Watchlist: 50s Japan
Goal: See 50 new viewings produced in 1950s Japan.
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- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsChikage AwashimaMichiyo AratamaKumi MizunoA war widow with a young boy manages a farm with her bossy mother-in-law. When a reporter comes to interview her, the two begin an affair. He turns out to be married and won't leave his wife. Her older brother tries to marry off his children and hang on to/ extend his farm through an advantageous marriage in the face of threatened land confiscation and the desire of his children to get comfortable urban jobs instead of the backbreaking work in the paddy fields under parental control.
- DirectorKinuyo TanakaStarsChishû RyûShûji SanoHisako YamaneMokichi is the widowed father of three daughters, with whom he lives on the premises of a temple since the war. All three daughters become involved in some sort of complicated relationships.
- DirectorShirô ToyodaStarsRyô IkebeKeiko KishiKaoru YachigusaIt's a man's world. Shimamura, an artist, comes to this snowbound town to rejuvenate himself. He connects with Komako, a geisha he met on a previous trip, and it seems like love. She's the foster daughter of a local family, almost engaged to the family's son Yukio, now dying of consumption. He's tended by his sister Yuko who's angry at Komako for abandoning her brother. Shimamura returns to Tokyo but promises he will be back soon. In anticipation of his return, Komako breaks with her patron and her family loses their home. Complications arise when Shimamura doesn't come back as promised. Then Komako discovers that he and Yuko knew each other in Tokyo. Can Komako escape destiny?
- DirectorShirô ToyodaStarsHisaya MorishigeIsuzu YamadaKyôko KagawaA timid and aimless man's love for his cat is his only solace in a life dominated by his mother and the two women she chooses for him to marry.
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChikage AwashimaRyô IkebeTeiji TakahashiA young man and his wife struggle within the confines of their passionless relationship while he has an extramarital romance.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsShinjirô EbaraHitomi NakaharaEiji OkadaJunai Monogatari is about two poor youths, Mitsuko and Kando, rebelling against society in various ways, who are desperately trying to be together despite tortuous circumstances.
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsKinuyo TanakaHideko TakamineKen UeharaSetsuko is unhappily married to Mimura, an engineer with no job and a drinking habit. She's always been in love with Hiroshi, but he left for France years ago without proposing. Now he is back and Mariko (Setsuko's sister) tries to reunite them, although secretly she loves him too.
- DirectorYûzô KawashimaStarsMasayuki MoriTatsuya MihashiMie KitaharaHaruki Murakami is a successful family man and the head of a camera company. Unbeknownst to Murakami, his arrogant son oscillates between a mistress and a new lover who sings at a nightclub. When Murakami's disabled daughter befriends the mistress, the affair throws the family into turmoil.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsYûko MochizukiYôko KatsuragiMasami TauraAlternating in time, between the end of World War II and 1953, Haruko, a widow, does what she can to keep her daughter Utako and son Seiichi safe, fed, and sheltered. By 1953, it's clear that the children, as they enter adulthood, want little to do with their mother. They have a different view of their childhood and her sacrifices: in their eyes, she abandoned them to live a life of pleasure. The self-pitying Haruko is sure her life was one of pain and humiliation, for her children. As Seiichi, now a medical student, announces his plans to let a wealthy man adopt him, and as Utako considers the offer to go away with a married man who is her English teacher, what is left for Haruko?
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsOsamu TakizawaShin'ichi YanagisawaHiroyuki NagatoA rumbunctious and ribald tale of a troupe of travelling actors who alternate highlights of kabuki theatre with strip shows.
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsRanko AkagiKamatari FujiwaraBokuzen HidariPostwar Tokyo. Pin (Jukichi Uno) and Toku (Taiji Tonoyama) live in the squatter area of Kappanuma. Pin and Toku are avid gamblers. They take in Tsuru (Nobuko Otowa), a slightly demented woman who has run away from a geisha house.
- DirectorToshio MasudaStarsTomio AokiIzumi AshikawaRyôji HayamaA group of five college students decide to jinx a bicycle race in their favor and claim the money to pay off their debts, but when the illegal bookie cannot pay, they take up his offer of "collateral" as revenge and complexities begin to unravel and ruin their scheme.
- DirectorKôzaburô YoshimuraStarsRaizô IchikawaKyôko KagawaShintarô KatsuStory follows a poor peasant family that through hardship gets some money and how that change them.
- DirectorKeigo KimuraStarsToshirô MifuneMachiko KyôTakashi ShimuraYone (Toshiro Mifune) is a horse trader who lives in a small village on the northernmost Japanese island of Hokkaido. He is a rough-and-tumble type who is prone to getting roaring drunk, starting bar brawls, and losing all his money at dice. The only problem is that he has a sickly wife, Haruno, and an infant son, Daihei.
- DirectorHiroshi ShimizuStarsMichiyo KogureIchirô RyûzakiJunko IkeuchiLiterary adaptation set in early 20th century Japan, in which a sensitive boy is surrounded by unloving family members.
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsHiroyuki NagatoMisako WatanabeKô NishimuraEndless Desire is a black comedy on the spoils of war much extended and enhanced by the greed, treachery, laziness, and lust of the postwar decade.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsMachiko KyôMasayuki MoriYoshiko KugaIn Older Brother, Younger Sister, director Mikio Naruse's adaptation of an oft-filmed popular novel by Saisei Murô, the eldest daughter (Machiko Kyô) of a rural family comes home pregnant, testing some already tenuous family bonds. Naruse shows his considerable skill at portraying household dynamics, filming Kyô in relaxed and/or reclining positions (indicative of her character's exhaustively maintained independence) that are then intruded upon by her ill-tempered older brother (Masayuki Mori), whose initially comic, brute-force presence grows increasingly menacing and treacherous as the film progresses.
- DirectorShirô ToyodaStarsHisaya MorishigeChikage AwashimaYôko TsukasaDespite paternal disapproval, the heir of a wealthy family embarks on a relationship with a Geisha.
- DirectorHeinosuke GoshoStarsShûji SanoNobuko OtowaMitsuko MitoAn Inn at Osaka, rarely seen outside Japan, follows the story of an insurance company executive from Tokyo, Mr. Mito, who is demoted to the Osaka office. He takes a room at a small inn and tries to rebuild his life.
- DirectorKôzaburô YoshimuraStarsKazuo HasegawaMichiyo KogureMachiko KyôBased on the classic novel by Murasaki Shikibu, written over 1000 years ago. Genji, the son of the emperor, has gained renown among the nobility of Kyoto for his charm and good looks, yet he cannot stop himself from pursuing the one object of desire he must never obtain: his father's young and beautiful bride. Following the tragic consequences of his obsession, Genji wanders from one affair to another, always seeking some sort of resolution to his life.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsHideko TakamineToshirô MifuneKeiju KobayashiA young woman tries to raise money to open her own coffee shop.She arranges a loan when her rigid family won't help and then her husband becomes jealous of the loan officer.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsEmiko TakahashiTanie KitabayashiGeorge OkunoyamaImmediately after the Second World War, sister Kiku and brother Isamu, whose mother was a prostitute and the father was a GI, live with their grandmother in the country. Because their colour, hair is different from Japanese, they'd have a hard time, being bullied or treated like unusual creatures. Unfortunately, racism and some other issues such as being different still exist in Japan but the way Kiku portrayed was quite refreshing as she's so strong and fighting against all those stupidity and cliché.
- DirectorMasaki KobayashiStarsIsuzu YamadaKô MishimaYûnosuke ItôIn a mountain village, Heita, a translator's son, is a gifted boy but is shunned by the villagers. He can imitate birds' cry and befriends another boy who works in a brewery. Heita also finds solace in the village pastor Yasugi and his teacher Michiko, but they too have problems of their own.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsSetsuko HaraShûji SanoKyôko KagawaThis wry chamber piece from director Mikio Naruse focuses on a couple whose pet peeves and minor irritations escalate into major rifts and animosity.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsKinuyo TanakaRanko HanaiYûji HoriA few days in the life of a quiet geisha, single mother of a young, smart boy, in the lively Tokyo quarter of Ginza. A woman devoted to other people's needs, she will end by taking part herself in one of the many disguises of Ginza.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsMichiyo KogureTomoemon OtaniSô YamamuraKogure is the widow of an assassinated samurai and Otani was that man's pupil. They have been sent out to seek revenge on the murderer, Kogure's first suitor, but their long and arduous journey has so far been fruitless.
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsNobuko OtowaSumiko HidakaIsuzu YamadaShusei Tokuda's starkly realistic novel about a poor girl pressed into becoming a geisha was forcefully adapted by Kaneto Shindo (Onibaba). When Ginko (Nobuko Otowa, Shindo's wife) falls in love with one of her clients, she is handily rebuffed by the young man's wealthy family, and left to wander from geisha house to geisha house.
- DirectorHideo SekigawaStarsIsuzu YamadaEiji OkadaYoshi KatôBrilliant and extremely realistic retelling of the day in Hiroshima that the bomb dropped and following days.
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsJûkichi UnoNobuko OtowaHarold ConwayThe story of a Japanese fishing boat whose crew were accidental victims of fallout from the Bikini hydrogen bomb tests.
- DirectorTomotaka TasakaStarsYûjirô IshiharaMie KitaharaIzumi AshikawaA college aged woman arrives in Tokyo to study while finding work at the wealthy Tashiro family home as a tutor of the daughter, while the two brothers vie for her attention.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsHideko TakamineMasao WakaharaChikage AwashimaA naive stripper falls for an artist engaged to the daughter of a controversial female politician.
- DirectorAkira DaikubaraTaiji YabushitaStarsKatsuo NakamuraHiroko SakuramachiTeruo MiyazakiA young Japanese boy climbs a mountain in search of a magic wizard. The youth finds the wizard, and is tutored by him. Reinforced with magic powers, the boy eventually fights and defeats the evil witches of down under.
- DirectorHiroshi ShimizuStarsKyôko KagawaYukiko ShimazakiJûkichi UnoBoth the young sons of a professor are stricken by polio. The elder son dreams of starting a school for lame children and his father fulfills it. In the midst of an agile, outdoor daily life in this special school, one of the student dies.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsKen YamauchiYoshiko KôdaMasayuki MoriIn the outskirts of a city in Hokkaido, an indigenous Ainu family faces discrimination from their Japanese neighbors, as well as various inter-family problems.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsAkiko TamuraYatsuko Tan'amiKen MitsudaStory 1 : "The Thirteenth Night". Seki turns up at her parents' house in the dead of night, where she breaks down and says she cannot continue to live with her husband, a rich man to whom the family is indebted. After a tearful and long discussion, they convince her to return. On the way home, the rickshaw driver turns out to be an old school friend, and they reminisce about the old days. .... Story 2 : "The Last Day Of The Year". Mine is a hard-working maid in the house of a miserly, slave-driving old woman who is burdened by a wastrel son, who pesters the old woman and her new husband for money to pay off gambling debts. Mine's uncle is her only surviving relative, and the man who raised her, who is very ill and needs money to repay a loanshark. Mine promises to borrow the money from her employer but, although the old woman initially agrees, she breaks that promise on the due date, New Year's Eve. Can honest Mine resist the temptation to steal ? ..... Story 3: "An Inlet of Muddy Water". The trials and tribulations of a group of young to middle-aged whores. All the women in this particular bawdy house look up to and admire the stunning O-Riki. But O-Riki is nevertheless troubled. Gen, a shabby coolie, hangs around and pesters her, despite having a long-suffering wife and a young son, who calls O-Riki "The Demon". One night, desperate for clients, several of the girls lunge at and literally drag some passers-by inside. One of these men is cultured and gentlemanly, and becomes O-Riki's regular client. She looks forward to his visits and hopes he will marry her. Meanwhile, Gen's wife alternates between solicitousness and harassment, and home life becomes tough.
- DirectorKinuyo TanakaStarsYumeji TsukiokaRyôji HayamaJunkichi OrimotoFumiko, mother of two children and wife of an unfaithful man who shows a low self esteem, shares her family life with her asleep vocation as a poetess. The beginning of her successful literary career coincides with her divorce and the development of a serious illness: a breast cancer, which leads her to lose her breasts. In the last stage of her life she meets a young journalist arrived from Tokyo, an admirer of her work, who want to write a story on her life. Both live a secret love history.
- DirectorShinobu HashimotoStarsFurankî SakaiMichiyo AratamaKumi MizunoOn a post-war peaceful day in Japan, Toyomatsu Shimizu, a barber as well as a good father and husband, is suddenly arrested by the Prefectural Police as a war criminal and sued for murder. According to the accusation by GHQ, Toyomatsu "attemped to kill a US prisoner", which was nothing but an order by his superior and failed after all with hurting the prisoner by weak Toyomatsu. Also, Toyomatsu was driven to corner at the trial by the fact that he fed the US prisoner some burdock roots to nourish him. Toyomatsu believes nothing but being not guilty, but he is sentenced to death by hanging. Prior to the execution, Toyomatsu writes a long farewell letter to his family, the wife and the only son: "If I ever incarnate, I hate to be a human being any more.... Oh yes, I would like to be...a shellfish living on the rock-bottom of the sea."
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsKinuyo TanakaToshirô MifuneJûkichi UnoA jewelry store president begins to fall for the doctor treating her husband's illness.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsKen UeharaYôko SugiRentarô MikuniA married couple looking for an apartment move in with the husband's co-worker, a widower. The husband becomes jealous of the widower and his wife.
- DirectorHeinosuke GoshoStarsYoshiko KugaMasayuki MoriMieko TakamineA young woman falls for a middle aged business man, but things get complicated when she also starts having feelings for his wife.
- DirectorHiroshi InagakiStarsToshirô MifuneYôko TsukasaAkihiko HirataA prince, framed for murder and starved for affection from his father, is sent on a quest.
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsNobuko OtowaSanae TakasugiTaiji TonoyamaTime; a few years after the surrender of Japan in the Second World War. The country is in ruins, economy devastated, and the vulnerable masses deprived of work; let alone the basic amenities of life. A new order, led by voratius opportunists is in the make where the weak are easy prey to the hydraheaded mountebanks. Betrayed and exploited by their employer, a group of five trainee insurance brokers face the challenge of commuting suicide, or taking the path of felony. They choose the latter and decide to rub a money truck to ease the suffering and pain of their family members.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsHideko TakamineKeiji SadaTakahiro TamuraCovering the years from 1932 through 1957, this is the story of the trials and tribulations of lighthouse keeper Shiro and his wife Kiyoko.
- DirectorTomu UchidaStarsChiezô KataokaKinnosuke NakamuraYumiko HasegawaTsukue Ryunosuke is a master swordsman with an evil style, reflecting the evil in his heart.
- DirectorShirô ToyodaStarsRyô IkebeShirley YamaguchiKaoru YachigusaLavish Japanese-Chinese coproduction based on an ancient Chinese legend about a man who falls in love with a snake goddess in human form.
- DirectorMasahiro MakinoStarsJûshirô KonoeSeizaburô KawazuSusumu FujitaA group of poverty-stricken samurai eke out their existence on the outskirts of Edo.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsHideko TakamineKen UeharaDaisuke KatôA woman marries, gives birth to a stillborn child, and divorces, falls in love with a hotel-keeper, only to find herself subordinated to his drive for success, takes up with a tailor who cannot console himself with her strong personality.
- DirectorIshirô HondaStarsRyô IkebeMariko OkadaRentarô MikuniA squadron of Japanese fighter pilots at a lonely Rabaul airbase realises 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.
- DirectorSeiji HisamatsuStarsRentarô MikuniMasao MishimaHisaya MorishigeThe local Fukushima constabulary has a policeman who sees himself as part of the community. He does a lot more than just policing. A policeman finds an infant and a child near his station. He tries to offload them at every known agency and responsible body, but does not have success. Perhaps he can take care of them himself?
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsNobuko OtowaJûkichi UnoIchirô SugaiShindo's directorial debut is the fictionalized account of the death of his first wife. Following the breakout of the Pacific War, the Japanese film industry was forcibly downsized. Numazaki, a mediocre screenwriter, faces imminent dismissal. His wife Takako encourages him to seek work in Kyoto. Numazaki fails his aptitude test, which is to write a script for the famous but demanding director Sakaguchi (a veiled reference for Kenji Mizoguchi). Takako offers to support his husband for a year, so that he can hone his craft from scratch.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsHideko TakamineKeiji SadaTeiji TakahashiA widow life is left in turmoil when her childhood lover returns to town, left between the decision whether to go with him and start a new life in tokyo or settle down with her kindly brother-in-law, amidst a growing scandal that could tatter her family name.
- DirectorSatsuo YamamotoKita is a reporter in peaceful town of Tojo, the base of an undetected black textile industry. Unyielding to the pressure of Onishi, the local boss, Kita reports the illegal trade of black textiles and the negligence of the police and the public prosecutor's office. The hell starts breaking loose.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsKyôko KagawaSusumu FujitaKeiko TsushimaHigh school girls, impressed to provide nursing care for the soldiers on Okinawa, find themselves on the front line during fierce onslaughts by American forces and are left to fend for themselves when the Japanese army dissolves.
- DirectorSeijun SuzukiStarsYôko MinamidaHideaki NitaniNobuo KanekoIshikawa, a newspaper journalist, unexpectedly meets Asako, a woman who used to work for his company some time ago as a phone operator. Three years ago, she accidentally heard the voice of a suspect who committed a still-unresolved homicide. Since then, the suspect's voice has remained lodged in her mind as a terrifying memory. One night, her husband invites over his colleagues, Kawai, Hamazaki, and Muraoka. She realizes that Hamazaki's voice sounds exactly the same as the unseen suspect's! A few days later, Hamazaki is found dead in a rain-soaked coalfield; her husband is kept in police custody as the primary suspect. Ishikawa tries to help Asako and launches his own investigation. However, the investigation soon runs into difficulty as both Kawai and Muraoka had alibis. To make matters worse, her husband implausibly confesses
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsAkira IshihamaKatsuo NakamuraSadako SawamuraA young man ignores his mother's pleas and becomes drawn to a life of crime.
- DirectorHideo ÔbaStarsKeiko AwajiChikage AwashimaHaruyo IchikawaMachiko and Haruki are not allowed to meet. When at last they find each other, Haruki has to part for Europe.+ Part 2 and 3
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsShinjirô EbaraEijirô TônoYûko MochizukiThe heroes and heroines are all rice farmers, struggling to eke out an existence in an unfriendly world.
- DirectorYasushi SasakiStarsMichiko HoshiHibari MisoraKyû SazankaA Romeo & Juliet type story of tragic love set to the Heian Period. A young samurai wins the heart of a beautiful princess with his wonderful flute playing, which sets in motion a feud that will change the face of Japan.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsTeiji TakahashiYoshiko KugaTakahiro TamuraIn a film that cuts across documentary and drama sees an exploration of both the dynamics of an industrial behemoth, which operates its own independent environment, and societal dynamics in which workers and management and men and women are depicted as both resigned and ambitious.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsKuniko MiyakeSetsuko WakayamaYôko KatsuragiIn Japan, after the death of Mr. Masago, her wife Satomi Masago loses the family's company "Lily Cosmetic" to Mr. Mogy due to huge amount of debts relative to withdraws of money from the company made by her husband. Mogy blackmails Satomi's sister Hinako, asking her to marry him and he would not send Masago to jail, and Satomi wrongly understands that Hinako is dating her enemy Mogy. Satomi Masago founds the "Niagera Cosmetic" to compete with Lily and becomes a powerful executive. Hinako indeed likes Sonoike, former employee of Toyo Pictures and hired to work in Niagera, but Satomi plots the marriage of Hinako with her manager Tsuke Hinjatsu. Meanwhile, their young sister Chisuzu Satomi decides to live with the small time crook and pimp Ejima, from "Fashion & Films", being explored and abused by him. When Masago hires her lover Kojima to be the account of Niagera, she finds that Hinatsu is stealing the company with his mistress Yamashita. Hinatsu tries to kill Hinako and she loses her baby. Ejima publishes a book with the scandals of Masago, and her company bankrupts. In the end, the three sisters get rid off their mates and stay together.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsMieko TakamineHideko TakamineKeiko KishiA student at a woman's university takes a controversial action against the school's old-fashioned doctrines.
- DirectorHiroshi ShimizuStarsNijiko KiyokawaMusei TokugawaYatarô KurokawaA poor mother leaves behind three children,whom she had with different fathers, at relatives and foster parents, and heads for the road.
- DirectorTomu UchidaStarsRentarô MikuniYumeji TsukiokaMie KitaharaAmidst endless construction and aircraft noise, a family whose father died slowly disintegrates. While daughter Tamiko struggles with her stepmother Nobuko's attempts to marry her off to careless physician Ihura, her bed-ridden brother Junjiro grieves for his ex-wife Keiko who left him for another man. Although Ihura is more interested in Nobuko, he has a short-lived affair with Tamiko, who herself cares only for Ihura's future social and financial status. After selling the family's last remaining properties, Tamiko and Junjiro refuse to give Nobuko her share. Nobuko moves out of the house, announcing that she will take legal steps against her stepchildren's decision. Shortly before his death, Junjiro confesses to Tamiko that he lost the family's money and the mortgaged house in ill-fated stock market investments.
- DirectorSeijun SuzukiStarsHachirô KasugaTomoko KôToshie TakadaA romantic adventure tale about a young guy working on a whale-hunting vessel and his love for a childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsShinji TanakaYûko MochizukiTakahiro TamuraThe conflicting dreams of the members of a Japanese family are threatened by a continuing series of misfortunes.
- DirectorKazuo MoriStarsKazuo HasegawaRaizô IchikawaShintarô KatsuAn all-star cast from Daiei Film Company has made "the ultimate Jirocho movie" about the legendary yakuza Shimizu no Jirocho, the biggest Boss in the Tokaido area.
- DirectorTomu UchidaStarsKusuo AbeHarue AkagiChiyonosuke Azuma
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsHideko TakamineKeiji SadaAkiko TamuraThree criminals planning to rob a house are continually delayed by the families antics.
- DirectorHeinosuke GoshoStarsChikage AwashimaJunzaburô BanAyako WakaoTose got incredibly lucky to go from being the peasants' daughter to the owner of a famous inn. But her husband doesn't support her, they have no children of their own, and there is unrest in the country that threatens their business.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsMieko TakamineKen UeharaRentarô MikuniTokyo. Mihoko and Toichi Nakagawa's ten year marriage is crumbling out of inertia. Each knows the other isn't happy, they themselves aren't happy, but they don't talk about their problems with each other, each festering in their unhappiness largely so that they will not show especially to their three boarders their problems. Mihiko in particular, old fashioned in her outlook, does not see divorce as an option, that move which would be a stigma she could not tolerate. Both are seemingly oblivious to the fact that others around them are facing similar if not worse situations, and that they themselves are largely the cause of their unhappiness. Things for their marriage get worse when Toichi starts to fall for his work colleague, widowed Fusako Sagara, who returns his affections.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsAkiko TamuraAkira IshihamaChishû RyûWhen a family has to relocate due to the war, they are ostracized by their new community.
- DirectorToshio MasudaStarsYûjirô IshiharaMie KitaharaYukiko Todoroki50s subculture icon Yujiro Ishihara (Crazed Fruit) stars in Masuda's Red Pier as "Jiro the Lefty", a killer with a natural talent. Shortly after arriving in Kobe, he witnesses a man die in a crane accident which turns out to be a cover-up for a murder. Jiro soon finds himself on the run, tailed by a determined cop...
- DirectorMasahiro MakinoStarsHibari MisoraKinnosuke NakamuraRyûnosuke TsukigataYoung Lord Genjiro, who abandoned his castle to live as a commoner in Edo, returns home to restore peace in the middle of disruption over an inheritance dispute. Meanwhile, his love affair with Kocho, a singer who is also a skilled archer.
- DirectorDaisuke ItôStarsTsumasaburô BandôUtaemon IchikawaIsuzu YamadaDuring the 17th Century bands of hatamoto, samurai vassals of the Tokugawa shogunate, were causing havoc in the new capital city of Edo. Opposing them was Banzui-in Chobei,whose sole aim was to save Edo from the hatamoto as their violent behavior threatened to pull apart the very fabric of society.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsTeiji TakahashiYoshiko KugaKanzaburô NakamuraA young wife looses patience with her career-minded husband and returns to her parents' home while an unpaid mortgage forces the couple to rent out their home for the summer to the husband's boss.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsMasayuki MoriChikage AwashimaRentarô MikuniTwo journalists and their lovers share an uncertain future.
- DirectorKunio WatanabeStarsKazuo HasegawaShintarô KatsuKôji TsurutaJapan's timeless tale of honor and revenge, the Loyal 47 Ronin is the true story of group of samurai who became ronin (masterless samurai) after their Lord was forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for assaulting a court official, Kira Yoshinaka, who had insulted him. After patiently waiting and planning for over a year, they executed a daring assault on Lord Kira's estate, and exacted their revenge, in the full knowledge that they would themselves be forced to commit seppuku to atone for their crime.
- DirectorTai KatôStarsKinnosuke NakamuraRentarô MikuniSatomi OkaA meeting between two traveling gamblers leads to a case of mistaken identity that has deadly consequences.
- DirectorTomu UchidaStarsUshio AkashiNoriko AobaHideo Ayuba
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsKeiko KishiIneko ArimaYoshiko KugaA flashback story of a young man, from his disgraced birth, his harsh life and his forbidden love, until when broken-hearted, can break out in search of a place where to live means more than being alive.
- DirectorHiroshi InagakiStarsToshirô MifuneYoshiko KugaKyôko KagawaIn the Tokugawa Era, the clan of Lord Yagyu has hidden away three scrolls containing clan secrets which, if revealed, would cause revolution and disaster for the clan. The information is divided among the three scrolls, all of which must be possessed for the secrets to be understood. When Princess Yuhime steals the scrolls, Tasaburo, a samurai with magical powers, and his brother Senshiro are sent to retrieve them.
- DirectorTeinosuke KinugasaStarsKazuo HasegawaMachiko KyôFujiko YamamotoThe story of Yoshinaka and the three women who love him.
- DirectorKenji MisumiStarsKazuo HasegawaYasuko NakadaYôko UrajiKenji MISUMI's YOTSUYA KWAIDAN is presumed to be the first colored film version of the famous play. Deviating heavily from the original source, Fuji YAHIRO depicts cold blooded protagonist Iemon as a tragic hero. The "righteous revenge" for his ruthlessly murdered wife leads to the redemption of her evil spirit. The visionary finale is without a question the apex of this underrated masterpiece.
- DirectorDaisuke ItôStarsTsumasaburô BandôUtaemon IchikawaIsuzu YamadaDuring the 17th Century bands of hatamoto, samurai vassals of the Tokugawa shogunate, were causing havoc in the new capital city of Edo. Opposing them was Banzui-in Chobei,whose sole aim was to save Edo from the hatamoto as their violent behavior threatened to pull apart the very fabric of society.
- DirectorTai KatôStarsShinobu ChiharaJuro HoshiEijirô KataokaMaster swordsman Genji Kurô is a master swordsman and entrusted with protecting the ancient sword Kaen by the Otsubo family. Being part of a valuable pair of swords made by a legendary sword maker, the Otsubo family tries to reunite the swords Kaen and Suien at the Mishima Shrine. The journey to the shrine is however full of peril and danger as a ban of ruthless thieves are interested in the swords.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsKeiji SadaIneko ArimaMasahiko TsugawaLongtime friends reunite only to find out that their bonds are not as strong as they thought they were.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsKeiji SadaIneko ArimaMasahiko TsugawaLongtime friends reunite only to find out that their bonds are not as strong as they thought they were.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsKôjirô KusanagiSachiko HidariTaketoshi NaitôWhen an elderly couple is murdered, the police pick up the most likely suspect, a young loner. The authorities force a confession out of the suspect, who then insists that he had a pair of accomplices.No subtitles.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsMichiyo KogureYôko KatsuragiTeruko KishiThe Kamiya family struggles to keep the town fishing association from going bankrupt as they deal with a dishonest captain and his degenerate crew.