Discoveries from Asian World Cinema

In the city of Yokosuka, Kinta and his lover Haruko, both involved with yakuza, brave the post-occupation period with a goal to be together.

Mei falls for an underachieving boxer, and begins years of soul searching in the city, where she reunites with her estranged brother under unexpected circumstances. What was remembered and forgotten are lessons that have profound consequences.

A modern HK Cinema throwback to eighties triad dramas. Jordan Chan is Cho, a recently released ex-con who was imprisoned when he took the heat for a killing performed by his childhood buddy Dik (Patrick Tam). Now free, Cho only wants to be rid of the triad life, but finds himself inexorably drawn back in when Dik reappears. Dik is now a top triad lieutenant, and only wants to repay Cho for his loyalty and friendship. The two reforge their friendship, but it's an uneasy alliance which is complicated by Dik's seeming enjoyment at the violence of the triad life. Matters reach a head when Cho romances San (Cherrie Ying), the girlfriend of Dik's triad boss, leading to an explosive confrontation between the two longtime friends. Directed with smart, low-key precision by Marco Mak, The Wall is a tense action drama which recalls the righteous triad dramas of old!

The inhabitants of the continent of Cruzon are born with the ability to freely control quartz. Technology based on this power allows them to perform a great multitude of tasks such as shoot projectiles and pilot mobile suits (called Golems in this society). Rygart Arrow is an un-sorcerer, a rare individual who is unable to levitate even the smallest crystal. Living with his brother on a farm, he receives a letter from an old friend, Hodr, the current king. Close companion of the king and queen when they were students at Assam Military School, Arrow is informed that a war is about to occur. Hodr called him because an ancient type of Golem has been found in a mining shaft. No one has been able to move it and Queen Sigyn, an expert engineer, suspects that maybe an un-sorcerer might be the key to activate it.

Takada, a Japanese fisherman has been estranged from his son for many years, but when the son is diagnosed with terminal cancer his daughter-in-law, Rie, summons him to the hospital. Through a series of obstacles and relationships, he is brought unexpectedly closer to both an understanding of himself and of his son.

Jersey is a popular gambler in Mongkok. One day, he takes a trip to Japan with her girlfriend, Nancy, they come to Chinese resaurant. Suddenly, a gang of Japanese triads comes in and starts a fight. Just at the moment when he is in danger, the restaurant owner uses a special card - casting skill to save him. Jersey recognize it is the skill of Cool, the Gambling King, but the owner refuses to admit that Cool is still alive. Cool finally admit his true identity and tells Jersey that Ho Yan was orginally his girlfriend but now she is the wife of Yeung. Cool treated Yeung like his brother, but he is jealous of Cool's beautiful grilfriend and wealth. Yeung conspired to take away Cool's everthing. With Jersey's help, Cool decides to get Ho Yan back, but he does not realizes that Yeung is setting another trap for him.

When Rainie runs away from home after her mom forgot about her birthday, she is magically transported from the big city to an enchanted jungle in an unfamiliar land, where she meets Blue. With the help of Blue's grandfather and their newfound friend Mulla, they embark on an epic adventure to help Blue become the leader he is destined to be and save the rainforest from the villainous Boss Cain.

The Yu family earn the ire of the Green Dragon clan when the daughter kills the clan chief's son. The Green Dragon chief wounds family head Yu Yuan with his flying daggers, and kills many others who try to protect the noble family. Wandering swordsman Ying Qing saves the family in a fight, using his own flying dagger skills, but his allegiances and motives are unclear.

Seokjin is troubled by his lustful wife, Zinc. Seokjin asks his driver Yoon-il to have sex with Zinc. Yoon-il is troubled, but goes to Seokjin's money betting and becomes involved with Zinc. When Zinc comes to life, Seokjin asks Yunil more...

A detective investigating a bizarre murder case begins to fall in love with a surgeon he has met while trying to solve the crime.

The 7-year-old girl Zhang Wang and her father Zhang Guohua depended on each other. Although their lives were poor, they were still very happy. One day when Zhang Wang suddenly had a nosebleed, he went to the hospital for an examination and found out that he was diagnosed with acute leukemia.

A man comes to visit with his girlfriend who pays back a debt using her body.

A by-the-book police officer is assigned to secretly investigate a team leader who believes that the rules shouldn't stop an investigation. As the officer investigates further, his own attitudes begin to mirror the team leader's.

On the day that underground rapper Hak-soo fails his 7th audition, he receives a call from his hometown that his father is in the hospital. But he finds out that it was his father's plot to bring him to Byeon-san. To top it all, he is suspected as a phishing scam criminal and locked up in this small, boring suburb.

The Crime Investigation Department is assigned to protect a princess-consort coming from the Republic of Puerto Risi. They arrange a fantastic trip to introduce the princess-consort to Hong Kong, but a big crisis looms on the horizon.

Guitarist Ko-chan is a mess of sexual repression after a childhood at the mercy of two elder sisters eager to use him as a guinea pig for their make-up skills. Bassist Gaku-chan keeps a bucket in the wings for whenever his nerves get the better of him, and drummer Momo-chan is doomed to forever carrying the botched childhood attempts at self-tattooing. It's not until this foursome is forced to look for an additional guitar player after Jin's dad burns his Stratocaster, that attitude and musical ability enter into the equation. Leather-clad, shade-wearing Tani (Tamaki), inseparable from his black Les Paul, is introduced as the king of R'n'R cool and Jinnai keeps him firmly seated on his throne throughout the film, retroactively proclaiming the guitarist, rather than himself, as the band's true hero.

Do Ra-hee, a reporter, is assigned by her boss to report on allegations of sexual assault by Woo Ji-han, an actor. She then investigates the case but uncovers details that may turn it upside down.

A lusty woman runs a dormitory and a pawn shop for needy male college students. The only payment she asks for is a little nightly servicing.

Gaim: It begins on the planet Kouta and Mai reside. Suddenly a mysterious enemy appears, then heads for their friends back in Zawame City. What is the enemies’ plan to release the curse of the Over Lords and Helheim? This being has even driven Kouta, who has become an existence like-God. Find out how the series continues after the events of the last episode. Drive: A legendary thief, the Special Unit, and Drive are locked in a showdown. How does the Drive Driver (Mr. Belt) fit in to all of this?

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 Seoul, a suicidal student meets a young woman who decides to join him in his fatal gesture. Dongsoo, an unsuccessful filmmaker, spots a beautiful young woman, who happens to be the lead actress in the film he has just seen. Their stories will cross paths thanks to their love for cinema.

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 matters 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...

A once-mighty gangster-turned-failure navigates life's struggles alongside his eccentric, dysfunctional family - a rebellious son plotting to overthrow him, a formidable wife running the household, a fearless daughter, and a scheming grandmother - as they all clash and collude to survive life's chaos and possibly reclaim their fortune.

A stripper, desperate to break free from the controlling hands of her drug-dealer boss, tries to reunite with her childhood sweetheart...

Desperate to go to the U.S. to win back his girlfriend, Yim hires a tutor to teach him English. But things don't go according to plan.

Cyborg 009 movie based on the manga of the same name. Features 009's origin and an epic battle against Black Ghost and their evil robot forces.

The 50th film in Tora-san series, using the old footages and newly shot scenes to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the series. The adult Mitsuo, Tora-san’s nephew, who runs into Izumi, his first love, whom he had once promised to marry. The familiar faces of Kurumaya Cafe, which Tora-san’s family ran in Shibamata, also return. Catching up with old friends, it is always their dearest memories of Tora-san which everyone shares on such occasions…

Promising fund manager Jae-hoon is at the brink of losing everything when his company goes bankrupt. Overwhelmed by despair, he takes an impulsive trip to Australia where his wife and son live. As his trip nears its unexpected end, Jae-hoon gets a chance to look back on his life.

All set to enjoy their day off, three high school friends, Yukino, Asako, and Natsu, board a seemingly normal train... when suddenly, a deafening sound and a flash of light envelop them!....But the three arrive at school the next day as if nothing happened. And yet, something is not right....They see oddly familiar faces, their families are out of sync and they are chased by strange men in black. Plagued by these nightmarish sensations, Yukino flees, only to find herself in front of the amusement park they were heading to on that fateful train ride. Slumping to the ground, Yukino comes to a strange realization....They are stuck between nightmare and reality, between the walls of two worlds that are closing in on them. But which world is real...?!"

A woman was killed by a truck wheel, which flew off while the vehicle was in motion. As the freight company which owns the truck becomes the target of the public and the media’s wrath, Tokuro Akamatsu, the president of the freight company, realizes that a structural defect within the truck itself may have been to blame. A conspiracy of the wheel manufacturer's attempts to cover up a defective product is uncovered.

The film's story poses the possibility that all of humanity, without exception, live in two worlds of existence: the real world and a second world known as "Hemu". Humans live their lives in Hemu when they sleep in the real world. Hidden in each person is another life of which he or she has no recollection of, except for nightmares which are soon forgotten upon waking up. However, there a few rare individuals who are aware of the existence of Hemu and the curious consequences it has on the real world.

In order to take over her grandmother's Dagashi store, art student Kumi Honamanuma moved to Kyoto. She met Harami Mino, K Kusanagi, Mai Haisaka, and a dog who lives in the store, which supposed to be empty. Kumi ended up living with these girls, who claim that they are heroes reincarnated to contemporary period to chase after the demon king. Harami and others seem to live in a peaceful life with no missions to to do anymore, Ran, who was demon king in the past and appears to be an elementary school girl from failing to reincarnate, one day. The story begins with Ran requesting to collect demon king's fragments.

Naoko-san is an alien from the planet Yuri, who is plotting to conquer the Earth by yurifying it. Misuzu is a junior high girl and is always troubled by Naoko-san, who lives on the roof of her house.

Sakiko, a young bank teller, has an unhealthy obsession with money. Thieves hold up the bank, kidnapping Sakiko in the process, but eventually crash their car, resulting in a suitcase stuffed with cash falling into a nearby river. For the remainder of the film, Sakiko begins a desperate quest to retrieve the money.

Zhao Wuji, son of the leader of the Zhao Clan, embarks on a tragic adventure full of intrigue to avenge his father, who is beheaded by a traitor working for the rival Tang Clan.

A sweet and bitter story about Koichi, who tries to help troubled boys with homemade sweets, until he finds his first love in 8.2 seconds.

A shy, nerdy man, Takeru finds a schoolgirl hooker Lily is unconscious in a Tokyo park, so he decides to bring her home and lock her up in a secret basement. Although Lily is afraid of him, in fact, Takeru didn't do anything to hurt her. After Lily begins to uncover a shocking episode

The main characters are two male best friends, Jerry and Hui Lok, and their female friend, Cherie. The story revolves around their relationships with others, including Jenny and Kei Kei, and each other. Jerry, Cherrie, and Lok are a pop trio, and the boys have agreed not to court Cherrie for the good of the group. Jerry's a feckless playboy, but he falls hard for the beautiful and talented Fonfong; she becomes his roommate as Cherrie looks on. Lok has two women in his life, the young and innocent Man-Yi, and Rachel, a mysterious minx into bondage and sexual excess. Things come to a head when Fonfong has a chance to study in Paris and Rachel takes things a bit far with Lok. It's time for Jerry and Lok to look around: is true love closer at hand? And what about Cherrie, who's been bruised often by Jerry: what will she decide?

The story is set in 1890s Siam. Siang is a young Muay Thai warrior and rocketry expert who steals back water buffalo taken from poor Isan farmers by unscrupulous cattle raiders. He is searching for a man with a tattoo who killed his parents.

In 1944 on Peleliu, Tamaru writes fake heroic tales of Japanese soldiers' deaths to families. In the hell of bombs, hunger, thirst and disease, he bonds with Yoshiki. Together they cling to life in this atrocious war of attrition. Only 34 survive. What do these two young men witness in the madness?

Three unlikely thieves break into a mansion looking for the cash they believe its owner is hiding, only to encounter unexpected complications.

When a vengeful demon resurfaces in Thailand's largest Catholic village, a rigid priest and a maverick shaman must set aside their differences to confront an evil that defies both faith and folklore.

Popular TV anchorwoman & late night DJ Ko Sun-young set to host her final radio program. During the show, she receives a startling text message instructing her to follow specific directions or endanger the lives of her family.

After receiving a death sentence, Tak-woo decides to spend the rest of his life earning money to support his family. One day during delivery, he accidentally encounters hold 'em poker and asks for help from Yeong-seo, the owner of the club. Tak-woo challenges the infamous Chairman Kang, but in the end, he loses everything and collapses horribly... A man who has lost neither money nor pride, stakes the rest of his life for revenge!

Man Sik is a single father who raises his 7-years-old daughter Ye Na alone. He has yet to register her birth, because he wants her birth certificate to be the same as the other kids, which is to have a mother and father. In order to do so, he offers a deal to a woman from Vietnam: he will pay her 20 million won to put her name on a marriage certificate as his wife and Ye Na's birth certificate as her mother. She declines the offer and Man Sik becomes devastated. Mi Hee then appears.

The movie is based on a real historic event. During French's invading war against China in 1885, the French army took over Zhengnan Guan located in the Guangxi Province. Wishing to protect their beloved country, the 70 years old General Feng Zicai and his two sons volunteered to join the battle. The general understood it would be a difficult battle to win as the French soldiers held much more advanced equipment, resources and weapons. To show his devotion and determination, he brought his own coffin alongside with him to the war zone. He also utilized his experience with the Zhangnan Guan terrain to pave out strategies, made weapons applicable to their situations. These actions bolstered the morale tremendously, and prepared them well for the war. As a result, although the Chinese soldiers sustained heavy losses, they turned the tide of the battle and won.

The day before his exhibition, world-renowned painter Tamura discovers that his own work contains a forgery. Meanwhile, the body of a woman with countless ukiyo-e tattoos is discovered at the sea. From the two incidents, the name of Ryuji emerges.

A sexless couple Eun-sook and Won-gil. Newlyweds Jong-beom and Na-jeong graduated from physical education. Jong-beom happens to be Eun-sook's personal health trainer and sex partner while working as a courier. Jong-beom introduces her wife Na-jeong as Won-gil's personal health trainer, and Won-gil receives sexual stimulation through Na-jeong. The two couples, who have been sleeping for a while, are boiling over and plan to have sex with each other...

Green Leaves Entertainment is a tiny production company on the verge of going out of business in Sendai, Japan. The agency once managed the careers of magicians, photo idols, fortune-tellers, and other entertainers, but its last remaining client finally quit. Faced with having absolutely no one to represent, agency president Tange thinks up a plan to produce an idol group, forming the seven-girl group known as the "Wake Up, Girls".

A disillusioned young man from a rich family strikes up an unlikely relationship with night club worker who dreams of a better life.

Kenji is a young aspiring movie director. He falls in love with Princess Miyuki, who came from a black‐and‐white movie.

In 8th-century China, the Emperor grieves the death of his wife. The Yang family wants to provide the Emperor with a consort so that they may consolidate their court influence. General An Lushan finds a distant relative working in their kitchen, whom they groom to present to the Emperor. The Emperor falls in love and she becomes the Princess Yang Kwei-fei. The Yangs are then appointed important ministers, though An Lushan is not given the court position he covets.

This mystery-tinged 'Martial Arts World' epic was one of director Chu Yuan and novelist Ku Lung's last together for the Shaw Studios, but it's another action-filled winner. Liu Yung and Sun Chien team to investigate the martial arts murders of a supposedly mortally wounded swordsman, only to find deception, death, double-dealings, imposters, and one deadly duel after another. No less than three choreographers are on hand to handle the multitude of magnificent martial arts.

A group of students from the Cosmo Academy are about to take their final exam: surviving for over fifty days in a derelict ship. But when they arrive, they discover that instead of ten students, there are eleven. One of them doesn't belong there...

Sonic's arch nemesis Dr. Robotnik has been banished from the Land of Darkness by an evil Metal Robotnik. The devious doctor tells Sonic that the Robot Generator has been sabotaged and will blow Planet Freedom to kingdom come. But it's not until the President's beautiful daughter Sara turns on the charm that Sonic springs into action.

A cruel and sadistic landowner buys the daughter of a fallen samurai family to be his wife and subjects her to escalating sexual torture, especially after discovering that she has been harboring a secret passion.

Dong-hyun, Seok-gu, Sang-min and Young-je are typical adolescent high school boys deeply curious about sexual matters. When a female apprentice teacher, Ms. Kim Yoo-ri begins teaching at their all boys school, she captures the lust and imagination of four of her students, who cannot stop fantasizing about her. Dong-hyuns secret 'love' for his teacher is shattered by news of her affections for another teacher Mr Gong. Yoo-ri has already fallen for the homeroom teacher, Mr Gong, and has her own daydreams about what it would be like with him. Unfortunately, Mr Gong has forsaken love in his life, and is immune to her come-ons. Yoo-ri must get him to accept her advances, while rejecting the rapid-fire advance of her four students.

A talk show hostess takes a camera crew out to an abandoned factory to investigate a purported snuff film that was made there. As she gets closer to the truth, she and her friends are subjected to a brutal nightmare.

Shota, a machinist who dedicated his life to his work, prepares for his final business trip to Korea before retiring. Meanwhile, Daesung heads to Japan to win back his ex-girlfriend. The two men happen to meet at a ramen shop on the first day of their journeys. When Shota's resignation letter and Daesung's love letter are swapped, an unexpected story begins.

To keep using their school's abandoned observatory as a refuge, two sleepless high school students decide to revive the defunct astronomy club.