Takeo Chii

For his first film in fourteen years, animation director Isao Takahata embarked on a visually sumptuous adaptation of The Tale of the Bamboo-Cutter. A dream project for the director that would hopefully establish the recently formed Ghibli Studio 7, created to meet the demands of a new type of modern animation process. But, almost immediately, the epic production is faced with difficulties and falls dramatically behind schedule. In this compelling and insightful documentary, we follow Isao Takahata and his dedicated team of artists as they frantically strive against adversity to make their vision a reality and bring Studio Ghibli into a new era.

Found inside a shining stalk of bamboo by an old bamboo cutter and his wife, a tiny girl grows rapidly into an exquisite young lady. The mysterious young princess enthrals all who encounter her. But, ultimately, she must confront her fate.

One hundred years after their deaths, six legendary holy warriors are reborn to seek justice against the former comrade who betrayed them into the hands of an evil god! The six warriors search the feudal province of Edo questing for the last Saint Soldier, Haohmaru, and their sworn nemesis Shirou Amakusa. Will the followers of the divine light triumph over the forces of darkness, or is history destined to repeat itself? Before their hundred-year journey has ended, six samurai will prove that the only thing stronger than their holy blades is the steel of their wills!

During Tenpo period, Bakuhu announced a law regulating expenditures in order to improve the financial situation. However, Doshin of a government office Itami Hanzo, called Kamisori Hanzo, challenged Bakuhu's oppressive way. Because of this, his father Magobei was told to kill himself by the Bakuhu and Hanzo himself was demoted. Five years later, Hanzo came back to the government office and implement a law regulating expenditures. He stands up for revenge Torii Kainokami who desires power as he likes.

There is a man who divorced his wife. He moved to rural Hokkaido from Tokyo where he lived with his family without running water or electricity. He has his son and daughter in tow and works hard for them. The folk in the area try to help. A couple of years pass and the older son moves back to Tokyo, attends school and works part-time. The daughter commutes to the city to attend school. She wants to become a nurse. To become a registered nurse she needs to study a further three years. This takes money.

In the middle of the Edo period, when the finances of the shogunate were in a desperate situation, the shogunate sent its shadow spies to each clan, who secretly planned the abolition of the clans and the seizure of their territories. The Inami clan has mastered the essence of making weapons, thus breaking the law. To protect the clan, its elders hire three "Shadow Hunters"... TV movie based on the popular manga by Takao Saito.

In one of the districts of Tokyo, an old school is planned to be torn down after the summer holidays. The only person who is seriously worried about this is the Japanese language teacher Nakajima. He decides to hold special additional classes for the lagging students during the summer holidays, which they will keep as a memento of the old school.

A heated argument between middle school thugs leads to a fierce war between two rival high schools when Toru's girlfriend, Shoko, gets involved.

With thugs under gang leader Shingo attempting to make a name for themselves, Toru and crew must brace for an all-out war between their two schools.

College student Mayumi takes a mutual interest in Hiroshi, but their happiness is cut short when two thugs expelled from school eye the new couple.

A sly prep school thug uses his girlfriend to lure Hiroshi and Toru to a fight, but the scheme escalates to an all-out war between everyone involved.

Three men sentenced to death are spared and changed into “shadows executioners”, a group of ruthless ninja working for mysterious high ranking officials. During their investigation on some illegal business, one of them, called “Yazuke the Viper”, finds his abandoned daughter, Ocho, who has now become a mistress of Denzo, a smuggler. After Yazuke’s death, Ocho is also recruited as a “shadows executioner”, with the task of completing her father’s mission.

A married long-distance truck driver falls for a significantly younger waitress at a roadside diner. Their affair brings tragedy to themselves and those around them.

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.

An upbeat, action-filled drama that depicts the lives of two obnoxious high school students, Koji and Toru, who are caught in exciting and dangerous adventures involving their fellow students. Based on the best selling comic series, “Be-Bop High School” has gained popularity among the young audience, and become an icon of Japan’s pop culture in the 1980’s.

Set in the town of Furano in Hokkaido, Kita no Kuni Kara centers around the story of the Kuroita family. Narrated by the son, Jun, the tale follows the lives of two children torn between their parents and their parents' divorce. Jun, and his sister Hotaru, grow and mature in the harsh climates of Hokkaido, and learn the ways of life through their interaction with the folk of Furano.

Drama set in the world of Formula 2 motor racing in Japan.

During a gathering of detectives, Satake is the only one not indulging in the hospitality of a wealthy money exchanger. His senior, Yasuke, leaves the gathering and warns Satake they will soon be targeted by a powerful figure. Yasuke is later tortured and killed by an unknown assailant. Satake learns from Yasuke's wife, Osaki, that Sagamiya was targeting him. A female pickpocket, Oyu, reveals Sagamiya's malevolent nature. When Oyu steals from Sagamiya and gives the wallet to Satake, he finds a promissory note for 10,000 ryo borrowed by a young magistrate from Sagamiya. Realizing his colleague, Constable Tanabe Seiichiro, is being manipulated by Sagamiya, Satake faces a dire situation. Midori suspects Satake of having a relationship with Oyu, and Ichi is of no help. Leaving the island for Edo, he is pursued by three ruthless individuals and Sagamiya's sinister bodyguard.

Kohei Akiyama, a popular master swordsman, and his son Daijiro live in the town of Edo in good faith. While running a dojo, Daijiro and his father find themselves wrapped up in a series of events with the town's people.

After six exiles return to Edo, four are mysteriously killed. Two survivors, Kosuke and Kingo, lead a search to uncover a hidden motive behind the murders.

Dobu, an Edo samurai, is tasked with investigating a string of noble murders in Kyoto, disrupting his routine in Shimotani.

A remake of the 1953 film of the same name.

In the town of Edo, a series of bizarre incidents occur, where people are kidnapped, have fox masks placed on their faces, and are then thrown out, dragged by white horses. Those who experience this report being suddenly abducted and losing their sight during the ordeal. What's strange is that all the victims are individuals who have come to Edo, struggling to make a living, and aren't even listed in the population registry.Satake, a low-ranking official, suspects that someone with access to the registry in the magistrate's office is behind these crimes. Amidst this, Satake's boss, Saheiji, who had been looking forward to his daughter Midori's wedding, is murdered by men wearing fox masks.

Tora-san returns to his family's home to attend an elementary school class reunion. After he embarrasses himself by getting drunk and insulting all his ex-classmates, he resumes his travels. In Kyushu he meets an outspoken 18-year-old girl who becomes enamored of Tora-san and follows him around. One of Tora-san's old friends is terminally ill and makes Tora-san promise him to marry his wife once he is gone.

Sabu, a low-ranking samurai, finds himself unable to apprehend the ruthless leader of a violent gang of thieves, which leads to a scolding from his fellow friend and leaves him feeling disheartened. Meanwhile, Ichi, a blind masseur is called upon to provide a massage while passing by the residence of Iwashiroya, a prominent tea wholesaler in Edo. To his surprise, one of Iwashiroya's mistresses, Oshin, reacts unexpectedly upon seeing Ichi's face. Later that night, while returning home drunk, Ichi faces an attack by a ronin, whom he successfully overpowers and kills. Later Ichi accompanied by Sabu, revisits the scene, only to discover that the victim was not a ronin but rather an ordinary townsman. Subsequently, it comes to light that the victim was the sole heir of Iwashiroya. They have fallen into a trap. As rumors circulate that Ichi is the culprit, he is captured and subjected to torture, resulting in him being left critically injured...

In Edo, a group of masked samurai stormed a seafood wholesaler, killing the head clerk and robbing the money. They then crossed paths with Ichi, a blind masseur and master swordman. However, upon recognizing his blindness, they decided to leave without confrontation. The next day, a woman known to Ichi and her samurai customer was found murdered at a brothel, leading to the wrongful apprehension of Ichi as the culprit. However, a few days later, when another couple was found murdered in a similar manner, Ichi was released. With his friend, they began their search for the real culprits.

The Moon Mask Rider is a tokusatsu movie produced by Purumie International/Herald Enterprises and distributed by Nippon Herald Pictures, was released theatrically on March 14, 1981. Considered Japan's answer to the American box-office fiasco, The Legend of the Lone Ranger (released the same year), this updated version of the Moonlight Mask legend bombed at the Japanese box-office. Daisuke Kuwahara (who, like Klinton Spilsbury , disappeared from doing films) plays George Owara (Moon Mask Rider's new alter-ego), and the rest of the cast made up of veteran action starlets: Sue Shihomi, Daijiro Harada and Takayuki Godai.

Dobu (Kunie Tanaka) used to be a soldier but now is a private detective. Three vagrants were killed in a shrine, and Dobu found out that those three had a grudge on a timber whole seller, Hinokiya. He reunited with Zirokichi (Takeo Chii), one of his friends and Nezumi Kozo (a thief) , and he infiltrates Hinokiya together.

A young man walks through the streets holding a sign that reads, “The trial for the Tobata Incident 19 years ago was a frame-up!” He has taken up the fight alone on behalf of his innocent father, who is serving time for murder.

Ninth movie in the Torakku Yarō series. Momojiro travels to Nagano to take Jonathan's place driving logging freight through the mountains. There he meets the wild and beautiful Natsu.

While investigating stories of rape for a magazine article, a determined but callous reporter becomes perversely aroused as she meets the women who are suffering through the horror of their experiences. But will she suffer their fate if she goes too far?

The story of the silk industry and the young girls who worked as silk spinners in the early 1900s in Japan. The silk mills were located in Okaya which lies just beyond the Nomugi Pass. The women and girls worked in a hot, humid atmosphere without rest, and endured those conditions and sexual harassment to earn money for their poor families. Across the ocean, it was the great depression in America.

From Hokkaido to Tokyo, hunting dog Goro embarks on a long and grueling journey to reach home. With the loss of his master who held a secret to a weapons smuggling case and the corruptions of those who are involved, Goro's adventure unfolds.

A rural high school takes part in a mountain-climbing exercise and are caught in a sudden typhoon.

Hiromi Go plays a high school student who needs a role model in his life badly. He's raised by his older sister played by Keiko Matsuzaka who is a hostess at a night club. She meets a man who becomes her boyfriend. He races in a off-road car rally professionally. The same man becomes Go's role model and teaches him sophisticated car driving techniques. One of the techniques taught is 'double clutch' ( Thus the movie's title Double Kuracchi ) to make gear transition smoothly between shifts. Hiromi Go was a big pop idol in Japan when this movie was created. Both Go and Matsuzaka still enjoys high celebrity status in Japan.

Comedy-suspense thriller about a girl, who investigates her sister's mysterious death.

When an American is murdered in a Japanese inn, Tokyo police detective Munesue follows the trail of the killer to New York. There he is joined by a New York City detective named Shuftan and together they sort out the crime.

1977 Shochiku adaptation of Natsume Soseki's novel.

A nurse is framed for her involvement in the hospital murder of a politician who was threatening to expose corrupt practices. She escapes from jail but is captured and sent back, resulting in the rest of the inmates being punished, added to which of a new, tougher, head of security arrives to take up her new job....

When a mob boss retires under political pressure, his successor and yakuza family are tested to their limits as new alliances and enemies are formed.

After serving 10 years in prison for murdering a rival boss, Tetsu is appalled to see his yakuza family overgrown and dysfunctional upon his release.

A Yakuza group from Osaka with dreams of national dominance moves into the snowy Hokuriku region, sparking a bloody turf war with local gangs.

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

After spending eight years in prison for murder, Hiroshi leaves his yakuza family to start a new life as a labor racketeer.

Though his parents help him run the family business, Jun still feels persecuted by their love; when they bar him from meeting with his girlfriend, tensions increase.

When a tycoon passes away, he unexpectedly leaves the family fortune to outsider Tamayo on the condition that she marries one of the grandsons, pitting blood against blood.

Based on the true story of Saburo Sakai, ace pilot in the Pacific War. As he witnesses his comrades die, Sakai must face the ultimate battle for survival over Guadalcanal.

In 1945, a boy evacuated to Miyagi Prefecture befriends a local child, and the two begin to play harmonica near the local military base. Then, one day, they hear a soldier playing harmonica from inside the base, and begin to form a bond with him.

Chiba, looking gnarly, and acting as animalistic as ever, stars alongside Matsukata as violent gangsters battling their way through fight after bloody fight with rival yakuza on the streets of Okinawa.

The eighth sequel of the series by the successful “Fukasaku and Bunta” collaboration revolves around the men of a lesser organization that are constantly bullied by the upper organization and “bleed in vain” in gang wars.

A young girl travels between Yokohama and Yokosuka, searching for her older sister to tell her about their mother's death.

Drama about young people in the Japanese rock scene starring the lead singer of Japanese rock band The Tigers (1966-1971, 1981-1983).

Shinta is a sixth grader in Kawasaki City a troublemaker that dreams to become a soccer player. Yoshiko, a classmate who moved to Kawasaki from Iwate Prefecture two years ago, is a gloomy girl who suffers from asthma due to the polluted air in Kawasaki and is ostracized by her class. Shinta is placed next to Yoshiko in class and their stories will take a turn.

Three assassins take on a band of thieves who specialize in murder.

17 year old naïve country girl Emiko Yamauchi has a hash wakeup call when she’s welcomed to Tokyo by a bunch of rapey hoods. Fast forward past the opening credits and we have her working in Mitsuko Mori’s Shinjuku girlie bar managed by manager/pimp Takeo Chii, who is dreaming of making it big once the plan comes together. Meanwhile she gets romantically involved with young chap Seiji Sawada who’s trying to make it as a bike racer.

A strikingly beautiful young woman is trained from birth to be a deadly instrument of revenge against the swindlers who destroyed her family.

Reiko Ike stars as the daughter of a man who has been pushed into drug dealing by the local Yakuza mob. Having outlived his usefulness to the gang he is murdered and Reiko is gang raped, leading her to attempt a knife attack on the Yakuza boss (Ryoji Hayama) at a swank nightclub. Failing to kill him she ends up in prison, where she befriends a crew of other malcontents (including Yumiko Katayama and Chiyoko Kazama) and meets the Yakuza boss's girlfriend (Miki Sugimoto). Upon release Reiko reassembles her mob and launches a Machiavellian scheme to engineer a gang war between Hayama's Oba Industries and the formerly dominant Hamayasu Clan. The rival gangs begin killing each other off and Reiko works her way closer to her ultimate vengeance.

On June 24, 1969, Etsuko Takano, a 20-year-old third-year student at Ritsumeikan University, jumped in front of a train and died instantly. She left no suicide note, but did leave over a dozen diaries. This film is based on her writings.

A group of corrupt police detectives go on a manhunt for an ex-collogue who they believe could blow their whole rotten operation wide open.

Based on the comic Gokiburi Deka.

A young outlaw can’t escape his rebellious past despite connections to a well-to-do family.

The struggle of a young man and boys who try to create the environment where they can speak their minds freely.

Tane, a female clerk of a rubber company in a corner of an industrial area facing Tokyo Bay is a quirky woman, also living on the second floor of the company warehouse.

Japanese youngsters enduring hard training in Recruit Camp and then going to Iwo Jima in the last days of World War II.

After serving time, a defiant street thug is incensed to find his town overrun by two yakuza factions. He gathers his crew and takes them on.

Pinku from 1971.

Aiba is a gang boss who has just got out of jail, and finds everything has changed. His old gang has broken up, and only a few people still respect him. So he becomes a consultant to another gang who are about to be clobbered by a much larger gang moving in from out of town. Aiba proves a crafty tactician, and does very well at playing gangs off against each other in order to save the smaller gang. His advice is not always taken by those he tries to help, but he is generally proved right.

This is the Twelfth film in the series. There were seventeen Wolves of the City films between 1968 & 1974, in the main aimed at shock-value & “pinku” soft-core with sex, nudity, violence, gunplay, & a lot of mainly pointless foolishness when the biker gang coopts racist or nazi imagery, inventing a non-existent youth culture void of morality…

Several high-school friends spend their final summer together indulging in sex and leisure; their halcyon days are soon coming to an end.

The Americans are swiftly closing on Okinawa, an island just south of the Japanese mainland. The Imperial command sends top generals and several army divisions to defend it at all costs. The mission quickly degenerates as vital resources and troops are diverted to other islands. After a civilian evacuation ends in tragedy most of non-combatants are forced to remain on the island. Many convert to soldier status. Tokyo sends mixed messages that squander time and resources, as when they order the defenders to build an airstrip for aircraft that never come. The truth soon becomes obvious: the high command decides that the island cannot be held and effectively abandons the Okinawan defenders. When the Americans land many troops are deployed in the wrong places. As the slaughter mounts, a suicidal attitude takes hold. Okinawa becomes a death trap, for civilian volunteers and non-combatants as well.

As the Japanese military has established the puppet state of Manchukuo and is advancing its invasion of Asia, fighting intensifying battles against anti-Japanese partisans, the Godai zaibatsu becomes involved in large-scale opium smuggling. Shunsuke, second son of the Godai family, falls in love with a married woman. Meanwhile, Kohei, the love of the second daughter, Junko, throws himself into the anti-war movement.

The series swansong, Beat '71, sees Kaji framed and sent to prison by her boyfriend's father and with the help of some hippies she strives to be re-united.

Yūji, fresh out of prison on parole, meets a stranger named Nao that asks for his assistance...

Asakura was told he could leave the gang if he killed Takahata, but he failed and was sentenced to two years. When he was released, the Oyane group was crushed, and instead, the emerging gangster Hokuyokai was in charge of the Oyane group's territory.

The upstart Godai family conglomerate plans to strengthen ties with the hardliners in the Kwantung Army as they plan military expansion into Manchuria.

Wild young people kidnap a wealthy woman and she becomes attracted to one of them. When she tells the man that she is the mistress of a religious leader, he and his posse make plans to rob her partner.

The disbandment of the Tanno clan left gang member Tetsu to stray from the crime family's fold. He roamed the streets as a one man band, wearing a denim jacket and long hair with sunglasses to cover his piercing eyes. Befriending a like-minded lone wolf by the name of Gebasaku, Tetsu builds a coalition against higher forces. A graphic portrayal of irrepressible anger and a friendship worth dying for.

A group of teenagers grow up in Okinawa amid the protests and resistance against the presence of the American base in the island.

A 1970 juvenile delinquent drama.

Japan, February 1868. As the Tokugawa shogunate declines and the power of Emperor Meiji grows, Gonzo, a soldier of the Restoration Army, returns to Sawando, his hometown, to announce the end of tyranny.

A pair of down-on-their-luck swordsmen arrive in a dusty, windblown town, where they become involved in a local clan dispute. One, previously a farmer, longs to become a noble samurai. The other, a former samurai haunted by his past, prefers living anonymously with gangsters. But when both men discover the wrongdoings of the nefarious clan leader, they side with a band of rebels who are under siege at a remote mountain cabin.