1958년 일본 전후 오사카 병기 공장지대를 배경으로 재일 한국인들의 고난에 찬 삶을 그린 재일 작가 양석일의 원작 소설을 영화화한 작품이다.
Moribe family matriarch
가메라와 갸오스의 싸움(1편)으로 부모를 잃은 중학생 아야나는 가메라를 증오하며 살아가던 중, 마을에 전해 내려오던 전설의 괴수를 만나 ‘이리스’라는 이름을 지어주고 보살핀다. 그러나 ‘이리스’는 아야나의 바람과 달리 점점 거대해지면서 사람들을 공격하고 도시를 파괴하기에 이른다. 이를 저지하기 위해 나타난 가메라! 이제 가메라와 ‘이리스’의 격렬한 사투가 펼쳐진다!
Candy Seller
It has been two years since unsuccessful cartoonist Tsube started to live with Kuniko casually in a small apartment.
Masako Ido
Based on the comic by Tatsu Kariya.
Featuring journalist Shiro Yamaoka who works for Touzai Shimbun. He is a cynical food critic who is tasked by the newspaper's owner, along with the young Yuko Kurita, to provide recipes for the "ultimate menu".
Approached by a friend about a matchmaking arrangement, Su-san goes to Hama-chan's home seeking help. Hama-chan is away on a business trip, but Michiko entertains Su-san late into the night. When he gets drunk and ends up spending the night, Hama-chan, begins to question his boss's relationship with Michiko.
Old Fireball / Oroku (voice)
도쿄 근방의 타마 구릉지. 두 무리로 나뉘어 살던 너구리들은 도쿄의 개발 계획인 뉴타운 프로젝트로 인해 그들의 숲이 파괴되자, 이에 대항하기 위해 중지되어 있던 변신술의 부흥과 인간연구 5개년 계획을 추진하기로 합의한다. 또한 시코쿠와 사도 지방에 살고 있는 전설의 장로 등에게도 원군을 청하기로 하고 가위 바위 보 시합을 통해 사자를 보낸다. 너구리들은 외부의 원군이 오기를 기다리며, 변신술 특훈과 변신술을 이용한 게릴라 작전으로 인간들의 개발 계획과 공사를 방해하지만 결국 뉴타운 개발 계획 저지에는 효과가 거의 없다는 것을 깨닫게 된다. 이 때, 그토록 기다리던 전설의 장로 3명이 시코쿠 지방에서 도착하는데...
Counselor
The son of a besieged Shogun in war-torn 17th century Japan travels to Spain to buy weaponry from the king.
Gen Nomura
Hunting master Ginzo kills a man-eating bear. When he finds out the bear had a cub, Ginzo decides to raise the cub, but the bear later becomes a troublemaker.
Okane
이마무라에게 처음 칸영화제 그랑프리를 안겨준 작품. 일부 평자들은 와 와 같은 반열의 걸작으로 평가한다. 시대도 장소도 확실하지 않은 일본의 옛날 산속 마을이 무대다. 이곳에는 식량 부족 때문에 사람은 70살이 되면 자식에게 업혀 나라야마 정상에 버려지는 한국의 고려장 같은 풍습이 이어져오고 있다. 오린이라는 헌신적인 노인은 진심으로 슬퍼하는 자식에게 업혀 산으로 향하지만 이것이 신의 부름이라고 생각하며 순응한다. 기노시타 게이스케의 58년작을 리메이크한 것이지만, 이마무라는 여기다 원작자의 에로틱한 소설 하나를 더 끌고 들어와 스토리를 뒤섞어놓는다. 죽음을 향한 노인들의 산행 와중에 인구 억제를 목적으로 장남 이외엔 결혼할 수 없다는 마을의 규율 때문에 벌어지는 성적 소동과, 동물들의 성행위가 교차된다. 이마무라가 평생에 걸쳐 묘사해온 인간이 지닌 외설성과 원시성이 죽음과 마찬가지로 하나의 자연적 과정임이 암시된다. 지나치게 포르노적이라는 비판이 일기도 했지만, 대부분의 서구 평론가들은 이마무라의 대표작으로 올려놓는다.
Yasu's mother
Ginshiro, threatened by poor repute and upcoming star Tachibana, forces his friend Yasu to marry Konatsu, Ginshiro's pregnant mistress; Yasu becomes a stuntman to make ends meet.
A 19-year-old newspaper delivery boy begins collecting information on the households in his neighborhood and keeping a journal of why he doesn't like them. Declaring himself a 'right-winger' and calling in bomb threats against the neighbors he doesn't like, the 19-year-old begins a war of psychological terror against the families in his neighborhood.
Hisano Asano
떠돌이 카츠는 두 명의 남자를 살해하고 현금을 훔쳐 달아난다. 자신을 쫓고 있는 경찰의 수사망을 따돌리기 위해 그는 동거녀와 부모님께 남기는 유서를 써놓고 투신자살을 위장한다. 이후 그는 대학교수, 변호사 등으로 위장하여 살해, 절도 등을 저지르며 여자들과 놀아난다. 사상 최대의 수사망에도 불구하고 극악무도한 범죄를 저지르고 다니던 카츠는 하마마츠의 하숙집에 머무르는 동안 하숙집 주인 여자의 정부가 되는데...
Taro Kuroki, 42, is a stuntman with a samurai's heart. He loves adventures, plays pranks with the police, tries to cure a cat lady by reversing her trauma, and finally, rescues his niece who is about to be lured into prostitution.
The final chapter of the Hibotan Bakuto series. Oryu the Red Peony visits an old dying Boss of an ally family and promised her that she would help guide the new Boss. Meanwhile a turf war breaks out. When the family is betrayed from within and the rival family becomes violent, Oryu takes things into her own hands…
Interesting fights between the "Capone Group" and "Jumbo Group".
Kagura no Taka
In a strange outfit and full of youthful energy, the explosive Boss Kumatora raises hell like there's no tomorrow. The first movie of a new series starring Wakayama Tomisaburo as everybody's favorite character Boss Kumatora from the Red Peony Gambler series. Having made a fortune in the Russo-Japanese War, the Kumatora Family migrates to Kyushu to take on a military-related job. There they encounter the evil and malicious interference of the Chindai family of Kumamoto, and Boss Kumatora boldly fights back with the help of O'Ryu the Red Peony. A super entertaining film with non-stop comedy and action directed by Suzuki Norifumi.
Minako Shimamura
Shimamura & Mineko return to Kamagasaki in Osaka. In their return Shimamura quickly finds himself defending a lady in distress. During the skirmish he bumps into his old buddies who turns him on to the "new" goings on in town, Shimamura is angered to discover a Chinese triad organization has overthrown their gang, a situation they must reverse. Now he and the old gang finds themselves putting their lives on the line defending the honor of the "Yakuza Way", the locals of Osaka, even Japan!!
An uptight young man comes to suspect that his factory worker girlfriend has a secret involving his boorish older brother.
Sumi Muraoka
Sumi Muraoka, nicknamed "Sumi Banten", due to the fact that her back is decorated with a tattoo of the goddess Banten, the woman who heads the Banten Yakuza family. She comes into confrontation with a powerful of Yakuza group Mutsumi-kai, seeking to capture all power in their hands.
A tale of wannabe yakuza youths. When not cooking up scams with his buddies, Zenkichi develops a crush on Taro's disgusted sister, Miki. But soon the young hoods run afoul of their underworld idols when they rob the wrong gang, led by brutal boss Konno. When Zenkichi's pals start to bite the dust, he hooks up with a more traditional yakuza, Tetsugoro, to retaliate.
The industrual revolution comes to Japan with the introduction of the railroad system. This led to clashes between boatmen, who livihoods are threatened, and the railroad construction workers. Oryu the Red Peony returns to her home in Kumamoto to accept her position as second generation leader of the Yano Family. But the ceremony is interrupted by fighting between local boatmen and railroad works. And it seems a rival family is pulling the strings behind the clashes.
Mineko
An Osaka gangster Shimamura just got married. His new bride, Mineko is also involved in drug trafficking. When she goes to China to make a deal, things get botched pretty badly. Shimamura must travel to save her and recoup his employers’ losses.
Otaka
The third chapter of the ‘Red Peony Gambler’ saga depicts the happiness and sadness of Red Peony Oryu’s life as she seals her femininity with a red peony tattoo and lives in world of chivalry and honor of the yakuza. This story takes place in the middle of the Meiji era in Nagoya. Oryu is wandering the country, training herself to reinstate her family name. With a written recommendation from Kumatora, she appears at the door of the Nishinomaru family. At the same time, the family is preparing for the gambling competition at the Netsuda Shrine Festival, which they have been hosting for generations. Meanwhile, the crooked Kinbara family is plotting to take over the competition. And now Oryu is forced to get involved in the struggle…
Forth film in the Gokudo series with Tomisaburô Wakayama
Ryuko was raised by her father, a gambler named Senzo Yano in Kumamoto, Kyushu, after her mother died when she was little. When she turned 18 years old, her father was attacked and killed by a stranger in alley. Ryuko then dissolves her yakuza family, and, carrying the wallet left by the killer, she sets out on a journey to avenge her father's death. Five years later, she wanders the nation, known only as! Red Peony Oryu who has a red peony tattooed on her shoulder and has the defiance and courage of a man. She meets Katagiri - a loner gambler, Kumatora - boss of a family in Shikoku, and Otaka - female boss of the Doman Family in Osaka. With their help, she finally catches up with the man who murdered her father.
Second film of the Gokudo series starring Tomisaburô Wakayama
Shimamura is a violent street thug who joins the yakuza & is merciless & unscrupulous on his rise, lacking any sense of either duty or chivalry. When imprisoned, he is repeatedly transferred from one prison to another, because no one can handle him.
Sachi
It had been a year and four months since Mitsuo was last on a movie set. Welcomed back by director Ishizaki and his film crew, Mitsuo is excited to star as the lead in "My Sweetheart". One day, half way through production, he meets his friends from a popular rock group, "The Spiders". Through their discussion regarding the climax scene, they criticize that the script is too grim. In a notion to protect their friend's career, they decide to pay the scriptwriter a little visit.
Fierce war breaks out when Shujiro’s rival clan attempts to sabotage his lucrative construction business.
The son of a prominent member of a fishing community returns home after a stint with the yakuza to find his father has died under orders of a local gang leader. He sets out to avenge his father, keeping his plans secret from his mother who is cold to him since his perceived abandonment of the family. This wonderful, if little-seen, Fulasaku gem deals with family, community and what it means to do right by both.
Tsuyako
Second movie in the yoidore hakase serie
Oroku
Tokijiro has the unfortunate duty according to the code of the gamblers to join in the fighting when afforded a night’s stay and meals at the home of a town boss. Though he dislikes killing, the strength of his swordsmanship will be tested time and time again in the bloody tale.
Life of a bachelor gynecologist in a hospital for women.
Otoki
The Wayside Pebble is an effective drama about the hardships of a childhood spent with a brusque, cold-hearted father and a submissive mother. The year is 1910 and the place is a small Japanese village. Goichi is suffering because he wants to go to school, but his family is too poor to afford that luxury. Even when a kind friend agrees to help out, Goichi's father refuses to give in to his son's request for an education. Instead, he sends Goichi off to work as an indentured servant for a cold-hearted merchant and his family. As tragedy strikes and the suffering of the young boy increases, he begins to look for some way out of his bleak situation.
A sake factory worker on holiday returns to his home town, where he rapes the wife of one of his co-workers in the forest. The other man returns home to find his wife changed and suspects that she has been unfaithful.
Tomi Kubo
On a small island, inhabited by only fourteen hundred people, a young fisherman's son, Shinji falls in love with Hatsue, the daughter of the richest and most difficult man on the island. Despite their differences in class, they begin to meet and rumors spread of them having an illicit affair. Soon after, Shinji jumps into a stormy sea to help a ship in distress. The vessel turns out to be owned by Hatsue's arrogant father, who now becomes an understanding and sympathetic parent and allows the two lovers to marry.
Japanese comedy film.
A Tokyo student transfers to a rural school and finds it difficult to adjust himself to its customs and traditions. One of the customs is the wearing of an old school cap by a senior. It is a symbol of courage and bravery and is handed down to a new senior each year.
Iwakaze
A princess seeks adventure and true love, with help from her loyal servant.
Otora
Ryujin Misaki, located at the edge of the Genkai Sea, is known as an isolation ward for leprosy patients. When Saotome, a sword master and guard of the Shogun, hears news of a doctor gone missing, he begins to suspect that things are not what they seem at Ryujin Misaki. Intent on discovering the truth, Saotome launches a private investigation.
Tetsunosuke, an eccentric doctor and an owner of a fencing school, takes aim against corrupt authorities.
Kimie, a traveling guitarist, performs at various inns at help out her sickly mother. One night while out with her mother, Otoshi, Kimie unexpectedly sees her father, who had abandoned the family 20 years ago. Her hopes for a happy reunion are quickly dashed as her father, having married into a wealthy family, wants nothing to do with her. Will Kimie be able to regain her father’s love?
오카다 마리코가 직접 기획한 요시다 기주의 초기 대표작. 어느 온천여관을 배경으로 펼쳐지는 남녀의 사랑을 그리면서 물이 지닌 관능성을 빼어나게 보여주고 있다. 세상을 비관하여 자살하려던 청년과 그의 목숨을 구한 여관집 딸이 시간의 흐름을 두고 다시 만나는 순환적인 구조는 알랭 레네나 안토니오니의 영화를 떠올리게 한다. (2014년 한국시네마테크협의회 - 요시다 기주 + 오카다 마리코 특별전) 일본 남부의 한적한 온천의 만난 두 남녀의 17년 간에 걸친 사랑 이야기이다. 아름다운 풍경을 배경으로, 남녀간의 애정이 변하면서 이윽고 비극적 라스트를 향해 흘러가 끝내 죽음을 맞게 되는 과정을 훌륭한 영상미로 승화시켰다.
이 영화의 여주인공 오까다 마리꼬는 이 작품이 100회 출연 기념작일만큼 당시 인기 여배우였는데,신인감독인 요시다 요시시게를 지명하여 이 영화에 출연했다. 2년 뒤 두사람은 결혼했고,그녀는 남편이 된 요시다 감독의 작품에 다수 출연했다.
As descendent of famed fishmonger Isshin Tasuke, young feisty Ishii Tasuke uses his talent to flourish his employer’s food business.
Ishihama is planning a casino robbery with his wife and mother-in-law. They meet a man named Tsuneda who is planning the same robbery and agree to work together.
When two sisters fall in love with the same man, one must decide to look elsewhere.
Hanjiro is a struggling painter that shares a tiny apartment in the back streets of Ginza with his jazz pianist friend who works at a bar. When he and his sweet heart, Hisako decide to get married, Hanjiro is faced with a tough decision. Needing to buy a ticket back home to tell his mother the good news, he compromises his creative principles for love and sells his portrait of Hisako. Hisako heads to the station to see him off, but gets hit by a car...
Oken
A group of men living a low life in Edo help each other to make the best out of their lives.
1962 Japanese movie
Sugimoto Gonkuro is travelling along from Tosa to Edo. On his journey he will meet both good and bad people.
The story of two young men whose ambition is to become the personal bodyguards to the Shogun's uncle, Lord Mito Komon. Portrayed by a pair of up and coming stars, Sasaki Sukesaburo (Matsukata), the son of a widower and Atsumi Kakunoshin (Kitaoji), whose mother is a widow find themselves constantly in trouble and are forced to become two of the most powerful fighters in all Japan. The stories about Mito Komon and his travels througout Japan are many, but this is one that had yet to be told. The struggles of Suke-san and Kaku-san faced in order to join the Elder in his quest to fight against injustice and corruption during the samurai era.
Masa
A gang of bank robbers plan a big robbery, but they all plot to betray each other after the heist for different reasons.
A promising dancer asks her professor to write a libretto for a Nō play. He then introduces her to a student of classical literature, but also a classical theatre student in the hope that the latter will marry Senya..
Japanese comedy film.
A family is brutally murdered in their own home and the official government's sake dealer is framed as a rebel by a corrupt member of the Shogun's Council of Elders. Young Lord decides to take on the Shogun's vile chief attendant.
Popular geisha Koharu suspects that Yusaku, a handsome stranger she falls in love with, is involved in a robbery of precious diamond.
Young geisha Kohana scrambles to realize her dream of bringing back her grandmother’s restaurant business.
An adaptation of the popular Sazae-San comic strip.
Kiyoko Takeda
Koharu, a young geisha, is in love with Kenichi, an apprentice carpenter to her father Masagoro. Their love life comes to a sudden halt after an argument between their two fathers. Can their love survive in spite of the bitterness between their two families?
The story tells of Tsuchiya, a university professor and a widower who is in love with a widow who runs a small restaurant, and his son is in love with a runaway girl who turns out to be the leader of a religious sect. Kusano is the henpecked proprietor of a rice biscuit shop who dreams of owning a bird and dog shop and his daughter is in love with a boarder, employed by the private detective agency searching for the runaway girl. The agency head has his own dream of arranging thirty marriages and has already accomplished twenty-seven. Tatsumi is a newspaper reporter who dreams of a big scoop to enable him to marry a girl TV producer and his friend a mountain climbing enthusiast who dreams of joining a Himalayan expedition but is opposed by his wife. His love of the mountains is shared by a boarder in their home and by a fishmonger's son.
Takuya's mother
고교 시절, 남다른 우정을 과시하던 5명의 친구들. 졸업 후 취직이나 진학으로 각자의 길을 걷고 있었지만, 오랜만에 고향에 돌아온 한 친구를 맞이하여 함께 시간을 보낸다. 재회의 기쁨도 잠시, 자신들의 사이가 예전과 같지 않음을 깨닫게 된다. 5명의 동급생의 우정과 사랑, 그들의 청춘과 변화를 이른 봄의 아이즈 분지를 무대로 감동적으로 그린 영화.
Japanese family drama.
Yasu Shima
When Yumiko Tsuyama, a potter by profession, comes inquiring about a room for rent in an old mansion overlooking Osaka, she finds a bizarre collection of characters already living there. The unlikely leader of this menagerie is Yoda Goro, who speaks four languages fluently, is an expert in cabbage rolls, and has written how-to books encompassing every aspect of human existence.
The Undefeated Woman
An adaptation of the popular Sazae-San comic strip. The first entry in the series shot in TohoScope.
Live-action adaptation of Yoshiro Kato’s manga.
Otaki the Candy-Seller
사방을 둘러싸이고 햇빛이 들지 않는 에도의 변두리에 동할 연립 주택. 더러워져 몹시 황폐해진 이곳에 이미 인간임을 단념한 무리가 살고 있다. 하지만 외관의 비참함과는 반대로 연립 주택에는 낙천적인 공기가 떠돌고 있었다. 어느 날 이 연립 주택에 떠돌이 노인이 들어왔다. 이 세상의 거센 파도에 휩쓸려 온 노인은 연립 주택의 무리에게 여러 가지 이야기를 해주었다. 환자의 아침에는 평온함을 배우에 게는 알콜 중독을 달래 주는 말을. 그러한 노인의 말에 연립 주택의 분위기는 점점 이상해져 가고...
A study of uneasy relationships among the inhabitants of a tiny rural community.
Kayo Izumi
Melodrama about a young factory girl who "chooses riches over chastity".
After killing the deceiver, the Masa gambler comes to Ina. There is a horse market in Ina, and the landowner Tamegoro, plans to steal the proceeds from the sale. Tamegoro steals money and blames the Masa for this crime. Masa has to go on the run, because now he is wanted for a crime that he did not commit...
Lavish Japanese-Chinese coproduction based on an ancient Chinese legend about a man who falls in love with a snake goddess in human form.
Katsuko, Hiroko's Aunt
A young girl moves to Tokyo and endures the rivalries between other high school girls of varying cultural and economic backgrounds.
Miyo (Mother)
Japanese film.
Japanese film.
Rikitaro and Osayo are popular entertainers who throw knives. They are sweethearts. At one day They help Ocho, who is a beautiful pickpocket when she is attacked by Ronin. in Asakusa, However, they come to be surrounded by doubtful Ronin after that. Moreover, Rikitaro is called to stop by Kajima of Edo-Karo of Nihonmatsu-Han. He calls him a young lord and treats Rikitaro as one, because his young lord, Tetsunojo is missing. Kuni-Garo makes a plan to carry out. Kikumaru, the younger brother of the mother difference in him instead of Tetsunojo, Since Rikitaro is just like Tetsunojo, then, they are convinced that it is Tetsunojo of Rikitaro. Rikitaro and Osayo decide to help Kajima and Tetsunojo. Finally they success to crush Kikumarsu's group.
Mrs. Yamada
Adaptation of the novel by Bunroku Shishi.
Kiyoka
Based on the original work of Akutagawa Prize-winning writer Ashihei Hino, the film depicts the love of the proud geisha Nobukichi Hakata in the early Taisho era.
Keita, after his death, was taken to the court of heaven as Defendant No. 1361, where his past was projected. He was formerly a favorite of the Meriken Circus troupe, yet he sinned by exposing a certain woman. During the screening, he realizes what he has done, and fate gives him a chance to redeem his sins.
1928년, 쇼도지마의 분교에 젊은 여선생이 부임한다. 그녀는 점점 섬의 생활에 융화되며 12명에 불과한 학생들은 선생님께 가능한의 애정을 표한다. 학생 중 한 명인 마츠에는 우동 집에서 일을 하고 고토에는 집에 혼자 남겨진 채 폐병으로 죽어가는 등 섬의 생활은 가난하기만 하다. 전쟁이 시작되며 오이시 선생의 남편도 학생들도 차례차례 전쟁에서 죽어 가고, 오이시 선생의 딸마저도 나무에서 떨어져 죽어버린다. 패전 다음해, 오이시 선생은 다시 섬의 분교로 돌아와 옛 제자의 아이들의 담임이 되는데...
A tanuki-themed musical.
The story of a ghostly thief in Edo who calls himself the fireball guy.
Kingoro Yanagiya's 100th film.
Toda no Tsubone
A comedic retelling of the legend of the loyal 47 ronin.
Based on the comic by Machiko Hasegawa
Tsuruko
Following the Second World War, the lives of various people in a poverty-stricken area of Tokyo are entertwined. Pachinko parlor girls, shoeshine boys, a maker of costume jewelry, and a streetcorner artist all struggle to make their livings and to find happiness in difficult surroundings.
Buntaro, the president of a food trading company got tired of the day-to-day routine of life. The new secretary, Nobuko, suggested her "shacho-san" (the president) run away from the job. Nobuko took Buntaro to her home and introduced him to her own family as friend, "Sachio-san"...
Japanese comedy film.
Japanese comedy film.
A bar girl tries to pass her three children, each from a different father, to rural relatives.
Melodrama by Kiyoshi Saeki
Margaret Nakata
Saheita, the final heir of a once rich and respectable family, can't refuse the many villagers that come to him for favours and money, even though he is on the brink of bankruptcy. Around town he is better known by his nickname Mr. Shosuke Ohara.
Japanese comedy film.
Ishikari
Tanuma Kandayuu is a high class samurai of the house of Nabeshima. He finds a lavish board of Go (a Chinese Board game) at Kinbei's store. He recommend Kinbei to offer it to his lord. Kinbei hesitates at first, since he knows the board has a mysterious legend surrounding it; it's believed that for every game played on the board, one death is required.
In a village subsisting on it herring fishery, a one-eyed criminal named Jakoman terrorizes the inhabitants. One of them, the son of the head of one of the fish companies by the name of Tetsu, decides to overthrow Jakoman and his cohorts.
Female President Ms. Komura
Near the end of the Taisho era (1912-1926), Enokichi, a popular figure in the world of boxing entangled in the Yakuza business.
A film dealing with the comings and goings of individuals in the immediate postwar period.
Postwar! Baseball! Comedy! Enoken plays a superfan of the Yomiuri Giants – the real Tokyo team, with many of its star players "acting" as themselves – who, despite his utter lack of athletic abilities, becomes embroiled in their successes, and their personal lives. Will Enoken help the Giants take the pennant?
Osaku
This film focuses on Koreans living in Japan. The filmmaker’s humanism comes across in the portrayal of a girl living in a shabby tenement, the warmth of a Korean girl she meets, and the friendliness of this Korean girl’s family.
Jurobei, a kaisen tonya (wholesaler in port) in Awa, was wronged and killed on the day of the Dance Festival by the evil merchant & the chamberlin. His brother (Kazuo Hasegawa) vowed vengeance on the day of his brother's death. So every year the villains are worried during the Awa Dance Festival (which is part of the Obon festival), but nothing has ever happened, until seven years later...
Feature film.
Omitsu
This film depicts a troupe of wandering kabuki players traveling through rural Japan.
The only son of a sushi chef hates sushi and decides to leave home to search for a job and make his own way.
A Kajirô Yamamoto directed comedy starring Roppa Furukawa.
Song of the White Orchid was a co-production of Toho and Mantetsu, the railway that served the colonial region of Manchuria, and the first film in the Kazuo Hasegawa/Shirley Yamaguchi (Ri Koran) “Continental Trilogy.” Handsome Hasegawa (representing Japan) runs up against an impertinent Yamaguchi (representing the continent); not surprisingly, in the course of the film the woman comes around and realizes the benevolent intentions of the Japanese. In Song of the White Orchid Yamaguchi leaves Hasegawa, who plays an expatriate working for the railway, because of a misunderstanding. She joins a communist guerilla group plotting to blow up the Manchurian railway. Learning of the subterfuge that led to the misunderstanding, she renews her faith in Hasegawa—and by extension Japan—and tries to undermine the plot.
The Old Man of the Propeller can be seen as a comedic amalgam of “King Lear” and “Christmas Carol”. A neighborhood loan shark is hounded by his relatives expecting big inheritance. But he is not giving any favor to anyone. His only joy of life is to go on junk hunt in the neighborhood, collecting garbages and scraps and selling them to junkmen to make profit.
Japanese film based on the life of writer Ichiyo Higuchi (1872-1896).
My Daughter's Only Wish tells the story of a poorly paid and clumsy office clerk, played with much comedic talent by Atsushi Watanabe. His biggest problem: His daughter Hideko is too clever and is expected by her teachers to enter the school for higher girls after graduating from primary school. But how is our poor clerk supposed to pay the school fees? How does poor Hideko feel about the situation? How can they cope with the envious colleagues who have less brighter daughters? And - an important question for Hideko's mother - what will the neighbours think? What's the point about getting a good education for girls anyway?
The Mother
An episodic film about life in and around a rural police station and the people it serves.
This is the only surviving “Mito Komon Manyu-ki” film. This release also known as "Adrift Tour Memoir" or literally "Mito Komon's Pleasure Trip" is an 80-minute compilation of the first (東海道の巻 or "Tokaido no maki") and second (日本晴れの巻 or "Japan's Fine Weather Reel") parts (147 minutes), which were re-edited and screened at a time when presentable films were dried up immediately after the defeat of the war.
Mother
Based on an autobiographical story by Toyota Masako.
Japanese adaptation of LES MISERABLES. The last film of director Itami took inspiration from Les Miserables. Transpiring during the Southwestern War of 1877 in Japan, which was the last civil war in the country, a criminal escapes prison only to be found by a monk. The criminal decides to turn a new leaf based on their conversation and goes on to become a town's mayor. He hears news of a mistaken arrest and identity. The revelation of truth is the start of a series of miseries.
Part 2 of a 2-part romance (fist part - Kafuku zempen) based on a story by noted author Kikuchi Kan. In the second half, we discover that Toyomi is pregnant -- and while Shintaro and Yurie are on their extended honeymoon, she bears his child, a girl named Kiyoko. She is supported in adversity by Michiko -- and gets considerable moral support from not only her own mother but also from Shintaro's mother and siblings. Even more surprisingly, Yurie strikes up a friendship of sorts with her. When Yurie learns that the child is Shintaro's, she convinces Toyomi that it would be best to let Shintaro (and her) raise Kiyoko, so Toyomi can get on with making a proper life for herself. Tearfully, Toyomi agrees. Sometime later, Michiko goes to visit Toyomi -- and sees her at work, as a kindergarten teacher.
Hide-chan (Hideko Takamine) and her family are on a trip to Tokyo. While visiting a fairground, a pickpocket (Kamatari Furukawa) steals the father's wallet. While everyone is trying to hunt down the thief, Hide-chan decides to make the most of it and enjoy her stay, while the thief and his main pursuer (Akira Kishii) play hide-and-seek among the funfair's spectacles and freakshows
Story of a bandit king.
Hikoroku Laughs a lot
Fusako
As suggested by the title, this film takes up the theme of the city, beginning with a series of traveling shots from Chiyo's point o view on a bus leaving the countryside and entering the metropolitan cityscape. After some fruitless job hunting in downtown Tokyo, Chiyo accepts a job as a bar hostess in Shiba ward. Well away from glamorous Asakusa and Ginza, this is a neighborhood bar where the women are dirt poor, each having only one kimono to their name....
1936 P.C.L. adaptation of Natsume's novel.
The first in a series of films featuring the comedy duo Entatsu-Achako, providing them with a background story to do their popular manzai-routines on film. Here, Entatsu and Achako start out as rivals for the affection of a young woman but ultimately pair up to face a bigger rival. Entatsu chooses to become a boxer to get his chance at punching the rival out of the way.
Okiyo
The main focus is on the 5 member band of a small circus as it runs into problems while touring rural Japan. It also pays lots of attention to the two daughters of the aging and irascible ringmaster-circus owner. The high points are the sound (and score) and cinematography featuring a lot of vertiginous panning (appropriate - as high wire trapeze artists are also an important element in the film). A fascinating side-light on 30s Japan.
Based on the comic by Yutaka Asou
