Nenji Kobayashi Movies
Yoji Yamada's torchy Japanese drama Love and Honor (aka Bushi no Ichibun) follows the heartbreaking plight of Shinnojo (Yoji Yamada), a young man employed as a "food taster" for the imperial family. Shinnojo's position comes to a sudden and tragic end when he consumes poisoned fish intended for the clan leader and is forever robbed of his sight. Forced to give up his job, Shinnojo thus heads home and sinks into a deep and seemingly inescapable depression. Contemplating suicide, Shinnojo is only stopped by the love of his wife, Kayo, who insists that she will also commit seppuku if he proceeds. Begrudgingly, he agrees to relinquish his self-destructive thoughts, but financial problems from his unemployment linger on. With no other recourse, Shinnojo must send Kayo off to the clan bursar to appeal for monetary assistance. Nothing, however, can prepare him for the bursar's demand for his wife's body in exchange for monetary help -- or for his wife's sudden complicity in this arrangement. Rei Dan, Mitsugoro Bando, and Kaori Momoi co-star. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Takuya Kimura, Rei Dan, (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, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Masatoshi Nagase, Takako Matsu, (more)
A freelance writer living in Tokyo defies social taboo by choosing life as a single mother in director Hou Hsiao-Hsien's meditative tribute to acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu. When Yoko announces that she is pregnant and has no intentions of marrying the father of her child, her traditional family is outraged. Though the headstrong decision made by the young mother-to-be leaves her finding little sympathy from within her family circle, a blossoming friendship with the owner of a local second-hand bookstore goes a long way in alleviating Yoko's feelings of loneliness. As Yoko begins to re-evaluate her increasingly complicated life, her newfound friend silently pines for her despite his frustrating inability to vocalize his true feelings. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yo Hitoto, Tadanobu Asano, (more)
Veteran filmmaker Yoji Yamada -- who is perhaps most famous for cranking out most of the 48 films of the Tora-san series -- directs this good-natured drama set in the waning years of the Edo period (1600-1867). Seibei (Hiroyuki Sanada) is a low-level samurai struggling to get by on stipend of 50 rice bales a year while working as a clerk at the clan office. While his co-workers spend their evenings sucking down sake at the local pub, Seibei, whose wife has passed away, heads straight home to care for his two young daughters and doddering mother. One day, his friend Michinojo (Mitsuru Fukikoshi) tells him that his boyhood friend Tomoe (Rie Miyazawa), is leaving her thuggish husband and returning home. Tomoe soon starts to frequent Seibei's house, taking care of his daughters, while Seibei quietly falls in love with the attractive young lass. After defeating Tomoe's husband in a duel, armed with only a pointed stick, Seibei is asked by Michinojo if he wants to marry Tomoe. Seibei declines, too embarrassed by his poverty to accept. Later, as he prepares to perform the distasteful task of killing a fellow samurai, he learns that Tomoe is engaged to another man. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa, (more)
- 2001
A teenage boy takes a road trip and learns a lot about himself along the way in this youth-oriented drama. Daisuke Kawashima is a 15-year-old boy who is eager to see the world and find adventure outside his hometown. When he reads of a tree on an island off the Southern coast of Japan that's over 7,000 years old, Daisuke is so impressed that he decides he wants to see the tree for himself; without telling his parents, he packs his bags and hits the road, catching a ride to Osaka with Sumire, a female truck driver who lets him stay with her and her two kids. Daisuke strikes up a friendship with Sumire's shy son Noboru, but the call of the open road gets stuck in his ear again, and before long Daisuke is en route to Yakushima Island, home of the remarkable tree, where he is befriended by a girl who encourages him to live out his dreams to the fullest. As the title suggests, Jugosai: Gakko IV is the fourth film in the series which began with Gakko in 1993. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yuta Kannai, Hidekazu Akai, (more)
- 1999
Japanese '60s icon Ken Takakura stars in this beautifully photographed film about an aging railroad conductor. Sato Otomatsu (Takakura) devoted his life to making the trains run promptly in the formerly prosperous mining town of Horomai. When his colleague informs him that the unprofitable line is being closed, he reminiscences on how his workaholic ways robbed him of his personal life. Because of work, he missed the deaths of his wife and only daughter. When an enigmatic high school girl with a passion for railroads pays him a visit, his life changes in unanticipated ways. Takakura received a Best Actor award at the 1999 Montreal Film Festival for this film. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Takakura, Nenji Kobayashi, (more)
- 1995
Yoichi Sai spins this grim and gory crime drama about a serial killer and a lone cop looking to catch him. The film centers on a murderer whose preferred method of killing is a sharpened object to the skull. When a low-level yakuza shows up with a hole in his head, the police respond with their typical jaded professionalism, but when a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Justice suffers a similar fate, every law enforcement agency in Tokyo is hunting after clues. As offices jostle one other for leads, a bureaucratic turf war breaks out. In the midst of all of this, one cop named Goda (Kiichi Nakai) manages to link the two victims but he is still unable to seek out a motive. His investigation leads him to a suspiciously tight-lipped lawyer (Nenji Kobayashi) and a mysterious mountain hideaway. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- 1985
Himatsuri is based on a real life tragedy, in which a Japanese man inexplicably slaughtered his family and then killed himself. Kinya Kitaoji plays the thoroughly self-centered "protagonist," who does what he pleases no matter who he hurts. No one dares question Kitaoji due to his blasting-cap temperament. The only thing Kitaoji holds sacred is the land around him, but he's willing to destroy even that to have his own way. He befouls a lake that is sacred to the Shinto religion, spilling oil into the waters rather than letting them fall into the hands of land speculators. Suddenly experiencing a religious awakening, Kitaoji decides to "atone" -- by murdering his family, then committing suicide. No explanations are offered by director Kenji Nakagami: one takes what one wishes from Himatsuri. The film was released to some English-speaking markets as Fire Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kiwako Taichi, Ryota Nakamoto, (more)
