“Fuyu no Hana (Flower of Winter),” 1978 drama, 2 hours and 2 minutes.
Directed by Yasuo Furuhata. Starring Ken Takakura, Kimiko Ikegami, Kunie Tanaka and Mitsuko Baisho.
Kano, a yakuza convicted of murder, looks after the daughter of his victim from a distance.
“Gorotsuki Mushuku (Patience Has an End),” 1971 drama, 1 hour and 50 minutes.
Directed by Yasuo Furuhata. Starring Ken Takakura.
Young coal miner Takeda leaves Kyushu in search of a better job in Tokyo, only to fall into the lucrative yet dangerous life of a yakuza.
“Gozonji Kaiketsu Kurozukin Dai-niwa Shinsengumi Tsuigeki (The Black Hooded Man 2),” 1955 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 23 minutes.
Directed by Koukichi Uchida. Starring Ryutaro Otomo and Shinobu Chihara.
The mysterious black hooded man, Kurozukin, helps transport funds raised to fight against the government.
“Hana no Ran (The Rage of Love),” 1988 drama, 2 hours and 19 minutes.
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Starring Sayuri Yoshinaga, Yusaku Matsuda, Morio Kazama and Ken Ogata.
A man and woman in the Taisho era seek love, art, and social reform.
A poignant story of Akiko, a housewife who becomes a famous poet, and her struggles to pursue love, art and social reform in the Taisho era.
“Hatamoto Kenka Daka,” 1961 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 21 minutes.
Directed by Nobuo Nakagawa. Starring Utaemon Ichikawa.
A samurai crushes a plot to overthrow the government.
“Hibari no Mori no Ishimatsu (Skylark Forest),” 1960 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 27 minutes.
Directed by Tadashi Sawashima. Starring Hibari Misora, Tomisaburo Wakayama and Kotaro Satomi.
Japan’s legendary actress Hibari stars as Ishimatsu, a fearless yakuza determined to put a stop to injustice.
“Hibotan Bakuto (The Valiant Red Peony),” 1968 drama, 1 hour and 39 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Ken Takakura, Junko Fuji and Tomisaburo Wakayama.
Upon the death of her casino owner father, Ryuko takes it upon herself to seek out and kill the murderer. The only clue she has is a wallet left behind at the murder scene. Biding her time, she trains and learns to fight taking the name Oryu the Peony. She joins the ranks of professional gamblers and begins her quest for revenge.
“Jingi no Hakaba (Graveyard for Honor),” 1975 action film, 1 hour and 34 minutes.
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Starring: Tetsuya Watari, 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.
“Kazoku wa Tsuraiyo (What a Wonderful Family!),” 2016 drama 1 hour and 48 minutes.
Directed by Yoji Yamada. Starring Isao Hashizume, Kazuko Yoshiyuki
Tomiko and Shuzo have been married for 50 years. On the birthday of Tomiko, Shuzo asks her what she wants as a memorial gift. She answers, “a divorce.” Their children are much thrown into a state of panic to hear this news of separation. Amid the sudden tumult of life, each member of the family begins to publicize respective grievances.
“Ninja Bugeicho Momochi Sandayu (Shogun’s Ninja),” 1980 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 57 minutes.
Directed by Noribumi Suzuki. Starring Hiroyuki Sanada, Etsuko Shihomi.
Shogun’s Ninja revolves around two rival ninja clans whose constant battle for superiority has spanned decades and cost countless lives. During a critical point in their war with one another, one of the rival kings sends his commander on a mission to retrieve two mystical daggers. With these legendary knives, the clan hopes to learn the “secrets of the ninja,” which are rumored to come with them.
“Nuretsubame Kurenai Gonpachi (Drenched Swallow Gonpachi),” 1958 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 33 minutes.
Directed by Kokichi Ichidate. Starring: Hashizo Okawa, Keiko Okawa, Utaemon Ichikawa and Yumiko Hasegawa.
Ronin Gonpachi falls in love with beautiful Hiroe, the daughter of the man he murdered.
“Onna Toseinin (Okoma, the Orphan Gambler),” 1971 drama, 90 minutes.
Directed by Shigehiro Ozawa. Starring Junko Fuji and Koji Tsuruta. A story of a gambling woman, Okoma, who must deliver a child to her father.
“Ooku Emaki (Portrait of Castle Women),” 1968 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Directed by Kosaku Yamashita. Starring Yoshiko Sakuma and Reiko Ohara.
A love-hate drama of three beautiful sisters in Ooku in Edo Castle.
“Otoko wa Tsuraiyo Torajiro Yumemakura (Tora-san’s Dream-Come-True),” 1972 drama, 1 hour and 25 minutes.
Directed by Yoji Yamada. Starring Kiyoshi Atsumi and Kaoru Yachigusa.
Tora-san is furious when he finds that his family has rented out his room to a local university professor. When he reconnects with Chiyo, a childhood friend, he develops feelings for her – and so has the professor. Though the professor and Tora-san now are rivals for the affection of Chiyo, Tora-san conspires to help the professor.
“ReLIFE,” 2017 drama, 1 hour and 59 minutes.
Directed by Takeshi Furusawa. Starring Taishi Nakagawa and Yuna Taira.
Twenty-seven-year-old Arata Kaizaki becomes unemployed after quitting his job after only 5 months. He meets a mysterious man named Ryo, who urges him to participate in an experimental social reintegration program called “ReLIFE” that enables him to rejuvenate his appearance by 10 years for a period of one year by taking an experimental drug. Arata reenters high school as a student, where he gradually forms a strong bond with a unique group of classmates but once the one-year experiment expires, he will be erased from their memory. What will the future hold for him after ReLIFE?
“Umon Torimonocho Nanbanzame (Case of Umon: Nanbanzame Murders),” 1961 jidagieki, 1 hour and 8 minutes.
Directed by Shigehiro Ozawa. Starring Ryutaro Otomo, Hashizo Okawa, Satomi Oka and Shingo Yamashiro.
Detective Umon’s services are called upon when a serial murderer threatens the lives of those living at Edo harbor.
“Wakakihino Jirocho Tokaiichi no Wakaoyabun (Young Master of Tokai),” 1961 jidaigeki, 1 hour and 34 minutes.
Directed by Masahiro Makino. Starring Kinnosuke Nakamura and Michitaro Mizushima.
Jirocho’s plan to settle down with Ocho and live a quiet life is short lived as he steps in to prevent an illegal prostitution business from being introduced on his turf.
“Yagyu Bugeicho Yozakura Hiken (The Yagyu Military Art),” 1961 samurai/action film, 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Director Masahiko Izawa. Starring Kotaro Satomi, Konoe Juushiro, Hanazono Hiromi and Ryuji Kita.
When the Yagyu clan falls victim to rival Kasumi spies, Yagyu Jubei is called to action to protect them. But in performing his duty, he, himself, becomes the target of those who wish to destroy his clan.
“Yoidore Musoken (Drunken Sword),” 1962 samurai film, 1 hour and 32 minutes.
Directed by Tadashi Sawashima. Starring Utaemon Ichikawa, Kotaro Satomi, Jushiro Konoe and Chiyonosuke Azuma.
Tetsunosuke, an eccentric doctor and an owner of a fencing school, takes aim against corrupt authorities.
