Onmyoji: The Yin Yang Master

Onmyoji: The Yin Yang Master 2001

6.20

During a dark time in the Heian period, when evil forces threaten the kingdom, the emperor relies on the Onmyoji to keep the supernatural forces in line. But as political events become highly charged, friction within the order leads to betrayal. Now, Seimei (Mansai Nomura), a talented member of the clan, must face down his master, Doson (Hiroyuki Sanada), in the hopes of restoring peace to the kingdom.

2001

Pulse

Pulse 2001

6.60

In the immense city of Tokyo, the darkness of the afterlife lurks some of its inhabitants who are desperately trying to escape the sadness and isolation of the modern world.

2001

Metropolis

Metropolis 2001

7.10

Kenichi and his detective uncle, Shunsaku Ban, leave Japan to visit Metropolis, in search of the criminal, Dr. Laughton. However, when they finally find Dr. Laughton, Kenichi and Shunsaku find themselves seperated and plunged into the middle of a larger conspiracy. While Shunsaku searches for his nephew and explanations, Kenichi tries to protect Tima (a mysterious young girl), from Duke Red and his adopted son Rock, both of whom have very different reasons for wanting to find her.

2001

13 Assassins

13 Assassins 2010

7.30

A bravado period action film set at the end of Japan's feudal era in which a group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

2010

Always: Sunset on Third Street 2

Always: Sunset on Third Street 2 2007

6.80

Would-be writer Ryunosuke Chagawa is still living across the street from Norifumi Suzuki and his auto repair shop, though now he shares his home with Junnosuke, an orphan he's taken under his wing at the urging of pretty Hiroi, who continues to manage a nearby tavern. Chagawa dreams of publishing a successful novel and settling down with Hiroi and Junnosuke, but his day job running the candy store keeps him busy, and Hiroi mistakes his tight schedule for a lack of interest in her. Hiroi has also embarked on a secret career as a burlesque dancer, which isn't doing much to improve her opinion of men. At the Suzuki household, seven-year-old Ippei isn't happy to be sharing the house with a guest, his distant cousin Mika who is the same age but far more demanding. Mutsuko, the apprentice female auto mechanic, is still staying with the Suzukis, and she's becomes the object of the affections of Takeo, a downbeat young man who is studying cooking.

2007

Howards End

Howards End 1992

7.04

A saga of class relations and changing times in an Edwardian England on the brink of modernity, the film centers on liberal Margaret Schlegel, who, along with her sister Helen, becomes involved with two couples: wealthy, conservative industrialist Henry Wilcox and his wife Ruth, and the downwardly mobile working-class Leonard Bast and his mistress Jackie.

1992

Winter Days

Winter Days 2003

5.70

Winter Days is a 2003 animated film, directed by Kihachirō Kawamoto. It is based on one of the renku (collaborative linked poems) in the 1684 collection of the same name by the 17th-century Japanese poet Bashō. The creation of the film followed the traditional collaborative nature of the source material – the visuals for each of the 36 stanzas were independently created by 35 different animators. As well as many Japanese animators, Kawamoto assembled leading names of animation from across the world. Each animator was asked to contribute at least 30 seconds to illustrate their stanza, and most of the sequences are under a minute (Yuriy Norshteyn's, though, is nearly two minutes long).

2003

Azumi 2: Death or Love

Azumi 2: Death or Love 2005

6.60

Young assassins Azumi and Nagara continue their mission to prevent a civil war. In their hunt for Masayuki Sanada, who is protected by both an army and a dangerous clan, they meet Ginkaku, a person who shows a remarking resemblance with former friend Nachi.

2005

Café Lumière

Café Lumière 2004

6.80

Making her way through life by forming superficial relationships, Yoko keeps everyone at arm's length, whether it's her father and stepmother or Hajime, the owner of a small bookstore who could be the father of her unborn child. Yoko seems most at home when she's riding the train, speeding around the city with only her thoughts to entertain her.

2004

Sakura Wars: The Movie

Sakura Wars: The Movie 2001

4.70

Following in the aftermath of a terrible Demon-Human war, turn of the century Japan is preparing a new fighting force in case the demons decide to return. A squadron of giant robots are built to be controlled by the spirit of the pilot, but it is discovered that the only people with sufficient spirit are young women. After recruiting a team of youths from around the world, the Japanese government decides to keep them a secret by disguising them as a theater troupe, thus requiring them to spend as much time memorizing Shakespeare as they do on military training.

2001

Gunsmith Cats

Gunsmith Cats 1995

6.40

Rally Vincent and Minnie May Hopkins are just a pair of gun shop owners who do a bit of bounty hunting to make ends meet when a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms agent comes to them. Using the threat of arresting them for their lack of a retail license for their merchandise and the resulting unpaid taxes, he forces them to agree to cooperate in a sting to break a gun running ring. They have an initial success, but that brings new problems as the ring's leader brings in a merciless assassin to eliminate these new enemies. It will take all their skill, allies and some luck to come out this crisis alive.

1995

Unholy Women

Unholy Women 2006

5.80

Unholy Women (Kowai onna), is a composite of three unrelated half-hour horror movies. A compilation of 3 separate short horror films (Rattle Rattle, Hagane, The Inheritance) written and directed by Keita Amemiya, Takuji Suzuki, and Keisuke Toyoshima respectively. The first segment, “Rattle Rattle”, tells the story of a young woman who is pursued by an evil other-worldly being. The second movie, “Steel”, concerns a young man who agrees to take the sister of his boss out on a blind date, drawing him into a world more frightening than he ever dreamed possible. The third and final episode, “The Inheritance”, is a supernatural tale of a woman and her young son, scarred by abuse and psychological trauma.

2006

Princess Arete

Princess Arete 2001

7.10

Imprisoned by a sorcerer who fears she will rob him of eternal life, guileless young Princess Arete befriends a villager who helps her plan an escape.

2001

Eureka

Eureka 2000

7.60

In rural Japan, the survivors of a tragedy converge and attempt to overcome their damaged selves, all while a serial killer is on the loose.

2000

Heaven and Earth

Heaven and Earth 1990

6.10

Warlords Kagetora and Takeda each wish to prevent the other from gaining hegemony in feudal Japan. The two samurai leaders pursue one another across the countryside, engaging in massive battles of cavalry and infantry. Younger and less brutal, Kagetora must find the strength to be as brutal as his opponent, but at what cost?

1990

Asyl: Park and Love Hotel

Asyl: Park and Love Hotel 2007

6.60

There is an old love hotel in Tokyo's Shinjuku district where couples can rent a room by the hour for romantic assignations. However, few of its regular customers seem to come there for sexual encounters; the hotel has become a hangout for rootless teenagers, senior citizens looking for a place to relax, and kids that play under the watchful eye of its owner...

2007

Distance

Distance 2001

6.80

On the third anniversary of a cult's failed chemical attack on Tokyo and their subsequent mass suicide, family members of those affected gather at the cult's former base on the shores of a lake to observe the anniversary of their loved ones' deaths.

2001

Gunhed

Gunhed 1989

4.00

High-concept Sci-Fi adventure about an island that actually is a computer called Kyron 5, itself created to design and manufacture super-advanced robots to be used as slaves for the rest of the world. One day Kyron decides that human beings are unnecessary, so it declares war on the world. But Kyron cannot be tamed, and after many lives are lost in the attempt, mankind decides to leave Kyron to its own devices.

1989

Cat Soup

Cat Soup 2001

7.10

The surreal black comedy follows Nyatta, an anthropomorphic kitten, on his travel to the land of the dead and back in an effort to save his sister's soul.

2001