the Bizen Okayama Ikeda clan were close friends, but they inevitably became enemies after Matagorō killed...

A film by Hideo Suzuki.

Japanese war film.

Film adaptation of the stage version of Samuil Marshak's "Twelve Months"

1950 Japanese film

Minamimura, who had always wanted to be free, suddenly quits his job. His hardworking wife is surprised and angry, and throws him out of the house....

Continuation of the biographical film about the monk Shinran, based on the novel by Eiji Yoshikawa. Shinran, born of the fading aristocratic class,...

He was married to his lover's butterfly and started a new residence. But good things do not last. In his uncle, Uzaemon in Kawashima, Yoshiji Akaji,...

A boy aviator endures rigorous training and a sad fate, and grows into a strong man with his eyes set on becoming an eagle.

An old man cashes in all his possessions and sets off on a journey to the Tohoku region in late autumn. Along the way, he visits a friend on his...

1957 Japanese movie

The government in Edo era is suffering from a financial crisis. It hires "Kage" to provoke the collapse of small hans (prefectures). "Kagekari" are...

1956 Japanese movie