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'
Isola (2000)
5.5/10
Director: Toshiyuki Mizutani
Starring: Yoshino Kimura, Yu Kurosawa, Makiko Watanabe, Ken Ishiguro
In the aftermath of the 1995 earthquake in Kobe, psychic Yukari takes a break from her studies to help with the rescue effort. She meets up with Chih... Read more
Japanese Crime Noir Classics ( Tokyo Drifter / A Tattooed Life / Branded to Kill / Youth of the Beast ) (1966)
Director: Seijun Suzuki
Starring: Chieko Matsubara, Hideaki Nitani, Tetsuya Watari, Joe Shishido, Mariko Ogawa, An...
A collection of four Japanese crime noir classics from maverick director Seijun Suzuki. "Tokyo Drifter" (1966) - Warned by studio bosses to play it sa... Read more
K-20: Legend of the Mask (2008)
6.8/10
Director: Shimako Sato
Starring: Takeshi Kaneshiro, Takako Matsu, Toru Nakamura, Takeshi Kaga, Reiko Takashima
Stylish superhero shenanigans in a rollicking adventure, based on a popular '80s manga. K-20 is the nickname for the Fiend with 20 Faces, a prankster... Read more
Kagemusha (1980)
8/10
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Tsutomu Yamazaki, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kenichi Hagiwara
AKA 'Kagemusha - The Shadow Warrior'. Set in 1531, in a Japan torn by civil strife, the film deals with a mighty Japanese warlord and his commoner loo... Read more
Kagemusha ( Blu-ray ) (1980)
8/10
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Kenichi Hagiwara, Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki
AKA 'Kagemusha - The Shadow Warrior'. Set in 1531, in a Japan torn by civil strife, the film deals with a mighty Japanese warlord and his commoner loo... Read more
Kaidan (2007)
6.3/10
Director: Hideo Nakata
Starring: Kikunosuke Onoe, Hitomi Kuroki, Asaka Seto
A period shocker based on the work of Encho Sanyutei, a 19th-century writer. 250 years ago, Soetsu is a moneylender who is struck down by a samurai un... Read more
Kamikaze Taxi (1995)
7.6/10
Director: Masato Harada
Starring: Reiko Kataoka, Kazuya Takahashi, Koji Yakusho
Part crime thriller, part road movie and part social polemic, writer/director Masato Harada's drama follows Yakuza underling Tatsuo (Kazuya Takahashi)... Read more
Karas: Part 2 - The Revelation (2005)
7/10
Starring: Matthew Lillard, Jay Hernandez, Cree Summer
From legendary anime studio Tatsunoko Productions ('Speed Racer') comes the second installment in the 'Karas' story. Picking up exactly where the firs... Read more
Kichiku dai enkai (1997)
5.4/10
While the leader is in jail, his leftist group is controlled by his girlfriend, but her leadership lacks conviction and perspective. When the leader c... Read more
Kikujiro (1999)
7.8/10
Director: Takeshi Kitano
Starring: Yusuke Sekiguchi, Takeshi Kitano, Kayoko Kishimoto
Japanese director 'Beat' Takeshi Kitano is perhaps best known to international audiences for his violent and stylish crime flicks 'Violent Cop' and '... Read more