Top 100 Japanese live action movies from 2000 to 2009
Aftershocks of the 1990s economic downfall gave birth to some of the most original philosophical journeys into what it is to be human. Most prolific era of Japanese cinema since the 1960s. List formed out of the 148 japanese live action movies I've seen from 2000 to 2009.
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- DirectorShunji IwaiStarsHayato IchiharaShûgo OshinariAyumi ItoThe problematic lives of teenager students for whom the singer Lily Chou-Chou's dreamy music is the only way to escape an alienating, violent and insensitive society.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsHiroshi AbeYui NatsukawaYouA family gathers together for a commemorative ritual whose nature only gradually becomes clear.
- DirectorHideaki AnnoStarsShunji IwaiAyako FujitaniJun MurakamiA disillusioned filmmaker has an encounter with a young girl who has a ritual of repeating "Tomorrow is my birthday" everyday. He tries to communicate with her through his video camera.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsYûya YagiraAyu KitauraHiei KimuraIn a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.
- DirectorSion SonoStarsTakahiro NishijimaHikari MitsushimaSakura AndôA bizarre love triangle forms between a young Catholic upskirt photographer, a misandric girl and a manipulative cultist.
- DirectorNaomi KawaseStarsKohei FukungagaYuka HyyoudoNaomi KawaseThe Aso family live in the old town of Nara. One Day, Kei, one of the Aso's twin boys suddenly disappears. Five years later seventeen-year old Shun, the remaining twin, is an art student. He now has to move forward with his life, together with his childhood friend, Yu.
- DirectorAkihiko ShiotaStarsAoi MiyazakiSeiichi TanabeTetsu SawakiFollowing the divorce of her parents, her mother's suicide attempt, and the rumors of an affair with her teacher, a lonely 7th grader starts skipping school in an attempt to find herself.
- DirectorYôjirô TakitaStarsMasahiro MotokiRyôko HirosueTsutomu YamazakiSoon after buying an expensive cello, Daigo learns that his orchestra is disbanding. He moves back to his hometown with his wife, where he answers an ad for what Daigo thinks is a travel agency but is, in actuality, a mortuary.
- DirectorYûichi SatôStarsShun OguriYûsuke SantamariaKeisuke KoideFive devoted fans of a late idol gather for a commemorative meeting, only to uncover surprising revelations about her untimely death, leading them to question what they thought they knew.The best remake of 12 angry men with idols and japanese characteristics. 5/5
- DirectorKiyoshi KurosawaStarsTeruyuki KagawaKyôko KoizumiYû KoyanagiAn ordinary Japanese family slowly disintegrates after its patriarch loses his job at a prominent company.
- DirectorYôji YamadaStarsHiroyuki SanadaRie MiyazawaNenji KobayashiAs the feudal Japan era draws to a close, a widower samurai experiences difficulty balancing clan loyalties, 2 young daughters, an aged mother, and the sudden reappearance of his childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorShinji AoyamaStarsKoji YakushoAoi MiyazakiMasaru MiyazakiThe traumatized survivors of a murderous bus hijacking come together and take a road trip to attempt to overcome their damaged selves. Meanwhile a serial killer is on the loose.
- DirectorKazuyoshi KumakiriStarsMegumi AsaokaMakiko EmotoKôji EnokidoYuichiro is a college student whose sister went missing 15 years ago. That traumatic event hangs over him as he wanders Japan's S&M clubs. But his younger brother claims to be able to sense their sister with his "antenna."
- DirectorMiwa NishikawaStarsTsurube ShôfukuteiEita NagayamaTeruyuki KagawaA young medical intern student is dismayed when he is assigned to work in a remote countryside village.
- DirectorRyûichi HirokiStarsShinobu TerajimaNao ÔmoriRiho MakiseAfter meeting a handsome truck driver (Nao Omori) in the midst of an urban mini-mart, a 30-something freelance writer (Shinobu Terajima) embarks on a life-changing emotional journey of sexual self-discovery.Good vibrations and some bad ones. 4,5/5
- DirectorJun IchikawaStarsIssei OgataRie MiyazawaShinohara TakahumiWhen technical illustrator Tony Takitani asks his wife to resist her all-consuming obsession for designer clothes, the consequences are tragic.
- DirectorToshiaki ToyodaStarsKyôko KoizumiAnne SuzukiItsuji ItaoA family struggling to live together even with the outrageous behaviors from each family members.Disintegration of the japanese nuclear family. 4,5/5
- DirectorNobuhiro YamashitaStarsBae DoonaAki MaedaYû KashiiA music group of girls need to learn to play a song before the school festival.The best japanese highschool film. 4,5/5
- DirectorToshiaki ToyodaStarsYoshio HaradaRyûhei MatsudaMichio AkiyamaNine convicts escape from prison; most are convicted murderers. They commandeer a van from a strip club.
- DirectorMasayuki SuôStarsRyô KaseAsaka SetoKôji YamamotoA young man is falsely accused of molesting a high-school girl on a train. He is arrested and charged, and goes through endless court sessions, all the while insisting that he is innocent.Innocent until proven innocent. 4,5/5
- DirectorNobuhiro YamashitaStarsKeishi NagatsukaHiroshi YamamotoMachiko OnoTsuboi and Kinoshita have just arrived at a desolate town. Both of them are amateur filmmakers. Tsuboi is a screenwriter and Kinoshita a director. They have come to this town because Funaki, an actor, has tempted them to come here, but he has yet to arrive. Tsuboi and Kinoshita start wandering around the town and happen to meet a young woman, Atsuko. The three of them go on a journey together and become friends. But one day, Atsuko disappears.
- DirectorMiwa NishikawaStarsJoe OdagiriTeruyuki KagawaMasatô IbuOn the anniversary of the death of the mother of a hip and happening Tokyo-based photographer, the son returns to his hometown for the funeral. What follows is a return to the past that is more than just a trek home. Old relationships, love, conflicts and memories resurface and collide. Apparently, old perspectives don't wither.
- DirectorToshiaki ToyodaStarsRyûhei MatsudaHirofumi AraiSôsuke TakaokaA group of a run-down Tokyo high school students face the struggles of growing up, growing apart from their friends and worrying about their future, while living in a highly violent environment.
- DirectorShinji SômaiStarsKyôko KoizumiTadanobu AsanoKumiko AsôA government employee meets a hostess of a "pink club," and together they set out on a journey.
- DirectorJunji SakamotoStarsNaomi FujiyamaEtsushi ToyokawaMichiyo YasudaWith no parents left to keep the peace and order two sisters, who could not be any more different, allow their frustrations and animosity to come to a head.