Beni(1996)

我王伝 第一章(ja)

Wasabi(fr)

Hubert is a French policeman with very sharp methods. After being forced to take 2 months off by his boss, who doesn't share his view on working methods, he goes back to Japan, where he used to work 19 years ago, to settle the probate of his girlfriend who left him shortly after marriage without a trace.

Dolls(ja)

Dolls takes puppeteering as its overriding motif, which relates thematically to the action provided by the live characters. Chief among those tales is the story of Matsumoto and Sawako, a young couple whose relationship is about to be broken apart by the former's parents, who have insisted their son take part in an arranged marriage to his boss' daughter.

Brother(ja)

A Japanese Yakuza gangster's deadly existence in his homeland gets him exiled to Los Angeles, where he is taken in by his little brother and his brother's gang. Original Title: ブラザー

Death of the Lion Kings(ja)

Tells the story of an up-and-coming Yakuza, who makes a name for himself alongside his two friends just before 1992, when the enforcement of the new gang law came in place.

Tokyo Decadence(ja)

A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.

The Tale of Zatoichi(ja)

The adventures of a blind, gambling masseur and master swordsman. Zatoichi targets a yakuza-controlled village, because war with a neighbouring town's smaller gang is brewing.

The Tale of Zatoichi Continues(ja)

Returning to the village where a year before he had killed Hirate, a much-admired opponent, Zatoichi encounters another swordsman and former rival in love.

ICHI(ja)

Ichi is a blind entertainer that travels the countryside with her traditional Japanese guitar and walking stick. She’s in search for the kind man that brought her up as a child, but because of her beauty she encounters problems every step of the way. Fortunately for Ichi, she is also a gifted swordswoman and carries a lethal blade within her walking stick.

Blue Sky(ja)

A road movie about three persons traveling in a campervan on their way to Tokyo, Hamamatsu, and Kyoto. The film is based on the story of the heroine, a young girl named Momo, who was a member of the "21 Faces of Kaijin" gang involved in the Glico Morinaga Incident, and the film's ideas are remarkable, including the use of a tape recording of the actual incident.

The Pinkie(ja)

Since they were both five, Ryosuke has been stalked by Momoko - the ugliest girl in the village. Her love for Ryosuke is so boundless that she has her face surgically altered to suit his taste - but still he wants nothing to do with her. Ryosuke goes in for fleeting romance - for example, with the girlfriend of a gangster boss. But when he finds out about their affair, he has Ryosuke's little finger hacked off. Magically, the finger falls into Momoko's hands, and she uses it to clone Ryosuke, so she can finally have him (or almost him) for herself. And this is just the first five minutes of Lisa Takeba's short-but-powerful feature debut. Just like in her previous short films, the director - who cut her teeth in the advertising world and as the writer of a video game - throws a lot of genres and techniques into the mix: from science fiction to gangster films, from hospital eroticism to animation. Hectic and absurd, but with its heart in the right place. © IFFR

I'll Kill the Women(ja)

A unique action-packed drama that tells the story of a Yakuza man who craves blood like crazy, unaware that he has fallen into a trap set by his younger brother.

Goodbye Cruel World(ja)

Anzai, Mutoh, Hamada, Hagiwara, and Miru are in a car headed to a love hotel used by the Sugiyama Clan for money laundering. This one night only gang succeed in robbing them blind and though they were supposed to go their separate ways after splitting the money, the five end up being hunt down by a detective hired by the clan and clan members themselves. An ending nobody ever even dreamed of.

Life of Hishakaku(ja)

After eloping with a prostitute named Otoyo, Hishakaku takes refuge in the Kogane family’s turf. Indebted to Boss Kogane for his kindness, Hishakaku swears to dedicate himself to protect the Koganes in time of crisis. Hishakaku’s humble life comes to a sudden halt when the Kogane family becomes involved in a fatal feud with their rival, and Hishakaku’s services are called upon.

HEAT -Incandescence- PART I(ja)

A young man named Tatsumi Karasawa suddenly rises in the criminal world of Shinjuku, Tokyo, and becomes the leader of a group of amateurs who show no reluctance to face police and gangs alike. His successes in the Tokyo underground make a chief and a yakuza boss plot a conspiracy to eliminate him.

Law of the Outlaw(ja)

Takei Goro leaves the gang to quit the yakuza world, but the gang won't allow it and relentlessly pursues Takei. This is Watari Tetsuya's first film to star in Shochiku.

The Last True Yakuza(ja)

A made man during the height of Hiroshima's yakuza turf war must maneuver through the violence and betrayal inside the criminal underworld.

The Kamagasaki Cauldron War(ja)

Kamagasaki is an "invisible" slum of Osaka that attracts day laborers and prostitutes since WW2. When the local gang has its treasured cauldron stolen, a war to find it begins involving the thugs, a 12 years old kid, a prostitute and a pickpocket, including the giant cauldron used to feed the destitute: The symbol of Kamagasaki.

Tattoo(de)

Marc Schrader, a rookie cop caught red-handed with drugs in a police raid of an illegal rave, joins a homicide investigation conducted by Chief Inspector Minks. The victim is a naked young woman with the skin stripped off her back, killed as she staggered into traffic. As Schrader and Minks investigate the murder, the case is complicated by a finger found in the stomach of the victim. Forensic examination proves the finger belongs to Nobert Günzel, who was previously convicted of rape and assault. The police raid Günzel’s residence, and discover a blood-stained table with restraints and bits of human flesh in his basement. They also find video equipment and preserved, tattooed skin from the victim’s back. Soon, they found dead bodies buried in the garden. Günzel then goes missing.

CONFLICT III(ja)

After a major conflict, Kazuma Washio (Hitoshi Ozawa) becomes the 6th boss of Tendokai, Kanto’s largest yakuza group. Wakagashira Date (Hideo Nakano) and Kurata (Yoshiyuki Yamaguchi) secure casino rights from the government, but top officials are soon murdered, and Date is framed. The trail leads to Sanko-kai, a Kansai syndicate forming ties with a Korean underworld led by Myojin Akinari (Noboru Kaneko), brother of Washio’s old rival. Sanko-kai’s boss Onizuka (Hiroshi Fuse), who holds a grudge against Washio, launches a political and violent offensive. As Tendokai fights back to reclaim the casino rights, tragedy strikes—Okita (Yasukaze Motomiya) is targeted. Japan’s largest underworld war erupts again—what awaits at the end?