Yoshiko Okada

Acting

Yoshiko Okada

Born — Died

1902-04-21 — 1992-02-10

Place of birth

Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan

Known for

Acting

Credits

26 titles

Yoshiko Okada (岡田 嘉子, Okada Yoshiko, 21 April 1902 – 10 February 1992) was a Japanese actress. She was one of the most popular actresses in Japan during the late 1920s and early 1930s. She entered the film industry in 1923 and quickly rose to fame by appearing in numerous films. During the transition from silent films to sound films, Okada continued acting but faced increasing competition from younger actresses. Her popularity declined as new stars emerged in the 1930s. She was among the first actresses to replace onnagata (men playing female roles) in Japanese cinema and became famous for portraying modern, independent women, reflecting social shifts in 1920s–30s Japan. Her love life and re…

Known for

Woman of Tokyo poster
6.8

Ryoichi and Chikako, brother and sister, live together. Chikako toils during the day and, at night, prostitutes herself to fund his college tuition.

Woman of Tokyo

1933

August Without Emperor poster
7.2

Taking the Chilean coup as an example, a group of young officers plan to overthrow the Japanese government on V-J Day. They aim to abolish the post-war constitution, restore the national army and revive the traditional spirit of Japan. As the conspiracy is exposed, the coup squadrons are wiped out one by one. The remaining squadron takes over a night train bound for Tokyo.

August Without Emperor

1978

Rice poster
6.8

A touching story depicting the harsh lives of farmers in Kasumigaura. An attempt to start a fishery business to revive an ailing farming community creates friction amongst the proud residents.

Rice

1957

Tora-san's Sunrise and Sunset poster
8.8

Tora-san arrives in Shibamata on Mitsuo's first day of school only to find that on his account, Mitsuo was embarrassed. After a fight with his family, he goes to a bar to drink, then brings home a surly old man with a sad story, whose identity will surprise everyone. Later, Tora meets Botan, a geisha.

Tora-san's Sunrise and Sunset

1976

The Loyal 47 Ronin poster
NR

This 1932 adaptation is the earliest sound version of the ever-popular and much-filmed Chushingura story of the loyal 47 retainers who avenged their feudal lord after he was obliged to commit hara-kiri due to the machinations of a villainous courtier. As the first sound version of the classic narrative, the film was something of an event, and employed a stellar cast, who give a roster of memorable performances. Director Teinosuke Kinugasa was primarily a specialist in jidai-geki (period films), such as the internationally celebrated Gate of Hell (Jigokumon, 1953), and although he is now most famous as the maker of the avant-garde silent films A Page of Madness (Kurutta ichipeji, 1926) and Crossroads (Jujiro, 1928), Chushingura is in fact more typical of his output than those experimental works. The film ranked third in that year’s Kinema Junpo critics’ poll, and Joseph Anderson and Donald Richie noted that 'not only the sound but the quick cutting was admired by many critics.

The Loyal 47 Ronin

1932

Until the Day We Meet Again poster
8.0

A young man falls in love with a prostitute and is disowned by his family. He is then drafted, and heads off to war. Script exists - considered to be a lost film.

Until the Day We Meet Again

1932

Film credits

1970s · 4 titles

1930s · 11 titles

Woman of Tokyo poster
6.8

Ryoichi and Chikako, brother and sister, live together. Chikako toils during the day and, at night, prostitutes herself to fund his college tuition.

Woman of Tokyo

1933

The Loyal 47 Ronin poster
NR

This 1932 adaptation is the earliest sound version of the ever-popular and much-filmed Chushingura story of the loyal 47 retainers who avenged their feudal lord after he was obliged to commit hara-kiri due to the machinations of a villainous courtier. As the first sound version of the classic narrative, the film was something of an event, and employed a stellar cast, who give a roster of memorable performances. Director Teinosuke Kinugasa was primarily a specialist in jidai-geki (period films), such as the internationally celebrated Gate of Hell (Jigokumon, 1953), and although he is now most famous as the maker of the avant-garde silent films A Page of Madness (Kurutta ichipeji, 1926) and Crossroads (Jujiro, 1928), Chushingura is in fact more typical of his output than those experimental works. The film ranked third in that year’s Kinema Junpo critics’ poll, and Joseph Anderson and Donald Richie noted that 'not only the sound but the quick cutting was admired by many critics.

The Loyal 47 Ronin

1932

Until the Day We Meet Again poster
8.0

A young man falls in love with a prostitute and is disowned by his family. He is then drafted, and heads off to war. Script exists - considered to be a lost film.

Until the Day We Meet Again

1932

An Inn in Tokyo poster
7.0

An unemployed Japanese man and his two sons wander the industrial flatlands of Depression-era Tokyo, until he chances upon an old friend and befriends a woman and her daughter, who are in a similar predicament.

An Inn in Tokyo

1935

No Blood Relation poster
7.3

An actress returns to Tokyo after a successful stint in Hollywood to reclaim—with the help of her gangster brother—the daughter she abandoned years before.

No Blood Relation

1932

Our Neighbor, Miss Yae poster
7.4

Keitaro is a law student and Yaeko is a high school girl. They are neighbors, and their friendship is starting to develop into something more romantic. Then, Yaeko's sister Kyouko has a breakup with her husband and returns home. Kyouko is clearly interested in Keitaro and Yae becomes anxious.

Our Neighbor, Miss Yae

1934

Love poster
8.0

Heinosuke Gosho evokes in this film the family conflicts engendered by the eternal problem of a father who projects his professional desires on the life of his son. The sister Machiko is the essential link that will allow everyone to apologize to each other and achieve reconciliation.

Love

1933

A Woman Crying in Spring poster
6.8

Kenji and Chuko travel to Hokkaido as migrant workers and enlist as miners under the strict leadership of Guzuyasu. On the boat journey to Hokkaido, Kenji attracts Ohama, who is travelling to Hokkaido to open a bar. When Kenji visits the bar, he chases away a sailor who was hassling a shy girl, Ofuji, which makes Ohama jealous.

A Woman Crying in Spring

1933

No artwork available
7.0

Period film from 1934.

With a Single Sword Bale

1934

Daphne poster
NR

Japanese film from 1933, adapted from Masao Kume's serialized newspaper novel.

Daphne

1933

No artwork available
7.0

Japanese drama from 1934. A major production of Shochiku Studio, directed by Hiroshi Shimizu.

Mother of the East

1934

Behind the camera