Movie – The Wind Rises (2013)

The Wind Rises is purportedly legendary writer/director Hayao Miyazaki’s last film.  There are those people (I am among them) who hope that Miyazaki’s retirement announcement is like his previous five and he is inspired to return again.  However, if this is to truly be his final film then he made a great one to cap off a great career.  It has both a moving story and beautiful animation.  If anyone tries to tell you that only cgi animation can be stunning then show them this hand-drawn film.

Movie – The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum (1939)

The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum, sometimes translated incorrectly as The Story of the Late Chrysanthemum, is a Japanese film originally titled Zangiku monogatari.  It is based on the Shofu Muramatsu novel of the same name and directed by Kenji Mizoguchi (Sansho the Bailiff, Ugetsu).  It is considered Mizoguchi’s best film made prior to WWII.  In fact, of his seven films on the They Shoot Pictures Don’t They list it’s the only one made prior to 1952.  It tells a simple, but timeless tale of love and achievement.

Movie – Yojimbo (1961)

Yojimbo from writer/director Akira Kurosawa has been remade twice – the first time as a spaghetti western starring Clint Eastwood (1964’s A Fistful of Dollars) and the second time as a Prohibition era action film starring Bruce Willis (1996’s Last Man Standing).  Those two films show the universal nature of the story by seamlessly shifting the setting from feudal Japan to the old American West to 1930s small town America.  The fact that one version was an out and out western shows once again how Kurosawa’s films were often influenced by American westerns, especially the films of John Ford.  I consider Yojimbo to be the best version of the three movies, although Eastwood’s is certainly the best known.

Movie – Tampopo (1985)

Tampopo is a Japanese film that is clearly rooted in the American Western film genre.  It is set in contemporary Japan, but all of the basic story points are pure classic western.  A mysterious stranger rides into town, helps save a widow and her son, fights the bad guys, and rides off into the sunset.  While it is interesting to see the genre reinterpreted this way, the most fun comes from the comedic aspects of the film itself.

Movie – Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

Tora! Tora! Tora! is a big budget war film made during the height of the Vietnam War.  As you might expect, it did not do well initially at the American box office.  Probably adding to the alienation of audiences at the time is the fact that both the Japanese and American sides are given equal time in the film, right down to all the Japanese scenes being in their own language and therefore subtitled for American audiences.  As an American I am familiar with many of the things that led up to the attack, of course, but I still learned quite a few things that I did not know.  The movie states right at the beginning that even though this is a re-creation, every person and event is factually correct.  I ended up liking this film quite a bit more than I expected.

Movie – Throne of Blood (1957)

The movie Throne of Blood is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth set in feudal Japan.  Its original title is Kumonosu-jo, which literally means "Castle of the Spider’s Web".  That title is just as fitting, but I suppose "Throne of Blood" catches more people's attention.  In addition to adapting Macbeth to this place and time, director Akira Kurosawa also combined it with elements of the Japanese Noh Theater, which would have been prevalent at the time the film is set.  The result is the best movie adaptation of Macbeth ever filmed, and one of the greatest movie adaptations of any of Shakespeare’s works.

Movie – 47 Ronin (1994)

47 Ronin tells the classic Japanese tale of, you guessed it, the 47 ronin.  Just as the tales of King Arthur are known to pretty much every British citizen, so too is the tale of the 47 ronin known to all Japanese.  Like King Arthur, it is based on true historical events, although since they occurred much more recently, the story presented is more accurate than any of the King Arthur stories.  This movie is a good way for people to get familiar with the story ahead of the big 2012 blockbuster that is going to somehow include Keanu Reeves.

Movie – Seven Samurai (1954)

What can be said about Akira Kurosawa’s film Seven Samurai that has not already been said before?  I stalled over this review for a few days because I knew that a movie that has been the subject of any number of learned papers has likely had every minute of it dissected at some point.  I then remembered that my goal is not to provide movie criticism, but to communicate information to people on why they may want to see a movie I am recommending.  To that end I will say that the best reason for you to see Seven Samurai is, quite simply, that it is the greatest non-English language movie ever made.

Movie – Battle Royale (2000)

Battle Royale is a Japanese film that has struck a chord around the world.  There has been talk for years of an American remake, but because of the subject matter I don’t know if it ever would be made.  The closest we will come in the near term is the upcoming movie The Hunger Games (2012), whose plot borrows heavily from Battle Royale.  (Click here for my book review of The Hunger Games.)