My all time favorite japanese drama/slice of life movies
by OpinionGuy | created - 08 Jan 2015 | updated - 1 week ago | 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: 68,620
2. Black Rain (1989)
Not Rated | 123 min | Drama, War
The story of the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, based on Masuji Ibuse's novel.
Director: Shôhei Imamura | Stars: Yoshiko Tanaka, Kazuo Kitamura, Etsuko Ichihara, Shôichi Ozawa
Votes: 3,964
3. Crying Out Love in the Center of the World (2004)
138 min | Drama, Romance
While searching for his fiancee Ritsuko, Sakutarou rediscovers through flashbacks the void deep within him caused by the events from his high school days.
Director: Isao Yukisada | Stars: Takao Osawa, Kô Shibasaki, Masami Nagasawa, Mirai Moriyama
Votes: 3,896
4. Kabei: Our Mother (2008)
Not Rated | 133 min | Drama
Based on childhood days of Teruyo Nogami.
Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Tadanobu Asano, Mayumi Tanaka, Chieko Baishô, Mirai Shida
Votes: 1,518 | Gross: $0.01M
5. Twenty-Four Eyes (1954)
Not Rated | 156 min | Drama
Schoolteacher Hisako Oishi forms an emotional bond with her pupils and teaches them various virtues, while at the same time worrying about their future.
Director: Keisuke Kinoshita | Stars: Hideko Takamine, Itsuo Watanabe, Makoto Miyagawa, Takeo Terashita
Votes: 2,830
6. Still Walking (2008)
Not Rated | 115 min | Drama
A family gathers together for a commemorative ritual whose nature only gradually becomes clear.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Hiroshi Abe, Yui Natsukawa, You, Kazuya Takahashi
Votes: 18,620 | Gross: $0.16M
7. Like Father, Like Son (2013)
Not Rated | 121 min | Drama
Ryota is a successful workaholic businessman. When he learns that his biological son was switched with another boy after birth, he faces the difficult decision to choose his true son or the boy he and his wife have raised as their own.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Masaharu Fukuyama, Machiko Ono, Yôko Maki, Lily Franky
Votes: 28,145 | Gross: $0.28M
8. Departures (2008)
PG-13 | 130 min | Drama
Soon after buying an expensive cello, Daigo learns that his orchestra is disbanding. He moves back to his hometown with his wife, where he answers an ad for what Daigo thinks is a travel agency but is, in actuality, a mortuary.
Director: Yôjirô Takita | Stars: Masahiro Motoki, Ryôko Hirosue, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kazuko Yoshiyuki
Votes: 54,984 | Gross: $1.50M
9. Children of Hiroshima (1952)
Not Rated | 97 min | Drama, War
Post war Hiroshima: It's been four years since the last time she visited her hometown. Takako faces the after effects of the A-bomb when she travels around the city to call on old friends.
Director: Kaneto Shindô | Stars: Nobuko Otowa, Osamu Takizawa, Masao Shimizu, Jûkichi Uno
Votes: 1,372
10. The Fighter Pilot (2013)
144 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
A young woman and her brother explore the history of their grandfather, who died in WW2. They start contacting the men who flew with him, asking them about who he was.
Director: Takashi Yamazaki | Stars: Jun'ichi Okada, Haruma Miura, Mao Inoue, Gaku Hamada
Votes: 2,812
11. The Little House (2014)
136 min | Drama, Romance
A woman looks back on her family's life in Tokyo before and during WWII. A maid arrives from the countryside to work for an upper middle class family. She fits in well, but everyone's emotions are stirred up with the arrival of a student.
Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Takako Matsu, Haru Kuroki, Isao Hashizume, Kazuko Yoshiyuki
Votes: 1,455
12. Tokyo Family (2013)
146 min | Drama
In this update of Yasujiro Ozu's "Tokyo Story", a retired schoolteacher and his wife visit their three working children in modern-day Tokyo.
Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Isao Hashizume, Kazuko Yoshiyuki, Masahiko Nishimura, Yui Natsukawa
Votes: 2,237
13. Our Little Sister (2015)
PG | 127 min | Drama, Family
Three sisters who live in their grandmother's home invite their thirteen-year-old half sister, whom they have just met, to join them.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Haruka Ayase, Masami Nagasawa, Kaho, Suzu Hirose
Votes: 16,897 | Gross: $0.46M
14. Her Granddaughter (2014)
119 min | Drama
In the wake of her grandmother's death, Tsugumi Dozono, who used to work at a large electronics company in Tokyo, decides to move from to the home her grandmother left behind, in the ... See full summary »
Director: Ryûichi Hiroki | Stars: Sakura Andô, Erika Asakura, Nana Eikura, Mari Hamada
Votes: 258
15. Amida-do dayori (2002)
127 min | Drama
An urban Japanese couple decide to move to the country.
Director: Takashi Koizumi | Stars: Akira Terao, Kanako Higuchi, Shoji Arano, Hisashi Igawa
Votes: 296
16. Childhood Days (1990)
119 min | Drama
Bombing during World War II resulted in whole urban populations fleeing to the countryside, and this created a meeting of urban and rural cultures. Shinji (a young boy evacuated from Tokyo)... See full summary »
Director: Masahiro Shinoda | Stars: Tetsuya Fujita, Yuji Horioka, Katsuhisa Yamazaki, Noritake Kobinata
Votes: 224
17. A Last Note (1995)
110 min | Drama
Yoko is a famous actress who goes to a mountain chalet for a few days rest. There, she learns a secret from her companion Toyoko.
Director: Kaneto Shindô | Stars: Haruko Sugimura, Nobuko Otowa, Hideo Kanze, Kyôko Asagiri
Votes: 246
18. A Gentle Breeze in the Village (2007)
121 min | Drama
When eighth grade cool guy Hiromi transfers from Tokyo to a small elementary/middle school with only six kids enrolled, wholesome and honest Soyo becomes enthralled with his sophisticated world.
Director: Nobuhiro Yamashita | Stars: Kaho, Masaki Okada, Elisa Yanagi, Shôko Fujimura
Votes: 1,507
19. The Miracles of the Namiya General Store (2017)
129 min | Drama, Fantasy
A general store that gives advice turns magical one night. Accidentally, the time line switched which somehow makes the current present and the best present for the people who want to be advised.
Director: Ryûichi Hiroki | Stars: Masato Hagiwara, Kento Hayashi, Mugi Kadowaki, Nijirô Murakami
Votes: 1,614
20. Postcard (2010)
114 min | Drama, Romance, War
Toward the end of World War II, middle-aged soldier Keita is entrusted with a postcard from a comrade who is sure he will die in battle. After the war ends, Keita visits his comrade's wife ... See full summary »
Director: Kaneto Shindô | Stars: Etsushi Toyokawa, Shinobu Ôtake, Naomasa Musaka, Akira Emoto
Votes: 265
21. Sweet Bean (2015)
Not Rated | 113 min | Drama
Burdened with a heavy and ever-increasing debt, a dorayaki baker hires a kind ageing woman, after tasting her delicious surprise. Little by little, she unravels her beautiful inner world. Could she be holding the secret to his success?
Director: Naomi Kawase | Stars: Kirin Kiki, Masatoshi Nagase, Kyara Uchida, Miki Mizuno
Votes: 12,720 | Gross: $0.12M
22. Maborosi (1995)
Not Rated | 110 min | Drama
A young woman's husband apparently commits suicide without warning or reason, leaving behind his wife and infant.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Makiko Esumi, Takashi Naitô, Tadanobu Asano, Gohki Kashiyama
Votes: 7,330
23. The Island of Cats (2019)
103 min | Drama
Based on manga series "Neko to Jiichan" by Nekomaki (first published August 7, 2015 by Kadokawa).
Director: Mitsuaki Iwagô | Stars: Guin Poon Chaw, Tasuku Emoto, Shôno Hayama, Yuki Katayama
Votes: 276
24. Children of Nagasaki (1983)
128 min | Drama, War
The atom-bombing of Nagasaki, Japan in 1945 is recalled by a survivor.
Director: Keisuke Kinoshita | Stars: Gô Katô, Yukiyo Toake, Masatomo Nakabayashi, Mami Nishijima
Votes: 167
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