|
尼くずれ (1968)
Character: Goro Isaoka
One of the nuns at Senjuan is Sister Shunko (Michiyo Yasuda). Unlike the usual nun, however, she often goes out to see the world, being of the opinion that nuns should not lead cloistered lives but should see something of modern life. She makes the acquaintance of a young girl named lkuko (Kayo Mikimoto) and saves her from the advances of a gangster named Goro (lchiro Nakatani). In the meantime she turns down several propositions and, in revenge, one of her admirers denounces her to the Mother Superior (Kuniko Miyake). This lady is of liberal views, however, and refuses to do anything about it. Then Shunko is visited by Goro's gang boss who wants lkuko back and says he will blackmail Shunko unless she agrees.
|
|
|
極悪坊主 念仏三段斬り (1970)
Character: N/A
In Meiji Period Japan, the carrying of swords had been outlawed, so Shikai, the Killer Priest carries his sword disguised as a Priest?s staff. One of the strongest entries in the series, Shinkai is badly injured, and must face his worst enemy in what could be their final showdown.
|
|
|
|
|
接吻泥棒 (1960)
Character: N/A
Starring Akira Takarada as a lightweight boxing champion.
|
|
|
|
|
日本の熱い日々 謀殺・下山事件 (1981)
Character: Toyama
The president of the Japanese National Railways is found dead during a period in which train service is plagued by numerous layoffs, strikes and shutdowns. The government says that the president was murdered; the police claim it was a suicide. A quizzical reporter follows the case for years, but the basic question remains unanswered: was the victim killed by members of the burgeoning Communist movement in Japan, or was the death stage-managed by the authorities in hopes of discrediting the Communists?
|
|
|
武器なき斗い (1960)
Character: N/A
It's a story of the life of a man who advocated the necessity of sex education to children, which was unusual at the time, solely opposed to the amendment of the Peace Preservation Law, and was assassinated by a rightist prior to his opposition speech.
|
|
|
秘剣 (1963)
Character: Shimamura Kazuma
This Japanese action-adventure is set in the 17th century when all forms of swordplay were banned. One fighter, an excellent swordsman believes the law is unfair. His brother keeps his opinions about the law to himself. The swordsman vents his frustration by cutting off the thumbs of an enemy. The fighter is then banished. To live, he becomes a thief. To restore the family's lost honor, the other brother is forced to challenge the fighter to a duel.
|
|
|
ふんどし医者 (1960)
Character: N/A
A skilled country doctor's talents are such that he can even perform operations as difficult and novel as removing a patient's kidney for the first time in Japan. Unfortunately for him, however, his wife's addiction to gambling is of such a magnitude that he is down to selling his underwear to make money. The image sticks and he becomes known as the 'underwear doctor.' On the other hand, his successful surgery's patient is so grateful he himself wants to become a physician.
|
|
|
続人間革命 (1976)
Character: N/A
Dramatic story of one man trying to make a difference.
|
|
|
|
|
鉄砲伝来記 (1968)
Character: Sakuji
Well before “Shogun” as warring clans were fighting for power throughout Japan, a Portuguese vessel ran aground off Tanegashima. Lord Tokitaka helped Captain Pinto repair his ship. The grateful captain offered the lord a gift--a matchlock musket—the first firearm ever seen in Japan. But like a great stone hurled into placid waters, this simple gift will start a revolution. Tokitaka tasks Kinbei, his greatest swordsmith, to copy this musket and build guns for Japan. While Kinbei struggles to forge Japan’s first musket, a great love blooms between Captain Pinto and Kinbei’s daughter Wakasa. But for Kinbei, to let Wakasa marry Pinto and go to Portugal is unthinkable. And as Kinbei creates Japan’s first matchlock factory, Lord Oda Nobunaga will seize upon firearms as the key to sweep all other clans before him, tearing a blood-soaked path of destruction through Japan.
|
|
|
鹿鳴館 (1970)
Character: N/A
TV drama based off the play of the same name by Yukio Mishima.
|
|
|
|
|
眠狂四郎 卍斬り (1969)
Character: N/A
Getting an opportunity to meet with another half-Caucasian swordsman, Kyoshiro finds himself involved in a series of dangerous encounters.
|
|
|
|
|
スパイ (1965)
Character: N/A
Based on true events surrounding a Korean student who had entered Japan unlawfully and escaped illegal alien internment.
|
|
|
日本の黒幕 (1979)
Character: N/A
Political fixer Homei Yamaoka's misdeeds come to light, throwing Japanese politics into deadly confusion. But he's not going down without a fight.
|
|
|
日本暗黒街 (1966)
Character: Kosuke Tatsumi
A lone wolf tries to eliminate a drug-smuggling operation.
|
|
|
化石 (1975)
Character: Taisuke (Itskuki's brother)
An industrialist is diagnosed with terminal cancer. He is on a trip to Europe at the time, and a glimpse of a Japanese woman in that setting causes him to fantasize about her as the personification of his impending death. As his dialogue with his imagined mortality continues, he actually meets the living woman who is the template for his fantasy, and together they tour rural churches. Gradually he comes to some kind of peace about the diagnosis. When he returns to Japan, he is met with a series of challenges which profoundly test the lessons he has learned.
|
|
|
|
化石 (1975)
Character: Taisuke, Tajihei's brother
An industrialist is diagnosed with terminal cancer. He is on a trip to Europe at the time, and a glimpse of a Japanese woman in that setting causes him to fantasize about her as the personification of his impending death. As his dialogue with his imagined mortality continues, he actually meets the living woman who is the template for his fantasy, and together they tour rural churches. Gradually he comes to some kind of peace about the diagnosis. When he returns to Japan, he is met with a series of challenges which profoundly test the lessons he has learned.
|
|
|
|
姿三四郎 (1977)
Character: Saburo Monma
The story of Sanshiro Sugata, a young man who wants to learn the new art of judo. A wise teacher reveals to Sanshiro that judo is not merely a means of combat nor a demonstration of physical skill, but an art which reveals the artist to himself.
|
|
|
真紅の男 (1961)
Character: N/A
Takashi, who took the blame when his father shot a gangster, returns home after serving a four-year sentence, only to find it infested with yakuza running a dope ring. Battling gangsters all the way, Takashi searches for his former girlfriend, now a drug addict.
|
|
|
やま猫作戦 (1962)
Character: N/A
Soldiers on the front lines in China during World War II are besieged by guerrilla attacks and attempt to destroy an enemy fort.
|
|
|
英霊たちの応援歌 (1979)
Character: N/A
After the war-time government orders the disbanding of the Big-Six baseball league, the teams of Waseda and Keio universities play one final game before they are drafted into the armed forces and face the hardships of military service.
|
|
|
眠狂四郎多情剣 (1966)
Character: N/A
The masked daughter of the Shogun wants to kill a samurai who has seen her scarred face. She sends waves of ninja warriors to kill the samurai and plots diabolical schemes / ambushes without much success.
|
|
|
Dojo Yaburi (1982)
Character: N/A
Tomisaburo Wakayama is back with a new take on the classic Yamamoto Shugoro masterpiece “Ame Agaru” as a samurai on the run with his bride who makes a living by challenging dojo masters to a match, then taking money from them to keep quiet about it. Staying at an inn filled with many colorful characters and trying to make enough money to bribe the border officials to let them pass to the next domain this exciting, yet heartfelt story is a true testament to the power of the sword. When he meets an equally skilled swordsman the sparks will fly with a surprise ending that captures the soul of Japan!
|
|
|
青い野獣 (1960)
Character: N/A
Tatsuya Nakadai plays a scheming low-level executive who plays labor against management and uses anyone he can to further his career in this moral drama. When things get too hot, he bails and goes to work for a prominent politician (Koreya Senda). Soon he has impregnated the daughter (Yoko Tsukasa) of his boss, but he figures marriage will solve his current problems. His happiness is short-lived when he is stalked by a union radical he once double-crossed who now seeks vengeance.
|
|
|
刑事物語 兄弟の掟 (1971)
Character: N/A
Iwabuchi of the Metropolitan Police Department's Investigation Division cooperates with Kubo of the Foreign Affairs Division in re-investigating the case of a foreign drug addict's death at the request of Kubo.
|
|
|
顔役暁に死す (1961)
Character: N/A
An early Okamoto yakuza film, though it's not in the Underworld series (along with The Last Gunfight and The Big Boss) despite being alternatively known as "Death of the Boss." While Okamoto did not write this film and took on the project because he was assigned and "just doing [his] job" according to an interview with Chris Desjardins in Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film, he did express a general excitement about working in action cinema (which shows through in this film's energy.)
|
|
|
忍ぶ糸 (1973)
Character: N/A
A beautifully told story of a woman hardened by marriage to a man she doesn't love, after giving herself to another. She dedicates herself to her work, designing and creating plaited cords for kimono.
|
|
|
森は生きている (1956)
Character: N/A
Film adaptation of the stage version of Samuil Marshak's "Twelve Months"
|
|
|
独立愚連隊西へ (1960)
Character: N/A
In this patriotic WW II drama, the Japanese army demonstrates its courage and willingness to do anything to win as they endeavor to sneak into Communist China to bring back the flag of a defeated enemy regiment.
|
|
|
|
地獄の左門十手無頼帖 女菩薩供養 (1983)
Character: N/A
After three consecutive days of heavy rain, the water level at Sumida River rises and the newly built Eitai Bridge collapses just two years after its completion. Among the 20 victims is Okou, the lover of Yokichi, a member of the theatrical entertainment district controlled by Samon Kamiyama. A body of a bridge carpenter is also found in the debris causing Samon to suspect the construction, which prompts him to launch an investigation. The superintendent, Horitome Tamba rules that the bridge collapse is due to a natural disaster and cleared the wrongdoing of master carpenter Jinbe, who was responsible for building the bridge. Yotaro, who is filled with grief and anger surrenders his jitte and joins forces with his former gambling buddies Juzaburo and Onami to abduct Tamb’s Daughter O-Sono to extract revenge…
|
|
|
暗黒街の弾痕 (1961)
Character: Shizuo Komatsu
Yuzo Kayama plays the protagonist, a whale-hunting cannon manufactuing supervisor, whose brother is an automobile tester for Komatsu Motors which has a fatal accident. As his brother investigates the "Accident" with his old college friend (makoto Sato), now a reporter... They stumble across murder, espionage and cover-ups. High-class night club, femme fatale, and a "Blueprint of Murder" all adds up to a bigger plot then first expected.
|
|
|
吶喊 (1975)
Character: Narrator
During the military phase of the Meiji Restoration of 1868, Sentaro joins a local militia loyal to the Tokugawa Shogunate in order to fight Imperial troops. But Sentaro's friendship with a pickpocket, who switches sides whenever it suits his needs, leads to complications that could cost Sentaro his life as they infiltrate enemy lines.
|
|
|
暗黒街の牙 (1962)
Character: N/A
Toho-produced crime drama involving the drug trade.
|
|
|
暗黒街撃滅命令 (1961)
Character: Kamiya
Japanese neo-noir crime drama movie directed by Jun Fukuda
|
|
|
天狗党 (1969)
Character: Chôgorô
Sentaro is been severely beaten for his defiance of the government and the high taxes during a time of famine. He is befriended by Kada Gentaro, a leader in the Mito Tengu group, which plans to overthrow the shogunate.
|
|
|
無宿 やどなし (1974)
Character: Tappei
Two inmates are simultaneously released from jail, but go their separate ways, only to cross paths again in the nearest brothel. There they make the acquaintance of a would-be prostitute. They help her escape and decide to guide her on her quest for sunken contraband somewhere off the coast.
|
|
|
ずべ公番長 ざんげの値打ちもない (1971)
Character: Mari's poor husband
Reiko Oshida stars as a young wannabe gangster tough girl, just released from reform school. She tracks down one of her classmates fathers, who runs an auto repair shop that the local Yakuza are trying to force out of business and take over, and starts working for him. At the same time a recently released from prison, and now ill Yakuza is trying to make a new life for himself and his girl, a friend of Reiko's, who also just graduated from reform school. A fateful car crash brings the two on a collision course with each other and the brutal Yakuza clan, which can only end bloody vengeance.
|
|
|
いのちぼうにふろう (1971)
Character: Officer Okajima (uncredited)
The story takes place in feudal Japan, when any commerce with the rest of the world was strictly prohibited. An idealist suddenly appears in an isolated inn (the one that the title refers to), the head-quarters of a group of smugglers, with stolen money intended to ransom his loved one who is forced to work in a brothel.
|
|
|
牙狼之介 地獄斬り (1967)
Character: Ikkaku
Kiba Okaminosuke finds himself entangled with a group of prisoners being transported to their executions, one of whom oddly looks exactly like his dead father. There are crooked gold miners, a beautiful girl who is unfortunately a complete lunatic and a dojo master who is obsessed with killing Kiba just to prove that his school's sword style is the best.
|
|
|
水戸黄門 (1978)
Character: Kazaguruma no Yashichi
One of Japan’s most popular historical characters, former Vice-Shogun Tokugawa Mitsukuni, whose travels around the nation are legendary has made it to the silver screen in a dynamic and exciting tale featuring megastar Toshiro Mifune as an expert swordsman drawn into the action to fight injustice. The Elder Lord travels about disguised as a retired merchant with his two trusty bodyguards Sukesaburo and Kakunoshin by his side and secret agent Yashichi close by. After a chance meeting with a dying man and young woman who had been brutally attacked, they set out for Kaga Province to wreak vengeance on the responsible parties. Don’t miss this exciting journey into Japanese history!
|
|
|
情無用の罠 (1961)
Character: N/A
Taut thriller about a too-perfect criminal case against an ex-convict that makes a nosy detective suspicious.
|
|
|
子連れ狼 死に風に向う乳母車 (1972)
Character: Yagyu Samurai
In the third film of the Lone Wolf and Cub series, Ogami Itto volunteers to be tortured by Yakuza to save a prostitute and is hired by their leader to kill an evil chamberlain.
|
|
|
大菩薩峠 (1966)
Character: Bunnojo Utsuki
Ryunosuke, a gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, has no moral code and kills without remorse. It’s a way of life that leads to madness.
|
|
|
連合艦隊司令長官 山本五十六 (1968)
Character: (uncredited)
As Japan joins in a political pact with Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is appointed supreme commander of the Japanese fleet. With Japan headed inexorably toward war, Yamamoto, despite his misgivings, believes the only possible victory lies in destroying the American fleet by surprise at Pearl Harbor. The attack succeeds, but fails to sink the American carrier fleet. Thus Yamamoto must lead the Japanese navy into war with ever-diminishing likelihood of success.
|
|
|
女囚７０１号 さそり (1976)
Character: Dietman Miura
Once again we focus on Nami Matsushima. This time she has a sister who goes missing and after getting too caught up in doing something about it, our innocent heroine is given a fifteen year sentence for a murder she didn't commit. She's sent to an all women prison where she's not exactly welcome. Her fellow inmates torture, humiliate and try to kill her; but the Scorpion prevails long enough to get some justice.
|
|
|
黒い海峡 (1964)
Character: Tetsuji Onuki
Newly out of prison after killing his boss' rival, Akio Maki is eager to move on and start a new life with the boss' daughter. However, the chains of the past are not so easily broken and Maki is soon ordered to kill again.
|
|
|
新選組 (1969)
Character: Moribe Tani
Near the end of the nineteenth century, as the balance of power shifts from Shogunate towards the Emperor, Japan restlessly awaits the dawning of a new age. But not all are content...The Shinsengumi, a small army of samurai, farmers and peasants, band together to do battle against the tide of history. Their leader, Isami Kondo is a man who rises from farmer to fighter to head the fierce Shinsengumi brigade. Using a stern hand and a heart of gold, he rallies his men in defense of the tottering Shogunate. But bloodshed and treachery lurk around every corner.
|
|
|
暴動島根刑務所 (1975)
Character: N/A
Japan, 1948: Hiroki Matsukata stars as a man facing a nine year prison sentence. He incites prisoners of Shimane Prison to the biggest riot in jail history. A fighter by heart, he sees a way out of any situation, but will he survive this, the gutsiest assault ever attempted?
|
|
|
若者の旗 (1970)
Character: N/A
The final part of the trilogy. It is about a younger brother, Suekichi. He learned well the lessons that life taught his older brothers. Therefore, he does not think to study, but strives for material well-being alone. To make a career, he ruthlessly pushes his colleagues with his elbows. For him, the high ideals of trade union activists Jiro and Saburo are an example of old-fashioned thinking, naive behavior.
|
|
|
男の顔は履歴書 (1966)
Character: N/A
Also known as "History of a Man’s Face" and "By a Man's Face Shall You Know Him" . Immigrant gangs terrorize a Japanese town with their threats, loud jazz, and tasteless fashion sense, and only the tough but suave Dr. Amamiya (Ando) can stop them, as long as he gets rid of his silly peace-loving ideals.
|
|
|
男の紋章 風雲双つ竜 (1963)
Character: N/A
Ryuji Oshima, a gambler, kills Saiga in self-defense, and considering himself unfit to lead men, secludes himself in a temple to atone for his misdeeds. At home, when his mother, the boss of a construction gang, bids for and gets the job of building the Town Hall, other gangs set out to disrupt her business and try to kill her.
|
|
|
|
ご存知！旗本退屈男Ⅷ 琉球王朝に渦巻く暗雲！ (1993)
Character: Wakura Juro
The two ronin that Sawatari Mondonosuke saved were secret envoys from Ryukyu. They could not stand the tyranny of the Satsuma clan and were trying to appeal to the shogunate. But they were captured by someone afterwards. Mondonosuke’s boredom bug started to stir… Mondonosuke rescued the two who were imprisoned in the mansion of the chief elder, Okubo Iga-no-kami , as well as a senior official, Mamoru, and his niece, Reika , who had also escaped from Ryukyu. The Satsuma clan hired Wakura Juro to assassinate Mondonosuke through his daughter O-Ran, who is a spy …
|
|
|
|
|
柳生一族の陰謀 (1978)
Character: Gyobu Amano
Following the death of the second Tokugawa shogun, it is revealed that he was poisoned by retainers of his son Iemitsu in hopes of gaining him the shogunate despite the stammer and birthmark which undermine his respect. Iemitsu and his brother Tadanaga become bitter rivals for the shogunate, and the land is split into factions, eventually erupting into warfare. Iemitsu's mentor, his fencing instructor Yagyu, is fixated upon securing Iemitsu the shogunate and ends up betraying everyone, even his own family, in pursuit of the goal.
|
|
|
無頼 黒匕首 (1968)
Character: Kensuke Miura
A street war breaks loose between two rival gangs in the Kansai region of Japan. Goro is in the middle of action. Through a knife fight against Sueo, a high profile gangster from Busou-kai, Goro notices a familiar face approaching him from amidst the chaos - his girlfriend, Yuri. Goro had sent her to safety, but she had returned, aching to see him. Caught between Goro and his enemy knife, she reunites with her love - the price was her life.
|
|
|
戦国野郎 (1963)
Character: Harunezuni
A brave, highly principled warrior resigns his post as a body guard to the head of a powerful clan after he learns that his employers have been smuggling arms to the enemy. The remaining samurai try in vain to coerce him back, but their efforts are thwarted by crooked warriors who launch an attack...
|
|
|
ダイナマイトどんどん (1978)
Character: Yuichi
Yakuza Gang War is at the height in North Kyūshū Area in the summer of 1950, particularly between the Okagen Group and the rising Hashiden Gang. Now with the mediation/interference of the Americans, they decide to settle it in a peaceful, *democratic* way, that is, to settle it with a baseball game. Now, with its money and power, The Hashiden group soon recruits a group of gamblers known to be good at baseball from the whole country. So, what is the Okagen Gumi gonna do?
|
|
|
眠狂四郎女妖剣 (1964)
Character: N/A
A fugitive christian "saint" (female, of course!) and a sadistic drug-addled princess both have their eye on Kyoshiro. The fact that a bunch of ruthless smugglers also want him dead is the least of his problems!
|
|
|
金環蝕 (1975)
Character: N/A
When bribe money from a rigged election funnels into a dam construction project, collusion, lust, greed and even murder are on the ballot.
|
|
|
ボルネオ大将 赤道に賭ける (1969)
Character: N/A
Takeo (Kiniya Kitaoji), son of a wealthy car industry executive, is unhappy with his job and goes to Singapore to become a fisherman. At first ridiculed by the local fishermen, he eventually gets their respect but his rebel temper pushes him to find new adventures in Alaska.
|
|
|
空の大怪獸 ラドン (1956)
Character: Senkichi
Mining engineer Shigeru investigates the disappearance and death of his fellow coworkers when prehistoric nymphs are discovered emerging from the mines. After an attack on the local village, Shigeru heads deeper into the mines only to make a more horrifying discovery in the form a prehistoric flying creature. Soon a second monster appears as the two converge in Fukuoka.
|
|
|
不敵なあいつ (1966)
Character: N/A
The first film in the Fearless Guy series. Kosuke was part of a huge organized crime group, but decided to leave after his best friend died a brutal death at the hands of the gang leader. He goes on a trip with a guitar in his hand and ends up in Yokohama. The guitar he plays at the bar in the evening was given to him by his late best friend. At the bar, Kosuke meets Kumagoro. Kosuke saves Kumagoro from bandits. Kumagoro is a funny man, he came to this city to reunite with the woman he swore to marry. Kosuke decides to settle in this city and help him find his beloved, but the future of this city is not cloudless either, because the cruel Yakuza is in power in the city, and soon Kosuke will have to fight with him...
|
|
|
日本のいちばん長い日 (1967)
Character: First Lieutnenant Kuroda
Following the detonation of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese military and the government clash over the demand from the Allies for unconditional surrender. Minister of the Army Anami leads the military officers who propose to fight on, even to the death of every Japanese citizen. Emperor Hirohito, however, joins with his ministers in asking the unthinkable, the peaceful surrender of Japan. When the military plots a coup to overthrow the Emperor's civilian government, Anami must face the choice between his desires and loyalty to his Emperor.
|
|
|
ブルークリスマス (1978)
Character: N/A
UFOs appear on Earth, and people who actually see them suddenly find that their blood has turned blue. Soon panic and hysteria result in the new "blue-bloods" being persecuted by the rest of mankind, and eventually certain all-too-familiar measures begin to be taken against them.
|
|
|
どぶ鼠作戦 (1962)
Character: Sgt. Miyoshi
Towards the end of World War II, five men are tasked with freeing the son of a general from Chinese captivity.
|
|
|
月影忍法帖 二十一の眼 (1963)
Character: Yakuro Teranishi
A wave of terror is threatening to unseat Shogun Yoshimune. Police stations are erupting into flames, convicts escaping from prison, houses robbed and vandalized, streets teeming with panicked citizens. Is Ijyuin Tanomo, highly-placed official of Owari clan, secretly using deadly ninja to foment riot and rebellion? Narumiya Shinbei, a lone samurai spy adept at ninjutsu must uncover the hidden hand orchestrating these shocking crimes. Shinbei enlists a small band of dedicated ninja to lay siege to the enemy’s stronghold, where his own sister works as an undercover agent. Now, ninja must fight ninja in a last desperate battle to save the shogunate.
|
|
|
サンダカン八番娼館 望郷 (1974)
Character: Yamamoto
A young journalist interviews an elderly woman about being forced into prostitution in Borneo at a brothel called Sandakan No. 8.
|
|
|
戦争と人間 第一部「運命の序曲」 (1970)
Character: Daisaku Komoto
The upstart Godai family conglomerate plans to strengthen ties with the hardliners in the Kwantung Army as they plan military expansion into Manchuria.
|
|
|
ああ爆弾 (1964)
Character: Yasaburo Yatou
During the mayoral election, two ex-prisoners decide to replace the lucky pen of an annoying candidate with a mini-bomb.
|
|
|
大殺陣 雄呂血 (1966)
Character: Jurota Makabe
A naively honorable samurai comes to the bitter realization that his devotion to moral samurai principles makes him an oddity among his peers, and a very vulnerable oddity in consequence. He takes the blame for the misdeeds of others, with the understanding that he will be exiled for one year and restored to the clan's good graces after the political situation dies down. As betrayal begins to heap upon betrayal, he realizes he'll have to live out his life as a master-less ronin, if not hunted down and killed.
|
|
|
ある殺し屋の鍵 (1967)
Character: Ishino
Raizô Ichikawa reprises his role as the restaurant-cook-turned-contract-killer in this sequel to Kazuo Mori's stylish 1967 thriller A Certain Killer.
|
|
|
切腹 (1962)
Character: Hayato Yazaki
Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.
|
|
|
暗黒街の対決 (1960)
Character: Deputy Mochizuki
Japanese police detective Saburo Fujioka is suspected of corruption, demoted, and sent to the city of Kojin. Kojin is the scene of fierce fighting between rival gangs. Fujioka is assigned to investigate the death of the wife of gangster Tetsuo Maruyama of the Kozuka gang, probably at the hands of one of the Oka gang. During a gang gunfight, Maruyama is rescued by Detective Fujioka and the two become friends. But Maruyama insists on avenging his wife's murder, even if it means conflict with his new friend.
|
|
|
囚人船 (1956)
Character: N/A
A film by Hiroshi Inagaki.
|
|
|
次郎物語 (1987)
Character: 東医師
Adaptation of the classic masterpiece about the relationship between parents and their children.
|
|
|
人斬り (1969)
Character: N/A
A ronin desperately seeks a way out of financial straits; he allies with the Tosa clan under the ruthless leader Takechi, who quickly takes advantage.
|
|
|
肉弾 (1968)
Character: N/A
A soldier has been in the Japanese military for the entirety of WWII, and in that time, his dedication to the army has never faltered. However, as the war draws to a close, his commanding officers become increasingly desperate and push their men to ever more absurd extremes. The ridiculousness of the orders from above peak when the hero of the story is assigned to drive a one-man submarine straight into the hull of an enemy battleship.
|
|
|
網走番外地 望郷篇 (1965)
Character: Takeshi
Upon returning to his hometown of Nagasaki, recently released prisoner Tachibana Shinichi must rejoin the Asahi gang family in order to pay back a past debt. Trouble brews when the rival gang that was responsible for sending him to prison learns of his return. Left with no alternative to their constant harassment and threats, Tachibana decides to take them on.
|
|
|
新仁義なき戦い (1974)
Character: Nanba
Bunta Sugawara is Miyoshi, a low-level assassin of the Yamamori gang who is sent to jail after a bungled hit. While in stir, family member Aoki attempts to seize power from the boss, and Miyoshi finds himself stuck between the two factions with no honorable way out.
|
|
|
激動の昭和史 沖縄決戦 (1971)
Character: Chief of Staff Ueno
The Americans are swiftly closing on Okinawa, an island just south of the Japanese mainland. The Imperial command sends top generals and several army divisions to defend it at all costs. The mission quickly degenerates as vital resources and troops are diverted to other islands. After a civilian evacuation ends in tragedy most of non-combatants are forced to remain on the island. Many convert to soldier status. Tokyo sends mixed messages that squander time and resources, as when they order the defenders to build an airstrip for aircraft that never come. The truth soon becomes obvious: the high command decides that the island cannot be held and effectively abandons the Okinawan defenders. When the Americans land many troops are deployed in the wrong places. As the slaughter mounts, a suicidal attitude takes hold. Okinawa becomes a death trap, for civilian volunteers and non-combatants as well.
|
|
|
北陸代理戦争 (1977)
Character: N/A
In the setting of the Hokuriku region, where the snow and cold winds rage, for the first time in true-life yakuza film history, director Kinji Fukasaku shows battles among yakuza who value land over tradition. Hiroki Matsukata stars as Noboru Kawada, a Hokuriku yakuza who will use any measure for survival, disregarding parents, brothers, and tradition.
|
|
|
連合艦隊 (1981)
Character: N/A
A lavish retelling of the true story of the final voyage and ultimate destruction and sinking of the battleship Yamato, Japan's greatest flagship during the Second World War.
|
|
|
独立愚連隊 (1959)
Character: Squad Leader
When Sergeant Okubo's brother is murdered at a Japanese outpost in Northern China during the Second World War, Okubo poses as a war correspondent and seeks out his brother's killer.
|
|
|
大誘拐 RAINBOW KIDS (1991)
Character: Wakayama TV 'Shacho'
A wealthy matriarch is kidnapped by a gang of three. She is insulted by the amount of money they propose to demand as ransom, and a strange interchange of roles takes place.
|
|
|
風林火山 (1969)
Character: N/A
Kansuke Yamamoto is a samurai who dreams of a country united, peaceful from sea to sea. He enters the service of Takeda, the lord of Kai domain. He convinces Takeda to kill the lord of neighboring Suwa and take his wife as a concubine. He then convinces the widow, Princess Yu, to accept this arrangement and to bear Takeda a son. He pledges them his life. He then spends years using treachery, poetic sensibility, military and political strategy to expand Takeda's realm, advance the claim of Yu's son as the heir, and prepare for an ultimate battle with the forces of Echigo. Has Kansuke overreached? Are his dreams, blinded by love, too big?
|
|
|
続・網走番外地 (1965)
Character: Yoshiyama
Two convicts just released from prison find a green bauble filled with diamonds — and try to prove they didn't steal it.
|
|
|
五人の賞金稼ぎ (1969)
Character: Mondo Shibaike
The second Bounty Hunter film, when master killer Shikoro Ichibei takes up the cause of a group of farmers being driven to despair by the vile Lord Ozeki. The villainous lord has driven them to mounting their last stand at a deserted fort against an army of attackers. Wakayama Tomisaburo is superb as an expert in killing and military tactics, who leaves his medical practice at a clinic for the poor in order to counter the vicious tactics of that vile lord.
|
|
|
怪談 (1965)
Character: (segment "Hoichi the Earless") (uncredited)
Taking its title from an archaic Japanese word meaning "ghost story," this anthology adapts four folk tales. A penniless samurai marries for money with tragic results. A man stranded in a blizzard is saved by Yuki the Snow Maiden, but his rescue comes at a cost. Blind musician Hoichi is forced to perform for an audience of ghosts. An author relates the story of a samurai who sees another warrior's reflection in his teacup.
|
|
|
続 男の紋章 (1963)
Character: N/A
A violent story of loyalty and revenge among the many "yakuza" or gambling groups in Japan.
|
|
|
新吾番外勝負 (1964)
Character: N/A
After Aoi Shingo, the illegitimate son of Shogun Yoshimune has gained prominence as the finest swordsman in the land, he tries to lead a peaceful life with his mother far away from the seat of government in Edo. Not wanting to inconvenience his father anymore his plan is to stay away from the city and enjoy life like a normal man. Unfortunately for him, his past comes back to haunt him in the person of his mortal enemy, the one swordsman that is skillful enough to defeat him. This is the most perilous moment of Shingo's life as he must face his deadliest foe in a battle to the death!
|
|
|
用心棒 (1961)
Character: First Samurai
A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.
|
|
