Toshirō Mifune
Birthday: Born in 1920-04-02 in Qingdao, China
Deathday: 1997-12-24
Toshirō Mifune (April 1, 1920 - December 24, 1997) was a Japanese actor who is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors in the history of Japanese cinema. He was born in Qingdao, China, but was raised in Japan. Mifune's career spanned over 50 years, during which he collaborated extensively with renowned director Akira Kurosawa, creating some of the most iconic films in Japanese cinema. Mifune gained international recognition for his performances in Kurosawa's films, particularly in samurai films. He portrayed strong, dynamic, and often rebellious characters, bringing a raw intensity to his roles. Some of his notable collaborations with Kurosawa include "Rashomon" (1950), "Seven Samurai" (1954), "Yojimbo" (1961), and "The Hidden Fortress" (1958), which inspired George Lucas's "Star Wars." Apart from his work with Kurosawa, Mifune appeared in numerous other films, showcasing his versatility as an actor. He played roles in various genres, including dramas, comedies, and war films. Some of his other notable films include "The Throne of Blood" (1957), "High and Low" (1963), and "Red Beard" (1965). Mifune's charismatic presence, powerful performances, and ability to convey complex emotions made him an iconic figure in Japanese cinema. He received international recognition and awards for his contributions to the film industry, including several honors at the Venice Film Festival and a lifetime achievement award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
TV Credits
関ヶ原
Character: Sakon Shima
Blockbuster drama based on the novel Sekigahara by Ryotaro Shiba, a program dedicated to the 30th anniversary of TBS. A total of 120 actors, 3,500 extras and about 500 horses recreated the largest battle in history, the Battle of Sekigahara, in which 200,000 warriors clashed from east and west. The battle, which can be called a turning point in the history of Japan, depicts the conflict, love and hate between people on a grand scale and with a great cast....
Shōgun
Character: Lord Yoshi Toranaga
An English navigator becomes both a player and pawn in complex political games in feudal Japan....
火曜サスペンス劇場
Character:
"Tuesday Suspense Theater" was broadcast every Tuesday from 21:00 to 22:54 ( JST ) on the Nippon Television network for 24 years from September 29 , 1981 to September 27, 2005. It was a two-hour drama slot. As a general rule, suspense dramas with one complete episode (very rarely, two parts) were broadcast every week from 21:00 to 22:54 ( JST ). It is a broadcast frame. Some episodes also aired horror, historical dramas, and special effects dramas....
江戸の鷹 御用部屋犯科帖
Character: Kanbei Uchiyama
In the 1770's, the shrewdest man of the age, Tanuma Okitsugu, had abused his political power, and the corruption of government officials and moral decay of the public were prevalent. At that time, there was a box for complaints made by the general public. It was called "Meyasubako" and was placed at the front gate of the central government's Supreme Court. The appeals went directly to the shogun who assigned the “Otakagumi” (Falconers Unit) to investigate. Led by Uchiyama Kanbei (samurai supers...
大忠臣蔵
Character: Oishi Kuranosuke
Daichūshingura is a television dramatization of the events of the Forty-seven Ronin. The first episode aired on January 5, 1971, and the 52nd and final episode appeared on December 28 of the same year. The NET network broadcast it in the Tuesday evening 9:00–9:56 prime-time slot in Japan. The series featured an all-star cast. The central actor was Toshiro Mifune, who portrayed Ōishi Kuranosuke; Yoko Tsukasa his wife; and kabuki actor Onoe Kikugorō VII their son Chikara....
荒野の素浪人
Character: Kujuro Toge
Continuing the tradition of the Yojimbo movies, Mifune Toshiro stars as Toge Kujuro, a wandering ronin searching for his own fame and happiness. With a sense of justice, he travels the countryside, with his motley collection of outcasts - a pistol-carrying ronin, a two-bit con artist and woman seeking revenge, following close behind, unwittingly righting wrongs and protecting the common man....
人魚亭異聞 無法街の素浪人
Character: Mr. Danna
A wildly unusual story set in the earliest days of the Meiji era. The story centers around a gathering place called The Mermaid Saloon, where scantily clad pearl divers put on a show while two residents of the inn upstairs......
山河燃ゆ
Character: Otsuichi Amo
The three Amaba brothers are second-generation Japanese Americans, whose allegiances are torn by the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Determined to show his loyalty to his adopted country, Isamu volunteers for the U.S. Army and is shipped off to fight in Europe. A second brother, studying in Japan at the outbreak of hostilities, is conscripted to fight against the Americans as a Japanese soldier. The third brother Kenji (Matsumoto) avoids conflict by enlisting as a military interpreter, in which capacit...
Movie Credits
The Hidden Fortress
Character: General Rokurota Makabe
In feudal Japan, during a bloody war between clans, two cowardly and greedy peasants, soldiers of a defeated army, stumble upon a mysterious man who guides them to a fortress hidden in the mountains....
Rashomon
Character: Tajômaru
Brimming with action while incisively examining the nature of truth, "Rashomon" is perhaps the finest film ever to investigate the philosophy of justice. Through an ingenious use of camera and flashbacks, Kurosawa reveals the complexities of human nature as four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife....
Red Beard
Character: Dr. Kyojio Niide ("Red Beard")
Aspiring to an easy job as personal physician to a wealthy family, Noboru Yasumoto is disappointed when his first post after medical school takes him to a small country clinic under the gruff doctor Red Beard. Yasumoto rebels in numerous ways, but Red Beard proves a wise and patient teacher. He gradually introduces his student to the unglamorous side of the profession, ultimately assigning him to care for a prostitute rescued from a local brothel....
Throne of Blood
Character: Taketori Washizu
Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu and Miki are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji, presses him to speed up the rest of the spirit's prophecy by murdering his lord and usurping his place. Director Akira Kurosawa's resetting of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" in feudal Japan is one of his most acclaimed films....
Grand Prix
Character: Izō Yamura
The most daring drivers in the world have gathered to compete for the 1966 Formula One championship. After a spectacular wreck in the first of a series of races, American wheelman Pete Aron is dropped by his sponsor. Refusing to quit, he joins a Japanese racing team. While juggling his career with a torrid love affair involving an ex-teammate's wife, Pete must also contend with Jean-Pierre Sarti, a French contestant who has previously won two world titles....
Incident at Blood Pass
Character: Yojimbo
In the Edo period, a nameless ronin accepts an assignment to go to a mountain pass and wait. Near the pass he stops at an inn where a collection of characters gather, including a gang set on stealing shogunate gold that's soon to come over the pass. When the Ronin's assignment becomes clear, to help the gang, he's ordered to kill the inn's residents, including a woman he's rescued from an abusive husband. He's reluctant to murder innocent people; then he learns that the gold shipment is a trap a...
Stray Dog
Character: Det. Murakami
A bad day gets worse for young 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 stray dog whose desperation has led him to a life of crime. With each step, cop and criminal’s lives become more intertwined and the investigation becomes an examination of Murakami’s own dark side....
1941
Character: Cmdr. Akiro Mitamura
In the days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, panic grips California, where a military officer leads a mob chasing a Japanese sub....
I Live in Fear
Character: Kiichi Nakajima
Kiichi Nakajima, an elderly foundry owner, is convinced that Japan will be affected by an imminent nuclear war, and resolves to move his family to safety in Brazil. His family decides to have him ruled incompetent and Dr. Harada, a Domestic Court counselor, attempts to arbitrate....
Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple
Character: Musashi Miyamoto a.k.a. Takezo
After years on the road establishing his reputation as Japan's greatest fencer, Takezo returns to Kyoto. Otsu waits for him, yet he has come not for her but to challenge the leader of the region's finest school of fencing. To prove his valor and skill, he walks deliberately into ambushes set up by the school's followers. While Otsu waits, Akemi also seeks him, expressing her desires directly. Meanwhile, Takezo is observed by Sasaki Kojiro, a brilliant young fighter, confident he can dethrone Tak...
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
Character: Musashi Miyamoto a.k.a. Takezo
Struggling to elevate himself from his low caste in 17th century Japan, Miyamoto trains to become a mighty samurai warrior....
Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island
Character: Musashi Miyamoto a.k.a. Takezo
A humble and simple Takezo abandons his life as a knight errant. He's sought as a teacher and vassal by Shogun, Japan's most powerful clan leader. He's also challenged to fight by the supremely confident and skillful Sasaki Kojiro. Takezo agrees to fight Kojiro in a year's time but rejects Shogun's patronage, choosing instead to live on the edge of a village, raising vegetables. He's followed there by Otsu and later by Akemi, both in love with him. The year ends as Takezo assists the villagers a...
Midway
Character: Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
This war drama depicts the U.S. and Japanese forces in the naval Battle of Midway, which became a turning point for Americans during World War II....
Sanjuro
Character: Sanjûrô Tsubaki / The ronin
Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Kurosawa's tightly paced, beautifully composed "Sanjuro." In this companion piece and sequel to "Yojimbo," jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan's evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear....
The Bad Sleep Well
Character: Kôichi Nishi
In this loose adaptation of "Hamlet," illegitimate son Kôichi Nishi climbs to a high position within a Japanese corporation and marries the crippled daughter of company vice president Iwabuchi. At the reception, the wedding cake is a replica of their corporate headquarters, but an aspect of the design reminds the party of the hushed-up death of Nishi's father. It is then that Nishi unleashes his plan to avenge his father's death....
Red Sun
Character: Kuroda Jubei
In 1870, Japanese ambassador Sakaguchi and his entourage travel by train to Washington to deliver a valuable sword to the President of the United States, a gift from the Emperor of Japan. On board the same train are two robbers, Link and Gauche, ready to make their move…...
The Idiot
Character: Denkichi Akama
Kameda, who has been in an asylum on Okinawa, travels to Hokkaido. There he becomes involved with two women, Taeko and Ayako. Taeko comes to love Kameda, but is loved in turn by Akama. When Akama realizes that he will never have Taeko, his thoughts turn to murder, and great tragedy ensues....
Hell in the Pacific
Character: Captain Tsuruhiko Kuroda
During World War II, a shot-down American pilot and a marooned Japanese navy captain find themselves stranded on the same small uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean....
Yojimbo
Character: Sanjuro Kuwabatake / The Samurai
A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men....
The Lower Depths
Character: Sutekichi the Thief
Residents of a rundown boardinghouse in 19th-century Japan, including a mysterious old man and an aging actor, get drawn into a love triangle that turns violent. When amoral thief Sutekichi breaks off his affair with landlady Osugi to romance her younger sister, Okayo, Osugi extracts her revenge by revealing her infidelity to her jealous husband....
Drunken Angel
Character: Matsunaga
Doctor Sanada treats gangster Matsunaga after he is wounded in a gunfight, and discovers that he is suffering from tuberculosis. Sanada tries to convince Matsunaga to stay for treatment, which would drastically change his lifestyle. They form an uneasy friendship until Matsunaga's old boss Okada returns from prison....
Scandal
Character: Ichirô Aoye
A celebrity photograph sparks a court case as a tabloid magazine spins a scandalous yarn over a painter and a famous singer....
Samurai Rebellion
Character: Isaburo Sasahara
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....
Death of a Tea Master
Character: Rikyu Sen-no
Years after the death of legendary tea master Rikyu, his disciple Honkakubo attempts to resolve the mystery of the master's death....
High and Low
Character: Kingo Gondo
In the midst of an attempt to take over his company, a powerhouse executive is hit with a huge ransom demand when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake....
Winter Kills
Character: Keith
The younger brother of an assassinated US President is led down a rabbit hole of conspiracies and dead ends after learning of a man claiming to be the real shooter....
Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo
Character: Yojimbo/Sasa
With a price on his head, Ichi seeks tranquillity in a favorite village. Since his last visit, it has fallen prey to Boss Masagoro, the son of a merchant rumored to have stolen gold from the shogunate. The boss has hired Yojimbo as his hard-drinking enforcer, but Yojimbo is both a spy for the shogunate, trying to find the gold, and in love with the merchant's unwilling mistress, Umeno. Ichi hires on as the merchant's masseur and buys Umeno's freedom with his employer's own money. This embarrasse...
The Life of Oharu
Character: Katsunosuke
In Edo Period Japan, a noblewoman's banishment for her love affair with a lowly page signals the beginning of her inexorable fall....
The Rickshaw Man
Character: Matsugorō Tomishima
A poor rickshaw driver finds himself helping a young woman and her son after the woman's husband dies suddenly....
The Quiet Duel
Character: Dr. Kyoji Fujisaki
A young idealistic doctor works at his father's clinic in a small and seedy district. During the war, he contracts syphilis from the blood of a patient when he cuts himself during an operation. Treating himself in secret and tormented by his conscience, he rejects his heartbroken fiancée without explanation....
Chûshingura
Character: Genba Tawaraboshi
After their lord is tricked into committing ritual suicide, forty-seven samurai warriors await the chance to avenge their master and reclaim their honor....
Shinsengumi: Assassins of Honor
Character: Isami Kondo
Near the end of the nineteenth century, as the balance of power shifts from Shogunate towards the Emperor, Japan restlessly awaits the dawning of a new age. But not all are content...The Shinsengumi, a small army of samurai, farmers and peasants, band together to do battle against the tide of history. Their leader, Isami Kondo is a man who rises from farmer to fighter to head the fierce Shinsengumi brigade. Using a stern hand and a heart of gold, he rallies his men in defense of the tottering Sh...
Japan's Longest Day
Character: War Minister General Korechika Anami
Following the detonation of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese military and the government clash over the demand from the Allies for unconditional surrender. Minister of the Army Anami leads the military officers who propose to fight on, even to the death of every Japanese citizen. Emperor Hirohito, however, joins with his ministers in asking the unthinkable, the peaceful surrender of Japan. When the military plots a coup to overthrow the Emperor's civilian government, Anam...
The Challenge
Character: Toru Yoshida
Rick, a down-and-out American boxer, is hired to transport a sword to Japan, unaware that the whole thing is a set up in a bitter blood-feud between two brothers, one who follows the traditional path of the samurai and the other a businessman. At the behest of the businessman, Rick undertakes samurai training from the other brother, but joins his cause. He also becomes romantically involved with the samurai's daughter....
Shadow of the Wolf
Character: Kroomak
In the 1930s, Agaguk lives his traditional Inuit life. But one day, there is a murder in the tribe and Agaguk becomes a suspect. Soon he becomes persecuted by Henderson, a mean mountie, and he must flee through the cold winter of Northern Quebec....
Samurai Pirate
Character: Sukezaemon Naya, aka 'Luzon' [Sinbad, in US version]
An adventurous and daring sailor sets sail to the castle of an ailing king to stop an evil premier, hungry for power and wealth, from succeeding the throne and marrying the king's beautiful daughter. Along the way, with the help of some courageous rebels and a lustful wizard, he must overcome the powers of a bewitching witch, a band of ruthless pirates, and the castle's Imperial guards. He must also free those kidnapped into slavery and restore the king's reputation....
Samurai Banners
Character: Kansuke Yamamoto
Kansuke Yamamoto is a samurai who dreams of a country united, peaceful from sea to sea. He enters the service of Takeda, the lord of Kai domain. He convinces Takeda to kill the lord of neighboring Suwa and take his wife as a concubine. He then convinces the widow, Princess Yu, to accept this arrangement and to bear Takeda a son. He pledges them his life. He then spends years using treachery, poetic sensibility, military and political strategy to expand Takeda's realm, advance the claim of Yu's s...
Doburoku no Tatsu
Character: Tatsu
1962 Japanese movie...
The Sword of Doom
Character: Toranosuke Shimada
Ryunosuke, a gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, has no moral code and kills without remorse. It’s a way of life that leads to madness....
The Fall of Ako Castle
Character: Tsuchiya Michinao
This is the story of "The Forty-Seven Ronin." Based on historical events in 1701-2, the movie tells the tale of the Asano clan's downfall and the revenge of its former samurai on the perpetrator of the catastrophe. Lord Asano was goaded, or tricked, into drawing his sword inside the Shogun's palace -- a crime which carried the death penalty. The newly installed Shogun was furious at Asano and ordered all his clan's assets seized, meaning some 20,000 samurai and commoners were unemployed and land...
Attack Squadron
Character: Lt. Colonel Senda
Lt. Col. Senda resists the idea of sending Japanese fighter pilots on suicide missions. He believes that what is really necessary for Japan to regain momentum in the war is for the air force to gather its most brilliant pilots into an elite squadron and use the unit to pinpoint attacks on the Americans. Disrespected by the kamikaze pilots who think the "non-suicidal" pilots are afraid, the unit redeems itself by stunning victories. But success leads the military leaders to expect too much of the...
Princess from the Moon
Character: Taketori-no-Miyatsuko
Two poor, married farmers have recently lost their only child; after a freak visitation, they pry open an alien cocoon to greet their new daughter....
Adventure in Kigan Castle
Character: Osami
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....
Samurai Assassin
Character: Tsuruchiyo Niiro
Japan, 1860. The men of the Mito clan, victims of the Ansei purge, anxiously prowl around the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle with the intention of assassinating Naosuke Ii of Hikone, tairō of the Tokugawa shogunate and responsible for their misfortune....
Yaji and Kita on the Road
Character: Toshinoshin Taya
Two residents of Edo city Yaji and Kita make a journey to the temple of Ise, as part of a religious pilgrimage, but actually to get away from their wives for a little while. As they travel, they are constantly beset by complications involving women, mistaken identity, and misunderstood events. Another film adaptation of the famous novel Ikku Jippensha Footing It Along the Tokaido (Tokaidochu Hizakurige)...
Vendetta of a Samurai
Character: Mataemon Araki
The famous showdown at Kagiya corner has been told many times, but never before with the realism and intensity of this version scripted by Kurosawa Akira and starring Mifune Toshiro as the famed swordsman who must face his best friend as they are forced to take opposite sides in a vendetta caused by the murder of a family member. Told mostly in flashback as the avengers await the arrival of their quarry, this film displays true heroism in the face of fear as most of the combatants, while of the ...
cf Girl
Character: Shūichirō Hase
The film is an adaptation of the novel of the same title by Takashi Kitajima....
Red Lion
Character: Gonzo
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....
Desperado Outpost
Character: Battalion Commander
When Sergeant Okubo's brother is murdered at a Japanese outpost in Northern China during the Second World War, Okubo poses as a war correspondent and seeks out his brother's killer....
Paper Tiger
Character: Ambassador Kagoyama
A somewhat prim and proper Englishman is hired as the tutor to the son of the Japanese ambassador. His life changes when he and the boy are kidnapped by terrorists for political purposes....
Battle of the Japan Sea
Character: Admiral Heihachiro Togo
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. Admiral Heihachiro Togo sends his fleet to confront the Russians, with results which stun both nations. Meanwhile, Major Genjiro Akashi makes secret negotiations with the Bolshevik revolutionaries in Russia, negotiations that have repercussions far beyond the conflict at hand....
Snow Trail
Character: Eijima
Three bank robbers, Eijima, Nojiri, and Takasugi, flee the police and escape into the mountains. At an inn high in the Japanese Alps, Eijima and Nojiri encounter a young woman and her father, as well as Honda, a mountaineer. The inn folk do not realize their guests are wanted criminals and the visitors are treated with great kindness. Honda volunteers to lead them over the mountains, but Eijima's paranoia endangers all of them as they make the perilous trip....
Yagyu Secret Scrolls
Character: Tasaburō Kasumi
In the Tokugawa Era, the clan of Lord Yagyu has hidden away three scrolls containing clan secrets which, if revealed, would cause revolution and disaster for the clan. The information is divided among the three scrolls, all of which must be possessed for the secrets to be understood. When Princess Yuhime steals the scrolls, Tasaburo, a samurai with magical powers, and his brother Senshiro are sent to retrieve them....
The Important Man
Character: Ánimas Trujano
Animas Trujano is a colorful but irresponsible Indian in a small Mexican village. He hopes above all things someday to be chosen mayordomio of his village, a place of great honor usually conferred upon the wealthiest and most respected citizens. Animas has a loyal wife, but cheats on her and gambles away every cent they raise. Chances arise for Animas to turn over a new leaf and even hope realistically for the honor of mayordomio....
The Bushido Blade
Character: Shogun's Commander
A steel samurai blade that was to be given to the American ambassador by the Emperor of Japan is stolen. American sailors and Japanese samurai are sent to find it....
Inchon
Character: Saito-San
Gen. Douglas MacArthur leads a Korean War campaign, and the war tests a married couple's relationship....
Yagyu Secret Scrolls: Ninjitsu - Part II
Character: Tasaburo
In the Tokugawa Era, the clan of Lord Yagyu has hidden away three scrolls containing clan secrets which, if revealed, would cause revolution and disaster for the clan. The information is divided among the three scrolls, all of which must be possessed for the secrets to be understood. When Princess Yuhime steals the scrolls, Tasaburo, a samurai with magical powers, and his brother Senshiro are sent to retrieve them. In Part II, the search for the scrolls continues....
Fort Graveyard
Character: Sergeant Kosugi
Charged with insubordination for punching a superior, Sergeant Kosugi is shipped to China in the last desperate days of the Second World War. His commander, Captain Sakuma, is vicious and dictatorial. Sakuma places Kosugi in charge of training for combat what once was the military band. Kosugi must somehow prepare his inept soldiers for the rigors of combat....
The Sands of Kurobe
Character: Kitagawa
Kitagawa is an engineer charged with construction of a gigantic tunnel through the Japan Alps for the transportation of equipment in the building of the massive Kurobe Dam. The tunnel crosses an earthquake fault and Kitagawa is beleaguered not only by cave-ins and flooding, but by strife between management and the workers's union. Adding to Kitagawa's stress is the knowledge that as his attention is pulled inexorably toward the tunnel construction, his youngest daughter is dying from leukemia....
The Last Gunfight
Character: Detective Saburo Fujioka
Japanese police detective Saburo Fujioka is suspected of corruption, demoted, and sent to the city of Kojin. Kojin is the scene of fierce fighting between rival gangs. Fujioka is assigned to investigate the death of the wife of gangster Tetsuo Maruyama of the Kozuka gang, probably at the hands of one of the Oka gang. During a gang gunfight, Maruyama is rescued by Detective Fujioka and the two become friends. But Maruyama insists on avenging his wife's murder, even if it means conflict with his n...
The Making of '1941'
Character: (archive)
A non-narrated documentary, told mainly in interviews with the filmmakers, on the making of the cult comedy classic, featuring outtakes, rare behind-the-scenes home movies, and trivia facts....
Samurai Saga
Character: Heihachiro Komaki
Edmund Rostand's play Cyrano de Bergerac, transplanted to Japan. A poet-warrior with an oversized nose (matched only by his great heart) loves a lady. But she sees him only as a friend, so he helps another man to woo her by giving him the poetry of his own heart....
Whirlwind
Character: Lord Akashi
Set at the end of the Siege of Osaka this film follows the exploits of several members of the defeated Toyotomi clan as they cope with the post battle chaos and the persecution of the Shogun's army. Five samurai decide on different fates when it becomes clear that their side is being destroyed. One wants to attack the enemy head on in a final honorable death. Another decides to commit hari-kiri but wants to find a glorious view to do it. His close friend, the "coward", just wants to run and gi...
Lowly Ronin
Character: Sanjuro Hinoki
Reprising his role from the popular TV series "Koya no Suronin" (The Lowly Ronin), Mifune Toshiro stars in this full-length, stand-alone made for TV movie. The wandering ronin is reminiscent of his most famous role as the samurai without a name in Kurosawa's "Yojimbo" and "Sanjuro". He travels about Japan, and while he may seek happiness, violence and tragedy always cross his path. This time, he reluctantly agrees when a girl hires him to kill a local offical who has unfairly taxed her vill...
Lowly Ronin 2: The Spray of Blood
Character: Sanjuro Hinoki
Reprising his role from the popular TV series "Koya no Suronin" (The Lowly Ronin), Mifune Toshiro stars in this full-length, stand-alone made for TV movie. The wandering ronin is reminiscent of his most famous role as the samurai without a name in Kurosawa's "Yojimbo" and "Sanjuro". He travels about Japan, and while he may seek happiness, violence and tragedy always cross his path. This time it is a woman carrying a young infant who he encounters on the road that leads him into a tale of v...
The Three Treasures
Character: Prince Yamato Takeru
The legend of the birth of Shintoism. In Fourth Century Japan, the Emperor's son Ouso expects to succeed his father on the throne, but Otomo, the Emperor's vassal, prefers Ouso's stepbrother, and conspires to have Ouso die on a dangerous mission he has contrived. But Ouso prevails in the mission and returns to his father's castle under a new name, Prince Yamato Takeru. Otomo plots to have the Prince sent into even greater danger, but Otomo is unaware that the gods have favored the Prince and the...
Wedding Ring
Character: Takeshi Ema
A jewelry store president begins to fall for the doctor treating her husband's illness....
Daredevil in the Castle
Character: Mohei
During the raging war between the Toyotomi and Tokugawa clans, the swordsman Mohei (whose family has been completely decimated) is recruited by Toyotomi to overcome the seat of power, Osaka Castle. Mohei's daredevil skills will be put to severe tests....
All About Marriage
Character: Acting teacher
Ultra-perky model likes single freedom but feels ryosai kenbo ("good wife, wise mother") pressure, exemplified by her bored-to-tears sister....
Love and Faith
Character: Taiko Hideyoshi
Sen Rikyu is a ceremonial tea master who advises warlord Hideyoshi in sixteenth-century feudal Japan. His daughter, the beautiful Lady Ogin, has an unrequited love for Lord Ukon, who has angered Hideyoshi by becoming a Christian convert. Ogin's father Rikyu also displeases Hideyoshi by opposing the warlord's plan to invade China and Korea. When the animalistic Hideyoshi is rejected by Ogin, he threatens her and her father with arrest and worse....
The Ambitious
Character: Shojiro Goto
The story of Ryoma Sakamoto, considered to be the architect behind the downfall of the Tokugawa shogunate. He was considered an outlaw by his own clan, hunted by his government, and was despised by supporters of the Shogun as well as the Loyalists for desiring the opening of Japan to the West in order to learn its technology, in the hopes of one day defeating the West with a modern army and navy....
Rebels on the High Sea
Character: Matsuo Tokuzō
A film by Hiroshi Inagaki....
The Mad Atlantic
Character: Heihachirô Murakami
Captain Murakami takes over as skipper of the Azuma Maru, replacing the well-liked former captain. Murakami forces the crew to work harder than they ever have, creating enmity and exhaustion. Just when the ship has taken a huge catch of tuna in its nets, Murakami learns that his ship is the only one in position to rescue the crew of another ship, sinking in a storm. He must choose between saving the catch or saving lives. Either choice may mean his ruin....
Settlement of Love
Character: Shuntarō Ōhira
Living in a house that has lost its man to the war a year earlier are the widow and her child. Four of the dead man's friends gather to have an anniversary wake. Some time following the ceremony one of the attendees marries the widow. Soon another friend of the deceased and his family also make the house their home when they move to town. Everyone's life is changed quite a bit. When the newer husband sustains an injury to his leg and loses his job it leads to the wife having to work. By the time...
A Man in the Storm
Character: Saburō Watari
Judo expert Saburô Watari fights his judo master, Tsujido, while simultaneously in conflict with a karate expert....
A Dangerous Hero
Character: Kawada
A film by Hideo Suzuki....
The Masterless 47
Character: Kazuo Momoi
Part one of The Masterless 47....
All is Well
Character: Daikichi Risshun
...
All is Well 2
Character: Daikichi Risshun
...
Three Gentlemen Return from Hong Kong
Character: Zhang Zhizhang
...
Proof of the Man
Character: Yohei Kori
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....
A Holiday in Tokyo
Character: Tenkai's nephew Jirō
May Kawaguchi is a famous Japanese fashion designer. Returning to Tokyo from her home in New York, she travels incognito with a tour group, in hopes of having a quiet vacation without being noticed. But she is spotted and the press has a field-day with the returning celebrity. Her hopes of rest shattered, she agrees to put on a large-scale fashion show....
Journey of Honor
Character: Ieyasu Tokugawa
The son of a besieged Shogun in war-torn 17th century Japan travels to Spain to buy weaponry from the king....
Shogun's Samurai
Character: Yoshinao Tokugawa
Following the death of the second Tokugawa shogun, it is revealed that he was poisoned by retainers of his son Iemitsu in hopes of gaining him the shogunate despite the stammer and birthmark which undermine his respect. Iemitsu and his brother Tadanaga become bitter rivals for the shogunate, and the land is split into factions, eventually erupting into warfare. Iemitsu's mentor, his fencing instructor Yagyu, is fixated upon securing Iemitsu the shogunate and ends up betraying everyone, even his ...
Escape from Prison
Character: Shinkichi
...
Safari 5000
Character: Yūichirō Takase
A Japanese racing driver for Nissan named Godai (Yujiro Ishihara) have a rivalry with a French driver named Pierre (Jean-Claude Drouot). Godai is enlisted to race in an annual endurance race, The East African Safari Rally. Peripheral to this is the story concerning Godai's former lover Yuko (Ruriko Asaoka), a fashion designer, and her friend Anna (Emmanuel Riva), who happens to be Pierre's wife....
Sasaki Kojiro
Character: Miyamoto Musashi
Director Hiroshi Inagaki's early version of the life and death of famed swordsman Sasaki Kojiro. Otani Tomoemon gives a brilliant performance as Sasaki Kojiro, who rises from humble beginnings to national fame, and a young Toshiro Mifune appears as the legendary master swordsman Miyamoto Musashi for the first time and essentially sets the standard for future portrayals.This masterpiece is based on the original story as written by noted author Murakami Genzo and is far superior to any other versi...
Secret of the Forbidden Valley
Character:
A thrilling historical drama in which a ronin played plays an active role in redeeming the name of a man who was put to death for a crime, despite being innocent....
Admiral Yamamoto
Character: Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
As Japan joins in a political pact with Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is appointed supreme commander of the Japanese fleet. With Japan headed inexorably toward war, Yamamoto, despite his misgivings, believes the only possible victory lies in destroying the American fleet by surprise at Pearl Harbor. The attack succeeds, but fails to sink the American carrier fleet. Thus Yamamoto must lead the Japanese navy into war with ever-diminishing likelihood of success....
A Wife's Heart
Character: Kenkichi
Kiyoko (Takamine Hideko) and her husband want to open a coffee shop. She becomes increasingly close to the bank clerk (Mifune Toshiro) she's asked for a loan....
Rise Against the Sword
Character: Abare Gōemon
Farmer Abare Goemon is confronted by brigand-like samurai. He raises an army of farmers to fight them and does so brilliantly. When Lord Asakura sees the success Goemon has achieved, he attempts to recruit him to fight in a conflict between Asakura and another clan. Goemon refuses, and Lord Asakura sets out to destroy him....
The Retired Samurai
Character: Hikozaemon Ōkubo
Japan's greatest jidaigeki star, Mifune Toshiro is Shogun's Advisor Okubo Hikozaemon who must be coaxed out of retirement to save Shogun Iemitsu from danger. The elderly Hikozaemon has been belittled of late and has seemingly lost the will to live, much less the desire to assert himself and make Iemitsu listen to reason. The plot thickens when a lovely young woman enters the picture. Can she change Hikozaemon's mind, and thus alter the path of Japanese history? No longer a young man, can Hikozae...
Deep River
Character: Tsukada
A group of Japanese tourists try to forget their pasts and find themselves in India....
Picture Bride
Character: The Benshi
Riyo, an orphaned 17-year old, sails from Yokohama to Hawaii in 1918 to marry Matsuji, a man she has never met. Hoping to escape a troubled past and start anew, Riyo is bitterly disappointed upon her arrival: her husband is twice her age. The miserable girl finds solace with her new friend Kana, a young mother who helps Riyo accept her new life....
The Demon Comes in Spring
Character: Kukkune no jî
Island villagers find a young woman and young man swept ashore near their remote village in northeastern Japan. The two have tried to escape the girl's enforced marriage to another man, in order that they may marry themselves. The ancient custom of the village decrees that the angry sea gods must be calmed by throwing the pair back into the sea. The lovers face being sacrificed to the sea gods or perhaps something even more difficult to bear....
Port Arthur
Character: Emperor Meiji
Depicts the bloody siege of the fortress of Port Arthur, one of the most strongly fortified positions in the world, during the Russo-Japanese War of (1904 - 1905). In the story dominated the character Lt Takeshi Kogyo (Teruhiko Aoi), teachers, and a reserve officer who became commander of the platoon and later company. At the same time monitors the conduct of the army commander general Nogi (Tatsuya Nakadai), which was commissioned of the emperor Matsuhito (Toshirô Mifune) to the conquest of the...
Shag
Character: Captain Takeo Murata
Shiro Akitsu goes on a relentless search for his abducted 7-year-old daughter, with the aid of an Ainu dog summoned by a whistle she gave him....
The Storm of the Pacific
Character: Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi
Lt. Koji Kitami is a navigator-bombardier in Japan's Naval Air Force. He participates in the Japanese raid on the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in 1941 and is welcomed with pride in his hometown on his return. As Japan racks up victory after victory in the Pacific War, Kitami is caught up in the emotion of the time and fights courageously for the standard of Japanese honor. But his assuredness of his government's righteousness is shaken after the Japanese navy is defeated in the debacle of Mid...
Lowly Ronin 4: Living Hell
Character: Sanjuro Hinoki
The "lowly ronin" meets a child who is being chased bymen that killed his father before his eyes. Feeling indebted to the child for buying him dinner, the Ronin takes the child back to his village. There, the Ronin reluctantly gets involved in a pathetic revolt by the cowardly villagers against their tyrannical governor. Mifune at his best!...
The Eagle of the Pacific
Character: 1st Lieutenant Tomonaga
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, a brilliant tactician, is a loyal subject of the emperor, despite his grave misgivings about leading Japan's navy into war with the United States. He opposes the attack on Pearl Harbor, but, overruled, he leads his forces to the best of his ability....
Battle Anthem
Character: Admiral Heihachiro Togo
The story of Japan's victory in the battle of Tsushima Strait....
The Big Boss
Character: Kashimura
Ryuta and Mineo Komatsu are brothers, both yakuza (gangsters). Mineo, although complicit in crime, even murder, wants out of the gangster life, hoping to become a successful singer instead. Ryuta loves his brother, but Mineo's possible defection presents problems for the gang, and Ryuta realizes he must kill his brother if he wants to survive....
No More God, No More Love
Character: Kōzō Kanzaki
Released after seven years in prison, an inveterate thug goes from strength to ruthless strength as he makes his way through a succession of dubious jobs, illegal schemes, and brutal romances....
The Ballad of the Sea of Genkai
Character: Kyūbei Matsufuji
A young woman's life is turned upside down when her husband suddenly disappears, leaving behind numerous debts and his illegitimate child. Desperate to track down her missing husband, she travels to Kyushu in hopes of finding clues to his whereabouts and in the process discovers disturbing secrets about the man she loves....
The Militarists
Character: Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto
...
Conduct Report on Professor Ishinaka
Character: Teisaku Nagasawa
Three humorous love stories set in rural Japan....
The Gambling Samurai
Character: Kunisada Chuji
Chuji Kunisada returns to his home village to find that Jubei Matsui, the corrupt magistrate, has been responsible for virtually destroying Kunisada's family. A final tragedy leads Kunisada to join with a band of rogues living in the forest in robbing from the rich and giving to the poor, always with an eye toward avenging himself on Magistrate Matsui....
Domineering
Character: Masao Tadokoro
When the patriarch of Japan's most powerful yakuza family is shot, his wife is left to pick up the pieces and carry on the legacy....
Saga of the Vagabonds
Character: Rokuro Kai
Lord Taro must deliver a money chest but is robbed by brigands led by Jibu. One of Jibu's men, Rokuro, steals the money from Jibu, but after meeting and befriending Taro, Rokuro decides to return the money to Taro. But Taro's unscrupulous brother Jiro falsely accuse Taro of the theft, and Taro reactively joins the outlaw band and encourages them to steal from the nobles and give to the poor....
Mifune: The Last Samurai
Character: Self - Actor / Various Roles (archive footage)
An account of the life and work of legendary Japanese actor Toshirō Mifune (1920-97), the most prominent actor of the Golden Age of Japanese cinema....
Tora-san Goes North
Character: Junkichi Ueno
When his travels take him to rural Hokkaido, Tora-san helps a cantankerous old veterinarian (Mifune) in his relationships with his estranged daughter, and a woman in whom he is secretly interested....
The Women of Osaka Castle
Character: Tokugawa Ieyasu
A television drama aired on November 3, 1983 as a special project to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the founding of Yomiuri Television and the 30th anniversary of the founding of Nippon Television....
Okita Soji: Swordsman of Fire
Character: Shūsai Kondō
...
The Life of a Horse Trader
Character: Yonetaro Katayama
The tale of Katakana Yonetaro aka "The Shark," a rough-and-tumble horse trader in Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido, despite being a father and a husband he is frequently drawn to taverns....
Lowly Ronin 5: The Teenage Orphan Girl
Character: Sûrônin Rakuyôjûrô
When the 'Lowly Ronin' helps an orphaned teenage girl avoid being turned into a prostitute, she then claims he is her father and they start a farm as father and daughter until fate steps in and he must draw his sword....
The Shatterer
Character: Murai
Following the opening of a Japanese auto factory in Sicily, the head of the company is kidnapped by Sicilian mobsters. This was a co-production between Italy and Japan's Toho Studios....
Beyond Love and Hate
Character: Gorō Sakata
A young man, convicted of a crime and imprisoned in the penitentiary, comes to believe that his wife is being unfaithful to him. He contrives his escape from the prison in order to seek her out and learn the truth, but the police give chase and he must flee into the mountains....
Foghorn
Character: Chiyokichi
A Japanese woman, the mistress of an American, falls in love with her servant....
The Last Embrace
Character: Shinkichi / Hayakawa
Yukiko Nogami is rescued during a mountain blizzard by handsome forester Shinkichi, and the two subsequently fall in love. But when Shinkichi dies in an avalanche, Yukiko leaves the mountains in despair and takes a job in a bar where she becomes deeply involved in the personal lives of several of the patrons. One day she thinks she sees Shinkichi alive, but it turns out to be a gangster named Hayakawa, a man on the run who bears an astonishing resemblance to Yukiko's lost love. Against her bette...
No Time for Tears
Character: Mitsuo Yano
Coach Shimamura of the hapless Sparrows baseball team is pleased to obtain a hot new pitcher named Onishi. But when Onishi begins a romantic relationship with the coach's daughter Michiko, Shimamura becomes angry with the young man, lashing out at him when he disobeys instructions during a game. In turn, Michiko becomes angry with her father, who becomes increasingly depressed. When a tragedy strikes the family, Coach Shimamura begins losing control of his life, just when his family and his team...
The Underworld
Character: Chief Inspector Kumada
Yakuza boss Furuya leans more and more on his protege Takao Shoji, though Shoji has become romantically involved with Furuya's mistress, Natsue. Furuya himself has fallen in love, with a nurse after his recent hospital stay. As the gang grows more jealous of the favoritism Furuya shows Shoji, they decide to reveal Shoji's relationship with Natsue. But Furuya's affection for Shoji cannot be easily destroyed, even in the gang war that erupts....
Man Against Man
Character: Kaji
Kikumori runs a cabaret on the docks, while his friend Kaji operates transport boats. When a gang of drug dealers tries to force the pair to cooperate in a smuggling scheme, conflict arises between the two friends. Falsely blamed for murder, Kikumori is blackmailed into an attempt to sabotage Kaji's boats and kill him. But the friendship between the two men proves an obstacle to the gangleader's plans....
The Retreat from Kiska
Character: Omura
In 1943, the Aleutian island of Kiska was fortified by a small contingent of Japanese soldiers. When word arrived of an impending attack by an overwhelming force of Americans, the Japanese Navy attempted one of the most daring and unlikely evacuations in military history. This is that story....
Sword for Hire
Character: Sasa Hayatenosuke
Soldiers Hayate and Yaheiji secretly escape from their besieged castle. Hayate has left behind his lover, Kano. On his way, Hayate is wounded and cared for by O’Ryo, who falls in love with him. But when Hayate accidentally kills her caretaker, he flees, with O’Ryo in pursuit. Subsequently, Hayate's comrade Yaheiji falls in love with Oryo. Kano, the lover left behind by Hayate, believes him dead, and becomes involved with another soldier, Jurota. When Jurota defects to the opposing army, he takes...
Kurosawa
Character: Self (archive footage)
Documentary on film maker Akira Kurosawa...
Theater Of Life
Character: Hyōtarō Aonari
Adaptation of Shiro Ozaki's novel....
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'The Hidden Fortress'
Character: Self
Documentary made by Toho for the Masterworks reissue of all of its Kurosawa films. This one focuses on "The Hidden Fortress" (1958)....
The Youth and His Amulet
Character: Fudo-Myo (Immovable Bright King)
Gen is a lonely orphan boy. His sole sense of companionship comes from an imaginary friend, the god Prince Fudo-Myo. Prince Fudo-Myo comes to the boy's rescue in times of difficulty....
The Miracle of Joe, the Petrel
Character: Fisherman
In Okinawa, a Japanese-Filipino gangster named Joe kills an Okinawan mobster. Joe temporarily escapes the pursuing mob by fleeing to the Philippines, hoping to find there safety and perhaps to link up with his father. He meets Yoko, a saloon girl, who looks after him, but soon Joe's enemies show up, determined to make Joe pay....
Lord Mito
Character: Sakuzaemon Okumura
One of Japan’s most popular historical characters, former Vice-Shogun Tokugawa Mitsukuni, whose travels around the nation are legendary has made it to the silver screen in a dynamic and exciting tale featuring megastar Toshiro Mifune as an expert swordsman drawn into the action to fight injustice. The Elder Lord travels about disguised as a retired merchant with his two trusty bodyguards Sukesaburo and Kakunoshin by his side and secret agent Yashichi close by. After a chance meeting with a dying...
Japanese Godfather: Conclusion
Character: Kosuke Oishi
The three-film saga comes to a conclusion as three leaders of the underworld battle it out to determine who will become Don of Japan....
Tokyo Sweetheart
Character: Kurokawa
Following the Second World War, the lives of various people in a poverty-stricken area of Tokyo are entertwined. Pachinko parlor girls, shoeshine boys, a maker of costume jewelry, and a streetcorner artist all struggle to make their livings and to find happiness in difficult surroundings....
Legacy of the 500,000
Character: Takeichi Matsuo
During World War II, Japan sends gold to the Phillipines. After the war, the gold is lost in the bay of Manille. Former soldier Takeichi Matsuo is now working as a business executive. He meets Mintsura Gunji, the boss of a large company, who offers him to go to the Philippines and bring back the gold....
The Adventures of Kosuke Kindaichi
Character: Kindaichi of 11th Generation in "The Woman in the Eye"
Obayashi's take on the famous Kosuke Kindaichi series, made popular partly thanks to the numerous movie-adaptions by Kon Ichikawa, the most known being The Inugami Family. Kosuke Kindaichi is the most famous detective in Japan. Kindaichi gets a new case to figure out who has beheaded a valuable statue and made off with its head....
Onmitsu Doshin: The Edo Secret Police
Character: Sadanobu Matsudaira
A group of warriors decide to unite to help the oppressed masses. Disguised as ordinary people, they are dedicated to fighting evil till the end....
The Lowly Ronin 3: Duel at Dawn
Character:
After saving a young Lord from an assassination attempt the Lowly Ronin finds that he is now a wanted man! Accused of being a thief by those that tried to kill the young Lord he must now clear himself of the accusations. Befriended by an old woman, she then attempts to use him for her own designs....
Lowly Ronin 6: Betrayal at Yatate Pass
Character: Sûrônin Hinoki Sajûrô
Accused of being a spy for a rival clan by Nanbu Clan samurai who then attack him, the 'Lowly Ronin' barely escapes with his life after being shot. Nursed back to health by Yamaoka Daijiro, the one Nanbu Clan retainer that believes him, he must find a way to prove his inno-cence to the others. The two team up together to uncover the mystery and find out who the real spy is that threatens the security of the clan. Against all odds, the two master swordsmen must rely on all their skills to defe...
Strawberry Road
Character: Taoka
Hisa Ishii and his brother Akira emigrate from Japan to the United States. They settle in rural California and start a strawberry farm, slowly integrating themselves into the life of the community, which includes Japanese-Americans of both lengthy and brief residence....
Down Town
Character: Yoshio Tsuruishi
A woman struggles to raise her young son on her own in postwar Japan, finding companionship with a kind laborer while still hoping for the return of her missing husband....
The Masterless 47 – Part II
Character:
...
The Man Who Came to Port
Character: Gorō Niinuma
An Ishiro Honda film....
Good Luck to These Two
Character: Toshio Maruyama
A young man and woman are determined to marry despite opposition from her parents....
Japanese Godfather: Ambition
Character: Kosuke Oishi
An ambitious Kansai yakuza don moves in on Tokyo using financial and political tactics, sparking conflict with a local criminal association....
Seven Samurai
Character: Kikuchiyo
A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food....
Scoundrel
Character: Kanji
...
Theater of Life
Character:
1958 Theater of Life adaptation....
Swift Current
Character: Shunsuke Kosugi
The film follows a young civil engineer, played by Toshiro Mifune, who is assigned to the Tase Dam construction site in what is now Hanamaki City, Iwate Prefecture, and the human relationships involved in building the dam. A masterpiece by director Senkichi Taniguchi, who has worked on numerous films starring Mifune....
My Wonderful Yellow Car
Character: Matsumura
...
Sunflower Girl
Character: Ippei Hitachi
Young Setsuko Fujino begins a new job at Tokyo Chemical Company. She likes her boss, Ippei Hitachi, and enjoys serving him tea, despite the fact that her fellow workers think the women employees should not have to act in such a servile manner. When the women go on strike over the issue, Setsuko finds herself caught in the middle. When the heir to the company, Ryosuke Tanabe, proposes marriage to Setsuko, she is honored, but realizes that her real affection is for Hitachi....
Heaven and Earth: Dawn Episode
Character: Nagao Tamekage
Some of the greatest battles during the Age of Civil Wars were fought between the Uesugi and Takeda clans. Leading up to them was the incredible life of Uesugi Kenshin, who rose from a son out of favor with his......
A Man Among Men
Character: "Buick" Maki
Gangsters Ken and Maki are rivals in the ticket-scalping game. They make an uneasy truce, but Ken wrecks the truce by agreeing to fix a boxing match in which Maki has an interest in one of the fighters. After a terrible brawl, the two gangsters discover that they have both been played for suckers by their bosses. They join forces to turn the tables on the bosses....
Sanshiro Sugata
Character: Shogoro Yano
Remake of Kurosawa's films Sanshiro Sugata and Sanshiro Sugata part 2. A young man, Sanshiro Sugata, troubled by personal problems, takes up judo. His teacher, Shogoro Yano, is a devout man who has aroused the enmity of the local practitioners of jujitsu, the older and more accepted of the two sports. Sugata uses his newly learned prowess to gain a measure of respect from others; however, Shogoro insists that the sport has a spiritual side, a lesson Sugata has yet to learn. Eventually, in hand-t...
These Foolish Times
Character: Genzaburo Onō, Gang Boss
...
Charles Bronson: The Spirit of Masculinity
Character: Self (archive footage)
With his grizzled moustache and chiselled features, Charles Bronson is the embodiment of a slightly archaic, brooding and almost reactionary virility. But who is he really? Often hired to play marginalised Native American or Mexican characters before he was typecast as the image of a lone killer, Bronson was a major figure in the popular cinema of the 1960s and 70s and his stony-faced, physical acting and career are worthy of a second look....
The Walking Major
Character: Kinugasa Tadao
U.S. Army Captain Clark Allen gains attention by walking back and forth, the length of Japan, gambling with U.S. servicemen in order to raise funds to rebuild an orphanage. Suspicious of Allen's motives, a Japanese newsman, Hiroshi Kitabayashi, traces the American's background until he discovers the motive behind Allen's long walk....
Lee Marvin: A Personal Portrait by John Boorman
Character: Self (archive footage)
John Boorman met Lee Marvin in London when the latter was making The Dirty Dozen and immediately they struck up a friendship. Shortly afterwards they made two films together, the first of which was Point Blank, during which Boorman found that he learnt a lot about screen acting and how to direct from the contributions and support from Marvin. Later they worked together on Hell in the Pacific. With his friendship providing an insightful collection of memories of Marvin, Boorman leads this intimat...
Ten Duels of Young Shingo: Chapter 1
Character: Tamon Umei
The classic tale of the shogun's illegitimate son Aoi Shingo is told in three parts as he strives to become the greatest fencer in Japan, while his father Shogun Tokugawa Yoshimune seeks to reunite with his lost son. Part 1 sets up the story and introduces the characters. When the secrets of Shingo's birth are revealed to him, it sets off a series of events that bring him to cross swords with members of the shogun's inner circle. ...
Ten Duels of Young Shingo: Chapter 2
Character: Tamon Umei
Brings Shingo face to face against Yagyu Tajima, the Shogun’s fencing instructor in a match that could save a domain near Osaka. Meanwhile Shogun Yoshimune must face a painful decision whether or not he can finally see his son for the first time....
Pirates
Character: Tora
...
Meeting of the Ghost of Apres-Guerre
Character: Kenji Kawakami
In a small town, according to the homecoming of Professor Ishinaka, the youth culture group was overwhelmed to make a presentation for the summer festival, but because of lack of funds, she works part-time at the spectacle of a tour, a haunted house Especially. The ghost was a struggle amongst the people, it was a great success in filling the crowd, but in the circus hut next to it, Kenji who was supposed to have disappeared was pitiful....
Jakoman and Tetsu
Character: Tetsu
In a village subsisting on it herring fishery, a one-eyed criminal named Jakoman terrorizes the inhabitants. One of them, the son of the head of one of the fish companies by the name of Tetsu, decides to overthrow Jakoman and his cohorts....
The Black Fury
Character: Eiichi Tsuda
A narcotics investigator for the harbor police, Eiichi Tsuda, is driven by thoughts of vengeance for the overdose death of his brother and the subsequent decline and death of their mother. Tsuda acts viciously and with disdain for legal niceties in his exploration of the criminal facts behind the explosion of a freighter in the harbor. He goes undercover with a band of drug smugglers, but his methods threaten to destroy him as well as his case....
Who Knows a Woman's Heart
Character: Mizuno
Ikeuchi was captain of the K - University ice hockey team. The daughter Shikotsuko of Ginza 's western restaurant "Piccolo" was also a female student at K University and was a figure player. They had a dream of being dispatched to Oslo in the Olympic Games and were struggling in each way. Mizuno who runs a sports equipment store in Ginza, showed the geisha by guiding the junior's Ikeuchi and others to the shop of Shimbashi one day....
Rainy Night Duel
Character: Masahiko Koseki
Masahiko Koseki, a judo master, gets in several fights as a result of protecting a young woman. Despite his success, Koseki is expelled from his judo school because of his propensity for street fighting. He goes to work for a gangster named Joji, but when he realizes that Joji is mixed up in the slave trade, Koseki helps the police in their attempts to foil Joji....
The Surf
Character: Skipper of the Utashima-maru
Lonely youth Shinji meets Hatsue, a pretty pearl diver, on the beach and the two fall in love. But Shinji has a rival for Hatsue's affections, Yasuo....
Elegy
Character: Prosecutor Daisuke Toki
Wataru Naohiko who has the prosecutor general as his father became a young composer and its symphony "saint" invoked the world echoed. But his disciple Uchiyama and his best friend prosecutor Daisuke Toki accused his music as a sesame of pause-only technique, not a truly heart-hungry art....
Kin no tamago: Golden Girl
Character:
Once an average and seemingly ordinary Tokyo girl, she suddenly finds herself as a TV star owing to her discovery by a casting company, which noticed photographs that her cousin had sent. When another actress falls ill she is given the role instead. Her first film is a success propelling the young actress to popularity, her own fans, money and a house. While everything looks dandy from the outside not all is well within the family however....