Toshirō Mifune
1) Rashomon
Description
A riveting psychological thriller that investigates the nature of truth and the meaning of justice, Rashomon is widely considered one of the greatest films ever made. Four people give different accounts of a man's murder and the rape of his wife, which director Akira Kurosawa presents with striking imagery and an ingenious use of flashbacks. This eloquent masterwork and international sensation revolutionized film language and introduced Japanese cinema,...
Description
One of the most thrilling movie epics of all time, Seven Samurai (shichinin no samurai) tells the story of a sixteenth-century village whose desperate inhabitants hire the eponymous warriors to protect them from invading bandits. This three-hour ride from Akira Kurosawa, featuring legendary actors Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura, seamlessly weaves philosophy and entertainment, delicate human emotions and relentless action, into a rich, evocative,...
Description
A grand-scale adventure as only Akira Kurosawa could make one. A general charged with guarding his defeated clan's princess as the two smuggle royal treasure across hostile territory. Accompanying them are a pair of bumbling, conniving peasants who may or may not be their friends. This rip-roaring ride is among the director₂s most beloved films and was a primary influence on George Lucas₂s Star Wars. Delivers Kurosawa₂s trademark deft blend...
6) Yōjinbō
Description
A wandering Samurai-for-hire eventually finds a dramatic solution to the problems of a town with two warring clans.
7) Kumonosujō
Description
A vivid, visceral Macbeth adaptation, directed by Akira Kurosawa (Seven Samurai), sets Shakespeare's definitive tale of ambition and duplicity in a ghostly, fog-enshrouded landscape in feudal Japan. The film fuses classical Western tragedy with formal elements taken from Noh Theater to create an unforgettable cinematic experience.
8) Sanjūrō
Description
A group of young men set out to clean up the corruption in their town. They are joined by a scruffy, cynical samurai who doesn't fit their concept of how a warrior should look and act.
9) Idiot
Description
Based on Dostoyevsky's fable of a holy fool, this story which takes place in Hokkaido in the winter is about a man who returns home after a stay in an asylum. He is being drawn toward Christianity; his antagonist is an anarchist.
10) Red Beard
Description
A vain young doctor learns a valuable lesson from the dedicated director of a clinic for destitute patients.
11) Daibosatsutōge
Description
Ryunosuke is a sociopathic samurai. When he is scheduled for an exhibition match at his fencing school, the wife of his opponent begs Ryunosuke to throw the match, offering her own virtue in trade.
12) Drunken angel
Appears on list
Description
Dr. Sanada is an alcoholic, in part due to the despair that constantly assails him as he tries to keep the inhabitants of a post-World War II Tokyo slum as healthy as possible. Food and medical supplies are scarce, the neighborhood is around an open sewer, and the only place to buy medicines is the black market-- controlled by the Yakuza. Matsunaga, a young yakuza with a violent temper, seeks Sanada's help to remove a bullet from his hand, but Matsunaga's...
Description
A peerless chronicler of the soul who specialized in supremely emotional, visually exquisite films about the circumstances of women in Japanese society throughout its history, Kenji Mizoguchi (Ugetsu) had already been directing movies for decades when he made The Life of Oharu; in 1952. But this epic portrait of an inexorable fall from grace, starring the incredibly talented Kinuyo Tanaka as an imperial lady-in-waiting who gradually descends to street...
15) Seven samurai
Description
Tells the story of a sixteenth-century village whose desperate inhabitants hire seven out-of-work warriors to protect them from invading bandits.
16) Stray dog
Description
A bad day gets worse for rookie detective Murakami when a pickpocket steals his gun on a hot, crowded bus. Desperate to right the wrong, he goes undercover, scavenging Tokyo's sweltering streets for the thief, whose desperation has led him to a life of crime. With each step, the cop and the criminal's lives become more intertwined and the investigation becomes an examination of Murakami's own dark side -- Container.
17) Grand Prix
Description
Nine races. One champion. Formula One drivers compete to be the best in this tale of speed, spectacle, and intertwined personal lives.