Jun Murakami

A corrupt gambler in the Metropolitan Police Force finds himself thrown into a tangled case after an enigmatic FBI agent arrives in Tokyo to investigate the disappearance of a politician’s daughter.

Bent on revenge, a traumatized ex-police officer must infiltrate a yakuza organization by befriending one of the group's most unhinged members.

Physicist Manabu Yukawa returns to Japan from America. Detective Kaoru Utsumi visits him and talks about a case. The case is about a popular girl in a town who disappeared and, several years later, her body was found. A suspect was arrested for her murder. That suspect was previously arrested for another girl's murder, but he was released due to a lack of evidence. Detective Shunpei Kusanagi investigated the prior murder case. The same suspect was then released due to a lack of evidence for the most recent murder case. The released man returned to his town, where everybody hated him. On the day of the autumn festival parade, the man was killed. Physicist Manabu Yukawa, Detective Kaoru Utsumi and Detective Shunpei Kusanagi work together on his case.

Yoshio is a man who works for the city's water department and live with his mother. He regularly visits to the SM Queen Miho, but he still cannot forget the legendary SM Queen Yukiko.

Keisuke Isobe and Koume Satou live a rather dull life. But when Koume's crush breaks her heart, their situation becomes quite unordinary. She starts a "no-strings-attached" relationship with Keisuke, whom she had previously rejected, both finding solace in the other in order to fill the emotional voids in their lives.

Shinichi Tsuda, a Naoki Prize winning author, is working to publish his newest story. It revolves around Tsuyama, a driver for a call girl business in Toyama Prefecture, who comes across a mysterious counterfeit bill and has his life targeted by underworld kingpin Kurata. Is his story fact or fiction? His editor, Nahomi Torikai, decides to verify whether his latest work is mere fiction based on real-life experiences. She looks into a family that vanished, a post office worker who went missing, a shady load of cash, the whereabouts of the doves, and the fateful encounter from that night... A series of shocking facts are revealed from Tsuda’s stories. Why did the counterfeit money end up in Tsuda’s hands? What is the “ending” that Tsuda wished to portray?

Yasuo (Hiroshi Abe) grew up as an orphan. He married a woman he loved and they had a son Akira (later played by Takumi Kitamura). Yasuo's life seemed great at the time, but his life totally changed after his wife died in accident. Since that time, Yasuo, who never experienced parents' love himself, has to raise his son Akira alone.

Action actor Tateishi Daisuke who struggles with loneliness after suffering a traumatic experience due to an accident during filming. One day, he comes across a senior high school girl Ayumi who is being harassed consistently by Chinese brokers and the local yakuza. He decides to protect her from them. However, after this incident, he comes to develop a mindset of seeing violence as a way to gain the affirmation and approval of others thus gradually loses himself and behaves in an extreme manner.

On the Japanese island of Amami, despite lacking parental guidance, Kaito and his girlfriend Kyoko try to find their place in the world. While Kaito suffers from the absence of his father, who moved to Tokyo after his birth, Kyoko must come to grips with her mother’s terminal illness.

Two 14-year-olds from troubled, abusive homes come together sharing misery and pain. In the aftermath of an earthquake, the classmates learn how to survive while relying on one another for emotional and physical support.

Their parents are dead. They should be sad, but they can't cry. So they form a kick-ass band. This is the story of four 13-year-olds in search of their emotions.

One night in Tokyo, Leo, a young boxer, meets his first love, Monica, an imprisoned sex worker. Caught up in a drug-smuggling scheme, they find themselves pursued by a corrupt cop, a yakuza, his nemesis, and a female assassin.

This erotically charged drama traces the intersecting stories of a group of employees and visitors at a notorious "love hotel" in Tokyo's red-light district.

After his parents die, a teenager goes to live with his older brother. As his loneliness grows, he becomes engrossed in practicing modern dance with his classmate.

21st Century Girl is an omnibus feature that is of the girls, by the girls and for the girls. The work of 15 women directors under the age of 30, each of whom contributed an 8-minute film, the package highlights a range of genres, visions and thematic concerns.

An old couple, their only son, the son's wife, a young man and his lover live peacefully in a village. Then, a terrifying earthquake strikes that causes a nearby nuclear station to explode. The residents must evacuate, but the family lives on a farm, with only half of the area designated as an evacuation area.

A young girl named Sato watches on television as a man named Tomoki states brazenly at a press conference that he hopes convicted murderer Mitsuo is eventually placed back into society so that he can kill him with his bare hands.

Kazu attacks a bar in Kabukicho, a Tokyo red-light district, and flees to his hometown with abducts Machiko, a pole dancer he's been stuck on. They begin living together, but their happiness is short lived as their pasts torment them both.

After four years overseas, Shozo returns to Japan to avenge his yakuza boss who was assassinated by his own treacherous top man, Kurawaki. The resulting battle leaves both men severely injured, and Shozo awakens in a mysterious medical facility to find his arm replaced with an M61 Vulcan cannon and his leg replaced with a rocket launcher. Meanwhile, Kurawaki has been fitted with mechanical augmentations of his own. Get ready for the second round.

The story takes place over a 24 hour period. In the southernmost part of Japan, 20 fishing boats of an unknown nationality suddenly fire upon and occupy parts of the Hateruma archipelago. Members of the Japan Coast Guard are detained. Under the extremely tense situation, the Japanese government sends Aircraft Carrier Ibuki and an escort fleet to the area. Ryota Akitsu is the captain of the Aircraft Carrier Ibuki and Toshiya Niinami is second-in-command. It is now 6:23 am. and Japan faces one day which they never have before.

Junoshin Kake is a ronin. To get hired by the Kurokaze Han, he lies and tells them that a religious group is trying to destroy them. He gets hired by the Kurokaze Han, but they learn that Junoshin Kake lied. Junoshin Kake is given the death sentence and he must think of an escape plan.

Toichi is a boatman who ferries the villagers to a town on the other side of the river. Besides rowing a boat for the villagers all day long, he barely communicates with anyone except Genzo, a young neighbour. Upstream, a large bridge is being constructed. Everyone is excited, but Toichi has mixed feelings about it. One day, Toichi meets a mysterious girl. Having no family and no place to go, Toichi lets her stay with him, but this encounter starts to bring about changes to Toichi's life.

A woman has an ugly face. She has been called 'monster' since childhood. A case occurs in her town that leads to her being ejected and a relocation to Tokyo. She obtains plastic surgery and begins working as a prostitute. She makes some dough and extends the plastic surgery to her entire body. She changes her name and begins a new life. The perfect body leads her to think about men and her hometown.

From the late 1950s through the '70s, more than 90,000 of the ethnic Koreans in Japan emigrated to North Korea, a country that promised them affluence, justice, and an end to discrimination. KAZOKU NO KUNI tells the story of one of their number, who returns for just a short period. For the first time in 25 years, Sonho is reunited with his family in Tokyo after being allowed to undergo an operation there. Sonho’s younger sister Rie is at the centre of the film, and is not hard to recognise as the director’s alter-ego. In her documentaries DEAR PYONGYANG and SONA, THE OTHER MYSELF, Yang Yonghi told the story of her own life, and how, at age six, she experienced the departure of her three older brothers, who left their family for Pyongyang.

The bittersweet events in the lives of people in Hakodate, a regional city connected by a streetcar network. A laid-off man and his younger sister go up a mountain to see the first sunrise of the year. Meanwhile, Haruo has inherited his family's gas business, but things aren't going well in his new endeavor and he becomes increasingly frustrated.

Masuda, an aspiring journalist, plans to write an article in order to expose his co-worker Suzuki, who is a psychopathic murderer according to Masuda.

Movie contains the stories of three people: Suzuki (Toma Ikuta), Kujira (Tadanobu Asano) and Semi (Ryosuke Yamada). Suzuki is a former middle school teacher. His girlfriend was killed, which led him to quit his job and attempt to take revenge on her murderer. To do so, Suzuki has to infiltrate the underground world of criminals. Kujira is a contract killer for hire. He makes his targets fall into confusion and eventually commit suicide. Semi is a contract killer who uses the knife to take out his targets.

Thirteen years after abandoning his wife and two sons by stepping out for a pack of cigarettes and never returning, deadbeat gambler Masato dies of stomach cancer. At his funeral, a motley crew of fellow mahjong players, pachinko parlor employees and former drinking buddies gather to pay their respects and tell stories, revealing aspects of Masato’s life that complicate his sons’ resentment towards him.

A talented but troubled Edo Period swordsman, Kanemi Sanzaemon. Three years earlier, Kanemi killed a woman, Renko, the corrupt mistress of the powerful daimyo Tabu Ukyou. Unexpectedly, Kanemi received a lenient sentence for his crime and is allowed to return to his clan after only one year of imprisonment. Following his return, Kanemi is faced with the death of his wife, Mutsue. Thereafter, Kanemi lives with and cares for his wife's niece, Satoo, who has secret affections for Kanemi and expresses them by helping change his bleak outlook on life. Meanwhile, Kanemi's develops his unique "bird-catching" sword technique which he will soon put to test in battle for the first time against the fearsome swordsman, Hayatonosho Obiya.

When Satoshi was little, his mother Akiko always took good care of him. She was gentle, but mentally strong. However, two years ago she was diagnosed with cancer and now it's Satoshi's turn to comfort and care for her. However, despite his best efforts, she passes away. A year after Akiko's passing, Satoshi, his father Toshiaki and his older brother Yuichi start new lives. Around that time, Satoshi receives a present from his mother.

When Suei was little, his mother had an affair with a young man who lived next door. Suei's mother and the young man killed themselves by using dynamite. After Suei graduated from high school, he worked at a factory before quitting his job. He then went to Tokyo and began working in the erotic magazine industry. Suei eventually became the chief editor of a famous erotic magazine in the 1980's.

Tatsuhiko relocates from Shinjuku to Yokohama, where he comes into conflict with Masaki Taki, CEO of the local scout company.

Set towards the end of World War II, Nomura (Masatoshi Nagase) is a writer who is in despair. A woman works in bar and is a former prostitute. Many years ago, her father sold her to a brothel due to the family's severe financial hardships. The writer and the woman then agree to live as husband and wife until the war ends. The woman doesn't feel sexual pleasures due to her past, while the man lusts for the woman's body. Meanwhile, Ohira (Jun Murakami) fought for Japan in China. He participated in unconscionable acts against civilians in the name of war. He returns to Japan with only one arm. Ohira then begins to prey on innocent women.

Set during the Edo Period, a young man from a noble family meets a young woman under a special tree called "Raiou" (the tree was struck by lightning at one time with the broken part eventually sprouting out cherry blossoms). The young woman lived freely in the mountains after she was abducted as a young child. The couple soon fall in love under the Raiou tree, but become acutely aware of their different social positions & the ramifications it has on their relationship.

Shuichi had a motorcycle accident 4 years ago. Because of the accident, he lost the last year of his memory. One day, at a friend's wedding, Shuichi has a fateful meeting with Yoshimi. They enjoy happy times together and Shuichi thinks about marrying Yoshimi. Then Yoshimi becomes sick. A sad truth is hidden in the lost memory of Shuichi.

The first-person protagonist is a 27-year-old freelance writer who returns to her hometown from Tokyo, and she gets together with high school friend Satsuki and cameraman Suga to see Shiina, who they all admired in high school. Along the way, vivid memories from high school replay in the protagonist's mind.

Samao Daikoku seeks a way out of the underground life that he has led. He is tortured by a gang boss after stealing a hard disk containing personal information on runaways, homeless people and prostitutes, and the mystery behind his past is revealed.

After a failed wedding shoot, Bae-hwan meets Ryu—a callboy tangled in a murder case—and offers him a way out.

21-year-old Misora Honzawa went to Tokyo from Aomori. Misora Honzawa happens to see Kumi on TV who is a yoga Instructor and model. By chance, the two women begin to live together. At first Misora Honzawa, who is easygoing, and Kumi, who is high maintenance, do not get along with each other. Because they share interests in yoga they eventually become closer and think about happiness and life.

Shiratori Tatsuhiko works as a scout for talent agency Burst in Kabukichō, Shinjuku's red light district, recruiting young girls for the adult entertainment industry. In a business where money means everything, Tatsuhiko finds himself in a constant struggle between rival scouts and the Yakuza.

A disillusioned filmmaker has an encounter with a young woman who has a ritual of repeating "Tomorrow is my birthday" everyday. He tries to communicate with her through his video camera.

An introverted schoolgirl falls in love and starts a relationship with one of her classmates. Set in a small seaside town in Japan.

Hoping to catch a girl's attention, high school students Ken and Adama cook up an ambitious plan. They plan a festival that combines film, theater, and rock music, and develop their project into a school road block. This plan however catches the attention of television stations and newspapers, and soon even the cops became involved in this teenage adventure.

Yokubo from director Tetsuo Shinohara is based off of the award-winning love story by Mariko Koike. A young man searching for physical comfort and dumb lust, and the world-weary woman drowning in a sea of men that works with him. This is a fantastic new film from a remarkably skilled cast about "the beauty of sensualism."

When Honey's uncle gets kidnapped by the evil criminal gang known as "Panther Claw," she must use her magical powers of transformation to save him. Meanwhile the same crime group has been responsible for a number of other crime sprees across Tokyo. In the process, Honey teams up with the seemingly cold police woman Natsuko Aki and hot shot journalist Seiji Hayami as well as battle the four "claws" of the Panther Claw gang to save her uncle and the rest of the city.

If you loved movies such as Shonen Merikensack and GS Wonderland, then this one, which predates the former, will impress you as well. The story is set in the 80s rock scene and revolves around Nakajima (Kazunobu Mineta), the lead singer of a band called 'Speed Way'. Because he refuses to write trite, pop-friendly songs he is constantly at odds with his own record company. However, he refuses to bend on his rock principles simply for better record sales. The most interesting parts of this movie is how they pay homage to music icon, Bob Dylan who gave the filmmaker his blessing, which is no small feat itself, especially for a Japanese indie debut.

Former childhood friends Kadoya Kaneo and Tochino Masatatsu cross paths again. Kaneo is now a yakuza member, while Masatatsu is a nightclub owner with a distaste for crime gangs. When a yakuza boss dies, a struggle for his position takes place between Kaneo's boss Awano and the young Nakahira. Nakahira's men try to extort money from Masatatsu, bringing him in between a yakuza battle.

Komaki is a thirty-something woman that has had it with her perpetually unemployed aspiring writer husband. Following the divorce, she moves back to her Tokyo-area hometown of Kyojima along with her young daughter, Non-chan. However, she has a difficult time making ends meet in big city Tokyo. Her solution? Take a chance and try opening her very own bento (lunch box) shop.

When three older men buy a 17-year-old schoolgirl named Chikako for a year's-worth of sexual services -- her motivation, aside from money, is never explained -- the relationships among the men (whom she calls A. B and C) keep shifting in ways that redefine power and sex.

Rei is a freelance writer embattled by personal demons. She hears voices in her head, and has sleeping problems, eating disorders and drinks excessively. On Valentine's Day, she meets truck driver Takatoshi. She joins him on a journey in his bumpy and shaky truck - which vibrates in tune with her uneasy soul.

The secret warriors of feudal Japan were the ninja. Sent on impossible missions, the ninja were trained to work in shadows, gather information and defeat the enemy to build a world of peace. Akakage, Aokage, and Asuka are rookie ninjas under the tutelage of Shirokage. Their life is a series of perilous missions that entail intrigue, deception and intimidation.

In the early 1200s, Dogen brought Chinese Zen philosophy to Japan, and established the Japanese Zen school of Buddhism. He taught that a person was capable of realizing Buddhahood within himself, by way of Zazen. Zazen is extended hours of sitting and meditating to achieve a state of “Mu” (nothingness, or empty existence).

Seventeen-year-old Ako works part-time in a cabaret club late at night. Because of this, she falls asleep in school every day. In the new semester, she becomes enamored with her classmate Ryou, who is repeating a year despite her good grades.

Compilation film featuring short works from directors Hitoshi Yasaki ("Short Cakes"), Yuki Tanada (scriptwriter "Sakuran," "Tsuki to Cherry"), Hiroyuki Nakano ("Stereo Future," "Samurai Fiction"), Masahiko Nagasawa ("Yoru no Picnic"), Masaya Kakehi ("Bijokan), and more for a total of 18 shorts. This time around the theme is "24 hours," where filming for each work must have been completed in 24 hours in order to appear in this film.

Hotel Hibiscus is the story of one very young energetic girl named Mieko and her international family who live in Okinawa. They live in a run down old hotel called Hotel Hibiscus with only one room for rent.

Kuki is a veteran newspaper reporter who has been shuffled off to a book-development branch and finds escape in an illicit relationship with Rinko. Together they find the passion no longer present in their marriages.

When his mother's untimely death quickly follows his father's, a doctor begins to believe a killer may be targeting him and his amnesiac wife.

Jonko runs a group of high school girls involved in paid dating. Raku is a street dancer. Togo was brought up in the US, and after being back in Japan for one year, wants to escape to New York. Their contact with the world of talent scouts and yakuza places them in danger over the span of one day and night in the Shibuya district of Tokyo.

When a major bank is caught paying off a corporate extortionist, the media and prosecutors begin to dig, breaking open a money-and-favours scandal that threatens to rock the entire structure of business and government to its core. While the bank's top executives continue to vacillate, a quartet of middle-management reformers, led by straight-arrow Kitano (Koji Yakusho), decide to stage a boardroom coup and install a new, clean management team. With the aid of a hotshot news anchor (Mayumi Wakamura) and a hard-nosed prosecutor (Kenichi Endo), heads begin to roll.

A fantasy comedy in which Fumie Hosokawa and Ai Iijima play angels. The angel Elle arrives on earth completely naked. She had escaped from heaven to fall in love with a human man on earth. Pure and unpredictable, she attempts her first adventures on Earth one after another, taking care of her pure white feathers that rot if she stays on Earth for more than seven days. However, when God notices Elle's escape, he gives Hirolin, another angel, a "space transfer device" and tries to bring her back to heaven.