Reiko Takashima Movies
- 2007
Toru Hayahi's period melodrama Oh-Oku, The Women of the Inner Palace concerns the political maneuverings of many people surrounding a five-year-old boy who becomes Shogun upon the passing of his father. The boy's mother (Haruka Igawa) becomes one of the more powerful people in the country, but the wife of the boy's father (Reiko Takahiima) learns of the mother's secret affairs and plots to expose them for all to see. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Yukie Nakama, Hidetoshi Nishijima, (more)
The effects of schizophrenia reverberate through three generations of educated Indian women when a woman is diagnosed with the psychotic disorder and those around her, including her westernized daughter, struggle to maintain normal lives.
As Azumi 2 gets underway, remaining assassins Azumi and Nagara set out in pursuit of their final target - the notorious Masayuki Sanada. But Sanada is fully prepared for the confrontation; he's hired the dreaded Koga Ninja Clan to dispense with Azumi, and they won't stop until their mission has been completed. The Koga Ninja Clan aren't the only foes that Azumi has to worry about either, because Kiyomasa's failed retainer Kanbei is out for blood as well. With enemies closing in from all sides, things are beginning to look decidedly grim for the assassin forced to choose between love and duty. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Aya Ueto, Shun Oguri, (more)
The Hidden Blade concerns Yaichiro, a warrior who must leave his family in the care of two other samurai after he answers a request for his services in another town. Muenezo and Samon do their best to protect the family when they come under attack during Yaichiro's absence. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Masatoshi Nagase, Takako Matsu, (more)
Takashi Ishii directs this noirish gangland drama about a daughter in single-minded pursuit of vengeance for her murdered father. The film opens with six-year-old Ikko witnessing the gruesome murder of her yakuza boss father and her mother at the hands of a hitwoman duo. Thanks to the quick thinking by family friend Mayu (Reiko Takashima), she is saved and sent to America. Fourteen years later, Ikko (Reona Hazuki) arrives back in Tokyo with her gay Japanese-American friend Jil (Yoshiyuki Yamaguchi) in tow. The boss of her father's gang is now Nogi (Jimpachi Nezu), who is as merciless as he is slick. Ikko is certain that he ordered the hit and she is equally certain that she wants him dead. Easier said than done; his allies are powerful and numerous -- including Ikko's own sister-in-law (Miyuki Ono) who has become Nogi's mistress. Even Mayu, the woman who saved Ikko, is now strung out on drugs, existing solely as Nogi's sex slave. Frustrated and furious, Ikko decides to blast her way into the gangster's home and kill him. This direct approach ultimately fails and Ikko ends up captured. Instead of shooting her right off, Nogi decides to torture her instead. She escapes and managing to shake Mayu from her drugged torpor, enlists her help for a final bloody showdown. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- 1994
Acclaimed director Tatsumi Kumashiro, who made a career out of elevating the high-budget, soft-core-porn genre Nikku Roman Porno into the realm of art, ended his career with this grisly sex-charged yakuza drama. After eight years in prison, middle-aged gangster Tanaka (Eiji Okuda) is out and looking for a little payback. Unfortunately, the mob boss and his smooth-talking underling Kurauchi (Hakuryu) are much more interested in making fast yen than drawing blood. An old battle-grizzled warrior, Tanaka feels utterly out of place in this new profit-minded ethos and instead sticks with what he does best -- horrible bloodcurdling violence. He can kill barehanded without breaking a sweat and, if the situation requires it, he can suture up his own wounds. When the boss, who both respects and fears his charge, quietly tries to push him aside in favor of Kurauchi for succession as gang leader, Tanaka decides to wage war against his rival. At the same time, Tanaka has a spy for the enemy gang brutally murdered, turns an innocent young lass into a junkie whore, and engages in kinky sex with his housewife mistress. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- Starring:
- Eiji Okada, Eiko Nagashima, (more)
