Mieko Harada Movies

The story of a young woman in the early 1900s who is abused and living in poverty while being overworked in a silk mill in Japan. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

This drama is based on the experiences of celebrated novelist Kazuo Dan. Kazuo Katsura (Ken Ogata) is a writer, with a wife and six children, who indulges in booze and extra-marital affairs. When he takes the flighty actress Keiko (Mieko Harada) as his mistress, Kazuo's long-suffering wife Yoriko (Ayumi Ishida) leaves him. The author must endure the situation he has set for himself as he suffers through arguments in between his sexual encounters. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Veteran director Kei Kumai spins this tale about Toyoichi Otomo (Eiji Okuda) who suffers from psychological and spiritual troubles after a horrific industrial accident. He lives with his elderly mother (Kyoko Kagawa) and wife (Mieko Harada) near Mt. Aso in rural Kyushu. He seeks solace in a small religious group run by Buddhist nun Chishu-bo (Keiko Kishi) who claims to be the 68th descendant of famed 11th century poet Izumi Shikibu. The members of her sect regard her as a living saint. Yet instead of balming his soul, she riles his libido by playing a sexual cat-and-mouse game with the fragile Toyoichi. When she does bed him, it leads to a miracle healing -- followed by a terrible calamity. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Yoichi Higashi directs this blissful look at the magic and terror of childhood. Based on the autobiography of Seizo Tashima -- who along with his identical twin brother Yukihiko became beloved illustrators for children's books -- the film centers on his experiences as a young boy growing up in a rural backwater just after World War II. The two (played by Keigo Matsuyama and Shogo Matsuyama) spend much of their time doing what boys living in a pastoral idyll might: swim, fish, and make mischief. Their mother (Mieko Harada), who recently moved along with her sons and elder daughter to the countryside, teaches at a local grade school while her husband (Kyozo Nagatsuka) works for a government ministry and is perpetually away on business. The locals regard her with suspicion and view the twins as either curiosities or freaks. Their reaction to this dubious social environment is a barrage of Tom-and-Huck-style pranks. They impulsively cut down a neighbor's taro plant, break light bulbs and chuck a classmate's sandals into a nearby rice paddy. Along the way, they befriend a lad who is shunned at school for his poverty and for his birth. Though it is never explicitly stated, the film insinuates that the child is a member of Japan's untouchable class. He shows them how to snatch an eel from a fisherman's trap, the best places to fish and other secrets of the wild. Other encounters prove to be much more mystical: water sprites call to them as they struggle through a raging stream; a forest imp winks at them; and a trio of witches watch over the twins throughout the duration of the movie. E no Naka no Boku no Mura received the prestigious Silver Lion prize at the 1996 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

This coming-of-age story from Japan opens just after 17-year-old Sataka (Japanese teen idol Rene Tanaka) has gotten dumped by her boyfriend. When her mother is hospitalized with a malignant stomach ulcer, Sataka is left alone with her emotionally repressed father; whiling away the hours one day, she comes across a love letter written to her mother 24 years earlier. Deciding to track down the letter's author, Sataka eventually finds Shinichiro (Hiroyuki Sanada), an overweight slob who was abandoned by his wife years earlier and now spends his time hanging around pachinko parlors. Determined to clean him up and reintroduce him to her mother, Sataka nags Shinchiro until he finally agrees to her demands, and a gradual friendship develops between the two as Sataka drags him to the gym and a clothing store. But once Shinchiro's makeover is complete, he turns the tables on his young friend, and when the time comes for him to meet Sataka's mother, all concerned parties find themselves embarking on a new phase in their lives. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald director Koki Mitani continues to hone his screwball skills with this crowd-pleasing comedy about a hapless hotel accommodations manager juggling multiple responsibilities in preparation for the forthcoming New Year's Eve celebrations set to take place in the lavish Hotel Avanti. New Year's eve has arrived, and as the clock ticks towards midnight detail oriented accommodations manager Shindo (Koji Yakusho) prepares the Hotel Avanti for the Stage Director's Association's Man of the Year award ceremony, a press conference for a respected politician, and, of course, the massive bash that will ring in the new year. As things turn hectic and former theater director Shindo's ex-wife Yumi (Meiko Harada) turns up on the arm of the soon-to-be-honored Man of the Year, the whirlwind energy also sweeps up such quirky characters as Shindo's loyal debuty (Keiko Toda), a platinum-wigged prostitute (Ryoko Shinohara), a crooning bellhop (Shingo Katori), a deeply depressed entertainer (Toshiyuki Nishida), and a chambermaid (Takako Matsu) who is mistaken as the mistress of a wealthy guest. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi