Frustrated with the bad behavior of his lord, Inaba Yajuro (Otomo) declares that he is leaving the clan and sets off on a journey that leads him into a small town besieged by a violent group of brigands. In a kind of homage to Kurosawa's 7 Samurai, the townspeople have been unable to defend themselves and Inaba sets out to teach them how to stand up for themselves. Meanwhile the vile Lord Yasumasa has sent the 4 finest swordsmen in the clan out to hunt Inaba down and kill him. Led by the magnificent Ichibei (Konoe), a master of weaponry in his own right, everything points to an ultimate showdown between the former friends in a battle to the death.
The story of five easygoing Yakuza who come together to save the live of a young innocent girl, Oichi, from an evil vassal.
Horror movie directed by Kokichi Uchide.
Okuni
A maiden is murdered by a mysterious ninja, unfortunately two young ladies witness this, good thing the bored Lord is walking by, he saved the girls but was too late to save the maiden, quickly he finds himself mixed up in a mystery of murdered maidens, an unknown ninja clan, attempted assassinations towards himself and a cursed vampire bat cave, can the bored Lord solve this puzzle before maidens lose their lives?
A successful textile industrialist from the provinces, who is beloved by his employees for his kindness, cannot find a wife because of a disfiguring birthmark on his face. Even the courtesans in Yoshiwara refuse to entertain him, until an indentured peasant prostitute, Tamarazu, takes the unsavoury assignment and treats him with brash tenderness.
The adopted son of an Osaka courier falls in love with a prostitute and, discovering that she is about to be purchased by a client, steals money from his employer to redeem her. Hunted criminals, the two young lovers take flight to Yamato, but, as in Chikamatsu's other domestic tragedies of love and duty (known as sewamono), they must be pursued and their passion destroyed by death. Favourite Uchida themes, such as the indenturing of a prostitute (cf. YOSHIWARA; A BLOODY SPEAR AT MT. FUJI), and his characteristic emphasis on performance and theatrical artifice re-emerge here; but the daring device of having Chikamatsu appear as a character - not unlike having Shakespeare interpolated into a film adaptation of one of his plays - is just one of many surprises this remarkable film holds. “Extraordinary” (Donald Richie).
An adventure of a feisty girl Oyuki and Santa, a homeless child she saves.
One of the great stories from Japan’s rich history comes to life in this true tale of the bloody showdown between two rival yakuza gangs in the 1840’s. The battle between Boss Sukegoro of Iioka and Boss Shigezo of Sasagawa has been portrayed many times, most notably in the first Zatoichi film, where the blind man befriends the tubercular ronin Hirate Miki, before cutting him down in one of the great duels in cinema history. This all-star extravaganza pulls out all the stops, with appearances by virtually all of the great actors and actresses from Toei’s studio at the time. Ichikawa Utaemon’s portrayal of the kind-hearted, noble yakuza boss Shigezo of Sasagawa contrasts sharply with the devious Sukegoro of Iioka. Corrupt as he may have been, his men were all willing to give up their lives for him.
Princess Kazu, the daughter of Shogun Ienari, is sent to marry Matsudaira Nobunao, master of Peacock castle in Kozuke province, a domain of 17,000 koku. When the procession carrying her sizable dowry was so large that it was expected to take 30 days to reach the castle the members of the clan were surprised to learn that it contained only her barest essentials! Would her presence create a problem too large for the clan to deal with? And having been trained by Lord Yagyu himself, will her martial skills ruin the marital plans set forth for the couple, or can she be tamed in time for the wedding?
Fukushima Osai
During the Age Of Wars (Sengoku Era), Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi are vying for power and each uses their secret weapons in order to try and defeat the other. Momochi Sandayu of the Iga, along with his disciple Ishikawa Goemon are ordered by Ieyasu to assassinate Hideyoshi and get the blueprints for the hidden fortress within Osaka Castle. Meanwhile the Koga group organizes to try and defend the castle for the peace of the nation. Beating off every trick from Sandayu, Torawakamaru protects the drawing, and when Ieyasu figures out a way to hold a match between Koga and Iga the two masters fight the greatest ninja battle ever held. The effects are truly spectacular in this classic ninja film from Toei.
Harima Aoyama (Chiyonosuke Azume) was a young hatamoto (samurai bannerman) to the Shogun. He seduced his commoner house maid Okiku (Hibari). He promised that his love was no passing infatuation & she would never suffer for it. She resisted his charms for some while knowing full well that they are of classes that do not intermarry, but in time he broke down her resistance, for how could she help but love him. Political expedience puts the young hatamoto in the way of a marriage with a woman of his own station. This will cement family connections & see his family safely through a crisis, at a time when many clans were finding themselves abolished on any pretext.
This adaptation of a Hideji Hojo novel, about the historical uprising of the Kuroda clan in 1633, is told through the eyes of retainer, Daizen. As his clan’s new leader, Tadayuki, becomes increasingly militant in his opposition to the Tokugawa shogunate, Daizen is forced to reconcile his loyalty to the clan with his loyalty to Tadayuki, who seems dead set on entangling the clan in destructive conflict. The Kuroda Affair’s mise-en-scène is said to have influenced future Toei director Eiichi Kudo. The film also features two of the greatest stars of Japanese period cinema, Chiezo Kataoka and Ryutaro Otomo.
A fellow member of the company named Hanjiro tells Koharu, an actress in a traveling theatrical troupe, about a keepsake folding fan that his lost love Lady Okyo gave him years ago. It turns out this fan is a precious clan heirloom whose possession, for convoluted reasons, will determine the clan's leadership. Sword-slinging bad guys descend to capture the fan, and Koharu embarks on a road trip to Edo to return the MacGuffin to the rightful hands of Lady Okyo.
After the Onin War ended in 1477, Kyoto was left in ashes and the nation was in complete disorder. Bands of roving samurai called the "nobushi" terrorized the country under the leadership of Akagaki Genba and overthrew Mangetsu Castle in Tanba Province scattering the few survivors. Lord Niwa's two sons have been studying in China and return to Japan upon hearing of the tragedy in an attempt to restore the clan. On Mt. Oe they meet magician Kiri no Kojiro and try to enlist his aid. With touches of the supernatural and rousing sword-play can they succeed against the evil villains whose symbol is the skull mask?
