Japanese Cinema
Japanese cinema flourished early on and silent films were being made right through the 1930s. Most were accompanied by a 'benshi' or live narrator telling the story as well as live music. Very little survives from this era however; the 1923 earthquake, the bombings of WW2 and the country's high humidity destroyed many of these historical works. Of those that survive, the early works of Kenji Mizoguchi are highly regarded and he went on to make the classic 'The Life of Oharu' in 1952. Of course no discussion on Japanese cinema is possible without mention of their best known son, Akira Kurosawa. With a career spanning 60 years Kurosawa's ground-breaking films (e.g. 'Seven Samurai', 'Kagemusha', 'Ran') influenced film makers around the world. Most recently Japanese cinema hero 'Beat' Takeshi Kitano revitalised the Yakuza genre; and young mavericks like Takashi Miike ('Audition', 'Ichi the Killer) and Hideo Nakata ('Ring', 'Dark Water') have breathed new life into the horror flick, their films often (and promptly!) remade by US production houses.
For Japanime, use the animation link to the left.
Pictured: Kurosawa teamed once more with the incomparable Toshiro Mifune for 'Seven Samurai'
Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972)
Director: Shunya Ito
Starring: Meiko Kaji
Experimental and exploitation cinema meet in this subversive feature. The film follows a woman named Matsu (a.k.a. "Scorpion"), wrongly imprisoned aft... Read more
Female Yakuza Tale (1973)
Director: Tetsuo Ishii
Starring: Reiko Ike, Masataka Narasu, Jun Murakami, Makoto Ikawa
The sexy and savage Ocho (Reiko Ike) returns in this outlandish, over-the-top sequel to 'Sex and Fury', from cult director Tetsuo Ishii. It's a macabr... Read more
First Love (2019)
6.7/10
Director: Takashi Miike
Leo is a young boxer, successful but unable to show emotion. He has a fight scheduled and is sure that he will win. Instead, his opponent knocks him o... Read more
Floating Weeds (1959)
8/10
Director: Yasujiro Ozu
Starring: Ganjiro Nakamura, Machiko Kyo, Haruko Sugimura, Hiroshi Kawaguchi
"Floating Weeds" tells the story of a travelling Kabuki acting troupe, led by Komajuro, who arrive in a small coastal town. There, Komajuro is reunite... Read more
From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
7.5/10
Director: Goro Miyazaki
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Anton Yelchin, Sarah Bolger, Christina Hendricks
Goro Miyazaki directs this nostalgic coming-of-age animation from Japan's Studio Ghibli. As Japan readies itself for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, fatherle... Read more
From Up on Poppy Hill ( Blu-ray ) (2011)
7.5/10
Director: Goro Miyazaki
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Anton Yelchin, Sarah Bolger, Christina Hendricks
Goro Miyazaki directs this nostalgic coming-of-age animation from Japan's Studio Ghibli. As Japan readies itself for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, fatherle... Read more
Fudoh - The New Generation (1996)
7.1/10
Director: Takashi Miike
Starring: Miho Momoto, Riki Takeuchi, Shosuke Tanihara
This wild hallucinatory yakuza drama, directed by Japan's gonzo cinema auteur Takashi Miike, is about one of the ugliest family squabbles this side of... Read more
Full Metal Alchemist The Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa (2005)
Director: Seiji Mizushima
The long-awaited and thrilling epilogue to the ground-breaking anime series. It's Munich 1923, two years since Ed made the ultimate sacrifice that se... Read more
G.I. Samurai (1979)
Director: Kosei Saito
Starring: Sonny Chiba, Isao Natsuki, Miyuki Ono
A squadron of Japanese soldiers find themselves transported through time to Japan's feudal period... 400 years in the past, where rival samurai clans... Read more
Gantz (2010)
6.5/10
Director: Shinsuke Sato
Starring: Kazunari Ninomiya, Kenichi Matsuyama
Kei Kurono (Kazunari Ninomiya) and his friend Masaru Kato (Kenichi Matsuyama) attempt to save a man in the subway but are hit by an oncoming train. Ho... Read more