I have set myself the daunting, yet utterly exciting goal to watch all of these Japanese classics. From the first ever talkie to come from Japan (Fujiwara yoshie no furasato, 1930) to the critically acclaimed modern masterpiece that is Nobody Knows (2004). I've seen many of these films already, but I can't help but watch them all over again to truly experience the masterful craftsmanship from these legendary film-makers. Who knows, I may just find my new favourite film amongst these great titles.
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Fujiwara Yoshie no furusato (1930) - Kenji Mizoguchi
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Wife! Be Like a Rose! "Tsuma yo bara no yo ni" (1935) - Mikio Naruse
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Sanshiro Sugata, "Sugata Sanshirô" (1943) - Akira Kurosawa
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Drunken Angel "Yoidore tenshi" (1948) - Akira Kurosawa
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Late Spring, "Banshun" (1949) - Yasujirô Ozu
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Rashomon, "Rashômon" (1950) - Akira Kurosawa
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The Life of Oharu, "Saikaku ichidai onna" (1952) - Kenji Mizoguchi
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Ugetsu, "Ugetsu monogatari" (1953) - Kenji Mizoguchi
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Tokyo Story, "Tôkyô monogatari" (1953) - Yasujirô Ozu
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Where Chimneys Are Seen, "Entotsu no mieru basho" (1953) - Heinosuke Gosho
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Seven Samurai, "Shichinin no samurai" (1954) - Akira Kurosawa
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Godzilla, "Gojira" (1954) - Ishirô Honda
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Twenty-Four Eyes, "Nijûshi no hitomi" (1954) - Keisuke Kinoshita
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I Live In Fear, "Ikimono no kiroku" (1955) - Akira Kurosawa
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Throne of Blood, "Kumonosu-jô" (1957) - Akira Kurosawa
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Ballad of Narayama, "Narayama bushikô" (1958) - Keisuke Kinoshita
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Floating Weeds, "Ukikusa" (1959) - Yasujirô Ozu
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Yojimbo, "Yôjinbô" (1961) - Akira Kurosawa
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Harakiri, "Seppuku" (1965) - Masaki Kobayashi
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Ran (1985) - Akira Kurosawa
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Fireworks, "Hana-bi" (1997) - Takeshi Kitano
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Nobody Knows, "Dare mo shiranai" (2004) - Hirokazu Koreeda
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If you know of any other great Japanese films I should watch, please
let me know in the comments.
I've seen 12 of those. You've got some good films ahead of you. You asked about others. I would suggest Sansho the Bailiff, Ikiru (not that you don't already have a lot of Kurosawa on there), Grave of the Fireflies, and to balance out the last one My Neighbor Totoro.
ReplyDeleteWow, I don't know how I forget to have Ikiru on my list! It's my all time favourite Japanese film! I've seen Grave of the Fireflies and My Neighbor Totoro too Chip. I decided to exclude anime from the list, for I've seen most of them and it would be far too many movies for me to cram into a blogathon :) Thanks for the suggestions! Sansho the Bailiff looks great :)
DeleteSome great choices here! I studied Japanese cinema in my final year at Uni and got to see some really fascinating films, I still have so many I need to watch.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to see the original Ballad of Narayama on here, it's such a fantastic film and heartbreaking too, Godzilla is also a favourite. I'd definitely suggest checking out Life of Oharu, and also Dolls which isn't as strong but is absolutely gorgeous.
Good luck with this! I'm sure it'll be great fun.
I can't wait to see Ballad of Narayama! I'll be seeing Godzilla for the first time in my life too. I'll definitely check out Life of Oharu and Dolls. Thanks Dan :)
DeleteI can't say I've seen many of the films on your list Ben but I hope you enjoy all of them! If you're looking for a Japanese film that might be a bit different from these I'd recommend Norwegian Wood - it's based on a novel by my favourite Japanese author Haruki Murakami and it's such a melancholy film but it's beautifully shot.
ReplyDeleteThanks Caitlin! It looks absolutely beautiful. I added it to my IMDB watchlist :)
DeleteNice idea! Agree with Chip's recommendations above.
ReplyDeleteOf those you listed, Tokyo Story and Rashomon impressed me the most. Actually had mixed feelings about Drunken Angel, Fireworks, Seven Samurai, & Floating Weeds.
I like the Japanese director Hiroshi Teshigahara, especially Woman in the Dunes (1964), that's a masterpiece.
Just been watching "The Story of Film" by Mark Cousins, and he calls A Page of Madness (1926) among the best Japanese movies that exist. He also goes on to praise J-horror from the 90s(The Ring and Audition)
Thanks Chris! I'll add Woman in the Dunes, A Page of Madness, and Ringu to the list :)
DeleteI've seen parts of "The Story of Film," but I hated the narration, so I stopped watching.
I'd recommend you watch "Vengeance is Mine" (Shohei Imamura), "Still Walking" (Hirokazu Koreeda), "Early Summer" (Yasujiro Ozu), "Harakiri" (Masaki Kobayashi), "Tokyo Drifter" (Seijun Suzuki), and "When a Woman Ascends the Stairs" (Mikio Naruse). There are a whole lot more that I can think of, but these are the first ones to pop into my head.
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