“Kaibyou Noroi no Numa (Bakeneko: A Vengeful Spirit),” 1968 horror/samurai, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Yoshihiro Ishikawa. Starring Ryohei Uchida, Kotaro Satomi and Kyoko Mikage.
Nabeshima Naoshige murders his lord, Ryuzoji Takafusa, seeking to gain power and steal his Lord’s wife. To avoid her fate, Lady Takafusa drowns herself along with her cat in a nearby marsh. A decade later, Naoshige’s efforts to steal another woman trigger a curse on him when she also commits suicide at the same marsh – forcing him to suffer the consequences of his past actions.
“Ken wa Shitteita Kougan Musoryu (The Sword Knows),” 1958 samurai, 1 hour and 44 minutes.
Directed by Kokichi Uchidate. Starring Kinnosuke Nakamura, Keiko Okawa and Eijiro Kataoka.
In the midst of the warring age, a young samurai Kyonosuke defies his former lord, Hojo Ujikatsu, to avenge his parents’ death.
“Kiryuin Hanako no Shogai (Onimasa),” 1982 drama, 2 hour and 26 minutes.
Directed by Hideo Gosha. Starring Tatsuya Nakadai and Shima Iwashita.
Set in the 1920’s, gang boss Onimasa of the Kiryuin Family accepts a young girl, Matsue, as payment for a debt, whom he then adopts. This story opens when Onimasa’s real daughter Hanako has just died, leading to Matsue’s telling the family’s story in flashback form. A decades long duel with Boss Suenaga is kicked off when after the disputed outcome of a brutal dogfight between vicious mastiffs, Suenaga, who lost kills the winner’s dog and threatens Onimasa.
“Kobanzame Oyakusha Jingi (Actress Vs. Greedy Sharks),” 1966 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Directed by Tadashi Sawashima. Starring Hibari Misora, Yoichi Hayashi, Shindo Eitaro and Nogawa Yumiko.
Framed by his enemies, Manbe finds himself imprisoned for a murder he didn’t commit. His only hope lies with his daughter Yuki who takes it upon herself to clear his name.
“Meiji Kyokakuden Sandaime Shumei (Codes of Meiji),” 1965 action film, 1 hour and 29 minutes.
Directed by Yasuo Huruhata. Starring Koji Tsuruta and Junko Fuji.
Third generation yakuza boss faces conflicts of tradition and modernity in Osaka.
“Minyo no Tabi Sakurajima Otemoyan (Song of Kagoshima),” 1962 drama, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Kunio Watanabe. Starring Hibari Misora, Ken Takakura and Shinya Mihashi.
President of Shirayuri Tours, Yumemi, visits Kagoshima in an attempt to save the contract with Satsuma Inn.
After learning about the abrupt cancellation of the contract with the family-run Satsuma Inn in Kagoshima, Yumemi, launches her own investigation into the matter. Amidst her efforts to resume her company’s contract with the inn, Yumemi finds herself personally involved in the inn’s family affairs and with their guests in a surprising discover of love and friendship.
“Nihon Jokyoden Makka na Dokyobana (Bloodiest Flower),” 1960 drama, 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Directed by Yasuo Furuhata. Starring: Junko Fuji, Ken Takakura and Shingo Yamashiro.
Following the life of Yuki, a young woman who moves to the undeveloped countryside of Hokkaido to carry out her long alienated father’s will.
“No Youna Mono, No Youna Mono (Something Like, Something Like It),” 2016 drama, 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Directed by Taiichi Sugiyama. Starring Kenichi Matsuyama and Keiko Kitagawa.
Shinden is a serious and undistinguished “Rakugo” performer (a traditional Japanese verbal performance art) apprentice. He is ordered from his master to find the whereabouts of senior performer Shintoto, who had given up Rakugo to live a more carefree life. As he gets to know him, Sinden learns how to live more enjoyable life while Shintoto recall his passion for “Rakugo.”
“Nogitsunebue Hanafubuki Ichiban Matoi (Glorious Firefighter’s Standard),” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 17 minutes.
Directed by Shoji Matsumura. Starring Chiyonosuke Azuma and Satomi Oka.
Firefighter Sanji learns the secret of his birth.
“Ooka Seidan Chidori no Inrou (The Medicine Case),” 1959 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 19 minutes.
Directed by Yasushi Sasaki. Starring Chiezo Kataoka and Chiyonosuke Azuma.
Magistrate OOKA-ECHIZEN faces a crime over a pillbox.
“Otoko wa Tsuraiyo Shibamata Bojo (Tora-san’s Dear Old Home),” 1972 comedy/drama, 1 hour and 48 minutes.
Directed by Yoji Yamada. Starring Kiyoshi Atsumi and Sayuri Yoshinaga.
Tora-san meets three women on vacation in the historic, charming city of Kanazawa. Shy but pretty Utako (Sayuri Yoshinaga) particularly catches Tora-san’s eye. A few weeks later, Utako visits Tora-san in Shimabata, and Tora-san believes she has fallen in love with him, unaware that she hopes to marry a potter in the countryside.
“Shinjuku no Yotamono (Thugs of Shinjuku),” 1970 drama, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Shin Takakuwa. Starring Bunta Sugawara and Shingo Yamashiro.
Fresh out of jail, a smart-mouth wise guy Goro takes the name “Big Brother Katsumata.” Not fitting in well with established gangs, he forms a rag-tag gang called “the Shinjuku Brothers.” The members of their gang are thugs who only wish they were traditional yakuza.
When they turn up at the funeral for a gangster, they are not welcomed, but a senior boss intervenes to keep things calm. The boss of bosses invites them to join a respected local council of warlords. Katsumata is suspicious of why such powerful men would extend an invitation to lowlife like himself…
“Tarao Bannai Hayabusa no Mao (Foul Play),” 1955 drama, 1 hour and 21minutes.
Directed by Sadatsugu Matsuda. Starring Chiezo Kataoka and Chizuru Kitagawa.
Private eye Tarao Bannai and his assistant Masako investigate the mysterious murder of a baseball player who was killed in the middle of a game.
“Wakasama Zamurai Torimonocho Mano Shibijin Yashiki (Case of A Young Lord Part 3),” 1954 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Directed by Kinnosuke Fukada. Starring Hashizo Okawa, Shinobu Chihara and Satomi Oka.
A master swordsman gets involved in a strange murder that occurs as a result of a Shogun succession struggle.
“Yatarogasa (Yakuza of Ina),” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 37 minutes.
Directed by Masahiro Makino. Starring Kinnosuke Nakamura, Satomi Oka and Chiyonosuke Azuma.
Yataro the wanderer watches over the beloved daughter of his close friend.
