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'
Monkey Magic (2007)
8/10
Director: Kensaku Sawada
Starring: Shingo Katori, Teruyoshi Uchimura, Atsushi Ito, Eri Fukatsu, Asami Mizukawa, Koj...
AKA 'The Adventures of Super Monkey'. The "irrepressible" Monkey is back in a brand new adventure! Again we find our favourite companions on their jou... Read more
Monster (2023)
7.8/10
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Starring: Sakura Ando, Eita Nagayama, Soya Kurokawa
When her young son Minato starts to behave strangely, his mother feels that there is something wrong. Discovering that a teacher is responsible, she s... Read more
MPD-Psycho: Season 1, Parts 1 & 2 (2000)
Director: Takashi Miike
Starring: Naoki Hosaka, Tomoko Nakajima
From the mind of Takashi Miike ("Ichi the Killer", "Audition") comes this brilliant new series that thrusts the viewer into a surreal world of psychol... Read more
MPD-Psycho: Season 1, Parts 5 & 6 (2004)
Director: Takashi Miike
From the brilliant mind of Takashi Miike ('Audition', 'Ichi the Killer') comes the third instalment in his intriguing series, Contains episodes 5 and... Read more
Mutant Girls Squad (2010)
5.8/10
Director: Yoshihiro Nishimura, Noboru Iguchi, Tak Sakaguchi
Starring: Naoto Takenaka, Yumi Sugimoto, Yuko Takayama, Suzuka Morita
Rin is a seemingly normal Japanese high school girl, but on her sixteenth birthday, everything in her life changes. After witnessing her mother's face... Read more
My Neighbour Totoro (1988)
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
From legendary Manga director Hayao Miyazaki comes that rare delight - a family film that really appeals to all ages. While their mother is in hospit... Read more
My Neighbour Totoro ( Blu-ray ) (1988)
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
From legendary Manga director Hayao Miyazaki comes that rare delight - a family film that really appeals to all ages. While their mother is in hospita... Read more
My Neighbours the Yamadas (1999)
Director: Isao Takahata
Starring: Voices Of, James Belushi, Molly Shannon
Join in the adventures of the quirky Yamada family - from the hilarious to the touching - brilliantly presented in a unique, visually striking comic s... Read more
Naked Youth (1960)
7/10
Director: Nagisa Oshima
Starring: Yoshiko Kuga
A harsh young man seduces a freeloading young woman and eventually takes advantage of her knack for hitch-hiking to rob middle-class men. Read more
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind ( Blu-ray ) (1984)
8.1/10
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
This classic Miyazaki film in many ways foreshadows his later, more widely recognised hit, 'Princess Mononoke'. In the far future, man has destroyed t... Read more