Japanese Films I Have Seen
by beatlefanjk-957-604229 | created - 01 Jun 2022 | updated - 02 Aug 2022 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Godzilla (1954)
Not Rated | 96 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
American nuclear weapons testing results in the creation of a seemingly unstoppable dinosaur-like beast.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Takashi Shimura, Akihiko Hirata, Akira Takarada, Momoko Kôchi
Votes: 39,682 | Gross: $2.42M
2. Godzilla Raids Again (1955)
Approved | 78 min | Action, Sci-Fi
Scout pilots for a fishing fleet are startled to discover a new monster named Anguirus alongside a second Godzilla. The monsters make their way toward Osaka as Japan can only brace for tragedy and relive the horror of Godzilla once more.
Directors: Motoyoshi Oda, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Hiroshi Koizumi, Setsuko Wakayama, Minoru Chiaki, Takashi Shimura
Votes: 8,332
3. King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
97 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
The advertising director of a pharmaceutical company seeks to boost the ratings of their sponsored TV program by capturing a legendary monster in a marketing scheme as Godzilla re-emerges. (Japanese Version)
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Norman Tokar | Stars: Tadao Takashima, Yû Fujiki, Kenji Sahara, Ichirô Arishima
Votes: 1,969
4. Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964)
Not Rated | 89 min | Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Mothra's egg washes ashore and is claimed by greedy entrepreneurs who refuse to return it to her fairies. As Godzilla arises near Nagoya, the people of Infant Island must decide if they are willing to answer Japan's own pleas for help.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi, Hiroshi Koizumi, Yû Fujiki
Votes: 10,316
5. Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)
Not Rated | 85 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A detective is assigned to protect a princess who prophecies the Earth's end with the arrival of a powerful space monster. Mothra and her fairies must persuade Godzilla and Rodan to set aside their differences or face the invader alone.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Yôsuke Natsuki, Yuriko Hoshi, Hiroshi Koizumi, Akiko Wakabayashi
Votes: 7,931
6. Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965)
G | 93 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Astronauts investigate Planet X and encounter the Xiliens, who ask Earth's people to help save their world from "Monster Zero". As one astronaut forms a romance with a mysterious woman, he uncovers the Xilien's true intentions.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Nick Adams, Akira Takarada, Jun Tazaki, Akira Kubo
Votes: 7,450
7. Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966)
PG | 83 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A young man searching for his brother steals a boat that shipwrecks on Letchi island, where terrorists have enslaved the Infant Island natives. Discovering Godzilla asleep, he and some others decide to awaken him to liberate the natives.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Chôtarô Tôgin, Hideo Sunazuka
Votes: 6,376
8. Son of Godzilla (1967)
PG | 84 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A reporter stumbles upon weather experiments on a tropical island, discovering giant mantids, a cast away woman, and an infant monster that Godzilla must adopt and learn to raise as one of his own.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Tadao Takashima, Akira Kubo, Bibari Maeda, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 5,883
9. Destroy All Monsters (1968)
G | 88 min | Action, Adventure, Horror
At the end of the 20th century, all of Earth's monsters have been safely rounded up and sent to Monsterland for scientific study. Chaos erupts when a race of she-aliens known as the Kilaaks unleashes the monsters on the world.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Jun Fukuda | Stars: Akira Kubo, Jun Tazaki, Yukiko Kobayashi, Yoshio Tsuchiya
Votes: 7,579
10. All Monsters Attack (1969)
G | 70 min | Action, Adventure, Family
A latchkey child living in the industrial city of Kawasaki confronts his loneliness through his escapist dreams of Monster Island and friendship with Minilla.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Jun Fukuda, Kengo Furusawa | Stars: Kenji Sahara, Machiko Naka, Tomonori Yazaki, Hideyo Amamoto
Votes: 5,489
11. Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971)
PG | 85 min | Animation, Action, Family
An ever-evolving alien life form from the Dark Gaseous Nebula arrives to consume rampant pollution. Spewing mists of sulfuric acid and corrosive sludge, neither humanity or Godzilla may be able to defeat this toxic menace.
Directors: Yoshimitsu Banno, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Yamanouchi, Toshie Kimura, Hiroyuki Kawase, Toshio Shiba
Votes: 6,594
12. Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972)
PG | 89 min | Action, Adventure, Family
A manga artist becomes suspicious of his employers when a garbled message is discovered on tape. As he forms a team to investigate, Godzilla and Anguirus set out to help defeat the invaders.
Directors: Jun Fukuda, Yoshimitsu Banno, Ishirô Honda, Shûe Matsubayashi | Stars: Hiroshi Ishikawa, Yuriko Hishimi, Minoru Takashima, Tomoko Umeda
Votes: 5,732
13. Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)
G | 78 min | Action, Adventure, Family
An inventor creates a humanoid robot named Jet Jaguar that is seized by the undersea nation of Seatopia. Using Jet Jaguar as a guide, the Seatopians send Megalon as vengeance for the nuclear tests that have devastated their society.
Directors: Jun Fukuda, Yoshimitsu Banno, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Katsuhiko Sasaki, Hiroyuki Kawase, Yutaka Hayashi, Robert Dunham
Votes: 6,919
14. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
G | 84 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
An Okinawan prophecy appears to foretell Earth's destruction at the hands of Godzilla, only for the true Godzilla to reveal his doppelganger as a mechanical alien weapon.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Masaaki Daimon, Kazuya Aoyama, Reiko Tajima, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 7,918
15. Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)
G | 79 min | Action, Adventure, Family
Attempts to salvage Mechagodzilla are thwarted, causing an INTERPOL investigation that uncovers the work of a shunned biologist and his daughter, whose lives become entwined with the resurrected machine.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Jun Fukuda | Stars: Katsuhiko Sasaki, Tomoko Ai, Akihiko Hirata, Katsumasa Uchida
Votes: 5,758
16. The Return of Godzilla (1984)
103 min | Action, Drama, Horror
The Japanese government suppresses the horrifying news of Godzilla's resurrection as political tensions increase between the United States and Soviet Union, both of whom are willing to bomb Japan to stop the monster.
Director: Koji Hashimoto | Stars: Keiju Kobayashi, Ken Tanaka, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Shin Takuma
Votes: 2,333
17. Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
PG | 104 min | Action, Fantasy, Horror
Desolate by the loss of his daughter, a geneticist creates a monstrous new mutation.
Directors: Kazuki Ômori, Koji Hashimoto, Kenjirô Ohmori | Stars: Kunihiko Mitamura, Yoshiko Tanaka, Masanobu Takashima, Kôji Takahashi
Votes: 6,784
18. Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)
Not Rated | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Time travelers use Godzilla in their scheme to destroy Japan to prevent the country's future economic reign.
Directors: Kazuki Ômori, Koji Hashimoto | Stars: Kôsuke Toyohara, Anna Nakagawa, Megumi Odaka, Katsuhiko Sasaki
Votes: 7,199
19. Godzilla and Mothra: The Battle for Earth (1992)
Not Rated | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Japan is caught in the middle of a three way battle between Godzilla, the divine Mothra, and her dark counterpart Battra.
Director: Takao Okawara | Stars: Tetsuya Bessho, Satomi Kobayashi, Takehiro Murata, Saburô Shinoda
Votes: 5,508
20. Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)
PG | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The United Nations assembles the ultimate weapon to defeat Godzilla, while scientists discover a fresh pteranodon egg on a remote Japanese island.
Directors: Takao Okawara, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Masahiro Takashima, Ryoko Sano, Megumi Odaka, Yûsuke Kawazu
Votes: 5,835
21. Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994)
Not Rated | 106 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Godzilla is threatened by two new forces: Mogera - another UN built machine; and Space Godzilla - a beast spawned from Godzilla's particles in space.
Directors: Kenshô Yamashita, Takao Okawara, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Jun Hashizume, Megumi Odaka, Zenkichi Yoneyama, Akira Nakao
Votes: 5,571
22. Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
Unrated | 103 min | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
The aftermath of the Oxygen Destroyer brings forth Destoroyah, a beast intent on killing Godzilla, who is on the verge of a nuclear meltdown.
Directors: Takao Okawara, Ishirô Honda, Koji Hashimoto, Shûe Matsubayashi, Kenshô Yamashita, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Takurô Tatsumi, Yôko Ishino, Yasufumi Hayashi, Megumi Odaka
Votes: 7,436
23. Godzilla 2000 (1999)
PG | 99 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
An independent group of researchers actively track Godzilla as a giant meteor is discovered. The mysterious rock begins to levitate as its true intentions for the world and Godzilla are revealed.
Director: Takao Okawara | Stars: Takehiro Murata, Hiroshi Abe, Naomi Nishida, Mayu Suzuki
Votes: 9,309 | Gross: $10.04M
24. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)
Not Rated | 105 min | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
Japan creates an artificial black hole device to trap Godzilla forever, but a test of the device creates new foes for Godzilla, car-sized dragonflies called meganula and their queen, Megaguirus.
Directors: Masaaki Tezuka, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Misato Tanaka, Shôsuke Tanihara, Masatô Ibu, Yuriko Hoshi
Votes: 4,618
25. Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002)
Not Rated | 88 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A new Godzilla causes the JSDF to construct a cyborg countermeasure from the original monster's remains. The beast's restless soul is discovered to inhabit the machine as the pilot must learn to find value in her own life.
Directors: Masaaki Tezuka, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Yumiko Shaku, Shin Takuma, Kana Onodera, Kô Takasugi
Votes: 5,449
26. Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003)
PG | 91 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Mothra and her fairies return to Japan to warn mankind that they must return Kiryu to the sea, for the dead must not be disturbed. However Godzilla has survived to menace Japan leaving Kiryu as the nation's only defense.
Directors: Masaaki Tezuka, Koji Hashimoto, Takao Okawara, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Noboru Kaneko, Miho Yoshioka, Mickey Koga, Hiroshi Koizumi
Votes: 5,112
27. Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001)
Not Rated | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A reporter, notorious for working on pseudo-documentaries, must uncover the legend of the three guardian monsters who must rise to defend Japan from the vengeful spirits within Godzilla.
Director: Shûsuke Kaneko | Stars: Chiharu Niiyama, Ryûdô Uzaki, Masahiro Kobayashi, Shirô Sano
Votes: 6,994
28. Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)
PG-13 | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Godzilla's fiftieth Anniversary project, in which Godzilla travels around the world to fight his old foes and his allies plus a new, mysterious monster named Monster X.
Directors: Ryûhei Kitamura, Koji Hashimoto, Shûsuke Kaneko, Toshio Masuda, Takao Okawara, Masaaki Tezuka, Kenshô Yamashita, Kazuki Ômori | Stars: Masahiro Matsuoka, Rei Kikukawa, Don Frye, Maki Mizuno
Votes: 9,647
29. Shin Godzilla (2016)
Not Rated | 120 min | Action, Drama, Horror
Japan is plunged into chaos upon the appearance of a giant monster.
Directors: Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi | Stars: Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Ishihara, Ren Ôsugi
Votes: 36,326 | Gross: $1.92M
30. One Wonderful Sunday (1947)
Not Rated | 108 min | Drama, Romance
During a Sunday trip into war-ravaged Tokyo, despairing Yuzo and optimistic Masako look for work and lodging, as well as affordable entertainments to pass the time.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Isao Numasaki, Chieko Nakakita, Atsushi Watanabe, Zekô Nakamura
Votes: 3,679
31. Snow Trail (1947)
89 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Three bank robbers on the run from the police hide out in a remote mountain lodge high up in the snowy Japanese Alps.
Director: Senkichi Taniguchi | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Kosugi, Akitake Kôno
Votes: 742
32. Drunken Angel (1948)
Not Rated | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A drunken doctor with a hot temper and a violence-prone gangster with tuberculosis form a quicksilver bond.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Takashi Shimura, Toshirô Mifune, Reizaburô Yamamoto, Michiyo Kogure
Votes: 13,363
33. Stray Dog (1949)
Not Rated | 122 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
During a sweltering summer, a rookie homicide detective tries to track down his stolen Colt pistol.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Awaji, Eiko Miyoshi
Votes: 18,942
34. Ikiru (1952)
Not Rated | 143 min | Drama
A bureaucrat tries to find meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Shin'ichi Himori, Haruo Tanaka
Votes: 87,594 | Gross: $0.06M
35. Seven Samurai (1954)
Not Rated | 207 min | Action, Drama
Farmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Tsushima, Yukiko Shimazaki
Votes: 366,935 | Gross: $0.27M
36. Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1954)
Not Rated | 93 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
Depicts the early life of the legendary warrior Musashi Miyamoto; his years as an aspiring warrior, an outlaw and finally a true samurai.
Director: Hiroshi Inagaki | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Mariko Okada, Rentarô Mikuni, Kurôemon Onoe
Votes: 9,511
37. Jû jin yuki otoko (1955)
94 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
A yeti terrorizes people on top of Mount Fuji.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Akemi Negishi, Momoko Kôchi, Nobuo Nakamura
Votes: 307
38. Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955)
TV-PG | 104 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
Musashi Miyamoto returns to Kyoto after years of absence. After a series of fights against the Yoshioka School, he challenges its master to a duel.
Director: Hiroshi Inagaki | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Mariko Okada, Kôji Tsuruta, Kaoru Yachigusa
Votes: 6,963
39. Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island (1956)
TV-PG | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Musashi Miyamoto is challenged to a duel by a confident swordsman Sasaki Kojiro. He agrees to fight him in a year's time.
Director: Hiroshi Inagaki | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Mariko Okada, Kôji Tsuruta, Kaoru Yachigusa
Votes: 6,702
40. Rodan (1956)
Approved | 74 min | Action, Sci-Fi
A mining engineer investigates the death of his fellow coworkers and discovers prehistoric nymphs emerging from the mines. As he heads deeper into the mines, he makes a more horrifying discovery in the form a prehistoric flying creature.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Kenji Sahara, Yumi Shirakawa, Akihiko Hirata, Akio Kobori
Votes: 5,987 | Gross: $0.50M
41. The Mysterians (1957)
Approved | 85 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Shortly after a giant robot destroys a village, aliens from outer space arrive offering friendship. Will the people of Earth tie these two events together?
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Kenji Sahara, Yumi Shirakawa, Momoko Kôchi, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 1,899 | Gross: $0.98M
42. Throne of Blood (1957)
Not Rated | 110 min | Drama
A war-hardened general, egged on by his ambitious wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become lord of Spider's Web Castle.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Minoru Chiaki, Isuzu Yamada, Takashi Shimura
Votes: 55,973
43. The Lower Depths (1957)
Not Rated | 137 min | Drama
In a Japanese slum, various residents play out their lives, dreaming of better things or settling for their lot. Among them is a man who pines for a young woman but is stymied by her deceptive family.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Isuzu Yamada, Kyôko Kagawa, Ganjirô Nakamura
Votes: 5,949
44. Varan (1958)
87 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
Original Japanese version. Research in the Tohoku region comes across a monster known to the locals as the mountain god Baradagi.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Motoyoshi Oda | Stars: Kôzô Nomura, Ayumi Sonoda, Koreya Senda, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 904
45. The H-Man (1958)
Approved | 79 min | Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi
When a narcotics deal goes sour and a suspect disappears, leaving only his clothes, Tokyo police question his wife and stake out the nightclub where she works. His disappearance stumps the ... See full summary »
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Yumi Shirakawa, Kenji Sahara, Akihiko Hirata, Eitarô Ozawa
Votes: 1,643
46. The Hidden Fortress (1958)
Not Rated | 126 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Lured by gold, two greedy peasants unknowingly escort a princess and her general across enemy lines.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Misa Uehara, Minoru Chiaki, Kamatari Fujiwara
Votes: 42,256
47. The Three Treasures (1959)
112 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
A prince, framed for murder and starved for affection from his father, is sent on a quest.
Director: Hiroshi Inagaki | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yôko Tsukasa, Akihiko Hirata, Kyôko Kagawa
Votes: 368
48. Battle in Outer Space (1959)
Approved | 90 min | Action, Sci-Fi
The nations of the Earth unite in a common cause to fight off an invader from outer space.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Ryô Ikebe, Kyôko Anzai, Minoru Takada, Koreya Senda
Votes: 1,543
49. The Bad Sleep Well (1960)
Not Rated | 151 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A vengeful young man marries the daughter of a corrupt industrialist in order to seek justice for his father's suicide.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Masayuki Mori, Kyôko Kagawa, Tatsuya Mihashi
Votes: 14,025
50. Densô ningen (1960)
85 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
Men are being murdered by a psycho called "The Telegian," who uses a matter-transmitting device to locate his victims.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Kôji Tsuruta, Yumi Shirakawa, Seizaburô Kawazu, Yoshio Tsuchiya
Votes: 270
51. The Human Vapor (1960)
Not Rated | 81 min | Crime, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A librarian is subject to a scientific experiment which goes wrong and transforms him into 'The Human Vapour'. He uses his new ability to rob banks to fund the career of his girlfriend, a ... See full summary »
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Tatsuya Mihashi, Kaoru Yachigusa, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Keiko Sata
Votes: 506
52. Mothra (1961)
Passed | 101 min | Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
An expedition to Infant Island discovers a native population and tiny twin fairy priestesses of the island's mythical deity. Named Mothra, she sets out to rescue her fairies after they are kidnapped by an exploitative businessman.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Furankî Sakai, Hiroshi Koizumi, Kyôko Kagawa, Yumi Itô
Votes: 5,297
53. Yojimbo (1961)
Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Eijirô Tôno, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yôko Tsukasa
Votes: 131,391
54. Sekai daisensô (1961)
110 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
This Japanese film speculates on the events which lead the U.S. and the Soviet Union into a nuclear Armageddon.
Director: Shûe Matsubayashi | Stars: Furankî Sakai, Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi, Nobuko Otowa
Votes: 263
55. Gorath (1962)
Not Rated | 83 min | Sci-Fi, Thriller
A Tokyo scientist and his colleagues shift Earth to avoid a red-hot planet on a collision course.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Ryô Ikebe, Yumi Shirakawa, Akira Kubo, Kumi Mizuno
Votes: 894
56. Sanjuro (1962)
Not Rated | 96 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
A crafty samurai helps a young man and his fellow clansmen trying to save his uncle, who has been framed and imprisoned by a corrupt superintendent.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Keiju Kobayashi, Yûnosuke Itô
Votes: 41,140
57. Atragon (1963)
TV-Y7 | 94 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
When an ancient underground civilization and their snake-like guardian plots to reclaim the surface world, those of the surface fights back.
Directors: Ishirô Honda, Shûe Matsubayashi | Stars: Tadao Takashima, Yôko Fujiyama, Yû Fujiki, Kenji Sahara
Votes: 1,519
58. Matango (1963)
Unrated | 89 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Shipwrecked survivors slowly transform into mushrooms.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Kubo, Kumi Mizuno, Hiroshi Koizumi, Kenji Sahara
Votes: 3,545
59. High and Low (1963)
Not Rated | 143 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An executive of a Yokohama shoe company becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yutaka Sada, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kyôko Kagawa
Votes: 53,229
60. Samurai Pirate (1963)
96 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Sukezaemon, a pirate, is shipwrecked in a strange corner of the world. With his companion, a wizard named Sennin, Sukezaemon becomes entangled in a plot by the evil premier to succeed the dying King Raksha.
Director: Senkichi Taniguchi | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Tadao Nakamaru, Mie Hama, Kumi Mizuno
Votes: 308
61. Dogora (1964)
83 min | Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi
An amorphous cellular life-form descends from the atmosphere to consume carbon in the form of diamonds.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Yôsuke Natsuki, Yôko Fujiyama, Hiroshi Koizumi, Nobuo Nakamura
Votes: 1,004
62. Frankenstein vs. Baragon (1965)
Unrated | 87 min | Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Near the end of WWII, Germans transport the immortal heart of Frankenstein's monster to Japan, where it is seeming lost in the bombing of Hiroshima. Years later a wild boy is found, born from the immortal heart.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Nick Adams, Kumi Mizuno, Tadao Takashima, Yoshio Tsuchiya
Votes: 2,427
63. Red Beard (1965)
Not Rated | 185 min | Drama
In 19th-century Japan, a rough-tempered yet charitable town doctor trains a young intern.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yûzô Kayama, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Reiko Dan
Votes: 21,108
64. Samurai Assassin (I) (1965)
122 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
February 17 to March 3, 1860, inside Edo castle. A group of assassins wait by Sakurada Gate to kill the lord of the House of Ii, a powerful man in the Tokugawa government, which has ruled ... See full summary »
Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Keiju Kobayashi, Michiyo Aratama, Yûnosuke Itô
Votes: 2,509
65. Ironfinger (1965)
93 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A Japanese-Frenchman on vacation is caught up in a criminal conspiracy along with a female bomb expert and a bumbling Detective.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Mie Hama, Ichirô Arishima, Jun Tatara
Votes: 175
66. The War of the Gargantuas (1966)
G | 92 min | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
The sole survivor of a fishing boat recounts sightings of hairy giants. A scientist investigates, revealing mutated creatures, growing from remains of a previous monster. Nearly indestructible, they battle in Tokyo until only one remains.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Russ Tamblyn, Kumi Mizuno, Kenji Sahara, Nobuo Nakamura
Votes: 3,536
67. Kiganjô no bôken (1966)
100 min | Action, Adventure, Family
Osami, a soldier-of-fortune from Japan, joins with priest Ensai in a quest for the ashes of the great Buddha. Their journey takes them to a kingdom in the Middle East, where they find intrigue and romance in the court of an evil king.
Director: Senkichi Taniguchi | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Tatsuya Mihashi, Makoto Satô, Tadao Nakamaru
Votes: 118
68. King Kong Escapes (1967)
G | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Family
The evil Dr. Who captures King Kong to dig for Element X when his robot duplicate, Mechani-Kong, is unable to do the job, but Kong soon escapes and battles his doppelganger.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Rhodes Reason, Mie Hama, Linda Miller, Akira Takarada
Votes: 3,195
69. Samurai Rebellion (1967)
Not Rated | 128 min | Drama
The mother of a feudal lord's only heir is kidnapped away from her husband by the lord. The husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to get her back.
Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yôko Tsukasa, Gô Katô, Tatsuyoshi Ehara
Votes: 14,097
70. Japan's Longest Day (1967)
157 min | Drama, History, War
A dramatization of the 24-hour period in which the Japanese government was deadlocked over the decision to accept or reject the Allies' demand for an unconditional surrender following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Seiji Miyaguchi, Rokkô Toura, Chishû Ryû, Sô Yamamura
Votes: 1,012
71. The Killing Bottle (1967)
93 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Two agents of the International Secret Police must prevent a crime organization from assassinating the President of Buddabai and his General.
Director: Senkichi Taniguchi | Stars: Tatsuya Mihashi, Nick Adams, Makoto Satô, Kumi Mizuno
Votes: 46
72. Golden Eyes (1968)
80 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
An assassin goes on the trail of an international gold smuggling ring based in Japan.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Bibari Maeda, Tomomi Sawa, Andrew Hughes
Votes: 107
73. Kill! (1968)
Not Rated | 115 min | Action, Comedy, Drama
Two ronin - an ex-samurai and an ex-farmer - get caught up in a local official's complex game of murder and betrayal.
Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Etsushi Takahashi, Yuriko Hoshi, Tadao Nakamaru
Votes: 3,178
74. Latitude Zero (1969)
G | 89 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A journalist is saved by a giant submarine captained by a 200-year-old man who takes him to an underwater paradise city where no one ages. That's when monsters and mutants sent by the captain's rival, a 200-year-old scientist, attack.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Takarada, Joseph Cotten, Cesar Romero, Richard Jaeckel
Votes: 1,036
75. Battle of the Japan Sea (1969)
G | 128 min | Drama, History, War
Japan and Russia clash in what comes to be known as the Russo-Japanese War. An attempt by the Japanese fleet and army to take Port Arthur fails, and a Russian fleet bears down on the Sea of Japan.
Director: Seiji Maruyama | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yûzô Kayama, Chishû Ryû
Votes: 277
76. Red Lion (1969)
115 min | Action, Comedy
Impersonating an Imperial Army officer by wearing a "red lion's mane", a poor servant returns to his village after 10 years of absence to end the village's suffering caused by corrupt officials and businessmen.
Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Shima Iwashita, Etsushi Takahashi, Minori Terada
Votes: 798
77. Jigokuhen (1969)
91 min | Drama
A rebellious Korean artist tests the limits of his sadistic patron, an omnipotent feudal Japanese lord. Yoshihide demands a commission to paint screens of the Hell which he sees the ... See full summary »
Director: Shirô Toyoda | Stars: Hideyo Amamoto, Tadao Futami, Masao Imafuku, Mitsuyo Inomata
Votes: 383
78. Space Amoeba (1970)
G | 84 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A space probe is infiltrated by alien beings and then crashes on a remote Pacific atoll. A group of people discover it to be inhabited by giant mutant monsters, created by the aliens in an attempt to conquer the world.
Director: Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Kubo, Atsuko Takahashi, Yukiko Kobayashi, Kenji Sahara
Votes: 1,494
79. The Vampire Doll (1970)
Not Rated | 85 min | Horror
Keiko and her friend are trying to find her missing brother after he disappeared visiting his girlfriend Yuko.
Director: Michio Yamamoto | Stars: Kayo Matsuo, Akira Nakao, Yukiko Kobayashi, Yôko Minakaze
Votes: 1,345
80. Lake of Dracula (1971)
Not Rated | 82 min | Horror
A doctor investigates the murders of several women at a lakeside resort. His investigation leads him to believe that a vampire is responsible for the murders. He sets out to track the vampire down.
Director: Michio Yamamoto | Stars: Chôei Takahashi, Sanae Emi, Midori Fujita, Shin Kishida
Votes: 1,070
81. Battle of Okinawa (1971)
TV-14 | 149 min | Drama, History, War
Told from the Japanese perspective, this war drama captures the events of World War II's Battle of Okinawa - a massive amphibious assault by U.S. troops that left more than 150,000 Japanese civilians dead.
Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Keiju Kobayashi, Yûzô Kayama, Tetsurô Tanba, Tatsuya Nakadai
Votes: 466
82. Under the Flag of the Rising Sun (1972)
96 min | Drama, Mystery, War
One woman's search to find the truth about her husband's death in World War II.
Director: Kinji Fukasaku | Stars: Tetsurô Tanba, Sachiko Hidari, Shinjirô Ebara, Isao Natsuyagi
Votes: 1,170
83. Submersion of Japan (1973)
PG | 143 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
The shorted re-edited American version of Submersion of Japan, in which Japan slowly sinks into the sea as the US and Japan work together to stop it.
Directors: Shirô Moritani, Andrew Mayer | Stars: Lorne Greene, Keiju Kobayashi, Rhonda Hopkins, Hiroshi Fujioka
Votes: 528
84. Horror of the Wolf (1973)
78 min | Horror
Enigmatic teenager Akira Inugami is, by night, a powerful werewolf, who falls for a beautiful young teacher, and copes with a ruthless teen gang leader, whose yakuza father murdered Akira's parents years before.
Director: Masashi Matsumoto | Stars: Tarô Shigaki, Yôko Ichiji, Michiko Honda, Yûsaku Matsuda
Votes: 86
85. Evil of Dracula (1974)
Not Rated | 87 min | Drama, Horror
A teacher assumes a position at a school that's run by a vampire.
Director: Michio Yamamoto | Stars: Toshio Kurosawa, Kunie Tanaka, Katsuhiko Sasaki, Shin Kishida
Votes: 892
86. Prophecies of Nostradamus (1974)
88 min | Action, Sci-Fi
A scientist fears that the prophecies of Nostradamus, including the end of all life on Earth, are coming true one after another.
Directors: Toshio Masuda, Shûe Matsubayashi, Shirô Moritani | Stars: Tetsurô Tanba, Toshio Kurosawa, Kaoru Yumi, Yôko Tsukasa
Votes: 313
87. Sandakan No. 8 (1974)
120 min | Drama, History, War
A journalist interviews an old woman who was forced into prostitution, just like many other Japanese women working in Asia outside of Japan during the first half of the 20th century. She worked in a Malaysian brothel called Sandakan 8.
Director: Kei Kumai | Stars: Komaki Kurihara, Yôko Takahashi, Kinuyo Tanaka, Takiko Mizunoe
Votes: 755
88. Esupai (1974)
87 min | Action, Adventure, Mystery
A bad ESP syndicate is planning to kill world leaders through mental telepathy. The good guys are a top secret group called ESPY and they're in charge of stopping the killer psychics.
Director: Jun Fukuda | Stars: Hiroshi Fujioka, Kaoru Yumi, Masao Kusakari, Yûzô Kayama
Votes: 153
89. Oniwaban (1974)
Not Rated | 86 min | Action, Horror, Mystery
Deep in the mountains of feudal Japan, a group of children endure cruel and unorthodox training in order to become the Shogunate's most secret and deadly weapons - the Demon Spies! Their ... See full summary »
Director: Takashi Tsuboshima | Stars: Keiko Aramaki, Hiroshi Ayukawa, Jun Fujimaki, Shôzô Fukuyama
Votes: 145
90. Lupin the Third: Strange Psychokinetic Strategy (1974)
82 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
The dandy grandson of a French thief is cajoled by his father's former partner and a femme fatale into challenging the syndicate that ruined his family's criminal empire.
Director: Takashi Tsuboshima | Stars: Yûki Meguro, Eiko Ezaki, Maria Anzai, Shirô Itô
Votes: 212
91. Ôzora no samurai (1976)
102 min | Drama, Action, War
Epic dramatization of the WWII memoirs of Saburô Sakai, the famous ace pilot of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Director: Seiji Maruyama | Stars: Hiroshi Fujioka, Tarô Shigaki, Naoko Ôtani, Akihiko Hirata
Votes: 72
92. House (1977)
Not Rated | 88 min | Comedy, Horror
A schoolgirl and six of her classmates travel to her aunt's country home, which turns out to be haunted.
Director: Nobuhiko Ôbayashi | Stars: Kimiko Ikegami, Miki Jinbo, Kumiko Ôba, Ai Matsubara
Votes: 33,743
93. The War in Space (1977)
TV-PG | 91 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Earth is attacked by alien spacecraft from Venus. But a Japanese scientist has constructed a space craft, the Gohten, with which he may save humanity.
Directors: Jun Fukuda, Ishirô Honda, Toshio Masuda, Shûe Matsubayashi, Shirô Moritani | Stars: Kensaku Morita, Yûko Asano, Ryô Ikebe, Masaya Oki
Votes: 613
94. Kagemusha: The Shadow Warrior (1980)
PG | 162 min | Drama, History, War
A petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.
Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ken'ichi Hagiwara, Jinpachi Nezu
Votes: 38,187
95. Jishin rettô (1980)
TV-14 | 126 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
A large earthquake hits Tokyo, which was predicted by a seismologist but was ignored.
Director: Kenjirô Ohmori | Stars: Hiroshi Katsuno, Toshiyuki Nagashima, Yumi Takigawa, Kayo Matsuo
Votes: 214
96. The Visitor in the Eye (1977)
100 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi
Komori Tiaki is a budding tennis student. However, one day in training her coach hits the ball into her eye accidentally. She is taken to hospital but is advised that she will never regain the sight in her eye.
Director: Nobuhiko Ôbayashi | Stars: Jô Shishido, Nagisa Katahira, Shingo Yamamoto, Etsuko Shihomi
Votes: 156
97. Zero (1984)
128 min | Drama, War
Two young men are recruited into the Japanese air force just before outbreak of WW2 by the testpilot of Japans new super fighter - the Zero. The movie is told in reverse from the point of ... See full summary »
Director: Toshio Masuda | Stars: Daijirô Tsutsumi, Jun Hashizume, Yû Hayami, Yûzô Kayama
Votes: 86
98. Princess from the Moon (1987)
121 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Based on a centuries-old traditional Japanese fairy tale, a country couple finds a baby girl in some bamboo and raises her as their own daughter. Not the same as the original tale, though, ... See full summary »
Director: Kon Ichikawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Ayako Wakao, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Kôji Ishizaka
Votes: 614
99. Akira (1988)
R | 124 min | Animation, Action, Drama
A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psychic psychopath who can only be stopped by a teenager, his gang of biker friends and a group of psychics.
Director: Katsuhiro Ôtomo | Stars: Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, Tesshô Genda
Votes: 205,307 | Gross: $0.55M
100. Yamato Takeru (1994)
105 min | Adventure, Fantasy
After killing his brother, Prince Yamato is banished from his father's kingdom until he can bring his dangerous powers under control. On his journey, he meets and joins with the magical ... See full summary »
Director: Takao Okawara | Stars: Masahiro Takashima, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Hiroshi Fujioka, Hiroshi Abe
Votes: 332
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