Japan Cinema
by rrolii | created - 19 Apr 2017 | updated - 04 Apr 2023 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Tokyo Story (1953)
Not Rated | 136 min | Drama
An old couple visit their children and grandchildren in the city, but receive little attention.
Director: Yasujirô Ozu | Stars: Chishû Ryû, Chieko Higashiyama, Sô Yamamura, Setsuko Hara
Votes: 68,696
2. Hush! (2001)
135 min | Comedy, Drama
Soon after the disparate yet compatible Naoya and Katsuhiro start to settle into a relationship, a slightly unhinged young woman named Asako asks Katsuhiro to father her child.
Director: Ryosuke Hashiguchi | Stars: Reiko Kataoka, Kazuya Takahashi, Seiichi Tanabe, Yôko Akino
Votes: 749 | Gross: $0.02M
3. Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
PG-13 | 145 min | Drama, Romance
The heartwarming tale of Nitta Sayuri, a young Japanese woman who transcended from her fishing-village roots and became one of Japan's most celebrated geisha.
Director: Rob Marshall | Stars: Ziyi Zhang, Ken Watanabe, Michelle Yeoh, Suzuka Ohgo
Votes: 160,921 | Gross: $57.49M
4. Shutter (II) (2004)
Not Rated | 97 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A young photographer and his girlfriend discover mysterious shadows in their photographs after a tragic accident. They soon learn that you can not escape your past.
Directors: Banjong Pisanthanakun, Parkpoom Wongpoom | Stars: Ananda Everingham, Natthaweeranuch Thongmee, Achita Sikamana, Unnop Chanpaibool
Votes: 49,228
5. Ju-on: The Grudge (2002)
R | 92 min | Horror
A mysterious and vengeful spirit marks and pursues anybody who dares enter the house in which it resides.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Megumi Okina, Misaki Itô, Misa Uehara, Yui Ichikawa
Votes: 48,119 | Gross: $0.33M
6. Ju-On: The Grudge 2 (2003)
R | 92 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
As their curse spreads on, the ghosts find their chance to live once again through the pregnancy of a cursed woman.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Noriko Sakai, Chiharu Niiyama, Kei Horie, Yui Ichikawa
Votes: 10,892
7. The Grudge 2 (2006)
PG-13 | 102 min | Horror, Thriller
Three interwoven stories about a terrible curse. A young woman encounters a malevolent supernatural force while searching for her missing sister in Tokyo; a mean high school prank goes horribly wrong; a woman with a deadly secret moves into a Chicago apartment building.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Amber Tamblyn, Edison Chen, Arielle Kebbel, Sarah Michelle Gellar
Votes: 51,480 | Gross: $39.14M
8. The Grudge (2004)
PG-13 | 91 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
An American nurse living and working in Tokyo is exposed to a mysterious supernatural curse, one that locks a person in a powerful rage before claiming their life and spreading to another victim.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, Clea DuVall, William Mapother
Votes: 150,918 | Gross: $110.36M
9. The Grudge 3 (2009)
R | 90 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A young Japanese woman who holds the key to stopping the evil spirit of Kayako, travels to the haunted Chicago apartment from the sequel, to stop the curse of Kayako once and for all.
Director: Toby Wilkins | Stars: Matthew Knight, Shawnee Smith, Mike Straub, Aiko Horiuchi
Votes: 19,700
10. Ju-on: White Ghost (2009)
Not Rated | 61 min | Fantasy, Horror
Akane begins seeing visions of a female ghost wearing the same yellow hat and red satchel she wore as a school child.
Director: Ryûta Miyake | Stars: Hiroki Suzuki, Ichirôta Miyakawa, Natsuki Kasa, Akina Minami
Votes: 2,548
11. The Ring (2002)
PG-13 | 115 min | Horror, Mystery
A journalist must investigate a mysterious videotape which seems to cause the death of anyone one week to the day after they view it.
Director: Gore Verbinski | Stars: Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox, David Dorfman
Votes: 375,322 | Gross: $129.13M
12. Dark Water (2002)
PG-13 | 101 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A mother and her 6-year-old daughter move into a creepy apartment whose every surface is permeated by water.
Director: Hideo Nakata | Stars: Hitomi Kuroki, Rio Kanno, Mirei Oguchi, Asami Mizukawa
Votes: 34,956
13. Fear and Trembling (2003)
Unrated | 107 min | Comedy, Drama
A Belgian woman looks back on her year at a Japanese corporation in Tokyo in 1990. She is Amélie, born in Japan, living there until age 5. After college graduation, she returns with a ... See full summary »
Director: Alain Corneau | Stars: Sylvie Testud, Kaori Tsuji, Tarô Suwa, Bison Katayama
Votes: 4,812
14. Ringu (1998)
Not Rated | 96 min | Horror, Mystery
A reporter and her ex-husband investigate a cursed video tape that is rumored to kill the viewer seven days after watching it.
Director: Hideo Nakata | Stars: Nanako Matsushima, Miki Nakatani, Yûko Takeuchi, Hitomi Satô
Votes: 77,558
15. Pulse (2001)
R | 119 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Two groups of people discover evidence that suggests spirits may be trying to invade the human world through the Internet.
Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Stars: Haruhiko Katô, Kumiko Asô, Koyuki, Kurume Arisaka
Votes: 25,633 | Gross: $0.05M
16. Shutter (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 85 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A newly married couple discovers disturbing, ghostly images in photographs they develop after a tragic accident. Fearing the manifestations may be connected, they investigate and learn that some mysteries are better left unsolved.
Director: Masayuki Ochiai | Stars: Joshua Jackson, Rachael Taylor, James Kyson, Megumi Okina
Votes: 37,603 | Gross: $25.93M
17. Ponyo (2008)
G | 101 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A five-year-old boy develops a relationship with Ponyo, a young goldfish princess who longs to become a human after falling in love with him.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, Tomoko Yamaguchi
Votes: 163,751 | Gross: $15.09M
18. The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)
G | 94 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
The Clock family are four-inch-tall people who live anonymously in another family's residence, borrowing simple items to make their home. Life changes for the Clocks when their teenage daughter Arrietty is discovered.
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi | Stars: Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, Mirai Shida
Votes: 104,515 | Gross: $19.20M
19. The House of Small Cubes (2008)
Not Rated | 12 min | Animation, Short, Drama
To save his house from rising flood waters, an old man uses bricks to build it higher, then he relives events from his past while searching for his dropped pipe.
Director: Kunio Kato | Star: Masami Nagasawa
Votes: 11,660
20. Spirited Away (2001)
PG | 125 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
During her family's move to the suburbs, a sullen 10-year-old girl wanders into a world ruled by gods, witches and spirits, and where humans are changed into beasts.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Daveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleshette, Miyu Irino, Rumi Hiiragi
Votes: 850,476 | Gross: $10.06M
21. The Cat Returns (2002)
G | 75 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
After helping a cat, a seventeen-year-old girl finds herself involuntarily engaged to a cat Prince in a magical world where her only hope of freedom lies with a dapper cat statuette come to life.
Director: Hiroyuki Morita | Stars: Chizuru Ikewaki, Yoshihiko Hakamada, Aki Maeda, Takayuki Yamada
Votes: 64,595
22. Battle Royale (2000)
Not Rated | 114 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.
Director: Kinji Fukasaku | Stars: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Aki Maeda, Tarô Yamamoto, Chiaki Kuriyama
Votes: 194,548
23. Audition (1999)
R | 115 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.
Director: Takashi Miike | Stars: Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura
Votes: 89,314
24. Anaza hevun (2000)
R | 132 min | Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi
A pair of hard-boiled Tokyo cops are investigating a gruesome murder: after killing the victim, the murderer cut his skull open and cooked his brain in a stew. As they try to track down the... See full summary »
Director: Jôji Iida | Stars: Yôsuke Eguchi, Miwako Ichikawa, Takashi Kashiwabara, Yukiko Okamoto
Votes: 873
25. Battlefield Baseball (2003)
Not Rated | 87 min | Action, Comedy, Horror
Battlefield Baseball is a tough game--it doesn't end until all the members on the opposing team are dead. In this game the Gedo High team is composed of blue-faced zombies, and their ... See full summary »
Director: Yûdai Yamaguchi | Stars: Tak Sakaguchi, Atsushi Itô, Hideo Sakaki, Yoshikazu Ebisu
Votes: 1,522
26. Black Rat (2010)
TV-MA | 76 min | Drama, Horror
Six classmates receive an e-mail from Asuka; who supposedly committed suicide. Later that night they all get together in a classroom and are surprised by a person wearing a bloody rat mask.... See full summary »
Director: Kenta Fukasaku | Stars: Misaki Yonemura, Hiroya Matsumoto, Rina Saito, Haruka Shimizu
Votes: 366
27. Inagawa Junji no shinjitsu no horror (2003 Video)
62 min | Horror
The video is a compilation of six short stories based on Japanese folklore legends. Each story is approximately 15 minutes long and are briefly introduced by a host. "Peony Lamp" is a story... See full summary »
Directors: Hiroaki Hirakata, Hiroshi Ikezoe, Tadafumi Tomioka, Naoto Yamakawa | Stars: Youko Akitani, Lisa Gotô, Junji Inagawa, Makiko Kuno
Votes: 73
28. Curse, Death & Spirit (1992 Video)
65 min | Horror
This is a series of three short supernatural-themed movies. The first tells the story of a teen girl who dreams of haunted doll. In the second movie, a widowed mother brings her children to... See full summary »
Director: Hideo Nakata | Stars: Kyôko Enami, Michiko Hada, Maiko Kawakami, Yumi Nakamura
Votes: 203
29. Kaidan Shin Mimibukuro (2003–2005)
5 min | Short, Horror
An anthology series based on stories collected throughout Japan, mainly by writers Hirokatsu Kihara and Ichiro Nakayama. This series led to the film, Tales of Terror from Tokyo and All Over Japan: The Movie (2004).
Stars: Rina Uchiyama, Yôzaburô Itô, Satomi Ishii, Kaoru Mizuki
Votes: 175
30. Dark Tales of Japan (2004 TV Movie)
92 min | Horror
Dark Tales of Japan is a collection of five short horror films that are directed by five notable Japanese film directors.
Directors: Yoshihiro Nakamura, Masayuki Ochiai, Takashi Shimizu, Kôji Shiraishi, Norio Tsuruta | Stars: Kayoko Shiraishi, Shôzô Endô, Yoshinori Okada, Kanako Fukaura
Votes: 598
31. Tales of Terror from Tokyo and All Over Japan: The Movie (2004)
92 min | Horror
Based on stories collected throughout Japan by writers Hirokatsu Kihara and Ichiro Nakayama, and japanese horror TV show: 'Kaidan Shin Mimibukuro'. It compiled eight stories by seven directors.
Directors: Keita Amemiya, Shun'ichi Hirano, Ryûta Miyake, Hirohisa Sasaki, Kôsuke Suzuki, Keisuke Toyoshima, Akio Yoshida | Stars: Naoto Takenaka, Yasufumi Hayashi, Kazunari Shigesawa, Satoshi Ôgida
Votes: 428
32. Kaidan Shin Mimibukuro: Yûrei manshon (2005)
93 min | Horror
Aimi and her father move into an old, apartment building and learn quickly that things are not normal here. The landlord warns Aimi and her father of the curfew. First, all residents must ... See full summary »
Director: Akio Yoshida | Stars: Mei Kurokawa, Yoshihiko Hosoda, Yûta Sone, Ayaka Maeda
Votes: 491
33. Tales from Earthsea (2006)
PG-13 | 115 min | Animation, Adventure, Fantasy
In a mythical land, a man and a young boy investigate a series of unusual occurrences.
Director: Gorô Miyazaki | Stars: Timothy Dalton, Willem Dafoe, Mariska Hargitay, Jun'ichi Okada
Votes: 44,248 | Gross: $0.05M
34. Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
PG-13 | 92 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
On Christmas Eve, three homeless people living on the streets of Tokyo discover a newborn baby among the trash and set out to find its parents.
Directors: Shôgo Furuya, Satoshi Kon | Stars: Tôru Emori, Yoshiaki Umegaki, Aya Okamoto, Shôzô Îzuka
Votes: 46,805 | Gross: $0.13M
35. Winter Days (2003)
39 min | Animation, Short
A compilation of short animated clips on winter days in Japan
Directors: Mark Baker, Jacques Drouin, Taku Furukawa, Co Hoedeman, Kihachirô Kawamoto, Yôichi Kotabe, Yuri Norstein, Bretislav Pojar, Raoul Servais, Shin'ichi Suzuki, Isao Takahata, Kôji Yamamura | Stars: Ryuta Kashiwagi, Kyôko Kishida, Noboru Mitani, Mutsumi Sasaki
Votes: 480
36. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
PG | 119 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
When an unconfident young woman is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch, her only chance of breaking the spell lies with a self-indulgent yet insecure young wizard and his companions in his legged, walking castle.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Chieko Baishô, Takuya Kimura, Tatsuya Gashûin, Akihiro Miwa
Votes: 450,040 | Gross: $4.71M
37. From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
PG | 91 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A group of Yokohama teens look to save their school's clubhouse from the wrecking ball in preparations for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
Director: Gorô Miyazaki | Stars: Sarah Bolger, Chris Noth, Anton Yelchin, Christina Hendricks
Votes: 52,093 | Gross: $1.00M
38. Fu-Rai (2005)
75 min | Horror, Thriller
One day, when four young men wakes up in the morning, they're all in a small room filled with the white powder, naked.Why they are gathered? What is this room mean to be? Who brought them into this room? How to escape from this room?
Director: Shugo Fujii | Stars: Shûgo Oshinari, Ayaka Maeda, Kazuo Yashiro, Fumiaki Mitsuyama
Votes: 123
39. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Not Rated | 89 min | Animation, Drama, War
A young boy and his little sister struggle to survive in Japan during World War II.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi, Akemi Yamaguchi, Yoshiko Shinohara
Votes: 310,848
40. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
PG | 117 min | Animation, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Warrior and pacifist Princess Nausicaä desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Sumi Shimamoto, Mahito Tsujimura, Hisako Kyôda, Gorô Naya
Votes: 182,702 | Gross: $0.50M
41. My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
G | 86 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
When two girls move to the country to be near their ailing mother, they have adventures with the wondrous forest spirits who live nearby.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Hitoshi Takagi, Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto, Shigesato Itoi
Votes: 380,775 | Gross: $1.11M
42. Patisserie Coin De Rue (2011)
115 min | Drama
A film about mouthwatering desserts and the journey of a cake-maker's daughter from Kagoshima to Tokyo, as she finds herself in the company of a legendary former patissier.
Director: Yoshihiro Fukagawa | Stars: Yôsuke Eguchi, Yû Aoi, Urara Awata, Nathan Berg
Votes: 344
43. Air Doll (2009)
Unrated | 125 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
A life-size blow-up doll develops a soul and falls in love with a video store clerk.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Bae Doona, Arata Iura, Itsuji Itao, Joe Odagiri
Votes: 8,140
44. Kikujiro (1999)
PG-13 | 122 min | Drama, Comedy
A young, naive boy sets out alone on the road to find his wayward mother. Soon he finds an unlikely protector in a crotchety man and the two have a series of unexpected adventures along the way.
Director: Takeshi Kitano | Stars: Takeshi Kitano, Yusuke Sekiguchi, Kayoko Kishimoto, The Great Gidayû
Votes: 22,185 | Gross: $0.20M
45. Spiral (2000)
90 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
The inhabitants of a small Japanese town become increasingly obsessed with and tormented by spirals.
Director: Higuchinsky | Stars: Eriko Hatsune, Fhi Fan, Hinako Saeki, Shin Eun-kyung
Votes: 9,003
46. Last Life in the Universe (2003)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A suicidal, obsessively compulsive Japanese librarian is forced to lie low in Thailand with a pot-smoking woman coping with the recent loss of her sister.
Director: Pen-Ek Ratanaruang | Stars: Tadanobu Asano, Sinitta Boonyasak, Takashi Miike, Laila Boonyasak
Votes: 11,561 | Gross: $0.03M
47. The Last Cinderella (2013)
54 min | Comedy, Romance
39-yo Sakura Toyama is a hairdresser and salon assistant manager, who is concerned by her stagnant life. She decides to at least do something about her love life. She accepts a party invitation from Chiyoko Ogami and confusion develops.
Stars: Ryôko Shinohara, Haruma Miura, Naohito Fujiki, Nanao
Votes: 500
48. Pîtâ Pan no bôken (1989)
24 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
While in search of his own shadow, Peter arrives in London of our world, where he meets little Wendy and her brothers Michael and John. He takes his new friends back home to Neverland, where they participate in staggering adventures, and must confront Captain Hook and an even darker threat.
Stars: Noriko Hidaka, Naoko Matsui, Kyôko Hamura, Yuriko Fuchizaki
Votes: 324
49. House (1977)
Not Rated | 88 min | Comedy, Horror
A schoolgirl and six of her classmates travel to her aunt's country home, which turns out to be haunted.
Director: Nobuhiko Ôbayashi | Stars: Kimiko Ikegami, Miki Jinbo, Kumiko Ôba, Ai Matsubara
Votes: 33,767
50. Dreams (1990)
PG | 119 min | Drama, Fantasy
A collection of tales based upon eight of director Akira Kurosawa's recurring dreams.
Directors: Akira Kurosawa, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Terao, Mitsuko Baishô, Toshie Negishi, Mieko Harada
Votes: 29,210 | Gross: $1.96M
51. Ju-on: The Curse (2000 Video)
TV-PG | 70 min | Horror, Mystery
A teacher visits the house of one of his students after the boy goes missing, only to have a horrifying excuse for his absence from school.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Yûrei Yanagi, Yue, Ryôta Koyama, Hitomi Miwa
Votes: 8,990
52. 5 Centimeters per Second (2007)
TV-PG | 63 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Told in three interconnected segments, Takaki tells the story of his life as cruel winters, cold technology, and finally, adult obligations and responsibility converge to test the delicate petals of love.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Kenji Mizuhashi, Yoshimi Kondou, Satomi Hanamura, Ayaka Onoue
Votes: 63,831
53. The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013)
PG | 137 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Kaguya is a beautiful young woman coveted by five nobles. To try to avoid marrying a stranger she doesn't love, she sends her suitors on seemingly impossible tasks. But she will have to face her fate and punishment for her choices.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Chloë Grace Moretz, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, James Marsden
Votes: 54,078 | Gross: $1.51M
54. When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960)
Not Rated | 111 min | Drama
A middle-aged bar hostess, constantly in debt, is faced with numerous social constraints and challenges posed to her by her family, customers and friends.
Director: Mikio Naruse | Stars: Hideko Takamine, Tatsuya Nakadai, Masayuki Mori, Reiko Dan
Votes: 4,834
55. Miss Hokusai (2015)
PG-13 | 93 min | Animation, Biography, Drama
The life and works of Japanese artist and ukiyo-e painter Katsushika Hokusai, as seen from the eyes of his daughter, Katsushika O-Ei.
Directors: Keiichi Hara, Stephanie Sheh, Michael Sinterniklaas | Stars: Yutaka Matsushige, Anne Watanabe, Erica Lindbeck, Richard Epcar
Votes: 3,505 | Gross: $0.22M
56. Your Name. (2016)
PG | 106 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Two teenagers share a profound, magical connection upon discovering they are swapping bodies. Things manage to become even more complicated when the boy and girl decide to meet in person.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Mone Kamishiraishi, Ryo Narita, Aoi Yûki
Votes: 320,985 | Gross: $5.02M
57. Rashomon (1950)
Not Rated | 88 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Machiko Kyô, Masayuki Mori, Takashi Shimura
Votes: 180,629 | Gross: $0.10M
58. I Was Born, But... (1932)
Not Rated | 90 min | Comedy, Drama
Two young brothers throw a tantrum when they discover that their father isn't the most important man in his workplace.
Director: Yasujirô Ozu | Stars: Tatsuo Saitô, Tomio Aoki, Mitsuko Yoshikawa, Hideo Sugawara
Votes: 6,217
59. Shoplifters (2018)
R | 121 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
On the margins of Tokyo, a dysfunctional band of outsiders are united by loyalty, a penchant for petty theft and playful grifting. When the young son is arrested, secrets are exposed that upend their tenuous, below-the-radar existence.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Lily Franky, Sakura Andô, Kirin Kiki, Mayu Matsuoka
Votes: 86,545 | Gross: $3.31M
60. The Family Game (1983)
107 min | Comedy, Drama
Japanese parents hire a tutor for their foolish son and get a critic of their lifestyle.
Director: Yoshimitsu Morita | Stars: Yûsaku Matsuda, Jûzô Itami, Saori Yuki, Ichirôta Miyakawa
Votes: 1,117
61. My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday (2016)
111 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
On the way to his university in Kyoto, a 20 y.o. man falls in love with a woman on the train. He tells her. They start dating. She has a supernatural secret.
Director: Takahiro Miki | Stars: Sôta Fukushi, Nana Komatsu, Masahiro Higashide, Yuki Yamada
Votes: 5,267
62. Shukujo wa nani o wasureta ka (1937)
71 min | Comedy, Drama
An affluent medical professor, Komiya, and his bossy wife, Tokio, are to look after Setsuko, their high-spirited niece from Osaka. Setsuko is a liberated woman who does what she wants, ... See full summary »
Director: Yasujirô Ozu | Stars: Sumiko Kurishima, Tatsuo Saitô, Michiko Kuwano, Shûji Sano
Votes: 1,297
63. Ritual (2000)
128 min | Drama
A disillusioned filmmaker has an encounter with a young girl who has a ritual of repeating "Tomorrow is my birthday" everyday. He tries to communicate with her through his video camera.
Director: Hideaki Anno | Stars: Shunji Iwai, Ayako Fujitani, Jun Murakami, Shinobu Ôtake
Votes: 2,704
64. Muddy River (1981)
105 min | Drama
In post-War Japan, a boy from a noodle store-owning family befriends a neighboring boy living in poverty.
Director: Kôhei Oguri | Stars: Takahiro Tamura, Mariko Kaga, Nobutaka Asahara, Makiko Shibata
Votes: 1,035
65. Yumeji (1991)
Not Rated | 128 min | Drama
Painter and poet Yumeji Takehisa (1884-1934) gets involved with a beautiful widow, becoming a rival of her dead husband's ghost and the jealous lover who murdered him.
Director: Seijun Suzuki | Stars: Kenji Sawada, Tomoko Mariya, Masumi Miyazaki, Tamasaburô Bandô
Votes: 745
66. Always: Sunset on Third Street (2005)
133 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
Leaving her provincial home, teenage Mutsuko arrives in Tokyo by train to take a job in a major automotive company but finds that she is employed by a small auto repair shop owned by ... See full summary »
Director: Takashi Yamazaki | Stars: Maki Horikita, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Shin'ichi Tsutsumi, Koyuki
Votes: 2,465
67. Kiraware Matsuko no isshô (2006)
130 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
When Matsuko is murdered, her nephew, Sho, gets to progressively unveil the many details of her mysterious past, discovering she wasn't just a forgotten outcast and had led an intriguing yet bizarre life.
Director: Tetsuya Nakashima | Stars: Miki Nakatani, Eita Nagayama, Yûsuke Iseya, Mikako Ichikawa
Votes: 8,750
68. Naisu no mori: The First Contact (2005)
150 min | Comedy, Fantasy
An outrageous collection of surreal, short attention span non-sequiturs largely revolving around Guitar Brother, his randy older sibling, and the pair's portly Caucasian brother.
Directors: Katsuhito Ishii, Hajime Ishimine, Shunichirô Miki | Stars: Andrew Alfieri, Hideaki Anno, Moyoco Anno, Tadanobu Asano
Votes: 2,731
69. Late Spring (1949)
Not Rated | 108 min | Drama
Several people try to talk 27-year-old Noriko into marrying, but all she wants is to keep on caring for her widowed father.
Director: Yasujirô Ozu | Stars: Chishû Ryû, Setsuko Hara, Yumeji Tsukioka, Haruko Sugimura
Votes: 19,366
70. Early Summer (1951)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama, Romance
A family chooses a match for their daughter Noriko, but she, surprisingly, has her own plans.
Director: Yasujirô Ozu | Stars: Setsuko Hara, Chishû Ryû, Chikage Awashima, Kuniko Miyake
Votes: 9,691
71. Mirai (2018)
PG | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A young boy encounters a magical garden which enables him to travel through time and meet his relatives from different eras, with guidance by his younger sister from the future.
Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Rebecca Hall, Daniel Dae Kim, Koji Yakusho, John Cho
Votes: 18,117 | Gross: $0.81M
72. Seven Samurai (1954)
Not Rated | 207 min | Action, Drama
Farmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Tsushima, Yukiko Shimazaki
Votes: 367,076 | Gross: $0.27M
73. Whisper of the Heart (1995)
G | 111 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A love story between a girl who loves reading books, and a boy who has previously checked out all of the library books she chooses.
Director: Yoshifumi Kondô | Stars: Yoko Honna, Issei Takahashi, Takashi Tachibana, Shigeru Muroi
Votes: 72,732
74. Sketches of Kaitan City (2010)
Not Rated | 152 min | Drama
In the city of Kaitan, during the winter, the local shipyard is downsized and workers are laid off. Futa (Pistol Takehara) lives with his younger sister Honami (Mitsuki Tanimura). He loses ... See full summary »
Director: Kazuyoshi Kumakiri | Stars: Mitsuki Tanimura, Pistol Takehara, Ryô Kase, Kaho Minami
Votes: 186
75. Katasumi (1998 Video)
4 min | Short, Horror
Two schoolgirls are gruesomely victimized by a horrifying ghost.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Takako Fuji, Kanna Kashima, Ayako Ômura
Votes: 598
76. 4444444444 (1998 Video)
3 min | Short, Horror
A young man receives a haunting phone call from a mysterious ghostly boy.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Kazushi Andô, Daiki Sawada
Votes: 627
77. The Grudge (2019)
R | 94 min | Fantasy, Horror
A house is cursed by a vengeful ghost that dooms those who enter it with a violent death.
Director: Nicolas Pesce | Stars: Tara Westwood, Junko Bailey, David Lawrence Brown, Zoe Fish
Votes: 29,295
78. Gate of Hell (1953)
Not Rated | 89 min | Drama, History
A samurai pursues a married lady-in-waiting.
Director: Teinosuke Kinugasa | Stars: Machiko Kyô, Kazuo Hasegawa, Isao Yamagata, Yatarô Kurokawa
Votes: 4,282
79. The Mountain Head (2002)
Not Rated | 10 min | Animation, Comedy, Fantasy
A sad rakugo of a stingy old man experiencing the unforeseen consequences of eating a few cherries whole, without throwing the pits away.
Director: Kôji Yamamura | Stars: Takeharu Kunimoto, Bruno Metzger
Votes: 1,589
80. Creepy (2016)
Not Rated | 130 min | Crime, Drama, Horror
Takakura is a former detective. He receives a request from his ex-colleague, Nogami, to examine a missing family case that occurred six years earlier. Takakura follows Saki's memory. She is... See full summary »
Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Stars: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Yûko Takeuchi, Toru Baba, Ryôko Fujino
Votes: 5,989
81. Howling Village (2019)
108 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
After her brother goes missing, a young psychologist visits an infamous haunted and cursed location known as 'Howling Village' to investigate his disappearance and uncover her family's dark history.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Ayaka Miyoshi, Ryôta Bandô, Tsuyoshi Furukawa, Renji Ishibashi
Votes: 1,368
82. Flight 7500 (2014)
PG-13 | 80 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Flight 7500 departs Los Angeles International Airport bound for Tokyo. As the overnight flight makes its way over the Pacific Ocean during its ten-hour course, the passengers encounter what appears to be a supernatural force in the cabin.
Director: Takashi Shimizu | Stars: Leslie Bibb, Ryan Kwanten, Amy Smart, Jamie Chung
Votes: 17,171
83. The Sinners of Hell (1960)
Not Rated | 101 min | Crime, Drama, Horror
A group of sinners involved in interconnected tales of murder, revenge, deceit and adultery all meet at the Gates of Hell.
Director: Nobuo Nakagawa | Stars: Shigeru Amachi, Utako Mitsuya, Yôichi Numata, Hiroshi Hayashi
Votes: 4,577
84. Kashin (2016)
95 min | Drama, Romance
When Sonoko enters a traditional Japanese arranged marriage with Amamiya facilitated by her parents the resulting union is loveless including the functional and goal-oriented sex. When the ... See full summary »
Director: Hiroshi Ando | Stars: Eri Murakawa, Kento Hayashi, Masanobu Andô, Izumi Fujimoto
Votes: 141
85. Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (2020)
70 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
A cafe owner discovers that the TV in his cafe suddenly shows images from the future, but only two minutes into the future.
Director: Junta Yamaguchi | Stars: Kazunari Tosa, Riko Fujitani, Gôta Ishida, Masashi Suwa
Votes: 8,103
86. Drive My Car (2021)
Unrated | 179 min | Drama
A renowned stage actor and director learns to cope with a big personal loss when he receives an offer to direct a production of Uncle Vanya in Hiroshima.
Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi | Stars: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Tôko Miura, Reika Kirishima, Masaki Okada
Votes: 65,980
87. Cube (2021)
108 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
In this remake, without remembering how they got there, several strangers awaken in a prison of cubic cells, some of them booby-trapped. The prisoners must use their combined skills if they are to escape.
Director: Yasuhiko Shimizu | Stars: Tokio Emoto, Masaki Okada, Takumi Saitô, Masaki Suda
Votes: 2,382
88. I Love It from Behind! (1981)
65 min | Drama
A young girl has been collecting "penis prints" since high school, and is determined to amass 100 prints before her arranged marriage comes up in a month. She manages to collect 99 prints, ... See full summary »
Director: Kôyû Ohara | Stars: Junko Asahina, Kazuhiko Ishida, Yumi Hayakawa, Tetsuya Itô
Votes: 201
89. When I Get Home, My Wife Always Pretends to Be Dead. (2018)
115 min | Comedy, Drama
A man posted questions to Yahoo Answers about his wife's eccentric behaviour, which became the basis for the story of the married couple.
Director: Toshio Lee | Stars: Nana Eikura, Ken Yasuda, Ryôhei Ohtani, Sumika Nono
Votes: 943
90. Twilight (1994)
33 min | Short
Full of cinematic tricks and without dialogue, this film tells the surrealistic adventure of a young boy who refuses to admit his own death.
Director: Tengai Amano | Stars: Daiko Ishimaru, Himeko, Mayumi Itô, Mizu
Votes: 83
92. Gôketsu Jiraiya (1921)
21 min | Short, Action
The story of Jiraiya, a legendary ninja with great powers who set off on a adventure.
Director: Shôzô Makino | Stars: Matsunosuke Onoe, Suminojo Ichikawa, Kijaku Ôtani, Chosei Kataoka
Votes: 199
93. Monochrome Head (1997)
10 min | Short
Director: Takashi Itô | Stars: Ryuichi Yamanaka, Marika Abe, Kazunari Kodama
Votes: 85
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