A Samurai's Sorrow(1993)

Kabei: Our Mother(ja)

Set in Tokyo in 1940, the peaceful life of the Nogami Family suddenly changes when the father, Shigeru, is arrested and accused of being a Communist. His wife Kayo works frantically from morning to night to maintain the household and bring up her two daughters with the support of Shigeru's sister Hisako and Shigeru's ex-student Yamazaki, but her husband does not return. WWII breaks out and casts dark shadows on the entire country, but Kayo still tries to keep her cheerful determination, and sustain the family with her love. This is an emotional drama of a mother and an eternal message for peace.

Drunken Angel(ja)

Doctor Sanada treats gangster Matsunaga after he is wounded in a gunfight, and discovers that he is suffering from tuberculosis. Sanada tries to convince Matsunaga to stay for treatment, which would drastically change his lifestyle. They form an uneasy friendship until Matsunaga's old boss Okada returns from prison.

The Seal Of The Sun(ja)

At 2:46 PM on March 11, 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant experiences a black out due to the aftermath of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. The cooling system fails at the nuclear power plant and the temperature of the nuclear reactor rises. The worst case is coming. Scientists face an unexpected situation and government officials are confused by lack of information. Residents says goodbye to their hometown before evacuating.

Samurai Rebellion(ja)

The mother of a feudal lord's only heir is kidnapped away from her husband by the lord. The husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to get her back.

Bright Future(ja)

Two friends who work together at a Tokyo laundry are increasingly alienated from everyday life. They become fascinated with a deadly jellyfish.

The Lower Depths(ja)

Residents of a rundown boardinghouse in 19th-century Japan, including a mysterious old man and an aging actor, get drawn into a love triangle that turns violent. When amoral thief Sutekichi breaks off his affair with landlady Osugi to romance her younger sister, Okayo, Osugi extracts her revenge by revealing her infidelity to her jealous husband.

Boiling Point(ja)

Masaki, a baseball player and gas-station attendant, gets into trouble with the local Yakuza and goes to Okinawa to get a gun to defend himself. There he meets Uehara, a tough gangster, who is in serious debt to the yakuza and planning revenge.

A Girl Named Ann(ja)

A drug-addicted girl from an abusive family finds hope through kind people but her grim reality strikes back just as she sees a glimmer of light.

Kamome Diner(ja)

On a quiet street in Helsinki, Sachie has opened a diner featuring rice balls. For a month she has no customers. Then, in short order, she has her first customer, meets Midori, a gangly Japanese tourist, and invites her to stay with her.

The 47 Loyal Ronin(ja)

An adventure film with Benshi performers. Sometimes considered the 'first Japanese feature film', it survives today as a compilation of scenes from various different 1910s adaptations totaling nearly three hours in length. The bulk of the content comes from the 1911 adaptation by legendary Japanese filmmaker Makino Shozo.

Battle at Honnôji Temple(ja)

In 1908, Director/Producer Shozo Makino (father of Japanese cinema) directed and produced the first dramatic film in Kyoto. “Honnô-ji Gassen” was shot at Shinnyo-Do Temple. Considered a lost film.

Men Behind the Sun(cn)

The film is a graphic depiction of the war atrocities committed by the Japanese at Unit 731, the secret biological weapons experimentation unit of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. The film details the various cruel medical experiments Unit 731 inflicted upon the Chinese and Soviet prisoners at the tail-end of the war.

Girls Drive(ja)

Four high school students deal with their issues while travelling to Tokyo during their summer vacation.

53 Stages of Action(ja)

Black Rain(en)

Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. However, in Japan he manages to escape, and as they try to track him down, they get deeper and deeper into the Japanese Mafia scene and they have to learn that they can only win by playing the game—the Japanese way.

Battle Royale(ja)

In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill each other under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.

In the Realm of the Senses(ja)

A passionate telling of the story of Sada Abe, a woman whose affair with her master led to an obsessive and ultimately destructive sexual relationship.

John Rabe(de)

A true-story account of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese during the Nanjing massacre in 1937-38.

The Brothers who Protect the Mountain(ja)

In the mountainous region of Koshu, Taikahara, there was an intense power struggle between the prominent families, Tamaki and Kakukura. Facing the steward of Kakukura, Kurokawa Senjiro, was Tamaki Daisaburo, who was skilled with a handgun. Daisaburo had granted protection to the charcoal maker, Miyoshi, safeguarding a few mountains passed down from their ancestors. Daisaburo's elder brother, Iori, who had completed his training in Edo, saved Kakukura's only daughter, Koyumi, on his way back home. However, while Daisaburo rushed to Iori's aid after Koyumi was attacked by Kurokawa and his men, their family home was set ablaze.

Kurama Tengu: Anonymous letter to Tengu(ja)

Masked avenger Kurama Tengu and his young sidekick try to stop a mysterious adversary from assassinating a group of young warriors who want to bring down the Shogunate...