Known for
8.5A 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.
Seven Samurai
1954
7.8In Burma during the closing days of WWII, a Japanese soldier separated from his unit disguises himself as a Buddhist monk to escape imprisonment as a POW.
The Burmese Harp
1956
5.6An expedition in the South Pacific lands on a tropical island where the natives worship the mysterious deity Gappa. An earthquake opens up an underground cavern and a baby reptile is discovered inside. The natives warn the foreigners to leave the hatching alone, but they don't listen and take it back to a zoo in Japan. Soon after, moma and papa Gappa start smashing Tokyo looking for their kidnapped child.
Gappa, the Triphibian Monster
1967
6.9Two brothers compete for the amorous favors of a young woman during a seaside summer of gambling, boating, and drinking.
Crazed Fruit
1956
7.0Saheji, a man-about-town, gets stuck at a high-class brothel when he can’t pay the bill. He makes the best of his situation by performing various tasks amidst the tumult of the end of the shogunate—but always by making sure to get a “commission” for his troubles.
A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era
1957
7.8Set in Kawaguchi in the early 60s, this simple story chronicles the lives of foundry families and one girl's dreams of higher education.
Foundry Town
1962
Film credits
1960s · 17 titles
5.6An expedition in the South Pacific lands on a tropical island where the natives worship the mysterious deity Gappa. An earthquake opens up an underground cavern and a baby reptile is discovered inside. The natives warn the foreigners to leave the hatching alone, but they don't listen and take it back to a zoo in Japan. Soon after, moma and papa Gappa start smashing Tokyo looking for their kidnapped child.
Gappa, the Triphibian Monster
1967
7.8Set in Kawaguchi in the early 60s, this simple story chronicles the lives of foundry families and one girl's dreams of higher education.
Foundry Town
1962
10.0Newly out of prison after killing his boss' rival, Akio Maki is eager to move on and start a new life with the boss' daughter. However, the chains of the past are not so easily broken and Maki is soon ordered to kill again.
Black Strait
1964
8.0In the late 1890s, coal is a precious new natural resource. During an era of rapid economic growth, dreams are instilled into the lives of many across Japan. A vigorous young man with a look of fearless determination, sets foot on the northern part of Kyushu, an area where Yakuza thrived. His name is Kingoro Tamai (Yujiro Ishihara). With plans to travel the world, Kingoro worked diligently at a coal mine. His loyalty and hard work earned the respect of his peers, his courage won the heart of the beautiful Mon (Ruriko Asaoka), and his success evoked jealousy in his enemies.
A Man with Dragon Tattoos
1962
6.3Katiri is a reporter so ambitiously amoral that he’ll sell out anyone—including his partner and the drug dealer he’s sleeping with—to get a scoop. But what happens when an even more ruthless female gang boss kidnaps his sister?
Smashing the 0-Line
1960
NR1962 Japanese movie
Otoko to otoko no ikiru machi
1962
NRNo synopsis available yet.
零戦黒雲一家
1962
NRA 1960 crime film
The Cards Will Tell
1960
7.2A hot-shot detective in Yokohama kills a witness during a drug investigation. He flees to the countryside and evades his past for several years, only to return to find the woman he loved married to his former partner. He searches for answers to his troubled past, knowing that his inevitable doomed fate is more or less sealed.
Red Handkerchief
1964
NRTetsuo, the captain of the rugby team, who was preparing for the university entrance exams, starts working to earn money for his mother's surgery after she was involved in a hit-and-run accident, giving up on furthering his education. During this time, a relative's college student named Ikuko visits him and introduces him to her grandfather, Tatsunosuke. Tatsunosuke, a wealthy man, asks Tetsuo to take over his business, but...
Let's find your sweetheart
1967
9.0The Sengoku Era was coming to an end. The monopoly of the ever powerful shogun, Ieyasu Tokugawa, was at a near. Only one man was brave enough to stand in Ieyasu's way - A lone wolf samurai by the name of Kagekatsu Uesugi. Inspired by Uesugi's courage to revolt, a young samurai warrior, Touzou Kuruma decides to join the fight. Their target: the Tamonyama Castle.
Taking the Castle
1965
NR1965 Nikkatsu youth film.
Seishun zenki: Aoi kajitsu
1965
NRKoji Himuro is the wandering gambler. His brother and his girlfriend were both murdered because he was determined to expose a gambling cheat. As a result, he vows to never gamble again, but in the end, his rage against cheats spurs him to action once again, with deadly consequences.
A Wandering Gambler
1964
NRJoe Shishido is an ambitious bike racetrack tout who becomes inadvertently involved in a triangle with a vulnerable prostitute (Izumi Ashikawa) and her brutal yakuza pimp (George Ai).
Glass-Hearted Johnny
1962
8.0At Tokyo Gakuen University, Takema, son of Tatsunosuke, chief of the Waku gang, is a freshman who wishes to prepare himself for a better life away from gang activities despite the wishes of his father who wants him to assist strengthen the gang against the Kawano group. Takema's classmate, Akiko, is the daughter of Eiko who operates a restaurant, and through her he obtains a lodging in the house of Shiu, a dancing mistress. The students enjoy their life, but most have their troubles. Sakamoto works as a laborer on the docks to help pay for his schooling, and Akiko worries over the relationship between her mother and Sakurai, a corrupt politician, suspected to be involved in graft over jet aircraft.
The Day of Youth
1960
NRHanayome wa Jūgo-sai, directed by Mio Ezaki and distributed by Nikkatsu, stars Masako Izumi and Ken Yamauchi. The high-key pink background and casual photographic portrait embody Nikkatsu’s 1960s youth-film aesthetic. Clean, hopeful, and pop-oriented. The large white title, handwritten for a softer impression, injects playful energy that contrasts with the strict vertical text blocks. As Japan’s youth culture blossomed after the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, posters like this captured the spirit of romance and rebellion marketed to teenage audiences. The vivid color palette and carefree composition signal a stylistic shift from postwar black-and-white melodrama to the vibrant optimism of modern Technicolor cinema.
The Bride is Fifteen
1964
NRBastard tablets that hunt down the crooks behind the gambling world of horse racing, bicycle racing, and car racing.
Inochi Shirazu no Rokudenashi
1965
1950s · 15 titles
8.5A 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.
Seven Samurai
1954
7.8In Burma during the closing days of WWII, a Japanese soldier separated from his unit disguises himself as a Buddhist monk to escape imprisonment as a POW.
The Burmese Harp
1956
6.9Two brothers compete for the amorous favors of a young woman during a seaside summer of gambling, boating, and drinking.
Crazed Fruit
1956
7.0Saheji, a man-about-town, gets stuck at a high-class brothel when he can’t pay the bill. He makes the best of his situation by performing various tasks amidst the tumult of the end of the shogunate—but always by making sure to get a “commission” for his troubles.
A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era
1957
6.8Shoichi Kokubun is a roughneck street musician, who has a brother that is determined to propel him into stardom. In attempt to catch the attention of a popular jazz band, his brother appeals to their manager who has the power to make him a star. In a graphic portrayal of love, betrayal and success, Shoichi brews up a storm with a 'rat-a-tat-tat' on the drums.
Man Who Causes a Storm
1957
7.5A man is wrongfully accused of murder.
Break Down that Wall
1959
6.7When an invisible man is run down by a car it’s up to an eager young reporter and a strange clown to bring a dangerous gang to justice.
Invisible Man
1954
NRA unique and controversial film directed by Umeji Inoue, based on the original story by Shintaro Ishihara, which depicts the image of a group of young people in the agony of mistrust, love and hate with a powerful touch.
Lunar Eclipse
1956
6.0Former boxer Daishiro lost his wife, and his only son, Kaoru, went missing, it was a heavy blow for Daishiro. One day, Daishiro got a call from his relative Morihiko. He said he forgot the winning lottery ticket of 2 million yen at the hotel, so he wants Daishiro to go and pick it up. Morihiko used the hotel for secret meetings, so he said he couldn't go there himself because he was afraid it would become public. When Daishiro entered the hotel, the Yakuza, who learned about the lottery from the newspaper, threaten the hotel maid Noriko, and want to rob her. Daishiro helps Noriko and safely picks up the lottery, but a message arrives from his relative Seikichi from Osaka. His missing son Kaoru is said to be a boxer in Osaka. "My son... He has the blood of a boxer in him..." Daishiro is heading to Osaka in a hurry...
The Man Who Wagers Tomorrow
1958
NRThe story of three brothers who struggle to shake free of the father's ties to the yakuza underworld. A star vehicle for the popular singer/actor Yūjirō Ishihara.
Tomorrow is Another Day
1958
NRStory of an ex-con trying to go straight, but of course the old ways die hard.
Farewell to Southern Tosa
1959
10.0A yakuza boss and his right-hand, Hawasaki, escape from prison. the film concentrates on their relationship, emphasizing loyalty and thier eventual betrayal, enroute they get involved in money trafficking, a cop killing and horse racing scams before the inevitable tragic ending. A patch-work production.
Satan's Town
1956
6.9In 1906, after finishing a tough migrant job in the Philippines, Takichi has returned to Japan. He starts to work as a rickshaw driver, but his lover had died of an illness, leaving a baby girl, Hatsue. Hatsue grows up beautifully and falls in love with Shintaro. But Takichi objects to their relationship...
Our Town
1956
10.0Five years have passed since the three comrades who saved their lives in the Burma Campaign, namely Kenichiro Kishi, Eiji Shiga, and Daizo Kobayashi, promised to meet again five years later at the platform of Tokyo Station. Meanwhile, Shinagawa Station's crowded with repatriates. Upon returning to their homeland, their lives have changed dramatically. Daizo works as a railway construction worker. Eiji has established himself as a boxer. Kenichiro's become a gangster. In 1955, the day of their reunion is approaching. Now it is a matter of whether the three will be able to meet each other at the platform of Tokyo Station, as they had agreed on back in 1950.
The Three Faces
1955
NRThree young men face off against corrupt officials and Yakuza in order to complete a reclamation project of the coastal embankment, who try to derail the project every step of the way until a tsunami hits, putting everyone in danger.
Light The Explosives
1959
