Japanese Cinema from the 40's, 50's and 60's

kirosawa

I didn't check this list of film in the American University Library and I've seen most of them, but do not recall that storyline. It don't think it's a Kurosawa film but if you want to explore Japanese cinema, that's a good start. BTW, "The Seven Samurai" is being remade for release this year.



American University Library

National Cinema, Japan
updated (8/05)

After life = Wandafuru raifu. orig. 1998. 1 videodisc (118 min.). In Kore-eda's thought-provoking vision, the newly deceased find themselves in a way station somewhere between Heaven and Earth. With the help of dedicated caseworkers, each soul is given three days to choose one cherished memory for their life that they will relive for eternity. As the film reveals, recognizing happiness and finding a life's worth of meaning in a single event isno simple task. DVD 208.

Akira. orig. 1988. 2 videodiscs (124 min.). A powerful psychic force known only as Akira resurfaces in Neo-Tokyo in the 21st century. Tetsuo, a young, inexperienced motorcycle biker driven beyond the boundaries of sanity by the power of Akira, is forced to conjure up demons laying dormant within his subconscious. DVD 433.

Akira Kurosawa's dreams. orig. 1990. 1 videocassette (120 min.). With eight episodes shimmering with rich imagery and insight, it explores the costs of war, the perils of nuclear power, and especially humankind's need to harmonize with nature. VHS 6533.

All purpose cultural cat girl Nuku Nuku. orig. 1992. 1 videocassette (ca. 60 min.). Inventor Kyusaku Natsume transfers the brain of his son Ryunosuke's cat into a top secret android body, thereby losing a cat but gaining a daughter (Nuku Nuku) with superhuman strength and abilities. As the most potent fighting force ever unleashed upon an unsuspecting Japan, Nuku Nuku must keep Ryunosuke out of the insidious clutches of the ruthless Akiko Mishima, president of Mishima Heavy Industries (M.H.I.) - and also the ex-wife of Natsume and the mother of Ryunosuke. It's the mother-of-all custody battles that pits android against the full force of M.H.I.'s military products division, manned by an elite team of Office-Lady Warriors. VHS 4892.

Audition = Odishon. orig. 1999. 1 videodisc (115 min.). A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition for a phony film, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all and the widower becomes drawn into her sadistic and vengeful world. DVD 397

Bakushu = Early summer. orig. 1951. 1 videocassette (135 min.). Details the conflicting senses of obligation and individualism faced by a young daughter as her family-arranged wedding approaches. Noriko, a young woman, refuses to give up her job to get married just because of her age. She wants a man of means who will respect her intelligence. VHS 2782.

Battle royale. orig. 2000. 1 videodisc (ca. 109 min.). With unemployment at an all-time high and violence amongst school children almost out of control, theJapanese government introduces the "Battle Royale Act." A randomly chosen school class is taken to a deserted island and forced to fight each other to the death. One pupil only is allowed to survive as proof of the lengths to which the government is prepared to go to end the violence. DVD 880.

Branded to kill. The Japanese classic collection. orig. 1967. 1 videocassette (91 min.). Director Suzuki mocks everything from censorship to gangster films. The number-three ranked killer in the Tokyo underworld carries out three impeccably imaginative hits, but bungles a fourth. Then both the women in his life try to kill him. The next thing he knows, he is playing a cat-and-mouse game with the very dangerousNo. 1 killer. VHS 4837.

Bunraku masters of Japanese puppet theater. 2002. 1 videocassette (53 min.). Summary: "Presents the story of Bunraku through two of its greatest masters, puppeteer Tamao Yoshida and chanter Sumitayu Takemoto. ... Cameras go backstage to capture the immense preparations and grueling rehearsals for their rendition of the masterpiece Shinju Tenno Amijima."--Container. VHS 7694.

Daibosatsutoge = The Sword of doom. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1959. 1 videodisc (121 min.). This is the thrilling tale of a man who chooses to devote his life to evil. A gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, Ryunosuke (Nakadai) kills without remorse, without mercy. It is a way of life that ultimately leads to madness. DVD 1273.

Dersu Uzala. orig. 1961. 1 videodisc (140 min.). Tells of the friendship between Vladimir Arsenyev, a well-known Soviet explorer, and his guide, Dersu Uzala. It is the story of a man's unity with nature and of the struggle for survival in the wilderness. DVD 430.

Detonator orgun. orig. 1991. 1 videocassette (57 min.). A force of hostile aliens have arrived in his city with a killing machine seeking to destroy the renegade soldier, Orgun. Now young Tomoru Shindo who is just about to graduate from the university is called upon to fight this mysterious life form from beyond the solar system. Life will never be the same. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 4898.

The Eel. Great directors. orig. 1998. 1 videodisc (117 min.). Finding his wife in bed with another man, Takuro Yamashita murders her, serves an eight year prison sentence, and then moves to a small town to begin life anew as a barber. When he hires a young woman as his assistant, her past collides with his to the detriment of all. DVD 438.

El-Hazard the magnificent world. orig. 1995. 1 videocassette (50 min.). Makoto Mizuhara, a student at Shinonome High School, is lured to El-Hazard, a magical world beneath his school. There he meets up with his teacher Fujisawa, his girlfriend Nanami and her brother (and Makoto's arch rival) Jinnai. They are asked to go on a quest to find the missing princess. VHS 5004.

Genroku chushingura = The 47 ronin. Japanese classic collection. orig. 1941. 2 videocassettes (VHS) (224 min.). Pt. 1. Lord Asano is provoked into attacking the high-ranking Lord Kira. For this offense, Asano is forced to commit harakiri; his family is disinherited and his 47 loyal samurai become ronin, men without a master. They make drastic plans for a terrible revenge -- Pt. 2. The 47 ronin carry out their vengeance: they behead Kira, the lord responsible for their master's death. Imprisoned, they await the Daimyos' decision about their fate. At last the answer comes: one by one they must commit suicide. VHS 7829.

Giants & toys = Kyojin to gangu. orig. 1958. 1 videodisc (95 min.). "When three rival candy companies go to war for market supremacy, World Caramels enlists a lower-class girl with appallingly bad teeth to be their new spokesmodel. In a world of industrial spies, hostile takeovers and boardroom hysterics, the animal instincts of this overnight star prove to be the most cutthroat of all."--Container. DVD 1280.

Godzilla king of the monsters. orig. 1956. 1 videodisc (78 min.). As reported by an American TV newscaster, a Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur awakens from undersea hibernation off the coast of Japan during atomic bomb testing, and begins to destroy Tokyo. Film echoes the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the monster becomes a metaphor for the Atomic Age. DVD 866.

Good morning = Ohayo. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1959. 1 videodisc (93 min.). Satiric comedy in which two young brothers refuse to talk until their parents agree to buy them a television set. Set in a 1950s residential suburb of Tokyo. DVD 169.

Grave of the fireflies = Hotaru no haka. Collector's series: Collector's series (Central Park Media (Firm)). orig. 1988. 2 videodiscs (88 min. ; 71 min.). Two orphans in war-time Kobe, Japan, face fire-bombs, hunger, homelessness, and despair as the war and their lives come to an end. DVD 823.

Hachigatsu no kyohshikyoku = Rhapsody in August. Orion classics. orig. 1991. 1 videocassette (98 min.). A visit from her grandchildren and the discovery of a half-American relative cause an elderly woman to relive her memories of the atomic bomb that fell on Nagasaki. VHS 3884.

Hakuchu no torima = Violence at high noon. orig. 1966. 1 videocassette (99 min.). Story of a brutal sex murderer, his protective wife, and a woman he has previously raped, all of whom live in a rural commune with a group of Tokyo intellectuals. The two women shield the criminal from the police, each feeling a perverse sense of loyalty to him, one due to marriage, the other because he once saved her life. The behavior and motivations of this unholy trinity slowly begin to shift, as the film approaches a shattering conclusion that is at once shocking and poignant. VHS 6210.

Harakiri. Janus films collection: Japanese classic collection. orig. 1962. 1 videocassette (134 min.). After an unemployed warrior is forced to commit harakiri, his father-in-law returns to the scene, seemingly to play out the same agonizing suicide ritual. Tensions grow to excruciating levels until the thrilling climax, when the elder warrior strikes out one last time against the abusive society that crafted such cruelty. VHS 3777.

The Hidden fortress. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1958. 1 videodiscs (139 min.). Princess Yuki escapes the clutches of an enemy clan. She hides in a secret mountain fortress with her loyal retainers, her faithful military commandant, and her clan's precious gold. They try to escape but on their way it's one chase, swordfight, and hairbreath escape after another. DVD 376.

I live in fear. orig. 1955. 1 videocassette (105 min.). An elderly and wealthy industrialist becomes obsessed with a fear of the atomic bomb. In a futile attempt to save his family he pressures them to leave Japan and move to the rainforest in Brazil where he believes they will be safe. His family, complacent and cynical, is outraged and move to have him declared insane. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 6535.

Ikiru = To live. orig. 1952. 2 videodiscs (143 min.). Discovering that he is dying of cancer, Watanabe, a government clerk, spends his last months in search of a meaning to life. After failing in the pursuit of pleasure, he finds self-fulfillment by ensuring that his former department builds a children's playground in the slums, and dies quietly. VDD 51, DVD 1315.

Kagemusha = The Shadow warrior. orig. 1980. 1 videocassette (160 min.). Set in 16th century Japan, Shingen, a powerful warlord, dies from battle wounds. His clan finds a double to replace him in order to keep his health secret so that his enemies will not attack. The double is a petty thief who must somehow transform himself into a great leader and command the allegiance of 25,000 Samurai warriors. VHS 7624.

Kakushi toride no san akumin = The Hidden fortress. orig. 1958. 3 videodiscs (139 min.). Comedy adventure set in medieval Japan. Under the protection of a brave samurai, General Rokurota, Princess Yukihime, the headstrong heiress of a feudal lord, escapes the clutches of an enemy clan (who are bent on capturing the family war fund of gold bars) and hides in a secret mountain fortress. The gold is discovered by two cowardly, opportunistic samurai, Tahei and Matashichi who want their share. Rokurota surprises them at their thievery and forces them into serving the princess in her dangerous and eventful journey to safety. Their escape is marked by one chase, sword fight, and hairbreadth escape after another. VDD 19, HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 7052, DVD 376.

Kimagure = Orange Road. orig. 1987. 1 videocassette (70 min.). Follow the adventures of Kyosuke Kasugai, a teenager who belongs to a family with psychic powers (teleportation, telekinesis, premonition, slight telepathy, etc.). Whenever the family's secret is discovered, they have to move. Now Kyosuke has met Madoka Ayukawa and her friend, Hiyama Hikaru, and he wants to stay put. Film takes place in the last year of high school and looks back on the previous summer at the "love triangle" between Hikaru, Madoka and Kyosuke. VHS 4896.

Kizuna. orig. 1994. 1 videodisc (60 min.). This is the original video animation of Kizuna which appears in Be boy comics. DVD 709.

Kuroi ame = Black rain. orig. 1989. 1 videocassette (123 min.). Film looks at human behavior and survival after the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Follows the story of a young woman who survives the bomb blast and returns to her own nearby village. Over the next few years many villagers fall ill from the "black rain." They blame not the bomb but the woman for their sickness and she becomes an outcast. VHS 954.

Kurosawa. orig. 2001. 1 videodisc (215 min.). A documentary of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa featuring his family, colleagues and critics from Japan and America commenting on the man and his films. Includes excerpts from many of his famous works. DVD 392.

Late spring = Banshun. orig. 1949. 1 videocassette (ca. 110 min.). The story of a young Japanese woman, who lives with her father, and finds herself growing past the marriageable age. VHS 4218.

Maborosi. International cinema. orig. 1995.. 1 videocassette (110 min.). Haunted by the mysterious loss of her grandmother many years before, a young mother struggles to come to terms with the sudden loss of her husband. VHS 6537.

Mifune. orig. 1999. 1 videodisc (98 min.). Kresten is enjoying life as a successful businessman and a newlywed (he's just married the boss' daughter). But when he receives a phone call informing him of his father's untimely passing, his comfortable new life is thrown into turmoil. He's kept his poor, small-town past a secret from his new wife and her family and must sneak away to settle family business before his cover is blown. DVD 474.

Mishima a life in four chapters. orig. 1985. 1 videocassette (121 min.). On November 25, 1970, a group of self-styled soldiers tried to take over Japan's Eastern Army and failed. Their leader then did what is considered the correct thing by ancientJapanese standards - he committed suicide. Film tells this true story of Japan's most famous post-war writer, Yukio Mishima, a tortured modern man struggling to find his future in Japan's imperial past, who commits suicide after leading this doomed attempt to reverse the Westernization of Japan. VHS 386.

Muhomatsu no issho = The Rikisha-man. orig. 1943. 1 videocassette (105 min.). An impoverished, illiterate rikisha puller, Muhomatsu (Mifune), finds a lost young boy, Toshio, and returns him to his grateful parents. After the boy's father suddenly dies, Matsu helps raise the boy and grows to love him and his beautiful mother Yoshiko Yoshioka (Takamine), a lady, whom he knows he can never have. VHS 244.

Ningen no joken = The Human condition. Japan film collection. orig. 1959. 3 videocassettes (570 min.). The chronicle of one man's struggle to remain human amidst the distorted reality of war. VHS 2799 .

Onibaba = Demon woman. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1964. 1 videodisc (103 min.). An impoverished mother and her daughter-in-law eke out a lonely, desperate existence. In order to survive in feudal Japan, they are forced to murder lost samurai and sell their belongings for grain, then dump their corpses down a deep, dark hole. DVD 848.

Onna ga kaidan o noboru toki = When a woman ascends the stairs. East West classics: The films of Mikio Naruse. orig. 1960. 1 videocassette (110 min.). A young widow with family obligations, Keiko is the madam of an upstairs bar in the exclusive Ginza district of Tokyo. As she approaches 30, she realizes that her life is at a crossroads; she must either go into business and open her own bar, or marry. VHS 6211.

Ososhiki = The Funeral . orig. 1984. 1 videocassette (124 min.). Black comedy. An old man's unexpected death creates havoc with his family. The traditional three-day funeral undertaking becomes a sly comedy of manners as the younger generation struggles with the complex rituals of the Buddhist ceremony. Film is full of rich detail and fondness for the cultural traditions that are fading from modernJapanese life. VHS 696.

Picture bride. orig. 1932. 1 videocassette (95 min.). A beautiful Japanese young woman goes to Hawaii to marry a man she knows only through his picture. Although she is disappointed when he turns out to be older than his picture led her to believe, she finds that life in this new land is more exciting and satisfying than she expected. VHS 3883.

Pisutoru opera = Pistol opera. orig. 2001. 1 videodisc (112 min.). "Stray Cat" is the No. 3 ranked killer in Killer's Guild, sort of business association for assassins, and she was given a special mission by the controller to kill theNo. 1 ranked killer, but she does not know his/her face and where he/she is. DVD 1115.

Ran. orig. 1985. 1 videocassette (160 min.). Kurosawa's brilliant rendition of Japanese history, Shakespeare's plot of "King Lear," and his own personal feelings about loyalty. In 16th century Japan, an aging ruler, Lord Hidetora, attempts to divide his kingdom among his three sons, who turn against each other and betray their father, triggering events that ultimately shatter the kingdom, destroy the family, and drive their father insane. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 257, DVD 100.

Rashomon. orig. 1950. 1 videocassette (83 min.). In feudal Japan four people who are involved in the murder of a gentleman and the rape of his wife report differing views of what actually happened. Using a stunning flashback technique to tell the four different versions of what occurred, Kurosawa transforms the accounting of a sordid crime into a meditation on truth and human nature, affirming the possibility of human goodness while asserting the reality of destructive passion and self-deception. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 390, DVD 370.

Red beard = Akahige. Japanese classic collection: Home Vision cinema. orig. 1965. 2 videocassettes (179 min.). Film captures the look and feel of 19th century Japan as it tells the story of a vain young doctor who learns a valuable lesson from the dedicated director of a clinic for destitute patients. VDD 211, VHS 4485.

Samurai I Musashi Miyamoto. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1954. 1 videodisc (93 min.). Legendary seventeenth-century samurai Musashi Miyamoto begins his quest for military glory. His dream ends in defeat, but the love of a woman and the cunning of a Buddhist priest set him on the samurai path. DVD 557.

Sanjuro. orig. 1962. 1 videodisc (96 min.). A Samurai turns up in a town where nine young men are plotting to overthrow a corrupt regime. He takes charge of the group and attempts to formulate a plan to deceive the old bosses. DVD 985.

Sanshiro Sugata. orig. 1955. 1 videocassette (82 min.). Story of a handsome, bumptious young man who wishes to learn judo as a path to philosophical knowledge, rather than a mere set of self-defense techniques. VHS 3298.

Sansho the bailiff = Sanshô day u. Japan film collection. orig. 1954. 1 videocassette (132 min.). Based on a medieval Japanese folktale, this is a story of an aristocratic family broken up by politics and slave traders has been considered Mizoguchi's masterpiece. In feudal 11th century Japan, two noble children are sold into slavery to the tyrannical bailiff Sansho. Zushio grows up to accept the brutality of society, but his sister Anju adheres to humane principles, sacrificing herself so he can escape and find their mother, who had been sold into prostitution. VHS 2738

Sasameyuki = The Makioka sisters. orig. 1983. 1 videocassette (140 min.). Four daughters of an old merchant family unknowingly face the end of a gentler way of life in Osaka, Japan in 1938. VHS 2489.

Scandal. The classic collection. orig. 1950. 1 videocassette (104 min.). Portrayal of a sensitive young artist who is dragged through the mud by a pulp entertainment magazine after an innocent encounter with a pop singer. VHS 6534.

Setouchi shonen yakyudan = MacArthur's children. orig. 1984. 1 videocassette (115 min.). A tender, beautifully photographed drama of how the citizens of Japan came to terms with their nation's defeat at the end of World War II. Depicts Japan's defeat and the subsequent Allied occupation as they affect the lives of a fifth grade teacher and her students on the island of Awaji in the Inland Sea. VHS 272.

Seven samurai = Shichinin no samurai. Criterion collection: Home Vision cinema. orig. 1954. 1 videodisc (203 min.). A 16th century Japanese village hires professional warriors to fend off bandits. When the samurai arrive, a spectacular series of battles begins. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 51, VDD 209, DVD 13.

Shark skin man and peach hip girl. orig. 1998. 1 videodisc (108 min.). Based on the comic series by Minetaro Mochizuki. This outrageous contemporary Japanese genre-mongrel combines sentimental Yakuza gangster machismo with the fatalistic romance of the road movie and the dead-pan irreverence of Asian action cinema. DVD 959.

Shinju ten no Amijima = Double suicide. Japan Film Collection. orig. 1969. 1 videocassette (105 min.). The story of the ill-fated love affair. Jihei has an affair and falls in love with the geisha, Koharu. His attempts to pay the price for her freedom bankrupts the family business. The town calls for divorce, and Jihei stands to lose his wife, children, and home. VHS 2765.

Shinseki Evangerion = Neon Genesis Evangelion. orig. 1995. 1 videocassette (60 min.). In 2015, as the remnants of the human race cower in subterranean cities, a deadly war is being waged for what is left of the planet. On one side are the mysterious alien war machines called "Angels" whose true identities and objectives are unknown. On the other, the special United Nations agency NERV (mankind's last hope) that has developed the awe-inspiring Evangelion - a "Multi-Purpose Humanoid Fighting Machine." However, only a limited number of pilots (all teenagers) are able to fly them. One of these pilots is Shinji Ikari whose father heads the NERV team. VHS 5008.

Sisters of Gion = Gion no shimai. orig. 1936. 1 videocassette (66 min.). Widely regarded as Kenji Mizoguchi's best pre-war film. Set in the Gion quarter of Kyoto, the film shows the daily lives of the people as it tells the tale of two geishas who are sisters. Umekichi is the longtime lover of the just bankrupt merchant Furushawa whom she feels obligated to help; Omocha, the younger one, sees the business more impersonally, refuses to get involved with her customers and thinks Umekichi should get rid of a loser like Furushawa. VHS 366.

Spirited away = Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi. orig. 2001. 2 videodiscs (125 min.). When a young girl gets trapped in a strange new world of spirits, she must call upon the courage she never knew she had to free herself and rescue her parents. DVD 586.

Stories of floating weeds. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1934, 1959. 2 videodiscs (205 min.). This set includes the original 1934, black & white, silent classic 'A Story of Floating Weeds' and the 1959 color remake 'Floating Weeds' both directed by Yasujiro Ozu. In each film, Ozu captures the joy and sadness in everyday life. DVD 817.

Stray dog. Criterion collection (DVD videodiscs). orig. 1997. 1 videodisc (122 min.). Set in Tokyo during the late 1940s, the film captures the chaos and humiliation that existed in Japan immediately after World War II. When detective Murakami loses his revolver, he must descend into Tokyo's underworld and face the killer who has taken it. DVD 816

Street of shame = Akasen chitai. orig. 1956. 1 videocassette (88 min.). Set in 1955, the film examines the dreams and problems of the prostitutes living in one Tokyo brothel. VHS 4217.

Suna no onna = Woman in the dunes. orig. 1964. 1 videocassette (120 min.). A strange and poetic drama of a man and woman trapped at the bottom of a sand dune that makes a statement about the enslavement of the spirit. An entomologist needing shelter for the night is advised by some village people to stay in a shack at the bottom of a sandpit. The next morning the rope ladder is gone, and he is trapped. Gradually he accepts the realization that he is expected to stay and help the woman in the sandpit shovel sand. VHS 213.

Tampopo = Dandelion. orig. 1985. 1 videocassette (114 min.). Film follows the life of a young widow and noodle restaurant owner (Nobuko Miyamoto) as she seeks to produce the perfect bowl of ramen. Helping her to attain top ramen status is Goro (Tsutomu Yamazaki), a truck driver who at first criticizes Tampopo's cooking ability and then helps her to master it. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 697, DVD 35.

A Taxing woman = Marusa no onna. orig. 1987. 1 videocassette (127 min.). Ryoko, Tokyo's hardest working female tax inspector chances on one of Tokyo's busiest "love hotels," owned by Gondo, a tax cheat extraordinaire. She realizes what a goldmine she has stumbled upon. Ryoko's attempt to audit Gondo is thwarted by his hilarious evasive maneuvers. The taxing woman and her clever prey test their respective skills of detection and deception complicated by stirrings of mutual sexual attraction. VHS 776.

Throne of blood = Kumonosu jo. orig. 1957. 1 videocassette (110 min.). Film translates the story and much of the action of Macbeth to a sixteenth century Japanese setting. Tells the story of a Samurai lord who kills his master and usurps his power in fulfillment of a witch's prophecy. The central character is Taketoki Washizu (Mifune), a general, serving Tsuzuki (Sasaki), master of Cobweb Castle. Prompted by his wife, Washizu murders Tsuzuki and takes command of the castle. He is himself killed in battle when the son of a rival warlord, one of his victims, attacks the castle. VDD 261, VHS 1626.

Tokyo decadence = Topazu. orig. 1992. 1 videocassette (ca. 112 min.). In the most lavish penthouses, visible only though the keyholes, there exists a dangerous and erotic world. High-paid prostitutes who specialize in high-stakes games make the rounds. The richer the client, the wilder the ride. When fantasy gets too rough for one young call-girl, escaping becomes her reality. VHS 2996.

Tokyo drifter. The Japanese classic collection. orig. 1966. 1 videocassette (ca. 80 min.). Reformed killer Tetsu wanders around Japan, awaiting his own execution, until he is called back to Tokyo to help his old employers (the Kurata gang) battle the rival (Otsuka) gang. Then he is on the run in a mad chase across Japan pursued by "Viper" Tatsu to a final showdown. VHS 4838.

Tokyo godfathers. orig. 2003. 1 videodisc (91 min.). The story takes place on Christmas Eve in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Middle-aged has-been Gin, aging transvestite Hana, and teenage runaway Miyuki are homeless friends who have formed a makeshift family structure bond. That bond is tested when they find an abandoned baby while searching for food in a trash dumpster. They try to care for the infant themselves, and travel throughout the city in search of the baby's parents. DVD 819.

Tokyo story = Tokyo monogatari. Japanese masters. orig. 1953. 1 videocassette (134 min.). A deceptively simple tale of an elderly couple who journey to Tokyo, where they are received less than enthusiastically by their grown-up children. Finding themselves a burden to the family, they return home where the mother dies leaving the father to face the future alone. VHS 3300, DVD 696.

Twenty-four eyes = Nijushi no hitomi. orig. 1954. 1 videocassette (158 min.). The story of a very special elementary school teacher and her students living on a remote island in prewar Japan. Beauty and innocence are lost as progress and war intrude. HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 764.

Ugetsu. orig. 1953. 1 videocassette (96 min.). In war-torn 16th century Japan, two peasants (Genjuro, a village potter, and his brother-in-law Tobei abandon their families to seek their fortunes. Their neglected wives suffer the bitter consequences of their husbands' ambition as one is murdered by soldiers and the other is raped and becomes a prostitute. VHS 1300.

Ukigusa = Floating weeds. Criterion collection. orig. 1959. 1 videodisc (119 min.). An aged actor with a hidden past returns with his Kabuki theater company to a small Japanese town. There his secret is uncovered and his troupe disbands due to lack of funds, but the actor finds the strength to continue living. VHS 7077, DVD 817.

Vampire princess Miyu. orig. 1988. 1 videocassette (55 min.). A journey into the Occult - Japanese style. "Vampire Princess Miyu. Is she friend, or fiend? As the eldritch Shinma strive to obtain a foothold upon the mortal plane, Spiritualist Himiko seeks the truth." In episode 3, Himiko agrees to help Miyu defeat a ghastly armored monster. In return, Miyu tells the tale of how she met Larva, her silent companion. In episode 4, Himiko travels to Kamakura, a childhood home - which now has a new tenant, Miyu. Miyu at last tells all. Some summary information from AnimEigo webpage (www.ainmeigo.com). VHS 5007.

Waga seishun ni kuinashi = No regrets in my youth. orig. 1946. 1 videocassette (ca. 110 min.). An epic drama of feminist self-discovery set against the unlikely backdrop of militarist Japanese society. An idealistic young woman moves in with one of her father's students, a rebel who is executed as a spy. Renouncing society, she takes his ashes to the farming village of his parents, and remains there, working the land.

Yoidore Tenshi = Drunken angel. orig. 1948. 1 videocassette (98 min.). The story of a physician who tries to be a healer in a world of hoodlums. VHS 4313.

Yojimbo = The Bodyguard. orig. 1961. 1 videocassette (108 min.). Action drama set in Japan in the 1860s, when the emergence of a middle class brought about the fall of the Tokugawa dynasty. Sanjuro Kuwabatake (Toshiro Mifune), a samurai-for-hire with cynical integrity, wanders into a small frontier town inhabited by two equally reprehensible warring merchant clans. Deciding to settle their conflicts by allowing each side to exterminate the other, he emerges as a one-eyed king. Film is a humorous parody of a classic western and the inspiration for the film "A Fistful of Dollars." HOME USE COLLECTION VHS 1898, DVD 391.

The stand-outs in that list, or my favorites, are:

"Woman in the Dunes"
"Tokyo Story"
"Kagemusha"
"Ran"
"The Seven Samurai"
"Rashoman"
"Spirited Away" (animated)
"Floating Weeds" (Ukigusa)
"Throne of Blood"
"Ugetsu"
"Yojimbo"

and one of the best "Japanese" films if directed by a Frenchman, "Hiroshima, Mon Amour"

LINK: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052893/

For anyone wanting to find out why Akira Kurosawa is so revered,HERE'S a very affordable introduction.Scroll down to Recommendations.
4 films (The Seven Samurai,Rashomon,Ikuru and Tokyo Story) for $12,all in a very nice presentation box.All films are encoded Region 0 so will play on any DVD player .