Nao Omori Movies

Yuki Urushibara's long-running manga series comes to the screen in this live-action adaptation directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, creator of the groundbreaking manga and anime classic Akira. Mushi are an unusual life form that is neither animal nor vegetable, but is possessed of the elusive essential life force of the universe, and has special talents that approach those of supernatural beings. Very few human beings are able to see the mushi, but Ginko can. Ginko makes his living as a "Mushi-shi," a master who travels from town to town, meeting people who have had troubling experiences with the mushi and helping them sort out their problems while trying to maintain a respectful relationship with the creatures. Starring Joe Odagiri, Nao Omori and Makiko Esumi, Mushi-shi received its world premiere at the 2006 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Masato Tanno's Ichi-1, the prequel to Takashi Miike's ultra-violent Ichi the Killer, stars Nao Omori, who reprises his role as Shiro Ishi. In this film Ishi is a mild-mannered high-school student who suffers abuse at the hands of school bully Dai. Little does Dai suspect that the quiet Ishi is capable of frightening violence. Soon Onizame, a new kid, enrolls at the school and immediately begins to challenge Dai for the title of school bully. Soon Ishi is no longer able to quell his potent anger. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

An adolescent's distrust of the world of grown-ups is often confirmed by what goes on around him in this offbeat drama. Minoru Masaki (Kengo Kora) is a straight-laced boy in his early teens who makes pocket money after school by delivering newspapers. Having been abused as a young child, Minoru takes a dim view of the world around him, believing drugs and sex have corrupted the culture of adults, and he has few friends his own age. One day, Minoru strikes up an acquaintance with Masato, a boy several years his junior. After playing catch in the park, Minoru goes back to Masato's house, where he's introduced to Satoko (Ogawa Miwon), Masato's mother. Minoru thinks he recognizes Satoko, and after spending a few days following her, he learns that she spends her afternoons working as a prostitute for Tawara (Tomorowo Taguchi), a pimp associated with the Japanese mafia. While Satoko's husband Hideyuki (Nao Omori) is unaware of his wife's secret life, he enjoys fantasies of her taking lovers, which are a far cry from the grim reality of her career with Tawara. M was directed by Ryuichi Hiroki, who got his start making soft-core "pink films" dealing with many of the same themes covered here. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Directors Suguru Takeuchi, Akio Jissoji, Hisayasu Sato, and Atsushi Kaneko team to adapt four stories by acclaimed early-20th Century Japanese mystery novelist Taro Hirai, who penned his suspenseful tales under the telling pseudonym Edogawa Ranpo. Maverick Japanese indie star Tadanoby Asano stars in all four segments of the macabre omnibus. Takeuchi's "Mars' Canal," sets things into motion as a naked man (Asano) wandering through a desolate alien landscape recounts a sexual encounter that quickly took a violent turn. The second segment, directed by Jissoji and entitled "Mirror Hell," finds detective Kogoro Akechi (Asano) investigating the mysterious deaths of two young women. Upon discovering that mirrors crafted by malevolently handsome stationary shop master Toru Itsuki (Hiroki Narimiya) and that the mirror-maker knew both of the victims intimately, the investigation takes an unsettling turn that leads the detective to believe the occult may be involved. Director Sato's "Caterpillar," which comprises the third segment of the film, follows a quadruple amputee war veteran (Nao Omori) who returns from the battlefield only to face sadistic abuse at the hands of his nubile but resentful wife (Yukiko Okamoto). As a local artist (Ryuhei Matsuda) begins to take a morbid interest in the couple's twisted relationship, Detective Akechi (Asano) does his best to crack the strange case. Kaneko's "Crawling Bugs" rounds out the frightful quartet of tales by detailing the psychotic coupling between a well-known actress (Tamaki Ogawa) and her introverted driver (Asano), who longs to satisfy the sultry starlet in the same manner as her rough-handed lover (again Asano). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Internationally acclaimed Japanese film director Ryuichi Hiroki (I Am an S&M Writer, Tokyo Trash Baby) takes the helm for this cathartic road movie concerning the transformative journey of an emotionally-unstable writer and adapted from the novel by Mari Akasaka. Rei (Shinobu Terashima) is a freelance writer whose inner demons have driven her to self-medicate. It's during one of her late-night beer-runs to a local urban mini-mart that Rei makes the acquaintance of handsome young trucker Okabe (Nao Omori) - who has taken a momentary pit stop to fill up his tank and grab some snacks. After the two form a friendly bond in the late night hours where anything seems possible, Rei climbs into Okabe's rig for an impromptu road trip that will lead her to find out more about herself than she would ever learn while sitting home and drinking alone. As the dawn draws near on the edge of the horizon, what at first appeared to be a one-night stand gradually transforms into a momentous meeting of chance. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide