“Saigo no Shonin,” premieres on Friday, July 3, at 7:35 p.m.
Sadato Sakata was a public prosecutor until 12 years ago. He resigned from his job at the District Public Prosecutors’ Office and opened his own law practice in Tokyo in order to carry out his own “justice.” His justice is to “let crimes be judged properly.” He specializes in criminal cases and has a reputation as a man of ability. Sakata has been asked to defend Shimazu, who was arrested and charged with a murder occurred at a hotel. Fully subtitled in English.
“Hero 2014,” premieres on Monday, July 6, at 7:35 p.m.
Kohei Kuryu (Takuya Kimura) is an unorthodox prosecutor who looks and thinks different from the other prosecutors. His unique habit as prosecutor has not changed over the past 13 years of his work. He uses his street-smart and unconventional methods in figuring out the truth behind various crimes. When he takes on a new case, he first goes to the scene of the incident and looks around with his own eyes. Chika Asagi works as an assistant officer at the public prosecutor’s office. She becomes influenced by Kohei and grows as a person. Fully subtitled in English.
“Mystery Hour – Kyoto Ninjo Sosa File,” premieres on Tuesday, July 7, at 7:35 p.m.
The Crime Victims Support Unit exists within each prefectural police. The job of the unit is to provide all sorts of information, advice and help to victims and their family members. This work covers a wide range from being there for scarred victims, assisting in funeral services to dealing with the mass media. While unit members may visit a scene with investigators, they are not empowered with the authority to investigate. However, Tetsuya Togakure, who was once a detective of the Kyoto Prefectural Police’s First Investigative Division, has the conviction that what victims and their family want to know the most, is the truth. Fully subtitled in English.
“DATE – Koi towa Donna Mono Kashira?” premieres on Wednesday, July 8, at 7:35 p.m.
Yoriko Yabushita is a 29-year-old economic expert who is extremely well-educated and deeply devoted to her career, but she is quite rigid and awkward when it comes to relationships and love, let alone marriage. As she aims to get married by the age of 30, she sets out to find just the right guy as husband. Then she meets Takumi Taniguchi, a 35-year-old bachelor who is in search for a prospective spouse with his own reasons. Apparently their criteria for their “ideal partner” match perfectly, but the truth be told, both of them completely lack the skills in nurturing a romantic relationship. Though their relationship begins with no romantic feelings, they go on a number of dates in order to reach their common goal: marriage. Will they come to truly love each other and be happily married? Fully subtitled in English.
“Border,” premieres on Friday, July 17, at 7:35 p.m.
Ango Ishikawa bounces back and forth between life and death after he gets shot in the head during an investigation. He miraculously recovers, but when he returns to work he realizes he has the ability to speak to the dead. They provide him with information unknown to others that leads him to the truth. Ango deals with cases that fall in between life and death, justice and the law, compassion and cruelty. Fully subtitled in English.
NGN 3 MOVIE CHANNEL (Digital Ch. 679)
Premiere titles air on Friday. Movies are shown at various times. Check your digital on-screen guide for movie schedules, using either the GUIDE or INFO buttons (up to one week ahead). Or call NGN, Mon.-Fri. from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 538-1966 for inquiries or to request an e-mail of NGN 3 programming information. All movies are in Japanese language with full English subtitles.
PREMIERE TITLES OF THE MONTH
July 3: “Taiheiyo no G-Men (G-Men in the Pacific),” 1962 drama, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Teruo Ishii. Starring Chiezo Kataoka and Tetsuro Tanba.
G-men challenge a jewelry smuggling ring. The chase starts in Kyushu and continues to Kobe to Yokohama.
July 10: “Dassou Yuugi (Jail Breakers),” 1976 action film, 1 hour and 33
minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Sonny Chiba.
Kamiki is a professional fixer of jailbreak who lets prisoners escape for big money. He became a criminal at age 12 and has been and out of prison for a total of 48 years.
July 17: “Jingi no Hakaba (Graveyard for Honor),” 1975 action film, 1 hour and 34 minutes.
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Starring Tetsuya Watari and Tatsuo Umemiya.
A dire portrait of the corruption that reigns over both cops and yakuza gangs in 1970s Osaka. Kuroiwa is a cop whose brutal tactics place him closer in spirit to the criminals he is bringing down than to the law-abiding citizens he’s supposed to protect. As the cops attempt to broker peace between two rival gangs and tensions mount in the underworld, Kuroiwa starts to fall for the wife of one of the bosses.
July 24: “Futari Wakajishi (Two Young Lions),” 1959 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 28 minutes.
Directed by Kinnosuke Fukada. Starring Chiyonosuke Azuma and Sentaro Fushimi.
Shinkuro, a samurai, and Yasutaro, a thief, work together to resist a tyrannical Tokugawa government.
July 31: “Kawachi Yukyoden (The Rickshaw Man’s Son),” 1967 action film,
1 hour and 28 minutes.
Directed by Tatsuichi Takamori. Starring Sonny Chiba.
A roughneck named Komakichi of Kawachi, Osaka, comes back from three years of training to become a chef, hoping to be with his crush Tamae, a daughter of a Japanese restaurant’s owner. His father is not happy because Komakichi has no intention to become a rickshaw man and follow in his father’s footsteps.
NGN3 MOVIE OF THE MONTH
“Tenchi Meisatsu (Tenchi the Samurai Astronomer),” 2012 drama/jidaigeki,
2 hours and 21 minutes.
Directed by Yojiro Takita. Starring Junichi Okada and Aoi Miyazaki.
In the early 17th century, Santetsu Yasui was a successful Go player who often performed demonstrations for the Shogun. In addition to mastering Go, Santetsu was also versatile in the arts of mathematics, surveying, and astronomy. With his knowledge for all three subjects, he was ordered by his clan chief to observe the North Star from vantage points throughout Japan for an accurate survey. During his travels he began to realize that the calendar Japan had used for centuries was fundamentally flawed.
When Yasui returned, he began shouldering the monumental task of identifying and correcting those errors. But undertaking such a task was considered a direct threat to the Imperial authorities administering the calendar. “Tenchi the Samurai Astronomer” is the inspirational story of a man’s quest to take control of the Heavens and the Earth, thus creating a new calendar for the people.
NGN3 COMMUNITY FAVORITE
“Ina no Kantaro (Yakuza of Ina),” 1958 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 26 minutes.
Directed by Shigehiro Ozawa. Starring Chiyonosuke Azuma and Shinobu
Chihara.
Kantaro risks his life saving his childhood friend from the evil boss, Jubei.
NGN3 Movies (in alphabetical order)
“Antoki no Inochi (Life Back Then),” 2011 drama, 2 hours and 11 minutes.
Directed by Takahisa Zeze. Starring Masaki Okada and Nana Eikura.
Kyohei has shut away the world. During his high school days he was the target of bullying and experienced horrifying moments. Now as a young adult, he works for a company that specializes in cleaning out the homes of recently deceased individuals. When sorting through the personal belongings of the deceased, he’s forced to face the concept of life and death.
Through his new job, Kyohei meets co-worker Yuki. She has also experienced a traumatizing event as a teen and has also shut herself away from the world. These two young people form a bond as they go through the homes and gradually open up to each other.
“Chimoji Yashiki (Revenge for His Lover),” 1962 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Kudo Eiichi. Starring Otomo Ryutaro and Okawa Hashizo.
Kamio, a mistreated samurai clerk of Edo Castle, together with ronin (“Sir Quarrel”) Ibara, take up a vendetta against 17 wicked castle men.
“Furisode Torimonocho Chirimen Kago (Mysteries of Edo 2),” 1957 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 26 minutes.
Directed by Shoji Matsumura. Starring Hibari Misora and Chiyonosuke Azuma.
Oshichi, a princess in disguise, launches an investigation on the multiple kidnapping case.
“Hajimari no Michi (Dawn of a Filmmaker: The Keisuke Kinoshita Story),” 2013 drama, 1 hour and 36 minutes.
Directed by Keiichi Hara. Starring Ryo Kase and Yuko Tanaka.
Based on the life of prolific movie director Keisuke Kinoshita, “Hajimari no Michi” covers various unknown parts of his life.
As a young man, Keisuke carried his mother on a handcart across a mountain. He grew up as a hot-blooded young man and was monitored by the military. He then joined Shochiku Company to eventually become a movie director.
“Hakuchu no Shikaku (Dead Angle),” 1979 drama, 2 hours and 34 minutes.
Directed by Masahiro Makino. Starring Isamu Natsuki, Sonny Chiba, Shigeru Amachi and Katsu Ryuzaki.
Elite college graduates commit perfect financial crimes though loopholes in the law during the 1950s.
“Hatamoto Taikutsu Otoko Nazo no Yureijima,” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Directed by Yasushi Sasaki. Starring Utaemon Ichikawa and Kinya Kitaoji.
Saotome Mondonosuke investigates the illegal trade conducted in Nagasaki.
“Hibari Ohako Ojo Kichiza (Hibari’s Favorite 2),” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 18 minutes.
Directed by Yasushi Sasaki. Starring Hibari Misora and Tomizaburo Wakayama.
A young girl, Kichiza, searches for her missing brother and the person responsible for the death of her parents.
“Hibotan Bakuto Hanafuda Shobu (The Valiant Red Peony, Part 3),” 1969 drama, 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Starring Junko Fuji and Ken Takakura.
Oryu the Peony continues her quest to perfect her skills as professional gambler while leading a life in accordance with the moral code of the yakuza and helping those she encounters fight against injustice.
“Jo no Mai (Appassionata),” 1984 drama, 2 hours and 20 minutes.
Directed by Nakajima Sadao. Starring Natori Yuko and Okada Mariko.
The life of a talented female painter, Tsuya, who lives as a widow.
“Kanto Nagaremono (Kanto Drifter),” 1965 action film, 1 hour and 32 minutes.
Directed by Shigehiro Ozawa. Starring Koji Tsuruta and Minoru Oki.
Seijiro Oya is a chivalrous gambler, and Sangoro is a tough guy from a gang who pits himself against the chivalrous gambler in the Meiji period. Both men love the same geisha, Oshige, but they eventally become friends.
“Kimi no Na wa (Always in My Heart, Part 2),” 1953 drama, 2 hours.
Directed by Hideo Oba. Starring Keiko Kishi and Keiji Sada.
Machiko and Haruki’s drama continues. Two meet again in Hokkaido only to be separated again. Part two of three.
“Narazumono (An Outlaw),” 1963 drama, 1 hour and 28 minutes.
Directed by Teruo Ishii. Starring Ken Takakura and Tetsuro Tamba.
Assassin Nanjo goes on a solitary mission to take revenge on the man who trapped him into a complicated drug deal.
“Nintama Rantaro (Ninja Kids),” 2011 comedy, 1 hour and 40 minutes.
Directed by Takashi Miike. Starring Seishiro Kato and Hiroki Matsukata.
A family-oriented comedy film directed by Takashi Miike about the adventures of Rantaro and other ninja apprentices at an elite ninjutsu academy. Rantaro comes from a family of bad ninjas and has been sent off to Ninja school to break the streak of unsuccessful ninjas in the family. During the summer, they are challenged by a group of rival ninjas which culminates in a race to ring a bell on top of a mountain.
“Oedo Hyobanki Binan no Kaoyaku (Good Rascals),” 1962 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 31 minutes.
Directed by Tadashi Sawashima. Starring Hashizo Okawa, Kiyoshi Atsumi and Kotaro Satomi.
A group of men living a low life in Edo help each other to make the best out of their lives.
“Ooka Seidan Mazohen (Ooka Seidan: Devil Image),” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Toshikazu Kono. Starring Utaemon Ichikawa and Tomisaburo Wakayama.
Magistrate Ooka and a samurai fights against evil.
“Ren’ai Jiyugata (Romance Freestyle),” 1958 drama, 1 hour and 11 minutes.
Directed by Kiyoshi Saeki. Starring Hibari Misora, Ken Takakura, Ken Sudo and Miki Sanjo.
The love between young college student Toki and handsome Takaya is tested when Takaya’s parents, who despise Toki’s family’s geisha house business, intervenes in their relationship.
“Shakotan Bugi (Shakotan Boogie-Woogie),” 1987 action film, 1 hour and 29 minutes.
Directed by Shun Nakahara. Starring Kazuya Kimura and Kazuhiko Kanayama.
Two friends are into shakotan, the Japanese term for low-riders. The adventure of low-riding youths includes picking up girls and cross-cultural drag racing.
“Shin Ougon Kujakujo Shichinin no Kishi Dai-ichibu (Seven Knights,
Part 1),” 1961 samurai film, 56 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Kotaro Satomi and Shingo Yamashiro.
Seven knights fight for the peace of the world.
“Shin Ougon Kujakujo Shichinin no Kishi Dai-nichibu (Seven Knights,
Part 2),” 1961 samurai film, 55 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Kotaro Satomi and Shingo Yamashiro.
Seven knights fight for the peace of the world.
“Shura no Mure (The Story of a Man Among Men),” 1984 drama, 2 hours and 2 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Hiroki Matsukata, Saburo Kitajima and Bunta Sugawara.
Depicting the turbulent life of Ryuj, a yakuza with compassion and brotherhood towards his comrades.
“Tekka Wakashu (The Metal Head Gang),” 1962 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 29
minutes.
Directed by Yasushi Sasaki. Starring Kotaro Ozawa, Ryutaro Otomo and Satomi Oka.
Young samurai Yanosuke avenges his father’s death.
“Toseinin Retsuden (Gambler’s Legacy),” 1969 drama, 1 hour and 39 minutes.
Directed by Shigehiro Ozawa. Starring Ken Takakura and Koji Tsuruta.
A yakuza member embarks on a trail of revenge for his murdered boss. Senzo, the successor of the Mita Family, searches for the man bearing a tattoo of a dragon who is said to be responsible for the death of their former leader.
“Yagyu Bugeicho Katame no Jubei (Yagyu Military Art: Jubei’s Redemption),” 1963 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Directed by Koukichi Uchide. Starring Jushiro Konoe, Hiroki Matsukata and Shingo Yamashiro.
Jubei must prove the innocence of his family who is suspected of conspiring to take Shogun’s life.
“Yujo (Friendship),” 1998 drama, 1 hour and 43 minutes.
Directed by Seiji Izumi. Starring Mika Mifune and Toshiro Yanagiba.
Fourteen-year old student Ayumi has leukemia and starts losing hair. She becomes depressed as she has lost her hair but receives overwhelming support from her classmates when they all shave their heads for her.
“Zoku Kyodai Jingi (Code Between Brothers 2),” 1966 drama, 1 hour and 29 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Saburo Kitajima and Kotaro Satomi.
The services of a wandering gambler, Seiji, are called upon to protect the turf of his loyal friend Risaburo.
