Discoveries from Japan World Cinema

Japanese horror movie from 1998. (Kiyoshi Kurosawa's segment for School Ghost Story G).

An apocalyptic look at the possibility of an earthquake of magnitude 7 or greater striking the Tokyo area. Mirai, a middle school freshman girl who goes to Tokyo's artificial Odaiba Island for a robot exhibition with her brother Yutaka at the start of summer vacation. A powerful tremor emanates from an ocean trench, the famed Tokyo Tower and Rainbow Bridge crumble and fall, and the landscape of Tokyo changes in an instant. With the help of a motorcycle delivery woman named Mari who they meet on Odaiba, Mirai and Yutaka strive to head back to their Setagaya home in western Tokyo.

Ten gives Ataru an alien disease, the contagious "Girl Measles," (which makes the victim's eyes turn big and twinkly, like the eyes of young girls in much of manga and anime), and when Ataru's girl-hunting spreads the virus all over Tomobiki Town, chaos ensues!

Set in the year 2017, the Japanese government attempts to secretly control the DNA of its people. Ryuhei Kagura is a top scientist in the field of DNA analysis. He works at the DNA analysis institution run by the National Police Agency. When the inventor of the DNA analysis system is murdered, Ryuhei Kagura's own DNA is found at the murder scene. Ryuhei Kagura becomes the prime suspect and then he becomes a fugitive. Veteran detective Reiji Asama goes in pursuit.

In a time of continuous civil wars ravaging the fields of feudal Japan, the eldest son of a very poor peasant family, living alongside the bridge over the Fuefuki river, decides to serve a warlord to escape his miserable condition, being soon followed by his younger brothers. Although not all the men of the family take this tragic path of death, women of the family will be doomed to endure the pain of loss during the next five generations.

The first part is the Kamen Rider Fourze’s place five years after the events of the series. Gentaro is now a teacher at Amanogawa High as well as the Space Kamen Rider Club’s new academic advisor. However, a new school club called the Monster League, comprised by a group of psychic children led by Saburo Kazeta, which is supported by a mysterious man named Kageto Banba. The second part is Kamen Rider Wizard’s portion, where Haruto enters the Underworld of an unknown Gate to investigate the mysterious occurrings of monster appearances. He then runs into a young woman named Yu Kamimura who can become Belle Mask Poitrine and can use magic like him. The third and final part of the film is Movie War Ultimatum. The three Akumaizer from the Underworld to plan to invade the land of the living. Kamen Riders Wizard and Fourze must fight to stop the Akumaizer and their Monster Army.

When Yasuko (Eriko Hatsune) was a child, her mother left their home. She grew up not knowing what an ordinary family is. Satoshi's (Kengo Kora) mother was the girlfriend of Yasuko's late father. One day, Satoshi appears in front of Yasuko. Since that moment, Yasuko's monotonous life begins to change.

Set primarily before the events of Kamen Rider W Forever, Kamen Rider Eternal tells the story of Daido Katsumi, the formation of NEVER, the mission that led them to target Fuuto, and reveals just how Daido obtained his Lost Driver and got his first taste of the power of Kamen Rider Eternal. As a mysterious woman retells this story to Phillip and Shotaro, they realize that Daido may not have been the simple monster he first appeared to be…

A naive delivery boy becomes infatuated with a girl who works at a local strip joint. Despite his daily attendance and attempts to get her attention she remains indifferent until one day she invites him onstage.

A story of childhood life during wartime Japan. Takeshi, the intelligent son of a fisherman, is the schoolyard bully. When his cousin comes to stay with his family to avoid bombing raids, Takeshi at first treats him well, then begins bullying him too. Takeshi eventually loses his position of leadership.

Sequel to "Irresponsible Age of Japan".

Wataru Naohiko who has the prosecutor general as his father became a young composer and its symphony "saint" invoked the world echoed. But his disciple Uchiyama and his best friend prosecutor Daisuke Toki accused his music as a sesame of pause-only technique, not a truly heart-hungry art.

Tokyo is in the midst of lockdown due to a new virus. Kyoko, a single woman living in an apartment building, is assaulted by a man who suddenly breaks into her home. The man is a mysterious serial rapist and murderer.

A one-hour special that aired after a month of the series' absence on television between episodes 23 and 24. Kindaichi investigates a hospital where a series of murders happened.

Set two years after the drama series "Nemesis," Naoki Kazama works for Nemesis Detective Agency and is regarded as a brilliant detective. He is able to solve the most difficult of cases, but he has a secret. He is actually a lousy detective and relies on the genius skills of his assistant Anna Mikami to solve cases. Their partnership continues.

A scientist realizes his dead wife is an organization of mitochondria bent on making a new species that will wipe out humanity.

A young female samurai comes upon a dying messenger and agrees to deliver the scroll he was carrying to its destination. However, unbeknownst to her, the scroll is actually a formula for a new kind of gunpowder. An evil clan that is planning to overthrow the Emperor is also after the scroll, and they try to take it from her.

Keiko, a young, newly hired weather woman, is eager to give her channel's flagging ratings a boost. She decides a panty shot might do the trick, so during her forecast she lifts her skirt, thereby capturing the attention and the hearts of viewers. Keiko's stunt creates such a stir of excitement over the weather report that viewers begin religiously turning in to see what she'll do next. However, this showboating routine earns the ire of Kaori, the beautiful and ambitious daughter of JTV's chairman. Jealous of her success and aching to take over the weather report, Kaori is willing to do just about anything to get what she wants.

In 1980, Ayuko is a new transfer student in Okayama from Tokyo. She doesn't have any friends and relies on her boyfriend Hideo who is a college student. Ayuko likes to draw a romance manga of herself and her boyfriend. Ayuko's classmate, Takemi, becomes a huge fan of Ayuko's manga and they become close friends. Due to an incident though, they drift apart. 30 years later, Ayuko is now a manga artist and comes back to Okayama to give a lecture at her former high school. There, Ayuko meets Takemi who is now a teacher.

After a chance encounter with Hiroshi's father on a bus, Tora decides to get serious and reflect on the mortality of man. His plans are derailed when a beautiful lady starts working at Toraya.

Set in Tokyo's otaku mecca Akihabara, "Akihabara@DEEP" tells the story of five otaku who drop out of society and end up founding their own successful IT venture called Crook. But Nakagomi, president of an influential electronics company called Digital Capital, will do anything to get his hands on Crook.

The days leading up to a toddler's second birthday are seen alternately from the child's point of view as well as that of his parents.

Kamen Rider x Super Sentai: Superhero Taihen – Hannin wa Dare da?! (Superhero Disaster) are a series of non-canon net movies that deal with murder mysteries involving deaths of Super Sentai and Kamen Riders, uncovering hidden circumstances behind the Super Sentai and Kamen Rider, and more.

Okatsu the Fugitive is the third film in the "Ohyaku/Okatsu" series. Okatsu; a "tomboy" who is good with a sword. Her father has found her a man to marry and actually she doesn't seem too upset about the situation. At the same time, a bunch of farmers are being slaughtered by a corrupt group running a tobacco smuggling ring. They're being investigated by a man who is documenting their crimes and when they find out about it, they torture him for information but get none. It's not long before he and Okatsu's mother wind up dead and she sets out for revenge.

After discovering a hole in their crowded cell, nine prisoners escape their confinement to track down the key of the universe, which a fellow prisoner known as the Counterfeit King said he had hidden.

The stickup that started it all! Lupin III and Fujiko are both after an ancient artifact Jigen is supposed to protect, while Goemon happens to be searching for his clan’s lost treasure nearby. Of course, Inspector Zenigata isn’t far behind. This is the story of our heroes’ very first meeting!

Flighty young nurse Izumi Asakura longs to have her honeymoon in a far off tropical paradise but her doctor husband feels that he cannot afford to take time off from developing his career. To Izumi's dismay, Wakabakai General Hospital is fast becoming a far less pleasant place to work, thanks to the appointment of a militaristic chief nurse who demands steadfast adherence to protocol. Things get much worse, however, via the arrival of Saruwatari, a hypochondriac desperate to be re-admitted so that he can enjoy the attentions of nurse Shoko Ozaki. When the chief nurse has him ejected by security, Saruwatari comes back armed and takes everyone on the floor hostage. Shoko happened to be on her lunch break at the time and has trouble getting back into the building when the police swarm around it en masse. The authorities are not sure just how to deal with the situation, though, since the "victims" seem to be taking things far less seriously than they are.

In a world where vendettas are officially sanctioned, the people sometimes needed help in carrying out their vengeance. Sanada Hiroyuki stars as Sukeroku the Helper, a ‘cool and rambling yakuza’ that has made a business out of helping victims carry out their revenge. When he returns to his hometown to pay a visit to his mother’s grave he meets a deadly ronin who carries a secret which eventually leads him into a vendetta of his own.

A detective goes out of his way to crack the case of a serial killer who specialises in murdering police officers.

Echizen Washi artisan Takeo has lived in emotional isolation since the death of his wife, but he collapses due to a brain tumor and is in need of care. Yona, a Korean woman in Japan on a working holiday, comes to his aid. Stubborn Takeo and pushy Yona butt heads repeatedly, but gradually Takeo opens up under Yona's care.

A short anime directed by Mizuki Ito in collaboration with music by HENTAI SHINSHI CLUB. A part of the "TOHO animation: Music Films" project, in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of TOHO animation.

Story of loyal sailors giving their lives for their country as human torpedoes towards the end of the War.

An undercover narcotics officer is killed, and after his funeral some yakuza break into his apartment and rape his wife, Nami, while looking for the drugs they claim he stole from them. Afterwards Nami attempts to commit suicide, but after being rescued by a mysterious yakuza she decides to infiltrate the gang and get revenge.

Asami Miyake is a capable but mysterious secretary at Yanase General Law Office. Using an intimate relationship with an assistant lawyer, she steals his password to find the personal information of Yanase, the president. Masae Goto, the owner of an aesthetic salon, has a financial relationship with Yanase. She’s asked him to compensate her for a stock market loss, but suddenly receives a phone call from him that he can’t make the financial help.

A Japanese adaptation of Guy de Maupassant's short story Boule de Suif, directed by Kimura Keigo

Compilation film of "Space Battleship Yamato 2199" TV series. The year is 2199. The human race has been crushed in their war with the Gamilos, driven into underground cities by the invader's assault. Scientists estimate they have only a year left. The young officers Susumu Kodai and Daisuke Shima receive a mysterious capsule from a ship that made an emergency landing on Mars and return with it to Earth. It contains humanity's last hope: the planet Iscandar on the other side of the Magellan Galaxy has the technology to defeat the Gamilos and restore the planet. The space battleship Yamato is entrusted with this task, but they have only one year before humanity ends.

Yuma Nakahara is the CEO of an IT company and he is a workaholic. He is focused only on expanding his company. He receives a phone call from his former co-worker and friend Kouhei, but Kouhei doesn't say anything. Yuma gets the sense that something is wrong and heads to Kouhei's hometown of Shinminato, Toyama Prefecture, Japan. In Shinminato, Yuma meets other people and becomes involved in the Shinminato Hikiyama Festival. His outlook on life begins to change.

The planet Libertia was once known as “the planet of death”, until humanity built three giant mirrors and created what seemed like an ideal land. It is on this planet that Professor Grace and his granddaughter Alcia live peacefully… until their home is attacked by Guild soldiers looking for the professor and for Legaciam – a special Armor that can resist extreme heat, allowing it to go to areas where humans would not survive normally. Alcia, who was at the time piloting Legaciam in order to help her grandfather with the testing, manages to get away… barely. But the Guild is determined to get Legaciam by any means necessary...

A small time crook who sells rabbits for a living frequently gets himself into trouble with loan sharks and the yakuza. He dreams of becoming a successful big-shot and embarks on the life of a yakuza hitman.

When a lucrative waterfront development becomes available, the Kawade gang quickly use their political connections to secure the land. However, the acting boss of the Ohara gang also has his eyes on the property and recruits crooked detective Tokumatsu Kuno to help him hijack the deal. With relations between the rival gangs at breaking point, it's not long before all-out war breaks out as the gangsters, police and local politicians battle for control of the city.

The Juuza. That is the name given to those of the 13th Zodiac: the cat people. Seen as a vulgar and contemptuous race, they live a life of seclusion away from human eyes. However, as the end of the Han Dynasty draws near, the rise of the Yellow Scarves has thrown the land of the Three Kingdoms into turmoil. As armies converge, a young Juuza woman named Kan'u and her village are forced out of their peaceful lives as Sousou and his punitive force press their way into the village.

From coworkers to close friends, Konno and Hiasa drift apart. When Hiasa goes missing, Konno must face what he didn’t say in time.

Sachiko is the leader of a girl gang from Shinjuku who wind up in Kyoto and make a bid to take over the local girl gangs there.

A traveling psychic who helps lost souls cross over encounters a powerful entity at a remote house. While investigating its origins, she uncovers dark secrets and faces a deadly threat from an unexpected source.

Live-action adaptation of Ko Kojima's manga "Sennin buraku".

An Aikatsu! All-Star awards ceremony will take place. The film will feature songs and stages featured throughout the anime series.

A year has passed in postwar Tokyo, and struggling writer Chagawa enters the Akutagawa Prize competition in hopes of securing a better future for the boy in his care, while the Suzuki family unexpectedly take in a new relative who looks down on their humble way of life.

Set in an alternative world of Bungo Stray Dogs, this "what-if" story imagines if Atsushi Nakajima was in the Port Mafia and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa was in the Armed Detective Agency, instead of vice-versa. The story follows Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, who vows revenge on a man dressed in black in order to rescue his sister. However, as he is about to starve to death, a man from the Armed Detective Agency appears.

Three stories revolve around independence, a man searching for his wife, and a poor craftsman trying to make money.

Jirocho, the don of an expansive crime syndicate, is commanded by his dying father to kill a cyborg in the form of a woman who betrayed him. What follows are various attempts to capture and destroy his target, Alice, ranging from the surreal, the dangerous, and the erotic.

The lord of the Oshi fief is killed by his trespassing neighbour, the cruel and despotic Nariatsu, son of the former Shogun. After an investigation, the Oshi clan is blamed for what happened and sentenced to be disbanded. Eleven of the best samurai of the clan refuse the sentence and are willing to give their life for justice.

A gothic lolita merges with a teddy bear to fight zombies and save the world.

War photojournalist Yasuyuki Tsukahara married popular manga artist Yuki Sonoda and had children. Because of Yasayuki's drinking problems the couple divorced. Yasuyuki is now coughing up blood, hospitalized, and violent. Even with all of these problems Yasuyuki can't give up drinking alcohol. His family gets tired. Yasuyuki is then hospitalized in an alcoholic ward. There he finds comfort living with other patients and having conversations with doctors. With the help of his family, Yasuyuki recovers mentally and physically, but his body has already paid a heavy toll.

A screwball tale of a suspected “lady thief” and the detective who is on her trail, following her from Osaka to her home village, where she is going to hold a memorial service for her father. Of course, the detective falls in love with his prey.

A detective sets out on a manhunt to catch a murderer before the crime's statue of limitations runs out.

When the elderly owner of a luxury inn passes it is left to the staff instead of his two daughters. The staff make plans to sell the inn to a gang of yakuza. But the gang sees profit in the daughters as well and brutally conditions them for sale.

In the town of Sakurada, where about half of the residents have special abilities, high schooler Kei Asai is able to remember everything. His classmate Misora Haruki has the power to reset the world by three days. If they combine their powers, they can go back in time by three days and retain their memory.

Several years after Shuzo settled his wife’s birthday-surprise divorce proposal (What a Wonderful Family, 40th), the Hirata family faces new problems. Ignoring his family’s worry that he is too old to drive, Shuzo takes his old schoolmate for a spin after carousing. Soon, a new disturbance arises for the Hirata family. Veteran director Yamada Yoji continues his comedy about the “perfect“ Japanese family turned upside down in chaos, laughters and understanding. This time, with an additional taste of death.

Based on the Seichō Matsumoto's story The Woman Who Took the Local Paper.

Fumio Yano is an unassuming young businessman in the ski wear line. His own skiing ability is close to professional level, and he assists a former world champion, Tayama, on the sales team. Fumio meets and falls in love with Yu, a young secretary, but initially finds it hard to express his true feelings for her. A St Valentine's Day fashion show provides an unexpected backdrop for crisis resolution, and a mad scramble ensues to beat the clock and make it to a neighboring ski resort in time for the press and photographers. A pack of chocolate is a symbol of true love...