
Franchise
Ekimae: A Series in Front of the Station
Toho's influential 24-entry ensemble comedy anthology series about the people who live and work around train stations, whether urban or rural.
9.0Based on the novel "Ekimae Ryokan" by Masuji Ibuse, a longtime hotel employee struggles to bring his old-fashioned ryokan in line with postwar Japanese business practices.
The Hotelman's Holiday
1958
7.0Follow-up to "Ekimae Ryokan." Set around the Yurigaoka and Nishi-Ikuta stations on the Odakyu-Odawara line, the film takes up the problem of real estate around the expanding Yurigaoka apartments.
An Urban Affair
1961
8.0Third film in the "Ekimae" series, this time set in Hamamatsu. A widow named Keiko and her brother Jiro run the bento shop, "Goraku." One day, Keiko asks for advice from her childhood friends Kintaro, a textile manufacturer, and Magosaku, an entrepreneur, about a big-shot from Osaka who wants to invest in her shop. However, Kintaro and Magosaku suspect that things are not what they seem...
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Lunchbox
1961
10.0Fourth entry in the Ekimae series, focusing on the restoration of a Fukushima hot spring inn.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Onsen
1962
8.0The fifth "Ekimae" film set in a Chinese restaurant in Yokohama's Chinatown.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Chinese Restaurant
1962
7.0Sixth entry in the Ekimae series, loosely based on the folktale of the tanuki and the tea kettle.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Teapot
1963
10.0Seventh in the Ekimae series, detailing the exploits of the landladies around Ryogoku Station in Tokyo, and their sumo clientele.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Landlady
1964
10.0Eighth in the Ekimae series, portraying competition between two hot spring resort owners in Yamanashi.
Hot Spring Ghost
1964
7.0#13 in the Ekimae series of films. Set at Todai University, Professor Sakai (played by Frankie Sakai) mentors a group of university hopefuls. Cut to 25 years later, the students have each settled into their careers and cross paths with Professor Sakai's son, a P.E. teacher (also played by Sakai).
A Comedy in Front of the Station: University
1965
7.0The 14th film in the Ekimae series, set in Nagano Prefecture, focusing on the love lives of a group of husbands and their wives.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Benten
1966
8.015th entry in the Ekimae series, surrounding the then-insanely popular Weekly Shounen Sunday series Osomatsu-kun and Obake no Q-Taro.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Manga
1966
NRThe 18th "Ekimae" feature.
Mahjong Madness
1967
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Campus in Front of a Train Station
1967
NRLate entry "Ekimae" feature, about the hunt for lost treasure.
Exploration in Front of the Station
1967
8.0The 21st film in the Ekimae series, commemorating the 35th anniversary of Toho. The film is a loose remake of the first film in the series, Ekimae Ryoukan.
A Hundred-Years' Comedy in Front of the Station
1967
NRThe 22nd film in the Ekimae series about shop-owners living near Akabane Station, Tokyo.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Fortune
1968
NRPenultimate 23rd "Ekimae" comedy is about oil-field exploration.
Volcano of Station Front Plaza
1968
7.0The 24th and final entry in the Ekimae series, set at Takamatsu Station in Kagawa Prefecture, formerly known for its ferry service to the Seto Inland Sea.
A Comedy in Front of the Station: Pier
1969