Japan

  • Hiroshi Inagaki – Yatô kaze no naka o hashiru (1961)

    1961-1970AsianDramaHiroshi InagakiJapan

    imdb Bandits on the Wind, Inagaki. This movie is beautiful, funny, heroic. It’s a shame it’s not better known. At one point the most immature and pathological bandit (in a bad bunch) is forced to pretend to be a prince. The timing that shows this Japanese’s inability to sit cross legged is hysterical. There’s a wonderful joke where a bandit weeps to recall how peasants were forced to build a defensive wall, and then slaughtered to keep it secret. “How did you escape?” another bandit wants to know. “Escape nothing: I was one of the guys doing the killing!” The martial arts triangle defense–two katana and a spear–is stellar. The bandits blend cooperation and chaos as it suits them; in the end their Bushido is heroic.Read More »

  • Teinosuke Kinugasa – Kagero ezu aka Stop the Old Fox (1959)

    1951-1960AsianDramaJapanTeinosuke Kinugasa

    Period action/melodrama. In 1840, retainers of the Tokugawa Shoganate harshly compete with each other in deciding the successor of the 14th Shogun Iemochi. Among them is Lord Nakano, known as the Baron of Mukōjima. To establish his grandson, Inuchiyo, as the most promising candidate, he makes efforts to get the official permission from Ienari, a retired Shogun, but who is still seizing power in place of sickly Iemochi. For Nakano, the most reliable underling is his daughter-in-law, Lady Omiyo, who has long been gaining Ienari’s favor. But not only because Ienari has problems in his health for his age, but because Omiyo’s servant, Tomi, is indeed a spy sent by Shimada Matazaemon, the rival of Nakano, he cannot advance the scario as he originally planned. Read More »

  • Teruo Ishii – Ijô seiai kiroku: Harenchi AKA Shameless: Abnormal and Abusive Love (1969) (HD)

    1961-1970DramaEroticaJapanTeruo Ishii

    A Japanese woman is raped by her boyfriend day in day out.

    A young woman is forced into a relationship with her superior. He turns out to be a psychopathic pervert and makes her life a living hell by means of molestation and rape!Read More »

  • Kazuo Ikehiro – Zatôichi umi o wataru AKA Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman’s Pilgrimage AKA Zatoichi’s Pilgrimage (1966)

    1961-1970ActionJapanKazuo IkehiroMartial Arts

    Synopsis:
    Ichi seeks out on a pilgrimage to 81 temples, exploring spirituality to atone for his bloody past. On the way, Ichi stumbles into a village that’s being bullied by a violent Yakuza boss and his henchmen. After killing a young, hired assassin, Ichi is led back to the young man’s village by his peculiar horse. Upon learning that her brother is dead, Okichi (Yasuda Michiyo) grabs a sword and attacks Ichi, either in an attempt to avenge her brother or in an attempt to commit suicide by forcing Ichi to defend himself. After injuring Ichi, Okichi tends to his wounds, nurses him back to health, and begins to have feelings for him. The Yakuza boss still wants Ichi dead in order to take over the village and now Ichi alone must deal with the boss and his gang, the young woman’s feelings and a village full of cowards, who will not stand up for themselves!Read More »

  • Kôji Shiraishi – Shirome (2010)

    2001-2010DocumentaryJapanKôji Shiraishi

    A Horror mockumentary staring J-idol group, Momoiro Clover. The girls visit a haunted school for a TV special. Little do they know their secret wishes are then granted with soul snatching consequences.Read More »

  • Seijun Suzuki – Hishu monogatari AKA A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness (1977)

    1971-1980ArthouseDramaJapanSeijun Suzuki

    A female golfer who has exceeded expectations to reach the top not only has to contend with being in-demand, but also with the men in her life, her neigbours, her brother and not to mention a stalker.Read More »

  • Mikio Naruse – Bangiku AKA Late Chrysanthemums (1954)

    1951-1960DramaJapanMikio Naruse

    What is the life of a Geisha like once her beauty has faded and she has retired? Kin has saved her money, and has become a wealthy money-lender, spending her days cold-heartedly collecting debts. Even her best friends, Tomi, Nobu, and Tamae, who were her fellow Geisha, are now indebted to her. For all of them, the glamor of their young lives has passed; Tomi and Tamae have children, but their children have disappointed them. Kin has two former lovers who still pursue her; one she wants to see, and the other she doesn’t. But even the one she remembers fondly, when he shows up, proves to be a disappointment.Read More »

  • Hiroshi Okuhara – Hotel Iris (2021)

    2021-2030DramaHiroshi OkuharaJapan

    Quote:
    Somewhere on the coast of Taiwan is Hotel Iris, a mouldering seaside establishment run by a cold and thrifty Japanese woman (Nahana) and her lonely half-Taiwanese daughter Mari (Lucia). One night, Mari hears the cries of a woman from the upper floors. Heading up to investigate, she witnesses a distraught woman in a red camisole dress escape an impeccably dressed but violent man (NAGASE Masatoshi) whose cold voice is entrancing. Mari’s initial shock turns into a strange fascination which drives her to follow the man to discover more about him. He is a translator who lives on an isolated island one can only reach by boat and rumours swirl around him and recent murders. The closer she gets to the man, the more a hidden layer of Mari’s personality awakens as she allows herself to be engulfed by his strange passions.Read More »

  • Keisuke Kinoshita – Sri Lanka no ai to wakare AKA Love and Parting in Sri Lanka (1976)

    1971-1980AsianJapanKeisuke KinoshitaRomance

    Quote:
    A Japanese businessman is sent to Sri Lanka and meets a beautiful Japanese woman with a past. They befriend an old Japanese-Indian widow who has an estranged son in Japan.Read More »

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