
Acting
Akira Emoto
Born 1948-11-03 · Chuo, Tokyo, Japan
Old good "Emo-chan" of modern Japanese cinema. Emo's father was a close friend of legendary episode player Taji Tonoyama in elementary school days. His mother's grandfather ran a shamisen store in Ginza, Tokyo. Both parents like movies and theaters. After graduating from Machinery Department of Tokyo Industrial High School, Emoto got a job at a trading company. However, he became an actor and became a student of the acting classes of the theater company "Marui", which is headed by Nobuo Kaneko, and met Yusaku Matsuda who was in the same class. In 1999, he won the Japanese Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Dr. Akagi. He also won the award for best supporting actor at the 7th Hochi Film Award for Dotonbori River and Hearts and Flowers for Tora-san.
Acting credits
7.8In the outskirts of Tokyo, a poor but close-knit group living on the fringes of society survives through shoplifting and odd jobs. When Osamu and his son take in a neglected young girl, their already fragile existence begins to unravel. As the family grows attached to her, buried secrets surface, forcing them to confront the true meaning of love, belonging, and what makes a family.
Shoplifters
2018
7.2When a massive, gilled monster emerges from the deep and tears through the city, the government scrambles to save its citizens. A rag-tag team of volunteers cuts through a web of red tape to uncover the monster's weakness and its mysterious ties to a foreign superpower. But time is not on their side - the greatest catastrophe to ever befall the world is about to evolve right before their very eyes.
Shin Godzilla
2016
7.7An American actor in Tokyo struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese 'rental family' agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients' worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality.
Rental Family
2025
6.0Michiko used to work as a live-in part-timer at an izakaya, but suddenly lost her job and her house at the same time due to COVID-19 pandemic. There are no new jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and diners and internet cafes are closed. Michiko is at her wits' end, but there in front of her is a bus stop that stands slightly brightly in the darkness, illuminated only by the streetlights.
No Place to Go
2022
6.6When it rains it pours. Kenji divorced his wife, lost his job and his old squeeze Naoko is getting married back home in the north of Japan, specifically in Akita. He returns there in order to attend her wedding. Naoko surprises him by proposing that they have sex again. The one night stand is the new beginning.
It Feels So Good
2019
6.3A young boy with a troubled home life becomes "chosen," and he stumbles into the middle of a great war of yōkai (a class of mythological creatures), where he meets a group of friendly yōkai who become his companions through his journey. Now he must fight to protect his friends and free the world of the yōkai from oppression.
The Great Yokai War
2005
6.0One of the true classic's of anime's much-loved robot genre.
Tetsujin 28: The Movie
2005
7.5A bored accountant spots a beautiful woman in the window of a ballroom dance studio. He secretly starts taking dancing lessons to be near her, and then over time discovers how much he loves dancing. His wife, meanwhile, has hired a private detective to find out why he has started coming home late smelling of perfume.
Shall We Dance?
1996
6.4Eleven directors from eleven countries each contribute an eleven-minute short reflecting on the events of 11 September 2001: A village teacher in Iran tries to explain to her young students what's happened; city kids in Burkina Faso think they've spotted Osama bin Laden; a deaf Frenchwoman in Manhattan writes a Dear John letter to a man who left that morning for work at the World Trade Center; a Chilean remembers Allende; events recall other deaths; a mother endures more than her son's death. Tones vary, as do the locales. Most concern coming to terms with the events of the day, but at least one confronts the viewer with tragedy and death.
September 11
2002
7.2Blind traveler Zatoichi is a master swordsman and a masseur with a fondness for gambling on dice games. When he arrives in a village torn apart by warring gangs, he sets out to protect the townspeople.
Zatoichi
2003
9.0Hidenori is a Japanese-Korean man with no sense of belonging, destination or education. He drifts around and meanders through life until a death reminds him of his heritage and so begins a journey to South Korea.
Worst by Chance
2003
NRTaishi lives with his father Kazushi. His mother left home when Taishi was very young and he barely has any memories of her. He believes that his mother left home to study in Paris. His favorite moments come once a week when he receives a letter from his mother. But one day, during Taishi's summer vacation, he learns that his mother isn't in Paris but in Shodoshima, Japan. Taishi then decides to take his pet dog with him and bicycle from his hometown of Yokohama all the way to Shodoshima. On his 500 kilometers trip to Shodoshima, Taishi meets various peoples and touches their hearts, while leaving behind small miracles. What Taishi doesn't know about his mother is that she suffers from memory loss and that's why she lives apart from her family. Taishi's father Kazushi soon learns that his son has left for Shodoshima and he sets out to find his son.
Boku to Mama No Kiiroi Jitensha
2009
6.9A businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After his release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking to almost no one except for an eel he befriended while in prison.
The Eel
1997
6.8A mysterious extraterrestrial being resembling Godzilla rapidly approaches Earth. The monster, dubbed SpaceGodzilla, lands to challenge the King of the Monsters.
Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla
1994
5.9An evil criminal organisation called Sigma kidnap prominment business leaders to harvest their DNA and only Karate-Robo Zaborgar can save them.
Karate-Robo Zaborgar
2011
6.7Ichi is a blind entertainer that travels the countryside with her traditional Japanese guitar and walking stick. She’s in search for the kind man that brought her up as a child, but because of her beauty she encounters problems every step of the way. Fortunately for Ichi, she is also a gifted swordswoman and carries a lethal blade within her walking stick.
ICHI
2008
4.7Based on a polemic novel by Amy Yamada, Bedtime Eyes is about the intense love relationship between a second rate Japanese jazz singer and a black American GI on the margins of the law.
Bedtime Eyes
1987
7.7Keisuke, a 10-year-old boy, living hard despite being abused by his father, finds a ray of light in the midst of his suffering and conflict ---- a shogi world where he fights quietly and passionately in his sharpened senses. Even though he gives up and tries to escape from the light, his passion for shogi continues to guide him thereafter. Eventually, he would learn the true meaning of life.
The Final Piece
2025
6.8Shimizu Yuichi is a shy and lonely day laborer looking for love. He aimlessly spends time corresponding with girls via telephone dating services and going on random encounters with girls looking for spending cash. His world is shattered one day when he is involved in the murder of one of his former encounters, the sweet-faced Ishibashi Yoshino who, after being jilted by playboy Masuo Keijo, berates and mocks the troubled loner.
Villain
2010
6.2Fifth grader Kei Watanabe has inherited the hunter's blood to hunt yōkai. To save the world from destruction, Kei challenges a war against the yōkai.
The Great Yokai War: Guardians
2021
6.2Fifth grader Kei Watanabe has inherited the hunter's blood to hunt yōkai. To save the world from destruction, Kei challenges a war against the yōkai.
The Great Yokai War: Guardians
2021
4.7A hit man looks to protect the daughter of one of his victims against CIA assassins.
Rain Fall
2009
7.1Akira works as a lawyer. One day, he meets with his former client Rie, who asks Akira to perform a background check on her late husband Daisuke.
A Man
2022
7.8While combing through the belongings of his recently deceased aunt, Matsuko, nephew Sho pieces together the crucial events that sank Matsuko's life into a despairing tragedy.
Memories of Matsuko
2006
