The Japanese film industry has set itself apart as Japanese movies have distinctive storylines that capture the audience’s attention the second, they sit in front of the screen. As one of the biggest filmmaking industries in the world, there is inevitably a large number of movies that are not widely known. Although not a lot of people have seen these movies, their value does not get discredited. Here are 10 Japanese movies that deserve more recognition
1. In This Corner Of The World (2016) By Sunao Katabuchi
The anime film is about the way of life in Japan when the first nuclear bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. The movie follows the life of Suzu, a young woman who lives in a small town near Hiroshima during the 2nd World War. This story captures the memories left behind before the bombing. “In This Corner of the World” is an underrated movie that captures the horrors of the war, contrasted by the softness of watercolor animation.
2. An Actor’s Revenge (1963) By Kon Ichikawa
The movie follows the life of Yukitaro, an orphan who is harassed endlessly by three wealthy men. He gets adopted later by the manager of actors who work in a Kabuki group. As he grows older, he trains to become an onnagata (a Japanese term for a woman who performs the role of women characters in theatre. Yukitaro, renamed Yukinojo, adapts this persona offstage and embarks on a journey of revenge on the three men who wronged him.
3. Millennium Actress (2001) By Satoshi Kon
Film producer Genya Tachibana works on a documentary on the most used and famous actress, Chiyoko Fujiwara, belonging to a prominent film studio in Japan that has come to a close. At first, shy and reclusive from any publicity, Chiyoko eventually warms up to Tachibana and begins to narrate her story about her road to stardom. The movie takes the audience for a ride by portraying a film within a film, by depicting her films along with her life story.
4. 100 Yen Love (2014) By Masaharu Take
The movie follows Ichiko, a 32-year-old woman who lives at home with her parents. Her life changes when her newly divorced sister moves back home with her young son. After a heated argument with her sister, Ichiko decides to leave home for good. She faces trouble finding employment and decides to take the night shift at a 100-yen store. Every day on her way home, she watches her crush Yuji Kano silently practice his boxing. The two start seeing each other and, that’s where things change for Ichiko for the better.
5. All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001) By Shunji Iwai
The story follows a 14-year-old boy who lives in a rural town with his mother, her boyfriend, and his son. He idolizes a pop star called Lily Chou-Chou. All he lives for is Lily and her concert in Tokyo, where he can wash away all the lies and violence from his life. Yuchi’s dreams are, however, put on hold as life has a different plan for him.
6. The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya (2013) By Isao Takahata
A movie from the acclaimed Studio Ghibli that isn’t as well appreciated as it should be, The Tale of The Princess Kaguya is based on an ancient Japanese legend. A farmer and his wife come across a baby wood nymph inside a bamboo stalk and decide to raise her as their own. The story follows the girl’s journey of the girl who grows up to realize her place in this world but at the same time is unable to escape the reality of her otherworldly origins.
7. Tony Taikitani (2004) By Jun Ichikawa
The film adaptation of Haruki Murakami’s most acclaimed short story depicts the life of a lonely man (Tony) who meets a woman whom he falls in love with and later marries. This changes his life for the better as he had never felt this level of closeness and security before. The marriage however has one flaw: the wife’s (Hisoka’s) addiction to shopping. Jun Ichikawa redefines what it means to retell a literary piece through cinema with this masterful adaptation of the original story.
8. The Hidden Fortress (1958) By Akira Kurosawa
Two peasants try and fail to make a profit from a tribal war. They come across a fortress where the two meet a couple believed to be simple tribe members in hiding. Little do they know that the man is a general and the woman is a princess. They join the couple in their fight behind enemy lines when their desire for wealth gets them caught in events far more significant than they anticipated.
9. Refugee In Tokyo (2014) By Kiyoshi Sasabe
The movie brings to light the dark side of Tokyo, depicting some of the citizen’s struggle for financial security and the strive for a comfortable life. In this film, the protagonist Osamu Tokieda loses touch with his father and struggles to pay his student loan and living expenses. This forces him to live amongst the homeless and the yakuza. The film explores Tokieda’s journey, where he learns to survive in the underworld.
10. Shangri-La (2002) By Takashi Miike
One of the less popular films by director Takashi Miike, Shangri-La, follows the story of homeless people who save a man from committing suicide and devise a heist to help him out of his financial grieving. Shangri-La is one of Miike’s most charming movies, taking the underdog’s side and reaffirming that people can come together and achieve incredible things.
