Discoveries from Japan World Cinema

Relatives gather from afar in wintery Ashibetsu upon the death of patriarch Mitsuo. A mysterious woman named Nobuko suddenly shows up. Her appearance gradually exposes wartime secrets and Mitsuo's unknown past.

A psychologically thrilling portrait of the severe dysfunction behind a family clinging to decorum and pride.

In a futuristic world where militaristic robots known as the “Media Police” have outlawed entertainment and banned outdated media formats, a young woman and her robotic companion aim to recover vintage content stored on video cassettes and battle their evil robot overlords to protect “obsolete” media from being lost forever.

Tatsuo, a reverent lumberjack, seeks to disrupt plans to build a marine park on his family land, instead promoting his traditions in reactionary ways.

A younger sister helps out in her older sister’s barber shop where the customers get a little too frisky. As the younger sister fends off advances from her brother-in-law the older sister has a rather strange and kinky encounter with the cooking show host she idolizes.

Rai wakes up from 820-years long sleep and starts his new life as a student in a high school founded by his loyal servant, Frankenstein. But his peaceful days with other human students are soon interrupted by mysterious attackers known as the "Unions".

An ingratiating bride develops warm ties to her father-in-law while her cold husband blithely slights her for another woman.

Bobby is an underachieving high school kid with a deep love for motorcycles. His most recent achievement seems to have been getting photos of himself on a road trip printed in a motorcyclist hobby magazine. When he gets a letter from a girl his age, he decides to write her back.

Yuta lives in an orphanage while waiting for her mother to pick her up. One day, Yuta, who happened to know his mother's whereabouts, escaped from the facility with all his heart. However, there was a mother who depended on her cohabiting man and lived a self-deprecating life. Despaired, Yuta meets Sakamoto, a homeless man who lives in a light tiger while walking along the beach. Sakamoto accepts Yuta without asking anything. The two sleep and eat together while earning a small amount of money. Eventually, he became acquainted with Shiori, a girl who grew up in a wealthy family but had no place to live at home or school. Yuta is attracted to Shiori, who has the same loneliness as himself but is kind to him. However, the calm days end with an incident.

In downtown Japan, a lonely computer nerd tries to maintain a peaceful existance while being stalked by a gang of deviant homosexuals who want to use him for their brutal S&M activities.

Adapted from the manga "Ichikei no Karasu” (イチケイのカラス) by Asami Rito (浅見理都). This special is a sequel to the movie of the same name.

Yukiko is on her way to meet Boss Gunji. Judging by her appearance, no one would suspect that this beautiful young woman, sitting quietly in a suburban train, is the only woman able to beat the best professional players in Japan; or that she is wearing the tattoo of the man that loved her and died for her...

3 women are happy and busy raising their boys named Yu. Due to some little thing, their lives fall apart. Their anger and anxiety unconsciously head towards their sons Yu.

A single woman who works in a car dealership suffers from a past trauma and has a fear of men. But she gets deviant satisfaction at a women’s clinic where the doctor secretly films his examinations of her. One night at a laundromat she assaulted by a man from behind. This triggers a strange desire within her and she returns to the laundromat in search of more dangerous pleasures.

An introverted schoolgirl falls in love and starts a relationship with one of her classmates. Set in a small seaside town in Japan.

With the promise made to their deceased father in his heart, the older brother, Toshiki, has continued to protect his younger sister, Fumiko. Now that Fumiko is getting married, the burden he carried should have finally been lifted, but a long-buried "secret" of Fumiko has resurfaced.

Kaisei Sakamoto is a 16 year old boy who is inclined to settle everything with his fists. He grew up in a town where you can see both Nagazaki and Gunkanjima, living with his father. His father, Genkai Sakamoto, runs a small ramen shop. The father-son duo has just recently had a large fight. The story showcases fragments of one's youth and the questions that crop up while growing up.

The seventh chapter of the stunning Hibotan Bakuto series. Many years have passed since Oryu the Red Peony began her soul-searching journey after her father was killed. In her travels, she meets villagers whose crops and livelihoods are being destroyed by pollution from a local factory. They seem to work out an agreement, but Oryu must help the poor villagers when the greedy factory owner and corrupt politicians betray them…

Kanto, 14, a descendant of Japan's indigenous Ainu people, decides to visit a hole in the forest — a path to the other side of the world where dead people live, hoping to see his deceased father.

Housewife Kyoko begins moonlighting at a mysterious sex club as a means of rebelling against her boring salaryman husband Akihito. The Bedroom isn’t like any normal club, though: the female hostesses all take the powerful sedative Halcion to sleep through their encounters with the male clientele.

Reiko Himekawa (Yuko Takeuchi) is a female detective at the Metropolitan Police Department. Reiko doesn't come from an elite background, but she has risen fast through the ranks with hard work. Reiko than becomes involved in a murder case named "Strawberry Night" due to the mysterious use of those words surrounding the case.

The Blue Pearl depicts the interplay between a young man from Tokyo and two ama (pearl divers; literally “women of the sea”) in a superstitious coastal town. Though raised within the same tradition-bound crucible, the two women – Noe and Riu – are portrayed as diametric opposites; the former meek but affectionate, the latter strong-willed but jaded by a tryst with metropolitan life.

A squadron of Japanese fighter pilots realise that they are never going to win the war when they understand that Japanese military tactics have little regard for life. Seeking the companionship of any woman who will have them, they spend their days indulging in every fantasy in order to escape the overwhelming fear of death looming just over the horizon.

Iga ninja led by Hattori Hanzo took back Princess Fuji who was kidnapped by Fuma Clan at the end of the war. However, there were three of them - one being the real Princess Fuji and the others doubles. Not knowing which is the real one, the Iga ninja has no choice but to separate into three teams to deliver the princess to her wedding. The evil hands of the Fuma and the Koga are trying to reach Princess Fuji and the Iga ninja. Their difficult journey has begun.

A live-action adaptation of Osamu Tezuka’s mature manga masterpiece MW (pronounced “moo,” like a cow), created to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Tezuka. When a top secret chemical compound called MW infects an island near Okinawa, the military is sent in to kill all the victims and cover up the incident. A survivor named Michio Yuki (Hiroshi Tamaki) grows up to become a highly-successful banker, but he is slowly being driven mad by the effects of MW. After committing a series of ruthless crimes to get revenge against the people responsible for the cover-up, he decides that the only way to truly get revenge is to unleash MW on the world and exterminate the entire human race. Takayuki Yamada stars as Father Garai, a priest desperately trying to save Michios soul—and possibly his own in the process—but not necessarily doing much to stop the crime spree.

Yuji and Akiko are newlyweds. Yuji dreams of being a movie star. He lands the lead role in a Pink Eiga soft-core sex film. The director requires him to have sex with the actress. Akiko goes to her high school reunion and is raped by a drunken guy, and then hooks up with her ex-high school love. A dark and comedic look at contemporary relationships and the pitfalls of married life. The story was written by Locarno International Film Festival, Golden Leopard Prize Winner, Masahiro Kobayashi. (Pink Eiga)

Two rogue vagrants make their living as "manure men", turning the waste from the tenement toilets into fertiliser sold to local farmers. Enter Okiku, the only daughter of a fallen samurai, and amongst the overflowing piles of excrement, a well-nourished love story unfolds.

In the near future, the world is ruled by the Smart Brain Corporation, with 90% of the population being Orphnoch, and the once prominent human race is nearing extinction. Takumi Inui, Kamen Rider Faiz, was once regarded as mankind’s savior until, in an attack by Smart Brain troops, he was presumed dead. Since then, human rebel groups have staged attacks on Smart Brain’s complex in an attempt to steal the top-secret Emperor Belts, with no success. Kiba Yuji, Naoya Kaidō and Yuka Osada attempt to ease tensions between both races but their peace meeting is interrupted by Smart Brain troops and their newest warrior, Kamen Rider Psyga. Takumi, believing himself a young cobbler named Takeshi, regains his memory and becomes Kamen Rider Faiz again to settle things with Smart Brain once and for all.

Monjiro, reunited with his long lost sister, is pursued by a yakuza gang because he killed their boss. He also meets a fellow gambler who idolizes Monjiro. The gambler and Monjiro's sister are pulled into a conspiracy to get to Monjiro, but do things go as planned?

Kayoko is a young girl in 1940, just starting first grade. Nothing can prepare her for 1945, and the bleak times that are soon to come.

“Hana-Dama”—a flower in the wasteland. This flower is a symbol of earthly desires and every human is overwhelmed by desire and their rationality collapses wherever the flower is in bloom. And even today, the “Hana-Dama” continues to blossom profusely somewhere in the world. The story is set in a film theater, the facility keeps on closing one after another during recent years. The last day has come to a film theater which has been maintained by a film-loving owner, the staff, and their unique audiences. The symbol of human desire, “Hana-Dama,” blossoms at the theater and instigates people’s erratic behavior. Upon facing its closure, tremendous chaos that will be noted in the history of Japanese film takes place within this film theater.

History is coming to an end. When humans came down from the sky they brought with them the Testament, the guide to the path they must follow if they wish to return to the skies again.

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.

Mokichi Asai is a widowed father living in Nara with three daughters—Chizuru, Ayako, and Setsuko. The youngest, Setsuko, plays matchmaker for her older sisters, leading to humorous and awkward romantic entanglements.

Confronting a mysterious enemy, the Pteranodon Yummy, Kamen Rider W receives aid from Ryu, who has infuriated Akiko by being too busy to attend her wedding! Akiko demands to know why he even became a Kamen Rider in the first place and the Pteranodon Yummy as it uses the Memory Memory on her to give her the answer to her question. Meanwhile, at the Kougami Foundation, Kousei Kougami talks of the most avaricious man in Japan, Oda Nobunaga, whose final resting place was found. With Doctor Maki overseeing the process, Kougami commissions the creation of a Cell Medal homunculus based on Nobunaga himself. Later, Kamen Rider Core begins to destroy the area as Kamen Riders OOO and W team up to fight the enemy. However, Kamen Rider Core proves too powerful and the two go underground to destroy the Gaia Memory’s source of power to even the odds.

In this Japanese drama, a dry goods merchant's daughter is surprised to discover that she has a twin sister. In rural Japan it was thought that twins bring bad luck, so the sister was abandoned at birth. Later her parents tell her that her sister was kidnapped. The woman doesn't believe this and when she eventually meets her twin, both women are involved in love affairs. The merchant's daughter is seeing an educated fellow. Trouble ensues when she begins suspecting that he may be more interested in her sister.

Kazuko Shirakawa plays herself as a student who is scouted by a pink film producer. She leads a chaotic life until finding success at Nikkatsu studios.

At Sakurada Gate in 1860, the shogun’s chief minister and his retinue of bodyguards are ambushed and annihilated. Bearing the responsibility and shame for this failure is Shimura Kingo, master swordsman and chief of the guard. Forbidden to take his own life in atonement, he is instead tasked with hunting down the remaining assassins; however, fate intervenes and now only one is left. Devoted to his late lord and his duty, he relentlessly pursues the sole remaining assassin for the next thirteen years. But times are changing in Japan and the way of the sword has become outlawed. What does this mean for Kingo?

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?

Sisterhood is powerful. Before leaving for a mission in Africa, Runa, a nun, visits her sister three years after entering the convent when her sister stole Runa's boyfriend. Runa comes to forgive and to help her sister make enough money buying and selling some convent property so she can marry. The old boyfriend has new women in his life, but he and the sister tell Runa they're a couple in order to keep the property deal. To make even more money, Runa's sister wheedles large gifts from various men she's stringing along. There are flashbacks to Runa's sexual awakening at the convent. But what are her real reasons to close this deal?

When Aoi is gang-raped by her classmates and kicked out of her home by her own parents she sees no reason to continue living. Before she commits suicide, however, she receives an email on her cellphone from a man named Toshi addressed to a girl named Ai. The message simply thanks the girl for being alive, but this specific message has an effect on Aoi and she decides to keep on living. Without many options, Aoi resorts to everything from paid dating to porn to earn money and meets a lot of less than reputable characters. Throughout it all though she looks toward Toshi as her hope for happiness and the two form a relationship.

Oshima, a rich girl married Shinzo, and her cousin girl Sawa has been jealous of Oshima deeply. Sawa cursed Oshima so Shinzo could not hold her and do anything at all. Shinzo hated Oshima, and he made love with Sawa.

The devil king Lucifero suddenly declares he's going to retire, and must choose a successor. The Devil King Cadets gather one after another, and go to the human world to participate in the succession contest. But only the devil king's own descendant Osamu has no interest whatsoever in the contest. Compared to the fate of the world, Osamu is more interested in his part-time job at a convenience store. Osamu has no choice, however, but to start collecting familiars called "Child," which are born from human souls. Osamu still only has an interest in his part-time job, and he's a few steps behind the rest of the Cadets.

Girls in Trouble: Space Squad Episode Zero is an installment in the Toei Company V-Cinema series. Space Squad serves as a crossover between the revival of the Metal Heroes' Space Sheriff series and the Super Sentai series Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger. A prologue to Gavan vs. Dekaranger, this movie focuses on the female characters of both series.

A 20 something girl Yoshiko is having sex with her boyfriend when a shocking telephone call arrives - grandpa has passed away. The lightning from clear sky doesnt derail only the life of Yoshiko but summons the rest of the dysfunctional Haruno family to the ancenstral country house to pay their respects to the deceased - and unleash their quarrels between themselves and with the world at large.

Based on the true story of 4 member Japanese pop group "GreeeeN.” Jin is the producer of “GreeeeN” and his younger brother Hide is the lead member for the group. Their song "Kiseki" is released as their 7th single and becomes a huge hit. Hide and the other 3 members have others jobs including working as a dentist.

The tragic story of Gonza, a handsome ladies man, set in the Tokugawa Period, a time in which appearances are very important. Gonza competes with Bannojō for the honor to perform the tea ceremony to celebrate the birth of an heir to the lord of their clan. To see the sacred tea scrolls Gonza promises to marry the daughter of the family which possesses them, even though he is unofficially engaged to another. When studying the scrolls with Osai, the mother of the house, Bannojō sneaks into the house and steals their obis and runs through the town proclaiming the two as adulterers.

An upbeat, action-filled drama that depicts the lives of two obnoxious high school students, Koji and Toru, who are caught in exciting and dangerous adventures involving their fellow students. Based on the best selling comic series, “Be-Bop High School” has gained popularity among the young audience, and become an icon of Japan’s pop culture in the 1980’s.

A man and a little girl meet in a bicycle parking in Tokyo. The little girl says she wants to watch the sea, and their travel begins. The man does not intend to be a kidnapper – he asks the girl to phone her mother and tell her she's with him. During their trip they meet various people, but they always must continue on, lest the man be arrested.

While in the middle of fighting, the Gekirangers and Mere are teleported to Hong Kong, along with Rio and various other martial artists around the world. Just as Rio and Jyan were about to fight, they meet the mysterious Lao Fan before seeing others brought to the island as well.

On a Wednesday morning, Kenji goes touring with his girlfriend when he spots some other riders waiting and stops his bike. One of them explains that a legendary female driver nicknamed Wednesday Cinderella passes this place every Wednesday in her white Porsche. Kenji becomes interested in this mysterious driver; however, racing with her proves more dangerous than it first seems to be.

When wealthy Kyohei hires singer "Black Rose" to perform in his exclusive club, he gets more than he bargains for when she attracts scores of homicidal past lovers. The film takes a bizarre twist when Kyohei's son falls victim to the femme fatale's unique charm.

Girls surrounding 17 years old are affected by an illness that make her to be 'Stacies': they feel a strange and momentary happiness until they become zombies.

TegaSword dies?! The disaster that triggered the outbreak of the Universe War in the past. TegaSword was defeated by a Calamity remnant named Pestis. All it needs to revive is the ring that is the core of the stolen TegaSword. To retrieve the ring, the Gozyugers jump into the body of TegaSword, where Pestis is hiding and face many challenges! Will the five "outcasts" be able to unite and overcome the challenges? The shocking truth behind the birth of TegaSword is revealed for the first time?! Fight, Gozyuger! Revive the giant TegaSword! Protect the dreams and wishes of people!!

Yuu, Persia, Mai and Yumi are together in a science fiction-like adventure. An awful monster assault young and beautiful girls, leaving them transformed into ugly hags: only our four magical girls with their powers can fly to the space and fight for Earth 's sake, so Yuu transforms into Creamy Mami, Mai into Magical Emi, Persia into Fairy and little Yumi draws space suits for all of them.

The Pacific League pennant race continues to be fiercely contested. However, due to Tabuchi's continued poor performance, the Lions are on a losing streak. With Yasuda showing up at the stadium with his resume and Nomura suddenly becoming more energetic after being inspired by Dokaben's words, Tabuchi's presence is becoming less and less noticeable. Desperate, Manager Nemoto and Owner Tsumori try to highlight Tabuchi's charm by organizing "Tabuchi Day," but it ends in a complete failure. Just then, Mrs. Miyoko unexpectedly appears as a cheerleader.

Pursued by loan sharks, Aoyama is rescued by a mysterious man in orange overalls, and spirited away to “The Town,” where other dropouts hide out from debtors, abusive partners or the police. It’s a perpetual holiday resort where every need is catered to but hidden in it is a sinister conspiracy.

Satoshi Nomura, a top-level bureaucrat of a prefecture government, has passion for his career. One day, he is hired by the fixed-term personnel exchange training between public and private businesses. This personnel exchange training is part of some big prefecture project. This project is very big, so success of this personnel exchange training will probably determine his career. Nomura goes to a supermarket called "Mantendo".

Young coal miner Takeda leaves Kyushu in search of a better job in Tokyo, only to fall into the lucrative yet dangerous life of a yakuza.