Kurosawa’s magnum opus is a glorious triumph and the standard-bearer for bravura epic filmmaking, still yet to be surpassed.
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Seven Samurai (1954)
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Tag / Japan
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Rashomon (1950)
The film that launched Japanese cinema into serious international reckoning, and quite simply one of Kurosawa’s very best.
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Stray Dog (1949)
A solid early work by Kurosawa in what is a clever cat-and-mouse chase that leads to an emotional climax.
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Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
Satoshi Kon’s firm grasp of tragicomedy is evident in this expertly-constructed tale of three homeless persons who find a newborn baby in the trash on Christmas Eve.
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When Marnie Was There (2014)
A tale about self-acceptance, this modest Studio Ghibli anime may take a while to get going, but it achieves some kind of emotional crescendo by its denouement.
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Drunken Angel (1948)
A fiery doctor and an ill gangster form a love-hate bond in Kurosawa’s striking first collab with Toshiro Mifune, a tale of changing times amid out-of-fashion masculine codes of honour.
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Zatoichi’s Pilgrimage (1966)
Zatoichi’s caught in between nasty gangsters and ungrateful villagers in this 14th entry that boasts great action but little in a way of a substantial story.
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Zatoichi’s Vengeance (1966)
Zatoichi’s use of violence to right wrongs is called into question in this well-made 13th installment.
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Pom Poko (1994)
A tad long and sometimes incoherent in its thematic direction, but this eco-tale of shape-shifting raccoons could be Takahata’s most creative and fantastical effort.
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Wife of a Spy (2020)
Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s polished if emotionally inert period film (his first!) is an anti-war espionage tale set in WWII Japan, featuring a standout lead performance by Yu Aoi.
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Eternality Tan 