Tsunehiko Watase
10 men and women are called to Natural Island Hotel on the isolated island Heitaijima off Yachijojima by the owner Nanao Shin. They take the dinner that has been prepared while filled with a mix of expectation and anxiety about what is going to happen and why they have been invited to this island. Then they suddenly start to hear a mysterious voice reveal their past crimes. As the 10 of them go through past incidents in their mind, one of the invited guests is murdered before their eyes. That seems to be the catalyst for the murder of another guest and then yet another. Several days after the invited guests came to Heitaijima, police head over to the island following the report of murders. They discover 10 murdered bodies on this big “locked room”. Who is the murderer and why did these 10 people have to be gathered and killed? ~ Based on the novel "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie, published in 1943.
Sanpei is a young boy who lives with his grandpa in a small village in Akita and they both love fishing and are masters at it. His sister moved to Tokyo when their father died and blames it on the fishing. She thinks it's just a stupid play. Gyoshin, a bass professional fisher who lives and competes in America is in a slump and comes to the small village to try to find the joy of fishing again. Together, they all go to find the legendary big char of Yonakidani (The Crying Valley of The Night), which Sanpei's father once saw, but could never catch, before he died.
The members of this elite investigative team are unique individuals with their own personal troubles, but what unites them is their strong sense of justice. They each channel all their energy and skill to solve the most difficult cases.
Based on the true story of racing horse "Haru Urara" ("Gentle Spring"), who lost every single horse race she entered since her 1998 debut.
It's the glittering 80s, and Japan's bubble economy is in full swing. There is a fortune to be made for those who have the brains, determination and pure luck. Tetsuya and Tomoyo are two ordinary, but ambitious people in their prime who have chosen to take part in the money game. They hook up with self-made billionaire Okitsu, who guides them through the "Bubble." A master of the game, Okitsu plays for revenge, not money. He conspires to destroy Kurihara, a ruthless financier whose sole weakness is his only daughter. The plot twists amid a complex web mired in greed, desire and dreams. Spinning with intrigue, the ultimate game of wits has begun for stakes too deadly to imagine.
After his daughter Mai is killed in an auto accident, a genius programmer recreates her in the form of a computer program called AI. His jealous brother-in-law, wanting to get his hands on the technology for profit, sends his client to steal it and Mai’s father is killed in the process. Learning of her capture, Mai’s old friends race to free AI from her captors so that she won’t fall into the corporate clutches that threaten to erase her “soul.”
A comedy about the uproar in a yakuza office, before the dissolution ceremony the next day. The day before the dissolution of the Yamamuro group, it is reported that the leader of the hostile organization was assassinated by someone.
A hard-boiled film that follows a detective who will be killed the next morning should he fail his mission, the yakuza assigned to watch over him, and the friendship that develops as they work together.
Iuemon is left master less after his master, Lord Asano, attempts to kill the treacherous Lord Kira and out of desperation and due to the extreme poverty he now lives in, poisons his wife Oiwa and marries the daughter of one of Lord Kira's men. This comes back, literally, to haunt him.
Set in Sapporo during the oil crisis of the early '70s, the film centers on the Hokkaitei soba stand run by a stoic patriarch (Tsunehiko Watase) and his perky wife (Yoshie Ichige). One New Year's day, a haggard-looking mother (Pinko Izumi) and her two adorable moppets (Masaya Obi and Hidetsugu Takiguchi) poke their heads into the restaurant and ask for a single bowl of kakesoba. Noticing that the trio is looking a little low in the heels, she puts in an extra scoop of noodles. The youngest boy declares that the soba is delicious. The next year, the same threesome appears again asking for one bowl of kakesoba. This time the old man dumps in two helpings. He is struck by how much the youngest looks like their own son who was hit by a truck three years previous. The following year, the three return and this time the mother tells her story...
Warlords Kagetora and Takeda each wish to prevent the other from gaining hegemony in feudal Japan. The two samurai leaders pursue one another across the countryside, engaging in massive battles of cavalry and infantry. Younger and less brutal, Kagetora must find the strength to be as brutal as his opponent, but at what cost?
Some of the greatest battles during the Age of Civil Wars were fought between the Uesugi and Takeda clans. Leading up to them was the incredible life of Uesugi Kenshin, who rose from a son out of favor with his...
After the death of previous Boss, a gang war lasts for more than four years.
Based on the "2.26 Incident", an attempted coup d'état in Japan 1936, launched by radical ultra-nationalist parts of the military. Several leading politicians were killed and the center of Tokyo was briefly held by the insurgents before the coup was suppressed.
In 1026, students in western China are shanghaied into the forces of crown prince Li Yuanhao of Xi Xia, who wants to control the length of the Silk Road. One student is Zhao Xingde, who becomes the favorite of his commander, Zhu Wangli. While sacking a fortress, Xingde discovers Tsurpia, princess of the Uighur. He hides her; they fall in love. When he's sent away to study Xixian, he leaves Tsurpia in Zhu's care, but returns to find her engaged to Li. Tragedy follows, and he and Zhu enter a pact to take revenge when Li arrives at Dun-Huang, the region's seat of learning and culture. Against overwhelming odds, they find a surprising way to leave a monument to their life and love.
Prostitutes in burnt out Tokyo ghetto of post-WWII Japan peddle their flesh and save one-third of their money for a proposed dancehall to be named Paradise. The hookers live in a bombed-out building, but they accept the precarious situation with typical resolve.
Based on a science-fiction novel by Sakyo Komatsu. Tokyo is suddenly covered by a dome shaped electromagnetic cloud for an unknown reason and is totally blocked and isolated from other parts of the world. The temperature inside the cloud is slowly increasing. The Soviet Pacific fleet is getting closer. The U.S. is forcing Japan to form a new government. Scientists and research workers outside Tokyo have to race against time to find out how to get through the cloud in order to rescue the 12,000,000+ lives in Tokyo and the fate of the country.
Three men sentenced to death are spared and changed into “shadows executioners”, a group of ruthless ninja working for mysterious high ranking officials. During their investigation on some illegal business, one of them, called “Yazuke the Viper”, finds his abandoned daughter, Ocho, who has now become a mistress of Denzo, a smuggler. After Yazuke’s death, Ocho is also recruited as a “shadows executioner”, with the task of completing her father’s mission.
Heartbroken Ukiko takes refuge with a relative after a devastating breakup. While away, she makes a dangerous match with the husband of her frigid cousin.
This NHK drama tells the story of the Sanada family which rose to prominence in the Sengoku period. Originally serving the Takeda Clan they ruled the Chiisagata District of Northern Shinano, captured Numata Castle in NW Kozuke province, built Ueda Castle, and even defeated an attack by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1585. Prominent Generals of that time period praised them for their military strength and witty strategies, regarding them as prized Warriors of the age. Many legends state that the family also raised and specially trained their own Ninja to carry out reconnaissance missions. These Ninja were also capable Warriors, believed to possess their own superhuman abilities. Their intelligence network for the Sanada Clan is said to spread across the entire country. Legend also says that Sanada Yukimura had 10 Ninja Heroes who took an active part at the Battles of Osaka Castle. They were called the 'Sanada Ten Braves' (Sanada Juyushi). This NHK Drama begins right after the death of Takeda Shingen and continues through the rise of Tokugawa Ieyasu who founded the Tokugawa Shogunate and covers roughly the period 1582 - 1615.
A valet at a fancy nightclub hatches a plot to punish those responsible for his father's death.
Miho Nakamichi, an orphan adopted by Haruko, dreams to star in a musical. One day, Haruko promised Miho that she could go on a journey to find her real father, "Daddy-Long-Legs", who sends a bouquet of flowers every birthday, once she can wear a special pair of pointe shoes. The day finally arrives and Miho's small adventure begins.
In Shibamata, Tokyo, Tora-san's family prepares for a wedding. Meanwhile, the traveling Tora-san meets an old acqaintance in Iwate Province. Tora-san refuses to drink with him, afraid that the acquaintance, now settled and married, will again become attracted to Tora-san's wandering existence. Tora-san becomes attracted to a female barber, but must break off their relationship so that she too can live a secure life. She instead gets into an abusive relationship with a motorcyclist.
An antique shop "Jidaiya" sells time not antiques. One day a lady run into this shop with a cat.
Japan in the 1940s. A high school boy went into a magic encounter with Ozuka Hana, a geisha (pub-girl) when he traveled through Amagi Pass. A mysterious murder took place afterwards, an Ozuka was held responsible. 40 years later, the boy, who became a printing shop owner, was visited by a retired policeman who came from Amagi Pass. The truth then started to reveal itself.
Two Japanese scientists, Ushioda and Ochi, develop a bond with their sled dogs while on an expedition in Antarctica.
A poignant love story between a 29-year-old woman, who has once been a prostitute but is now the mistress of a wealthy jewelry merchant, and a 19-year-old college student.
Mid 50s: the trials and tribulations of Shinsuke Ibuki, freshly arrived in Tokyo from Kyushu.
A high-school girl inherits a declining yakuza organization, which seeks to repair its fortunes under her leadership.
The story of Shinsuke, a young man who lives through a stormy life as a poverty-stricken coal miner. Ranging from Shinsuke's infanthood to his mid-teens. Coal workers and the mines dominate nearly every aspect of his life. Shinsuke's father a group leader at the mine, dies while bravely using dynamite to rescue a group of trapped Korean miners. Several older men attempt to help he and his mother cope, including a friendly Harley-riding yakuza boss. This movie has it all, drama, romance, sex, yakuza and violence! It is based on a story by Hiroyuki Itsuki that was originally serialized in the magazine Shukan Gendai in 1969-70.
Keiko Inagawa (Asami Kobayashi) pays a visit to neurologist Aizawa about her fiancé Tatsuo Tamura (Kaoru Kobayashi). A mysterious case involving the disappearance of Tatsuo’s three brothers, one after the other, is yet to be resolved and now Tatsuo, seized with the idea that he too may disappear, has had a nervous breakdown. Aizawa suggests that Tatsuo recount his dreams as a means of solving the mystery, since human beings have an instinct that foretells the near future in the form of a dream. Keiko and Tatsuo eventually discover that the three disappearances have a strange connection…
The 224-minute compilation edition Battles Without Honor and Humanity The Complete Saga compiles these five movies : Battles Without Honor and Humanity 1 (1973) Battles Without Honor and Humanity 2: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973) Battles Without Honor and Humanity 3: Proxy War (1973) Battles Without Honor and Humanity 4: Police Tactics (1974) Battles Without Honor and Humanity 5: Final Episode (1974)
The tale takes place around 1650, after the death of the third Tokugawa shogun, when ronin were expelled from Edo, the military capital. During the political instability following the death of Iemitsu Tokugawa, Hanzo's Iga ninja clan battles against the Koga clan as various factions vie to seize power. The child shogun Ietsuna is kidnapped but turns out to be hidden under (or over) everyone's noses in a castle turret which is reinforced by a comic book villain, the fire-spitting black ninja. The good ninja has to get through all the traps & save the child.
Masako, a five-year-old girl living in the suburbs of Chiba, gets a tiny scratch on her finger while playing with mud in a marsh. After that, she suffered all kinds of horrible spasms including biting her tongue. The doctor checks on her for hours on end and arrive at the conclusion that she has tetanus. It seems like the devil has come to dwell in the little girl's body. Her parents have to to bear the sufferings of their child and face the fear that they might also be the victims of tetanus. The once peaceful family has changed completely and the three have been cast into a bottomless hell.
Noriko had been engaged to marry Toshiyuki Fujimura, who worked at her father’s bank. One day however, Fujimura mysteriously disappears. From that day, Noriko keeps herself locked up in her room. After three years of Noriko shutting herself up like a doll without a soul, Fujimura suddenly returns. Noriko’s family’s first reaction was strong rejection, but Noriko asks no questions and embraces him warmly. One day, as Noriko is cleaning her husband’s room, three envelopes accidentally fall from the pages of one of the books she had picked up. The first letter is dated August 11th, saying that his wife had suddenly taken ill. The second, dated August 20th, says that his wife is now critically sick, and the third letter, dated September 1st, is an announcement of his wife’s death. The wife is obviously Noriko, but she is alive and well. Do the letters then mean a preliminary notice of Noriko’s death?
A squadron of Japanese Self-Defense Force soldiers find themselves transported through time to their country's warring states era, when rival samurai clans were battling to become the supreme Shogun.
Sayoko is desperate to bear a child of her own, but her live-in boyfriend Shinsaku strenuously objects to the idea. One day, someone leaves behind a six-year-old child at their door, claiming that Shinsaku—or four other men—is the child's father! Sayoko and Shinsaku set out on a journey to find the real father.
Taking the Chilean coup as an example, a group of young officers plan to overthrow the Japanese government on V-J Day. They aim to abolish the post-war constitution, restore the national army and revive the traditional spirit of Japan. As the conspiracy is exposed, the coup squadrons are wiped out one by one. The remaining squadron takes over a night train bound for Tokyo.
This is the story of "The Forty-Seven Ronin." Based on historical events in 1701-2, the movie tells the tale of the Asano clan's downfall and the revenge of its former samurai on the perpetrator of the catastrophe. Lord Asano was goaded, or tricked, into drawing his sword inside the Shogun's palace -- a crime which carried the death penalty. The newly installed Shogun was furious at Asano and ordered all his clan's assets seized, meaning some 20,000 samurai and commoners were unemployed and landless at a stroke. Forty-seven of these ronin (masterless samurai) banded together to take attempt revenge on Lord Kira, who had goaded Asano into drawing his sword.
The body of Sakai Hatsuko, a woman of 23 who has been slain with a knife, has been found in a forest. Some days later, Ueda Hiroshi, a 19-year-old shipyard worker, is arrested and charged with the murder. At Ueda's trial, a complex story unfolds.
A Japanese geologist discovers that dinosaurs still exist in caves beneath the surface of a volcanic lake.
A yakuza leader must balance his violent tactics necessary for the rough streets of 1960s Tokyo with the domestic needs of his daughters.
Two bank robbers specialize in "smash and grab" style heists. The thieves dream of escaping Japan and going to Brazil...
Test driver Hayami loses control of his car and rolls over. His company then learns that he has kept secret that he is visually impaired, and he is fired. Without the prospect of returning to his old job he makes a plan to rob several jewelry stores. A few days later, Hayami escapes with stolen goods worth 80 million yen in a violin case on a Kyoto city bus. A wild chase ensues.
Kiku Nakakawa, the only daughter of an old kimono shop owner in Kyoto, is enthusiastic about karate. To help her friend Michi avenge her brother, she sneaks into a movie studio in Kyoto where a drug dealing syndicate is based.
Amidst Japan's postwar economic boom, yakuza factions in Osaka fight for survival when Japan's largest crime syndicate plans a hostile takeover.
Chiba, looking gnarly, and acting as animalistic as ever, stars alongside Matsukata as violent gangsters battling their way through fight after bloody fight with rival yakuza on the streets of Okinawa.
It is about the life of Ueshiba - the founder of aikido. We can see how he decided to develop aikido and how he did it. We can see why he developed aikido and where he has learned martial arts.
The seventh in the shocking "Jingi Naki Tatakai" movie series, which exposes the true lives of the yakuza that is hidden by a mask of "jingi". The next stage of this continuing drama is the Kanmon Channel where the Owada and the Kyoei groups are battling for territorial rights and drug smuggling. The Owada sends their man, Tetsu, and his friend Shuji to kill the Kyoei boss. With the promise of fame and riches, Shuji takes the fall and goes to jail for 7 years. But when he's released, he discovers that he and Tetsu have been all but forgotten by the Owada. Feeling betrayed, Shuji takes natters into his own hands and becomes an unsuspecting pawn in an internal conflict and an assassination attempt on the Owada boss. And now angered, Shuji seeks revenge...
Vice Admiral Takajiro Ohnishi could see that Japan's defeat in WWII was inevitable. He came to realize that the only way to force a negotiated solution was to convince the Americans that invading Japan would cause massive casualties on both sides. The cold logic of suicide attacks, where one man and one plane could kill hundreds, seemed the only solution. In one of the cruel ironies of fate, Ohnishi actually succeeded; he convinced the Americans that invading Japan would be too costly in lives. But what he could not foresee was that America had another way of ending the war.
Set in Shibuya in 1949, this is another film based on real life former yakuza boss Noboru Ando's memoirs.
In the beginning of the World War I in 1914, Japan is being invaded spies from Russia and Germany. To eliminate the spies the army hires Sakuragi, a famous Karate and Kempo master.
With a Kansai syndicate vying for Tokyo, one man reunites with his roguish half-brother in the midst of negotiations, when all hell breaks loose.
The most dangerous hired gun in Tokyo's underworld has managed to trigger a vicious gang war, and now, there's a contract on his life. Though nobody is more skilled in the arts of dealing death, can the tattooed hit man fend off the entire Japanese mafia as he searches for the man who wants him dead?
The sixth chapter of Jingi Naki Tatakai series With the endless power struggle. The extraordinary combination of Kinji Fukasaku and Bunta Sugawara, along with new ideas and a strong touch of realism, created the sixth movie of the series that describes 'The War of Hiroshima Gangsters' which had lasted almost 30 years after World War II. It can be called the Japanese secret post WWII history. It focuses on the ugly, violent inside struggle of the Yamamori Group of 1959 in Kure City, Hiroshima. Director Kinji Fukasaku, the master of portraying violence and humanity, said "Having making the five previous movies, I found those characters very interesting. So I took a deeper look into them this time." He made this shocking movie with high enthusiasm and revealed the core of gangster's struggle which has never been touched before.
Convicted of murder, Masayuki Ueda is sent to Hiroshima Prison along with his accomplice. But for a man like him, breaking out of prison is easy.
Based on Kazuo Taoka's autobiography, this film follows a Kobe gangster as he builds the small Yamaguchi-gumi into Japan's largest criminal clan.
Gokudo Shimamura comes to blows with the Delinquent Boss who rolls into town with his motorcycle gang.
Hijiriko makes off from the bar she works at with money and a car that isn't hers. Meanwhile, Jiro Katagiri is up to no good with his gangster friends and ends up making off with all their ill-gotten gains, much to their disapproval. The two misfits end up meeting after a car crash and soon end up on the road together in (another) stolen car. It's not long before the police take an interest in the crimes, and of course the gangsters are hot on Jiri's heels; meaning the two must scarper across Japan by any means necessary.
In gangster-infested 1920s Yokohama, gambler Ishiguro gets in with the local gang -- but his view of life changes after the Great Kanto Earthquake.
Katsu Kaishū deals with end of the Edo period. Based on Kan Shimozawa's novels "Katsu Kaishū "
Girl Boss Ruriko and her cellmates escape from a greedy corrupt reform school that's more interested in cheating the government out of money than reformation. Each having their own reasons for escaping, they go their seperate ways. With the help of a young mechanic, who's also on the lam, Ruriko tries to realize her dream of leaving the island of Japan behind. But the authorities are always one step behind her...
A small time crook, who sells rabbits for a living frequently gets him into trouble with loan sharks and the yakuza. He dreams of becoming a successful big-shot and embarks the life of a yakuza hitman.
Bank robbers steal 30 million yen and try to elude the cops and escape with the cash. Of the three, only one manages to avoid capture. Yoko, a female accomplice, is tossed in a women's prison where she meets Yuki, and the two of them manage to escape. Their plan is meet up with the robber who avoided capture, get ahold of the cash, and get for away from the big city.
Shozo Hirono has managed to separate from the Yamamori family and create his own small family, and extend his circle of acquaintances. These new friendships include a powerful underboss of the Muraoka family, Noboru Uchimoto.
Kiba is back again, but this time he has fallen from grace and sent to prison for all the violent acts he has committed. Once he's out, he begins working as a bodyguard in a club that is crawling with gangsters.
The rich punk Junya has only one thing in mind: to race with the police on his motorcycle. That makes him unpopular, not only with the police, even with his Bosozoku buddies, who slowly but surely distance themselves from him. Junya falls in love with the equally speed-hungry Hiroko.
In the teeming black markets of postwar Japan, Shozo Hirono and his buddies find themselves in a new war between factious and ambitious yakuza...
Upon his release from prison, Masa (Bunta Sugawara) is disappointed to not be picked up by his brother Katsu (Tamio Kawaji). After hitching a ride on a bus full of old women, Masa finds out that Katsu tried to fake a car accident and get some money for Masa to live on after prison. Together, the two decide to blackmail the woman (Yoko Horikoshi) who hit Katsu, who happens to be the daughter of a rich company president (Seizaburo Kawazu). 6th film in a series of 8.
Three new students at a super-strict girl's school must face off with a repressive school administration, the sadistic, murderous student discipline brigade and corrupt politicians over the murder/suicide of one of their friends. They're approached by a blackmailer (Tsunehiko Watase) who promises to help them exact vengeance in exchange for setting up a corrupt local politician, and aided by a independent Yakuza biker chick (Reiko Ike).
After a desperate gang of ex-soldiers and gamblers meet in a fistfight in occupied Ginza and decide to make the neighborhood their own.
In the gaudy world of 1930s Shinjuku, a violent youth known as Bakudan Match tangles explosively with prostitutes, politicians and the police.
The Ni Family is the most well know and respected group of firefighters in the Kanto region. When their leader dies and the successor disappears, Tsuruji, a beautiful yet tough geisha, becomes the boss. But will she be able to confront a yakuza gang trying to take over the area?
Gang leader Nami (cult film legend Meiko Kaji) kills a member of a yakuza group and goes away to prison. Upon her release three years later, she’s a shamed woman confined to living in the shadowy world of sex clubs and street gangs. She returns to the city to live with her uncle, a billiard-hall owner, and after befriending pimp and ne’er-do-well Ryuji (Tsunehiko Watase), she gets a job working at a hostess club in the chic Ginza neighborhood, where the expensive shops and neon lights conceal a dark world of crime and sexual slavery. But when a rival gang attempts to muscle in on the club, Nami becomes enmeshed in a violent struggle that forces her to wield a skilled pool cue to defend her uncle’s business, and eventually a short sword to wreak bloody vengeance upon her enemies.
Detective Kikuchi is sent to Okinawa to investigate why a girl jumped from a window after shooting heroin. There, he encounters the usual assortment of addicts, dealers, pimps and sleazy American GIs.
Kogarashi Monjiro is a lone samurai who agrees to take responsibility for a murder that his friend committed so that he can stay with his dying mother, with the expectation that his friend will confess and get him pardoned once she dies. Monjiro is sentenced to an island for prisoners. When he discovers that his friend's mother has died over a year ago, Monjiro seeks to escape with a group of prisoners in order to get his revenge.
Attacking Asao Uchida's lonely, clifftop mansion in no-holds barred massacre.
Seijiro and Shizue meet in Niigata and fall in love. Seijiro has to go back to Tokyo soon after, and they promise each other to meet again a year later. However, Seijiro gets jailed for five years. Unable to find him, Shizue gets married to a yakuza boss who can help her family business.
Reiko Oshida stars as a young wannabe gangster tough girl, just released from reform school. She tracks down one of her classmates fathers, who runs an auto repair shop that the local Yakuza are trying to force out of business and take over, and starts working for him. At the same time a recently released from prison, and now ill Yakuza is trying to make a new life for himself and his girl, a friend of Reiko's, who also just graduated from reform school. A fateful car crash brings the two on a collision course with each other and the brutal Yakuza clan, which can only end bloody vengeance.
A yakuza gang gets driven out of Yokohama by a big gang from Tokyo. They relocate to Okinawa to violently start over.
Violent Gang Re-Arms is a rousing tale of friction in yakuza and labor interactions with Koji Tsurata as a yakuza supervising a dockworker's union. He finds himself between a rock and a hard place, at odds with both the dockworkers' leader (Tomisaburo Wakayama) and sadistic, unprincipled bosses (Fumio Watanabe and Tetsuro Tamba).
A disgraced yakuza member, framed for the murder of his boss, emerges from prison eight years later with revenge on his mind.
Hoodlum group helps fishermen against firm polluting their fishing ground.
With World War II is coming to its end and Japan nearing defeat, Japanese military leaders step up suicide attacks on Allied ships. Toei legend Koji Tsuruta stars as a Kamikaze squad leader who has second thoughts about suicide runs. He becomes torn between his own morality and his duty to his country when he must deal with a pilot under his command who refuses to complete his mission.
A trio of teenage tarts try to earn money through shoplifting and prostitution scams and get into deep trouble.
After helping a pregnant girl escape from their reform school and facing the resulting punishment, a clique of delinquent girls eventually reunites a year later in Tokyo to face different challenges in the form of yakuza and… street vendors.
The hoodlum group goes to a hot-spring resort town to earn money.
a 1970 entertainment action masterpiece directed by Teruo Ishii Teruo Ishii
