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'
Pigs & Battleships (1961)
Director: Shohei Imamura
A young hoodlum decides to work for a criminal organization that is tearing itself apart. Read more
Pigs & Battleships (Blu-ray) (1961)
Director: Shohei Imamura
A young hoodlum decides to work for a criminal organization that is tearing itself apart. Read more
Ping Pong (2002)
7.2/10
Director: Fumihiko Sori
Starring: Yosuke Kubozuka, Arata , Sam Lee, Shido Nakamura, Koji Okura
Based on the popular comic book by Matsumoto Taiyo, "Ping Pong" examines the interplay of friendship, loyalty, rivalry, and self-esteem between two hi... Read more
Pom Poko (1994)
7.4/10
Director: Isao Takahata
From director Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies) comes a clash between modern civilization and the natural world, the Raccoons of the Tama Hills a... Read more
Ponyo (2008)
7.7/10
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Aka "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea". When five-year-old Sosuke finds a fish named Ponyo near his seaside home, they quickly become the best of friends... Read more
Ponyo ( Blu-ray ) (2008)
7.7/10
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Aka "Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea". When five-year-old Sosuke finds a fish named Ponyo near his seaside home, they quickly become the best of friends... Read more
Porco Rosso (1992)
7.8/10
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
World War I has ended, and peace reigns again. Aviators from around the world circle above the Adriatic Sea, keen to recapture the romanticism of flig... Read more
Premonition (2004)
6.3/10
Director: Norio Tsuruta
Starring: Hiroshi Mikami, Noriko Sakai, Maki Horikita, Mayumi Ono, Daisuke Ban
Yet another addition to the so-called J-horror genre, and a reasonably satisfying one. Based on the Manga by Jiro Tsunoda, Professor Satomi's life is... Read more
Princess From The Moon (1987)
6.3/10
Director: Kon Ichikawa
Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Ayako Wakao, Yasuko Sawaguchi
A poor bamboo cutter and his wife witness a mysterious light in the sky crashing into the nearby forest. Investigating the strange occurence, the bamb... Read more
Princess Mononoke ( Blu-ray ) (1997)
8.4/10
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Gillian Anderson, Minnie Driver,...
This stunning masterpiece by animation wizard Hayao Miyazaki is set during Japan's Muromachi era, when a maddened Boar God infects a prince with a dea... Read more