Mikio Narita

A look at the life of renegade yakuza, Rikio Ishikawa, particularly the years from 1946 to 1950 when his violent antics get him in trouble with his own clan, Kawada, and then with the clan of his protector, Kozaburo Imai. In these years, he can rely on Chieko, a young Tokyo courtesan who gives him shelter. He's banished to Osaka, where he picks up a drug habit. Through it all, he keeps his friends and enemies off balance with unpredictable behavior - and he seems indestructible. (imdb)

A fortuneteller prophesies that whoever marries the beautiful Ukio will become the ruler of the world... (imdb)

A sword master and his group of friends; a midget, a bomb expert, a geek (with glasses), and a small rubber elephant must get a golden sword before a gang of ninjas, a rival gang of thieves does the same. The sword has magical powers and belongs to a Golden King who lives in a Golden Kingdom. (imdb comments)

Zatoichi makes friends with a dangerous chess player, while fending off angry yakuza and bloodthirsty relatives out for revenge, and trying to save a sick child. Meanwhile, his luck with dice is turning... (imdb)

A cop intervenes in warfare between Yakuza gangs. (bfi.org.uk)

Following her successful prison break at the end of Joshu Sasori Dai 41 Zakkyobou, Scorpion (Meiko Kaji) begins this third episode in the series hiding in a brothel. Her prostitute friend tries to keep her identity secret, but the brothel's madam discovers that Scorpion is the ex-girlfriend of the vice officer who killed her lover. Torture follows, as the madam's lover was a member of the Yakuza, and his thuggish cohorts frame Scorpion and get her re-arrested... (All Movie Guide)

Okane, a beautiful girl from a poor family, must serve as a mistress to a much older rich man. Upon the death of the man and her father, she returns to her village where she meets a young soldier, Seisaku. The locals despise them because of Okane's past, the young woman meets them with arrogance and haughty behavior. The two fall in love and marry against the spite of the whole village, but then Seisaku has to go to war against the Russians and their world falls apart... (imdb)

Two rival surgical teams at a Japanese hospital perform gruesome experimental operations on healthy patients in this macabre horror story. The liver of a young serviceman is removed as the main course in a planned dinner celebration. (all movie guide)

Young karate prodigy Oyama denounces martial arts after killing a gang leader in a bar fight and goes to work on a farm. But later, when an assassin is hired to stop Oyama from re-entering the world of martial arts, Oyama must take revenge. (HK Flix)

Police officers and gangsters work hand in hand in this bloody urban drama, which splits the difference between a good guy and a thug. Just as the Ohara gang -- a crafty group of criminals that's unofficially sanctioned by local police -- prepares to pull off a profitable scam, their leader emerges from prison with plans to go legit. To make matters worse, a new police lieutenant has plans of his own to shake things up in the department. (Netflix)

In a time of economic disaster for wage earners, Hanzo discovers a conspiracy among high officials to "borrow" gold from the shogunate's treasury and loan it out to the destitute, including impecunious samurai - exacting either interest payments or family heirlooms from the debtors. (imdb)

The world of drugs, mobsters, fascists, and assorted other criminal types is taken on single-handedly (almost) by the hero (Hiroyuki Sanada) as he fights for justice. His chief enemy is a man dedicated to Hitler, with a sadistic female sidekick thrown in for good measure. Other foes keep the hero and his few friends (a secret agent and the owner of a bar) busy fighting off the forces of evil right through to the end. (All Movie Guide)

Asakura is an accountant for Towa oil by day and a dangerous assassin by night. A bank heist has just landed him 100 million yen. His perfect plan goes up in smoke when he leans that all the bills have been marked. He decides to buy heroin with the money and then sell it for a bigger profit. Asakura isn't the only con artist in town. Sakurai with the help of his girlfriend have been blackmailing top officials who work for the Towa Corporation. Soon Asakura and Sakurai's paths will intersect... (10kbullets.com)

The main character is a man from the WW2 generation who has lost his dreams in post-war Japan. While working as a cook in a restaurant he also earns some money as a contract killer. (imdb)

The seventh in the shocking "Jingi Naki Tatakai" movie series, which exposes the true lives of the yakuza that is hidden by a mask of "jingi". The next stage of this continuing drama is the Kanmon Channel where the Owada and the Kyoei groups are battling for territorial rights and drug smuggling. The Owada sends their man, Tetsu, and his friend Shuji to kill the Kyoei boss. With the promise of fame and riches, Shuji takes the fall and goes to jail for 7 years. (AT)

This movie can basically be summed up as "small town gangsters vs. big city gangsters." If you've seen any of Kinji Fukasaku's other yakuza pictures, like the Battles Without Honor & Humanity series (a.k.a. The Yakuza Papers) or Yakuza Graveyard, you'll know what to expect in terms of pacing, camera-work, and storytelling style. Every character in this movie is either a snarling alpha male or a sniveling coward. The action scenes are frenetic to the point of being confusing. (imdb)

Three ronin put themselves for hire against a powerful Shogunate. Ninjas, blood, and boobs ensue.

Those cold-blooded Ninja-nailing killers-for-hire are back, and bloodier than ever! Echo of Destiny, the kinetic second film in the Shadow Hunters saga, is a tale rich in intrigue, betrayal, and gory death. Retained by a great Damiyo to escort an illegal cannon to safety, the three Shadow Hunters must carve their way through a legion of Ninja (and more of those sexy female assassins) in order to complete their commission. (rightstuf.com)

The Son of the Black Mass returns in this ninth installment in Daiei's longstanding Nemuri Kyoshiro series. This time Raizo Ichikawa as Nemuri is called to see that a gold statuette of the Virgin Mary gets safe passage to Kyoto from the prying hands of a sect of murderous Christian ronin that call themselves the Black Finger Group. (imdb)

A young intellectual conscientious objector is forced to serve with the Japanese army in Manchuria. He joins with a dim-witted former gangster in an effort to desert by stealing a train. (imdb)

Ryusuke Kaji (Tatsuya Fuji) is a rogue cop that is determined to get results. Awakened by the shrill ring of his phone in the middle of the night, he's called in to investigate a case. Another homicide had been reported. The victim was Shimada, a bandsman that performed at a night club set up on Yakuza turf. When Ryusuke discovers that the victim was acquainted with Mirai Nozawa, a former biker-gang member, instinct tells him to go after her. (nikkatsu.com)

Inspector General Kanjuro Sano conspires with the future shogun twin brother. They replace Ieyoshi Tokugawa with his twin, but it becomes a problem when suspicion arises and Nemuri Kyoshiro gets involved. (themoviedb)

After the victory of Japan-Russia War, boss of the Nanjo family is stabbed to death. His son abandons his naval position in order to succeed as the new boss of the family. (imdb)

Upon the passing of the Sakanishi Clan's boss, a fierce battle between his wife Hazuki and his disciple Terada breaks out. Will Hazuki be able to assume her husband's position as the head of the established yakuza clan? (themoviedb)

An assassin trained as a ninja carries the code name M. Hayami is a yakuza boss and a divorced father who is not allowed to come near his and her young daughter Mutsumi from his ex-wife Kazuko. In the big port city of Yokohama, M has to see Hayami, who with his practices has thrown angry blood at the president of the yakuza group. (letterboxd.com)

While the original from 1964 starred the great old-time actor Konoe Jushiro, this version is perfectly cast with his son Matsukata Hiroki in the lead as Wadakuro, one of four ronin hired to fight against the Shogunate's plot to abolish the Gamo Clan, who are struggling to reinstate their young heir Tanemaru as their Lord. Facing the threat of the Koga Ninja, Wadakuro shows his own cruelty while on a personal vendetta.

Formerly a secret agent of the shogunate, Sanzo and Yumenogosuke are now on the run, with their lives in danger, and make their way to Kurume Castle in Kyushu. Sanzo extorts an official patrolman but is caught and thrown in jail. Meanwhile, Gosuke meets Tanokura Tanosuke and Otoyo, a street performer couple traveling with their son, Daikichi. However, they are attacked by a group of samurai. Saved by a female swordsman dressed as a man, the Tanokura family heads for Hiyoshi.

Attacking Asao Uchida's lonely, clifftop mansion in a no-holds-barred massacre.

Samon Kamiyama, a skilled yoriki under Toyama Saemon-no-jō Kagemoto is feared and known to the villains as “Samon from the Hell.” Samon suspects that the drowning incident at the raw silk wholesaler Shinano-ya was the work of Maruya Rihei, a kimono wholesaler favored by the Ōoku, but has no evidence to prove his allegation. The elder Arao Tsushima-no-kami who is colluding with Maruya plan on building a gold mine on an uninhabited island using prisoners. Arao gives the supervision charge to ...

A yakuza leader must balance his violent tactics necessary for the rough streets of 1960s Tokyo with the domestic needs of his daughters.

Teen thugs Hiroshi and Toru get caught in a street war when their prized school trousers are forcefully taken from them by punks from a rival school.

Depicts a young girl who is welcomed into the inner palace during the reign of Tokugawa Ienari, the 11th Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate, and wins the battle of women.

Tarao Bannai is a dialogue loaded detective film that gets increasingly weird as the case becomes more complicated. Although the tempo is rather slow in the beginning, it changes later. Humour is plenty, and Suzuki has a couple of big surprises in his back pocket, including some Italian genre cinema borrowals.

In the desert of Egypt, Kurata, the CEO of the Japanese corporation Tokokaihatsu, is killed by a sniper. After the news reaches Japan, the CEO's lawyer, Yamamoto, receives a visit from two men who attempt to steal the deceased CEO's will. This is witnessed by two detectives, Tsuzuki and Onuki, but they fail to catch the culprits. Yamamoto hands the detectives a set ...

The third film in the long-running series Daiei Studio's Woman Gambler with Kyoko Enami starring where she plays the woman gambler Ogin.

16th in the 17 film Daiei "Woman Gambler" series.

15th in the 17 film Daiei "Woman Gambler" series.

The twelfth film in the long-running series Daiei Studio's Woman Gambler with Kyoko Enami starring where she plays the woman gambler Ogin.

The ninth film in the long-running series Daiei Studio's Woman Gambler with Kyoko Enami starring where she plays the woman gambler Ogin.

The seventh film in the long-running series Daiei Studio's Woman Gambler with Kyoko Enami starring where she plays the woman gambler Ogin.

7th film in a series of 8.