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'
The Boy and the Beast (2016)
7.7/10
Director: Mamoru Hosoda
When Kyuta, a young orphan living on the streets of Shibuya, stumbles into a fantastic world of beasts, hes taken in by Kumatetsu, a gruff, rough-aro... Read more
Miss Hokusai (2015)
6.7/10
Director: Keiichi Hara
Starring: Gaku Hamada, Kengo Kora, Yutaka Matsushige, Anne Watanabe, Jun Miho
As all of Edo flocks to see the work of the revered painter Hokusai, his daughter O-Ei toils diligently inside his studio. Her masterful portraits, dr... Read more
Our Little Sister (2015)
7.5/10
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Starring: Ryo Kase, Haruka Ayase
Kore-eda Hirokazu (Like Father, Like Son; I Wish) sustains his place as the current master in the great Japanese cinema tradition of exquisitely nuanc... Read more
Yakuza Apocalypse (2015)
5.5/10
Director: Takashi Miike
Starring: Hayato Ichihara, Yayan Ruhian
From acclaimed cult director Takashi Miike (13 Assassins, Ichi The Killer, Audition). In the ruthless underground world of the yakuza, no one is more... Read more
Knights Of Sidonia (Blu-ray) (2014)
7.7/10
A thousand years after the destruction of Earth by gigantic aliens called Gauna, mankind is living on massive spaceships. One of these space ships is... Read more
Parasyte: Part 1 (2014)
7/10
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Tiny creatures called "Parasites" have arrived on Earth with the sole purpose of taking over human brains and preying on mankind. When one of them lat... Read more
When Marnie Was There ( Blu-ray ) (2014)
7.7/10
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Twelve-year-old Anna believes she sits outside the invisible magic circle to which most people belong, and shuts herself off from everyone around her.... Read more
When Marnie Was There (2014)
7.7/10
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Twelve-year-old Anna believes she sits outside the invisible magic circle to which most people belong, and shuts herself off from everyone around her.... Read more
Giovanni's Island (2014)
7.4/10
Director: Mizuho Nishikubo
An emotional WWII drama from Production I.G in the vein of GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES. Based on the true untold story of the Soviet occupation of the K... Read more
The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013)
8.1/10
Director: Isao Takahata
Eight years in the making and hot on the heels of Miyazaki's The Wind Rises, Studio Ghibli co-founder Takahata's adaptation of a centuries old Japanes... Read more