The Defender

The Defender 1997

4.00

Computer engineer Takashi notices that a microchip is protruding fro his head. He contacts a notorious hacker for help. Meanwhile, Takashi's world is turning upside down. He's robbed at knifepoint & then chased through the crowded Tokyo streets by a giant. Or maybe not. Perhaps the microchip is only making him think these things are happening. Soon he realizes there's a connection between all the bizarre traumas and a girl named Masami. Seemingly, all his troubles started when she visited his repair shop and asked him to fix her cd rom-unit. Eventually Takashi finds himself psychically linked to the girl. As it turns out, they are secret government-made humanoids, programmed to live undetected within society an then - when the need should arise - they are activated as professional fighters; The action of the movie itself plays like the Defender arcade game.

1997

A Night in Nude

A Night in Nude 1993

6.00

Jiro is a Tokyo man who offers a stand-in service where he'll do "anything". A woman claiming to be from Fukuoka wants to be shown around Tokyo and see the sights. What Jiro doesn't know is that this woman isn't who she says she is. She's on the run from her Yakuza boyfriend, and Jiro is going to be unwittingly entwined in the situation.

1993

Penguin's Memory: A Tale of Happiness

Penguin's Memory: A Tale of Happiness 1985

8.00

Mike is a penguin soldier who returns home after being injured during combat. Estranged from his family and friends, he leaves his hometown and starts to roam adrift through the country.

1985

Original Sin

Original Sin 1992

4.70

Based on a novel by Bo Nishimura, the film is about an extramarital affair between the wife of an estate agent and a 22 year old man.

1992

The Gentle 12

The Gentle 12 1991

6.30

The film opens as a jury is about to acquit a defendant -- a bar hostess who pushed her ex-husband path of an oncoming truck, supposedly in self-defense. Just as everyone seems to be in agreement over the woman's innocence, one juror voices second thoughts.

1991

The Cherry Orchard

The Cherry Orchard 1990

1.80

At an all-girls school, a group of girls prepare for a stage performance of Anton Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard".

1990

Ghost Pub

Ghost Pub 1994

5.00

One night, as pub owner Sotaro is caring for his sick wife, Shizuko, she asks him to promise that if she dies, he will never remarry. Thinking she is just being dramatic, he promises and tells her to go to sleep. When he wakes the next morning, however, Shizuko is dead. Sotaro keeps his promise, until one day he meets Satoko. The two quickly fall in love, and agree to get married. Their first night together, however, is interrupted by Shizuko, who is angry over her husband's broken promise. Sotaro and Satoko must find some way of appeasing the spirit before she drives them from their home.

1994

The Hit-and-Run Family

The Hit-and-Run Family 1992

4.50

Set in the 1990s, this film uses black humour to cast a sharp, satirical eye at the problems facing modern Japanese families. Hiroshi accidentally hits a young woman with his car and flees in panic. He confesses to his wife, Yoko, who persuades him to keep quiet as his arrest would mean the end for their already troubled family. Their daughter is having an affair with a married man, their son is being bullied and refusing to go to school and their grandfather is becoming more difficult. Yoko urges the family to move the car into the living room in order to destroy the evidence by taking it apart. Hiroshi finally decides to do the honest thing but a series of bizarre incidents then ensues...

1992

Traffic Jam

Traffic Jam 1991

5.00

A hard working salaryman takes off five days from his busy job and sets off with his wife and two children to visit his parents in his hometown for the 1991 new year holidays. He decides that they will go by car to save on expenses. Unfortunately, the long drive from Tokyo to his hometown becomes a much longer journey than expected due to traffic, sickness and other misfortunes and by the time they arrive three days later, they only have time for a short but happy visit.

1991

Playtime Never Ends

Playtime Never Ends 1991

7.00

A serious-minded policeman plays the role of robber in a police training operation against bank robberies. He's so good his fellow policemen can't catch him. TV networks begin to broadcast the operation nationwide. TV audiences are amused and root for the runaway robber and police grows desperate to arrest him to save their face. However the robber remains at large.

1991

The Games Teachers Play

The Games Teachers Play 1992

1

The story of an unconventional teacher facing up to his unruly and apathetic class.

1992

Maria's Stomach

Maria's Stomach 1990

1

A carnivorous monster lives on the island of Sipang. A group of office ladies band together to fight it.

1990

Nanmin Road

Nanmin Road 1992

1

The story of four Vietnamese people moving to Japan.

1992

Investigation of a Typical Love

Investigation of a Typical Love 1992

1

The screenplay is Haruhiko Arai of "Tragedy of W" and "Revolver". The man is a detective who doesn't take on anything other than background checks for marriage and looking for cats. One day, a request for a job that belongs to him comes in. It is from Masako, a married woman who suspects her husband of having an affair.

1992