Discoveries from Asian World Cinema

Baseball player Jung-gu and movie star Nam-mi are a celebrity couple who are blissfully happy in their careers and marriage. One day, a girl named Dong-ju shows up and the couple's lives are instantly destroyed. Seven years later, as Dong-ju gets involved in the death of a middle-school girl, Jung-gu and Nam-mi decide to fight a battle they have no chance of winning.

A hand drawn animated short by Studio Ghibli.

Rally Vincent and Minnie May Hopkins are just a pair of gun shop owners who do a bit of bounty hunting to make ends meet when a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms agent comes to them. Using the threat of arresting them for their lack of a retail license for their merchandise and the resulting unpaid taxes, he forces them to agree to cooperate in a sting to break a gun running ring. They have an initial success, but that brings new problems as the ring's leader brings in a merciless assassin to eliminate these new enemies. It will take all their skill, allies and some luck to come out this crisis alive.

After being implicated in the theft of the Jade Dragon Sword, Fan Ying (Cheng Pei-pei) is banished to the Dragon Swamp for 20 years. Now, 20 years later, the sword has been stolen again, and the members of Lingshan Clan are sent out to find the culprit. Among those is Qing-Erh (Cheng Pei-pei again), who meets a wandering swordsman (Yueh Hua) searching for the long lost Fan Ying. Together they decide to enlist the help of the Dragon Swamp Master in their respective searches.

In a mountainous region of Japan, Lord Arakawa kidnaps the men of nearby villages to use as slave labor, producing gunpowder from his sulfur pits. A band of young boys decide to rescue their enslaved fathers on their own.

Set at the end of the Sengoku period to early Edo period, "Sanada Ten Braves" follows 10 members of a ninja group who all serve under samurai warrior Yukimura Sanada.

Shiro Amasuka, dead leader of the Shimbara Revolt is resurrected from hell with the desire of overthrowing the shogunate for killing his companions. To do this , he resurrects an army of living dead swordsmen. Between him and his goal, only Yagyu Jubei stands...

Two Japanese friends accidentally kill their boss and dump his remains in Black Fuji, a mountain/landfill hybrid. This leads to poor results when the chemicals of the landfill mix with the corpse (and many other corpses) to give rise to a zombie infestation in Tokyo.

A vampire, Brado, becomes responsible for taking care of a girl, Setsuna, in exchange for his life saved by the evil that created her. The evil tells him that if she doesn't have sex for a hundred days, she'll become a full-fledged vampire, and Brado will be able to gain complete control of her. However, if he breaks the promise, both of them will die, so he reluctantly takes on the care of her. While he sleeps, Setsuna begins going to nearby town and gradually learns how precious human lives are through her observations. When she meets a young priest in a church, her affection to humans becomes stronger-- and trouble begins to brew when Brado realizes that she is falling for the priest.

In 1939, Sakura Nishi is a young army nurse who is sent to the field hospitals in China during the Sino-Japanese war. She has to assist the surgeon Dr. Okabe with an incredible number of amputations. In the crowded wards, she gives sympathy to some of the soldiers, including sexually servicing one who has lost both arms and has no hope of returning home. She falls in love with Dr. Okabe, and follows him to the front, even though he is impotent from his morphine addiction.

During the reign of the eighth shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate, the Yunagaya Domain in the Tohoku region is a small han. But at the han, there is a gold mine. Suddenly, Masaatsu Naito of Yunagaya Domain receives an order to perform Sankin-kotai within 5 days. Sankin-kotai is a custom that requires the daimyo to visit the shogun in Edo. Unfortunately, the time needed to visit the shogun in Edo for Masaatsu Naito is 8 days. Masaatsu Naito also learns he received the order because a high ranking government official wants the gold mine. Also, the expense for Sankin-kotai is high and the Yunagaya Domain is such a small han that it seems impossible to complete. Nevertheless, Masaatsu Naito begins an unexpected operation to complete Sankin-kotai in 5 days.

Mi-ja, who has been taking care of a retired teacher, Ms. Park, invites several of her former students to her house 16 years after their graduation. Since the end of her teaching career, Park has been residing in the countryside, suffering from an illness while an ex-student, the kind and pretty Mi-ja cares for her.

Handsome high school student Akemi is a computer genius. One day a new girl, Yumiko, transfers to his class from another school. She quickly falls in love with Akemi but, absorbed in his computer, he pays her no attention at all. Akemi accidentally summons demons who wreak chaos on his enemies and friends.

Film compilation of the TV series with new scenes and characters.

Five experimental animals that looked like humans were collected in a room of an inorganic laboratory . They are mice , although they are human in appearance , and they claim to be human. The last experiment was euthanasia . This story is a record of a ruthless experiment conducted on them.

Kouta is taken into a new version of Zawame, where soccer teams aim to win the All Rider Cup. The reward: The golden fruit. A strange man named Kougane starts sending locusts to other Armored Riders, consuming them, leaving their Lockseeds intact in order to revive his Golden Lockseed. Along with a strange youth named Lapis who seems to have a relation to the new world, will the Beat Riders be able to stop him?

Set in World War II, Casino Tycoon chronicles the story of Benny, a young graduate, who flees Hong-Kong during the Japanese invasion and heads for gambling haven Macau. Once in Macau, he impresses a local business man who has ties to organised crime, he slowly builds his way up in the ranks of the Macau underworld which ultimately leads to trouble.

"There Is A Secret in My Soup" is based on infamous HK crime case called 'Hello Kitty Murder'.In 1999 three triad gangsters kidnapped,brutally tortured and beat a 23-year old woman named Fan Man-yee for one month until she died.Then they dismembered and cooked the body,threw most of it out with the trash,fed legs and arms to stray dogs and hid the skull inside the head of a giant-sized Hello Kitty doll.

Rick Pang, an IPSC champion who is also a gun expert who tinkers with his pistols to perfect his technique known as 'double tap' which is the terminology where a shooter can place two exact shots in the same spot to maximize marksmanship.

Set two years after the events of Ultraman Trigger, an ultra-ancient threat re-emerges, leading to the return of Ultraman Trigger and Ultraman Zett to save the day, but all is not as it seems.

Interior designer Dodo and lawyer Michael have been in love for years with no plans of marriage. Because of the intervention by the colleagues, Dodo resigns in anger and leaves for New York with Michael. She is heart-broken to catch Michael in a passionate scene with her close friend at the airport. After that, Dodo gets stuck with her first assignment of her own company. She has no resources but to seek help of Jacky, a worker from former design company, but misunderstanding arises between them due to difference in rank. But as they get on more, they begin to admire each other. Meantime, Michael, who tries to win back Dodo's heart. What would Dodo decide between her two admirers?

Andy Lau is Wesley, investigating alien existence on this earth. He works outside of the MIB-influenced FBI operation, run by Shu Qi and Roy Cheung. They're hot on the trail of the Blue-Blooded Alien (Rosamund Kwan). Two other aliens, the "Warlock Toxin Group," are gunning for her as well -- red maggoty swarming creatures that form into Mark Cheng and Almen Wong.

Set in a barren, futuristic Tokyo of highways and wastelands, a rowdy group of punk bands and their fans gather to protest slow, boring, Japanese living.

Two years have passed since Bem, Bela, and Belo disappeared. Bem is now living the life of his dreams with a wife and kids. Except he has a new name and no memory of his humanoid monster past. Is this really domestic bliss or something sinister?

Namson Lau is a ballroom dancing instructor. On stage, he is a refined and suave gentleman, but in reality, he is cunning and greedy, and dancing has become a mean to strike fortune for him, without any other levels of significance.

In 1987, frustrated junior high student Takashi hates his uncool father hanging around their suburban home all the time, and is pestered by the area’s wannabe gangsters. But he’s interested in the girl next door, the bounteously-breasted Megumi. One day, Takashi hears a rumor that porn actress Kyoko Yokushimaru is coming to town for an autograph session at the only video store in town where Takashi and his judo friends always hang out. Their ridiculous but serious adventure begins. What will Takashi find after all the surprises and chaos? Recalling youth classics like Stand By Me, this is the debut feature of Shin Adachi, Japan Academy Prize-winning screenwriter of 100 Yen Love.

Wong is shocked to learn from his girlfriend Annie (Leung) that she wants to break up. He decides to go online and seek help from love experts on the net. He finds Crystal, a 19-year old self-proclaimed love advisor who has never been actually involved in a relationship. As she assists Wong by telling him to revisit all of his ex-girlfriends in order to find out the root of his problems, the two of them also find themselves falling for one another.

Dark Tales of Japan is a collection of five short horror films that are directed by five notable Japanese film directors, which are told by a mysterious old lady in kimono on a late-night bus traveling on a long isolated mountain road.

After the collapse of their relationship, Kiwako abducts the 6-month old child of a man she was having an affair with. Raising the child as her own, it is four years before the authorities catch up with her and the young child.

Atsuko and Akira are a husband and wife duo with a daughter and a son. Atsuko is in charge of the retirement finances. She saves from money given to her by her husband and also earns money herself by working part-time. She stretches every yen by leading a frugal life. yet, expenses come up. These include their daughter's upcoming wedding and the funeral expenses of the husband's father. Then, and at exactly the worst time, the couple finds itself unemployed.

Wong Kam-Kwei, a gang boss on the decline, overseeing bathhouses and karaoke bars, falls for a small restaurant owner, Mei. He begins to help her business, and learns that Mei is already in love with Leung, a member of his gang. He’s also like a brother to Kam-Kwei. When a rival gang hoping to steal his territory kills Leung, the only thing left for Kam-Kwei to do now is to protect Mei and avenge Leung.

Japan, 250 years ago. Soetsu is a moneylender who is killed by the cruel samurai Shinzaemon. His body is dumped in the Kasenega-Fuchi river. According to legend, all who drown in the river will never surface again. 20 Years later, Shinkichi, the handsome son of Shinzaemon, coincidentally meets Toyoshiga, the daughter of Soetsu. They fall in love. It is a doomed love, as the spirit of Soetsu is far from dead

Officers Tsujimoto and Kobayakawa are transferred back to Bokuto Police Station after stints in other police departments. Shortly after this, the discovery of smuggled firearms and the recovery of a magnetic disc herald new troubles for Bokuto station as the Chief is thrown in jail for keeping silent over "Bee Number One", developed by Detective Emoto who went missing two years ago.

High school student Naoki Tomura grew up in a remote area in Hokkaido. He meets piano tuner Soichiro Itadori in school and eventually decides to work at Itadori’s musical instrument store. Tomura gradually grows as a piano tuner through his interactions with the other tuners and musician clients

Umiemon is a naniwa-bushi singer who travels with his wife to the United States in hopes of achieving fame and fortune.

Elite college graduates commit perfect financial crimes though loopholes in the law during the 1950s.

A water-phobic teacher is saved by a mermaid and accidentally swallows her magical pearl, trapping her on land. She enrolls in his school to retrieve it, and they fall in love, but their romance is threatened when the school principal uncovers her secret.

A 3D film attraction featured at Sanrio Puroland. It was produced by Toei as a tie-in to the 2007 Spooky Kitaro anime adaptation.

Shinohara, a young bodybuilder, joins a para-military sect in northern Japan. His instructor, Takizawa, takes a liking to the new recruit. After an early “special” training session the two develop a lasting and loving relationship.

Inspector Lee and his team look into the mysterious disappearance of a seedy loan shark but find no real leads. Amazingly, the culprits fall into their laps. Four young men, led by Wong Wing-Man, confess to the killing. They were deep in debt and found the murder of their friend to be the only way out. There is one problem, though: no physical evidence.

A corrupt red oil kingpin enlists the aid of a female police officer to help find his son.

One day Anpanman finds a big cloud over the sea, home to the School for Witches. One of the students, Lyrica, makes friends with Anpanman and leaves to join his gang. One night Baikinman and Dokinchan sneak into the teacher's room and steal the magic book, stick and glasses. Baikinman uses great magic, making the school a dark world. Will Lyrica come back to her school and friends ...?

After polluting their own planet beyond repair, a race of evil aliens target earth as their next home. Now it is up to a lone outcast and his robotic spacecraft, Baldios, to defend earth. But, first he must convince the distrusting human population of the impending danger.

A delightful and moving coming-of-age story. One summer, three young boys take an increasing interest in an eccentric old man who lives alone in a house surrounded by an overgrown garden. The boys form a bond with the recluse and set about weeding and replanting the garden.

Amateur photographer Makoto and the homely but endearing Shizuru meet during their university entrance ceremony and become instant friends. Shy by nature, Makoto finds himself opening up around Shizuru, who is secretly in love with him.

The paths of three people intersect at a hospital. A lawyer who mourns the death of his wife, a taxi driver who is taking care of his grandfather that suffers from Alzheimer's, and a girl who is looking for a bone marrow donor to save the life her mother.

In Space Century (SC) 152, the planet Deloyer, Earth's only colony, is home to a growing independence movement. The Fang of the Sun are a small team of guerillas fighting against Earth's occupation. To counter Earth's Combat Armors, they have a lone Combat Armor of their own: Dougram, a CA specially built for Deloyer's environment — and piloted by Crinn Cashim, the rebellious son of the leader of the Earth government on Deloyer. This compilation film version presents the events of the 75 episode anime series as a documentary, primarily focusing on the story's politics rather than the main characters. Originally screened with the short "Choro Q Dougram" and the Combat Mecha Xabungle compilation film Xabungle Graffiti.

A popular fashion model, Hikari Fujimi, has more than one identity. To avenge her parents, who were killed by the leader of a crime syndicate, she received training to become an assassin from Nirasaki, her father’s right-hand man. With multiple personalities-- herself; a woman with superhuman skills; and an innocent girl who repents her sins-- she changes at will.

Towa lives in a peculiar sanatorium after committing suicide. Convalescing in sanatorium, she is informed that she has only 7 days to live. Isolated within their worlds, strange people live in this sanatorium and try to avoid making any contact with her. However, Kuroda a man who lost his power of speech feels sympathetic towards her and their every lovable things give true colors to the life and inspire Towa’s honest desire for the life…

Puek, a boy from the slums, had no choice but to endure his circumstances, feeling that he could never have the same worth as others. He remained silent, accepting the bullying of others just to survive in society.

A 2002 Japanese short anime film based on the popular manga and anime series, Doraemon. It premiered on March 9, 2002 in Japan on a bill with Doraemon: Nobita in the Robot Kingdom. The movie's original plot was written by Hiroshi Fujimoto and Motoo Abiko.

In this reimagining of Alexandre Dumas's classic novel, the musketeer Aramis is secretly a woman in disguise, drawn to the elite corps after exacting revenge on her lover's murderer. Years later, plucky musketeer-in-waiting D'Artagnan is to be hanged for a crime he didn't commit. To exonerate her friend, Aramis must uncover the truth by navigating a twisting web of court conspiracies and her own past — without revealing her secret.

A story of a man's erotic encounter with a courtesan in the 1700s.

When his client suddenly confesses to murder in open court, a hotshot attorney embarks on a search for truth to redeem his ruined reputation.

In an alternate version of 1949 Japan in which World War II never happened, the Japanese capital of Teito is home to both an ultra rich upper class and the dirt poor masses. The city is thrown into a state of panic when a phantom thief called “The Kaijin (Fiend) with 20 Faces” (K-20 for short) begins to use his mysterious abilities to steal from the rich and give to the poor. One day a circus acrobat named Heikichi Endo (Takeshi Kaneshiro) is framed for K-20’s crimes and becomes determined to clear his name. He teams up with K-20’s next target, a wealthy duchess named Yoko Hashiba (Takako Matsu) and her detective fiancé (Toru Nakamura), to take K-20 down once and for all.

Gillian and Charlene, as usual, play a couple of mis-matched partners who come under the tutelage of the slightly nutty and love-sick Black Rose, a former kung fu-fighting super-hero who grooms them for a life of fighting crime. Ekin Cheng plays a dim-witted cab driver who wears a Robin costume and becomes Charlene's love interest. There is a bit of "comedy" as Rose confuses Ekin with her former lover and Gillian become jealous. A lot of time is wasted with this Three's Company-style shtick until eventually, some shred of a conflict comes forward, as the girls must battle a former protege of Rose who has taken to kidnapping to pay the bills.

Working as a maintenance crew member on the moon, Duguyue is left behind after the evacuation mission forgets about him. A meteorite then destroys planet Earth, leaving him as the only man left alive in existence.

Park Goo mutates into a man-fish due to side effects from an experimental drug. He receives heavy publicity and becomes a star. A conspiracy by a pharmaceutical company leads Park Goo to being possibly expelled from the world.

The movie takes place again in the fictional Wangan Station of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department the once empty space within Wangan's jurisdiction has become a popular tourist attraction. When a string of murders of company execs begins taking place, Aoshima jumps at the opportunity to pursue something other than his current case, which he finds less than inspiring. However the powers that be have other ideas, and Wangan again plays host to a special investigation team from headquarters. Aoshima's friend Superintendent Shinji Muroi, assigned by headquarters to assist Okita, is again powerless to help the local officers as decisions are made by the higher ups.