James Shigeta Movies

Business executive Taro Isogi (James Shigeta) meets with Mars Conglomerate representative Amanda Carter (Adrienne Barbeau), in hopes establishing the Mars colony as an independent entity. But before negotiations can begin, Isogi is murdered. Witnessing the tragedy, Talia suddenly experiences a telepathic mindflash which may or may not reveal a widespread conspiracy. Orginally titled "A Trick of the Mind," "Spider in the Web" was written by Lawrence G. DiTillio; the episode first aired on December 7, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

If you've seen TV wrestling, you know what a "caged" bout is. In Cage, it's for real; two testosterone-pumped behemoths are placed in a cage where they duke it out to the death. Lou Ferrigno plays Billy Thomas, the muscle-bound Vietnam vet who is finagled into cage-fighting by a group of mobsters. Scott Monroe (Reb Brown), the man whose life Billy saved in Nam, finds himself (through a series of ludicrous plot twists) facing his former savior in the dreaded cage. We suppose this was meant to be taken seriously, but audiences didn't get the hint; Cage has been greeted with raucous, derisive laughter ever since its 1990 release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Julia Nickson (then billed as Julia Nickson-Soul) stars as Nora Lamm, whose childhood was rent asunder when the Japanese invaded Shanghai at the outset of World War II. Recalling these horrific times, Nora remembers the cloistered pre-invasion existence she enjoyed thanks to the prominence of her physician father (played by James Shigeta). The deprivations she experienced at the hands of the invaders are compounded when postwar China is taken over by the Communists. In the early 1960s, Nora escapes to Hong Kong, where she works tirelessly on behalf of basic human rights for those still trapped on the Mainland. China Cry is based on the autobiography by Sung Neng Yee. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It's Christmas time in L.A., and there's an employee party in progress on the 30th floor of the Nakatomi Corporation building. The revelry comes to a violent end when the partygoers are taken hostage by a group of terrorists headed by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), who plan to steal the 600 million dollars locked in Nakatomi's high-tech safe. In truth, Gruber and his henchmen are only pretending to be politically motivated to throw the authorities off track; also in truth, Gruber has no intention of allowing anyone to get out of the building alive. Meanwhile, New York cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) has come to L.A. to visit his estranged wife, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia), who happens to be one of the hostages. Disregarding the orders of the authorities surrounding the building, McClane, who fears nothing (except heights), takes on the villains, armed with one handgun and plenty of chutzpah. Until Die Hard came along, Bruce Willis was merely that wisecracking guy on Moonlighting. After the film's profits started rolling in, Willis found himself one of the highest-paid and most sought-after leading men in Hollywood. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV historical drama chronicles the personal and professional lives of Colonel Tibbets and the airmen who dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. The story is based on a book by Gordon Thomas and Max Gordon Witts and also looks at the ways in which the aftermath of the bombing affected their lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The only Rodgers and Hammerstein cinemadaptation to be produced by Universal Pictures, Flower Drum Song was, alas, also the only Rogers and Hammerstein film to lose money at the box office. It looks far better now than it did back in 1961, if only because of the paucity of musical films in the 1990s. Essentially a comedy about the culture clash between old-world Chinese and assimilated Chinese-Americans, the film begins when Mei Li (Miyoshi Umeki) and her grandfather (Kam Tong) smuggle themselves into San Francisco. It seems that Mei Li has arrived to honor an arranged marriage between herself and Runyonesque nightclub owner Sammy Fong (the incomparable Jack Soo). This might prove delicate, since Sammy is in love with flashy cabaret entertainer Linda Low (Nancy Kwan). Meanwhile, Linda is romancing Wang Ta (James Shigeta), the son of a wealthy Chinatown merchant (Benson Fong). Soon, however, Mei Li and Wang Ta have fallen in love.......It's a complex plot, to be sure, but comedy and music manage to predominate. The songs include "I Enjoy Being a Girl" (a tour de force for the special effects department, and for Nancy Kwan), "A Hundred Million Miracles," "The Other Generation," "Love Look Away," "I Am Going to Like It Here," "Don't Marry Me," "You Are Beautiful," "Grant Avenue" and "Chop Suey." Flower Drum Song is attractively produced and consummately acted; while no classic along the lines of King and I or Sound of Music, it deserves a second look. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmmaker Arthur Dong's documentary Hollywood Chinese pays homage to the first century of the American film industry, as specifically colored and influenced by the Chinese immigrants to whom Hollywood owes an inestimable debt. Dong touches on everyone from actress Anna May Wong, of Limehouse Blues (1934) and Lady from Chungking (1943), to the late cameraman James Wong Howe, responsible for giving the Rock Hudson thriller Seconds (1966) such a creepy and inventive look. Dong also explores the newer generation of Chinese-American filmmakers, including such giants as Wayne Wang and Ang Lee, responsible for such contemporary classics as The Joy Luck Club, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Brokeback Mountain. At the same time, a haunting and telling undercurrent of racism and stereotypes weaves its way in, suggestive of the difficulties that Chinese men and women found working in Hollywood -- particularly in the early years. As a historical footnote, Dong also makes film history by rediscovering and editing in footage from what is alleged to be the first Asian-American film ever made: the 1916 Curse of Quon Gwan, directed by Marion Wong. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

James Shigeta guest stars as Toshhio Watari (James Shigeta), a famous Japanese kabuki dancer now confined to a wheelchair as the result of an accident. When several attempts are made on Tosshio's life for no apparent reason, his son Tsutomu (played by former Star Trek) regular George Takei) summons the aid of his dad's old friend--and fellow paraplegic--Robert Ironside (Raymond Burr). Most of this episode was filmed on location in Tokyo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of a two-part story, Mary Ingalls (Melissa Sue Anderson) is in dire need of a life-saving operation. Lacking the necessary funds, Mary's father, Charles (Michael Landon), signs up for a high-paying -- and highly-dangerous -- new job. Working shoulder to shoulder with his neighbor Mr. Edwards (Victor French), Charles becomes a "powder monkey," part of a team blasting a tunnel for the railroad. Inevitably, disaster befalls Charles and Edwards in the form of a sudden cave-in. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Magnum (Tom Selleck) embarks upon a personal vendetta against the unknown culprit who nearly killed Higgins (John Hillerman) by tampering with the brakes of his car. It turns out that this murder attempt is linked with Higgins' current efforts to research an incident which occurred in 1942 at an Honolulu internment camp for Japanese-Americans. One of the camp's guards is alleged to have killed an inmate--and despite the passage of 40 years, there is still someone around and about who is willing to kill again to keep the full story of this incident from ever seeing the light of day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this detective adventure, the pilot episode for the short-livedTV series, suave Matt Helm gets involved with the smugglers who have been providing black market munitions to African mercenaries when he assigned to protect the life of a movie star. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Harry Kellem (Russ Conway), an American businessman working in Tokyo, has been accused of murdering his Japanese wife. The actual culprit is Kellem's brother-in-law Toshio Masaki (Khigh Dheigh), who for political reasons is bent on destroying Japanese-American diplomatic relations. Assigned to clear Kellem and expose Masaki, the IMF embarks upon a series of clever ruses, wherein Paris impersonates a Kabuki dancer, Willy poses as a martial arts champion and Dana disguises herself as the late Mrs. Kellem. Originally seen on October 31, 1970, "The Butterfly" was scripted by Eric Bercovicci and Jerry Ludwig, from a story by Sheldon Stark. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide