Tomoyuki Tanaka Movies

Criticized for its murky cinematography, bad special effects, and dialogue that would embarrass Sylvester Stallone, this Japanese co-production was widely regarded as a costly flop. Set in the year 2035 after evil supercomputer Kyron-5's war against humanity ends with defeat, the earth is left scared and plighted, lacking most natural resources. Computer chips have become more valuable than gold and the place to find such treasure is on the island 8JO, where Kyron still lives. Ex-pilot and cyber-buccaneer Brooklyn (Masahiro Takashima) and his gang of cutthroats venture to this techno-jungle looking for his silicon booty. There he meets Nim (Brenda Nim), a commando who is part of the Texas Air Rangers looking for a renegade robot. The group is soon under attack by a fleet of dreaded flying Aerobots. Meanwhile, Kyron-5 is hard at work hatching his revenge against mankind. It has invented a substance containing more energy than plutonium called texmexium. After successive onslaughts of Aerobots, the four survivors -- Brooklyn, Nim, and two lovable moppets named 7 and 11 -- find the texmexium and start to build Gunhed (Gun Unit/Heavy Elimination Device) a giant robot designed to kick Aerobot tail. More mayhem and cool explosions ensue, but not before Brooklyn gives an impassioned and surreal speech about the Brooklyn Dodgers. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

The Japanese actress and film director Kinuyo Tanaka had a career as significant to that country's movie industry as Lillian Gish's was in the U.S. -- it spanned the early days of silent movies and continued well into the 1970s. This biographical drama covers her career up to the point when she is working on The Life of Oharu (1952) with director Kenji Mizoguchi. In addition to reviewing the great actress's professional life, the movie provides a brief tutorial in the history of Japanese cinema. In real life, she continued to be a potent presence both in front of and behind the camera until her death in 1977, winning an award at the Berlin Film Festival for her acting work in Sandakan 8 ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The Makioka Sisters will probably best be appreciated by those with an intimate knowledge of 20th century Japanese culture. The film, set just before World War II, chronicles the experiences of four upper-class Osaka sisters, two of them married. We see the shifting political and social scene through their eyes, with director Kon Ichikawa (who adapted the film from Junichiro Tanikazi's novel) conveying the proper sense of confusion and distraction. At times the film is a little too confused and distracted, thus total audience attention is not only necessary, but mandatory. Makioka Sisters, sometimes listed as Makica Sisters, has also been released under the title Fine Snow. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In 1954, Go Akuzu (Ken Takakura) travels to the Tsuruga Straits that separate Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido from the main island of Honshu, to investigate the tragic loss of a passenger ship in the treacherous waters of the straits. His solution to the marine dangers is to first advocate and then get a green light on building an underground tunnel to handle the inter-island traffic. His devotion to keeping the 25-year project on target leads to a separation from his wife, and a certain amount of loneliness -- until he helps Tae Makimura (Sayuri Yoshinaga) get a job at a local restaurant. His help was more than financial; Tae had accidentally caused the deaths of several people at an inn and was on the brink of suicide before Akuzu talked her out of it. Now that she is established in close proximity to his work, the two carry on a hopelessly platonic, romantic relationship that will last as long as Akuzu is supervising the tunnel's construction. The completed connection between the two islands will certainly affect the tenuous connection between the two protagonists, one way or another. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Just as many American studio-era directors found acclaim abroad that was denied them in their home country, by 1980 Akira Kurosawa's reputation outside Japan exceeded his esteem at home. As uncompromising as ever, he found considerable difficulty securing backing for his ambitious projects. Unsure he would be able to film it, the director, an aspiring artist before he entered filmmaking, converted Kagemusha into a series of paintings, and it was partly on the basis of these that he won the financial support of longtime admirers Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. Set in the 16th century, when powerful warlords competed for control of Japan, it offers an examination of the nature of political power and the slipperiness of identity. For some time, Shingen Takeda Tatsuya Nakadai has been able to stay removed from the heat of battle by using his brother Nobukado Tsutomu Yamazaki as a double. As the film opens, Nobukado offers another option, having discovered a condemned thief (also played by Tatsuya Nakadai) bearing an uncanny resemblance to the warlord. After he insists on witnessing the fall of an enemy in person, Shingen falls victim to a sniper's bullet, forcing his advisers to present the thief as the fallen warrior. At first awkward in his new position and plagued by dreams in which the spirit of his double confronts him, he slowly grows into the role even as his enemies begin to advance on his kingdom. The winner of the Palm D'Or at Cannes, Kagemusha: The Shadow Warrior has also been released as The Double. ~ Keith Phipps, All Movie Guide

This Japanese-American co-production is set sometime in the near future. The United Nations Space Bureau sends its star vessels to the treacherous terrain of Venus. The traveller's initial encounters with the Venusians do not bode well for a lasting peace. However, when another planet invades the 2nd rock from the sun, Earthlings and Venusians band together to ward off their common foe. Kensaku Marita, Yuko Asano and Ryo Ikebe top the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This speculative drama's original name, Prophecies of Nostradamus is perhaps more descriptive of the subject. Set in the year 1999, this feature dramatizes the events predicted by the great French seer. Disasters depicted included severely polluted air and water, crazed adults, war, and natural disasters. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This Japanese-made film is basically a religious tract for the Nichiren Shoshu Association. The NSA is an atypically evangelistic self-labelled Buddhist group which has made some headway in the U.S. with the likes of performers Tina Turner and Patrick Duffy. The story concerns the religious conversion of a man imprisoned already for religious deviance, and is based on the book by Daisaku Ikeda. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

This time, the overgrown-lizard hero is confronted by a mechanical doppelganger, courtesy of an army of extraterrestrial apes. Unable to best his metallic twin in combat, Godzilla seeks out the aid of Okinawan monster god King Seeser. The film is peppered with moments of humor; so much happens in the final reel that one is disappointed not to see the kitchen sink. After the TV popularity of The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla was rechristened Godzilla vs. the Bionic Monster. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Japan's Toho Studios were clearly slumming for this crudely fashioned installment in the Godzilla franchise -- a clear indication that the series was running out of creative steam and lapsing into self-mockery. The threadbare plot involves the advanced subterranean nation of Seatopia, whose leaders plan to take over the surface world with the aid of their monster Megalon, a springy cockroach-monster with a power drill mounted on his head. To this end, they steal the robot Jet Jaguar, an Ultraman look-alike invented by the amiable Goro (Katsuhiko Sasaki), to help guide Megalon's assault. Goro manages to regain control of the robot, who is capable of enlarging himself to Godzilla-like proportions, but remains ineffectual against the big bug, particularly after the Seatopians enlist the off-world aid of Gigan, the buzzsaw-sporting bird-beast. Goro sends Jet Jaguar to fetch Godzilla, who soon puts things right... more or less. Silly effects and recycled footage abound, coupled with some seriously nutty monster battles -- the highlight of which comes when the Green One executes a massive drop-kick on Megalon. The film got its U.S. premiere in 1977 in a drastically-cut version on prime-time television, which included a bumper segment featuring John Belushi in a Godzilla suit! ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Beyond a doubt the weirdest chapter in Toho's Godzilla saga, this eco-conscious entry pits the Big Green Guy against a living mass of industrial sludge dubbed "Hedora." Capable of splitting into numerous satellite monsters and secreting sulfuric acid, Hedora grows exponentially larger as it absorbs more pollution and merely divides again when Godzilla tries to attack it. After wiping out a disco with its toxic secretions (from the monster, not the music), Hedora goes airborne and attacks Mount Fuji, where blasts of electricity and Godzilla's atomic breath finally burn it to a crisp. Oddball stylistic touches, including split-screen animation and a hilarious pop ditty called "Save the Earth" (featuring the lyric "Find a solution to stop pollution..."), helped to condemn the film in the eyes of Godzilla purists everywhere. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

The most unashamedly childish entry in the Godzilla franchise is basically a vehicle for recycled footage from previous Toho productions. The framing story involves a precocious little boy (Tomonori Yakazi) whose real-life traumas include harassment by bullies and kidnapping by a gang of bank robbers. He escapes these dilemmas mainly by taking frequent naps, during which he dreams of journeys to Monster Island to partake in Godzilla's exploits. He also befriends Godzilla's son, Minya, offering him some advice on how to defeat the monsters which have been pushing him around. Apparently the boy draws some kind of inspiration from these dreams and finds the bravery to outwit the kidnappers and make peace with the bullies. There is little worthwhile for Godzilla fans here, and all others will be completely confounded by the incoherent story. Highlights include the monster Gabara (who has the head of a cat!) and Minya's hilariously dubbed voice. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide