Mayumi Ogawa

Zatoichi comes upon a dying man who asks him to give a bag of money to "Taichi". Zatoichi has no idea who this is but when he comes upon a small town harassed by gangsters, he finds that "Taichi" was the man's young son... (imdb)

Iwao Enokizu is a middle-aged man who has an unexplainable urge to commit insane and violent murders. Eventually he is chased by the police all over Japan, but somehow he always manages to escape. He meets a woman who runs a brothel. They love each other but how long can they be together? (imdb)

When Sokichi stops providing his long-time lover Kikuyo enough money to pay for the care of their three young children, Kikuyo leaves the children with Sokichi - and his very surprised and angry wife Oume - and disappears. (imdb)

In a tale that is visually stunning in certain segments, director Shuji Terayama (who died before this movie was released) has woven a spell of magic and social reprobation around the forbidden love of two cousins. Su-e and her cousin Sutekichi, a descendant of one of the village clans, live together but have been forbidden by her father to have sexual contact. Like other villagers, he believes that if cousins have children together, the children will suffer serious birth defects. (All Movie Guide)

A sarcastic movie that takes jabs at the practices of the medical profession.

The heroine, Ritsuko, is married to Shingo, a design engineer. Shingo is unable to father a child so Ritsuko is artificially inseminated. The birth of a son, Takashi, however, does not help marital relations between husband and wife. When Sakaguchi, a doctor having marital problems with his wife, Shina, is revealed as the sperm donor, Ritsuko develops a passion for the doctor.

An industrialist learns of a medical condition which will greatly shorten his life. He is on a trip to Europe at the time, and a glimpse of a Japanese woman in that setting causes him to fantasize about her as the personification of his impending death. As his dialogue with his imagined mortality continues, he actually meets the living woman who is the template for his fantasy, and together they tour rural churches. (All Movie Guide)

A woman interested in Persian carpets learns of the 5000-year history behind one carpet, and begins to look for something even more important in life than love and happiness... A co-production between Toho Studios and the Mitsukoshi department store. Based on a novel by Hiroyuki Itsuki. (movie.goo.ne.jp (translated))

Based on a novel by Fumiko Enji, "Shokutaku no nai ie" chronicles the hardships faced by the various members of a family due to a crime committed by the eldest son. (movie.goo.ne.jp (translated))

Early Kaneto Shindô post-war drama starring Nobuko Otowa and featuring stunning black and white cinematography with Shindô's beautiful use of deep focus to bring depth to the imagery. (KG)

When Tatsuya Terada (Kenichi Hagiwara) is finally found, he is informed by his family that he is the heir to the family's fortune, and to the ancient family curse. As soon as he hears of the curse, it immediately appears to take effect, as gruesome figures emerge from tombs in the vicinity. Policeman Kosuke Kindaichi (Kiyoshi Atsumi) has a different opinion about the curse, which is that someone has gone to a great deal of trouble to harass the young heir

Tokugawa era, during the Obon festival, when the souls of the departed leave the underworld to visit their loved ones on earth. (mubi.com)

When a married man begins an affair with a woman from his past, he comes to suspect her young son intends to murder him. (Criterion)

The life and times of Kûkai, a Japanese monk who studies Esoteric Buddhism in the far reaches of India, China and Tibet, then uses their combined influence to establish the Shingon school during the Heian period in early 9th Century AD. (letterboxd.com)

Set during Japan's Meiji period, three sisters are abused and exploited by their harsh father, including a daughter who plays the three-corded shamisen for pilgrims visiting the sacred chapel of Ise.

Isazo is a traveling gambler and living legend in the world of yakuza, known for his swordsmanship and bravery, his impeccable manners, and his brilliant talent in gambling. One late fall at an inn in Kiso Fukushima, Isazo befriends a young boy whose mother turns out to be his old love Yoshino, with whom he was not unable to consummate a marriage due to the class differences between them. (themoviedb)

A soldier deserts his position and travels to a small town on the Sea of Japan to start over. When a young maid falls for him, he talks her into sleeping with an older man for money. The woman is told by a Geisha that she gave up her virginity cheaply. The resort town begins to feel the influence of the modern world as the sabre-rattling that preceded World War II begins to change their lives forever.

Ken Ogata plays Shiro Miyagi, a sprinter with Olympic aspirations whose dreams were shattered by WWII. A broken man, he leads the dissolute life of a gigolo until a chance meeting with a fiery young athlete named Hiroko (Michiyo Yasuda). Realizing that she has talent as a sprinter, Miyagi sees a second chance at Olympic glory in becoming her coach. Her greatest hurdle proves to be a "sex check" which all professional athletes must pass. (imdb)

A young officer must choose between love and duty. (imdb)

The fear of the fiercely obsessive woman who deprives her best friend of her husband. An emotionally charged movie starring Hitomi Kuroki, Masato Furuoya, and Hisako Manda.