11 May 1944
The Way of Drama
The Way of Drama unfolds in the world of kabuki in Osaka, but also addresses the politics of popular culture and the rivalry between theatrical styles like those used by amateur actors to dramatise contemporary events.
Bakumatsu Aibou-den
A single bullet cuts through Kyoto in the last days of the Tokugawa shogunate right before the restoration of imperial rule. Who plotted to assassinate Tokugawa Yoshinobu, who is about to become the last shogun of Japan? Was it the faction wanting to overthrow him or the rebels within the shogunate? Mutual enemies Sakamoto Ryoma, the wandering samurai, and Hijikata Toshizo, a deputy leader of the Shinsengumi and vassal of the Tokugawa clan, receive a secret order to track down the culprit. They are given a mere two days.
Top Billed Cast
永山瑛太 Ryoma Sakamoto
向井理 Toshizo Hijikata
白洲迅 Souji Okita
堀田真由 Oshino
浅利陽介 Mutsu Munemitsu
阿部亮平 Isami Kondo
谷田歩 Kichinosuke Saigo (Takamori Saigo)
奥野瑛太 
和田正人 
駿河太郎 
渡辺大 
近藤芳正 
佐藤隆太 
杉本哲太 
中村梅雀
Similar movies
The Way of Drama The Way of Drama The Return 
The Return 04 Nov 2019
The Return
Tatsuya Nakadai, the world’s greatest living actor, returns to the screen in a brilliant adaptation of a story by novelist Shuhei Fujisawa. A traveling gambler known as “Funeral Uno” he is now 86 years old and returning to his hometown for the first time in 30 years. Partly told in flashbacks, he is forced to face his lifelong nemesis, Boss Kyuzo, a vile yakuza portrayed by another superstar of samurai cinema, Atsuo Nakamura! Before the two old gamblers can settle a 30-year-old score they must put their lives on the line in a game of dice that can only lead to a bloody sword duel the likes of which has never before been seen! Superb performances all around in a film loaded with surprises and exciting swordplay!
Breakthrough for Change 
Breakthrough for Change 07 Feb 2015
Breakthrough for Change
Akira, Takeshi, Yasu, and Shun are a gang of four close friends, all of whom were core members of their high-school ekiden team. Although they were stars back in those days, having slacked up their efforts subsequently, their daily life is lackluster now that the age of forty is just around the corner. They talk at a favorite local tavern just like they used to after Akira comes home giving up his dream to become an actor. Thinking back, they have never accomplished anything but ekiden, and they have unknowingly acquired a tendency to run away from problems in life in general. The phrase they cannot help muttering to themselves is how brilliant they were in those days… Feeling dispirited, they think of participating in the Shimanto Dragon Ride. A challenge for the four men in their late thirties begins…
Benkei 
Benkei 04 Jan 1997
Benkei
At the end of the Heian period, Musashibo Benkei, a warrior monk who hated the Heike clan, was humiliated by his fellow monks and left the mountain monastery. Soon, Benkei competes with the Heike warriors on the Gojo Bridge in Kyoto and takes away their swords. One night he tried to stop a young man who had a beautiful sword on his belt and fought him, but he could not win. Knowing that this young man Ushiwakamaru (Minamoto no Yoshitsune) is looking for an opportunity to overthrow the Heike clan, Benkei asks him to let him join him.
Genkuro Yoshitsune 
Genkuro Yoshitsune 16 May 1962
Genkuro Yoshitsune
An exciting historical drama that dynamically depicts the life of Minamoto no Yoshitsune from the period of his stay on Mount Kurama to his reconciliation with his brother Yoritomo.
Flags of Our Fathers 
Flags of Our Fathers 19 Oct 2006
Flags of Our Fathers
There were five Marines and one Navy Corpsman photographed raising the U.S. flag on Mt. Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. This is the story of three of the six surviving servicemen - John 'Doc' Bradley, Pvt. Rene Gagnon and Pvt. Ira Hayes - who fought in the battle to take Iwo Jima from the Japanese.
The Naked Island 
The Naked Island 23 Nov 1960
The Naked Island
A family of four are the sole inhabitants of a small island, where they struggle each day to irrigate their crops.
Throne of Blood 
Throne of Blood 15 Jan 1957
Throne of Blood
Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu and Miki are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji, presses him to speed up the rest of the spirit's prophecy by murdering his lord and usurping his place. Director Akira Kurosawa's resetting of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" in feudal Japan is one of his most acclaimed films.
Red Beard 
Red Beard 03 Apr 1965
Red Beard
Aspiring to an easy job as personal physician to a wealthy family, Noboru Yasumoto is disappointed when his first post after medical school takes him to a small country clinic under the gruff doctor Red Beard. Yasumoto rebels in numerous ways, but Red Beard proves a wise and patient teacher. He gradually introduces his student to the unglamorous side of the profession, ultimately assigning him to care for a prostitute rescued from a local brothel.
Ikiru 
Ikiru 09 Oct 1952
Ikiru
Kanji Watanabe is a middle-aged man who has worked in the same monotonous bureaucratic position for decades. Learning he has cancer, he starts to look for the meaning of his life.
A Color Print of Edo 
A Color Print of Edo 10 May 1939
A Color Print of Edo
The Color Print of Edo is a 1939 black and white Japanese silent film with benshi accompaniment directed by Kazuo Mori. It is a cheerful period drama, sprinkled with comical scenes and tells the story of a loyal and handsome Edo period servant who fights to help his older brother marry the woman he loves. The star of this film, Utaemon Ichikawa, gained enormous popularity for his portrayal of a cheerful and chivalrous man.
The Beast of Comedy 
The Beast of Comedy 05 Jan 2024
The Beast of Comedy
Tsuchiya, who lives with his single mother in Osaka, does not get serious work once he graduates from high school, but rather devotes himself to mailing jokes to the “Ohgiri” variety show. Seeking to be recognized as a show “Legend,” he devotes his entire life to laughter, setting himself the task of submitting hundreds of entries per day. At loose ends, he encounters a drifter, Pink, who finds him work at his bar while Tsuchiya now devotes himself to becoming a “postcard craftsman” who submits material to a radio program. The entertainers on the program begin to use material from his postcards. A comedian Tsuchiya admires, one of a comic duo called “Bacon,” says on the air that he admires Tsuchiya’s material and that he wants “to do material together.” Dreaming of another chance, Tsuchiya heads for Tokyo.
Battle Royale 
Battle Royale 16 Dec 2000
Battle Royale
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.
Mountain Woman 
Mountain Woman 30 Jun 2023
Mountain Woman
Late 18th century, Tohoku. An outcast girl, Rin lives in a village suffering from famine. She draws strength from Mt. Hayachine, where the spirits of humans ascend after passing.
Black Rain 
Black Rain 22 Sep 1989
Black Rain
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.
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men 
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men 29 Nov 1959
Isshin Tasuke: A Man Among Men
In the third entry into this mega-hit series, Isshin Tasuke, a spirited fishmonger in Edo who looks just like Shogun Iemitsu undergoes a series of unforeseen troubles in his newly wedded life.
Cherry Blossoms 
Cherry Blossoms 05 Mar 2008
Cherry Blossoms
After finding out that her husband, Rudi, has a fatal illness, Trudi Angermeier arranges a trip to Berlin so they can see their children. Of course, the kids don't know the real reason they're visiting -- and the catch is, neither does Rudi...
Kikujiro 
Kikujiro 05 Jun 1999
Kikujiro
Brash, loudmouthed and opportunistic, Kikujiro is the unlikely companion for Masao who is determined to see the mother he has never met. The two begin a series of adventures which soon turns out to be a whimsical journey of laughter and tears with a wide array of surprises and unique characters along the way.
John Rabe 
John Rabe 02 Apr 2009
John Rabe
A true-story account of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese during the Nanjing massacre in 1937-38.
In the Realm of the Senses 
In the Realm of the Senses 15 Sep 1976
In the Realm of the Senses
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.