Movies: Jun Murakami

Keisuke, an aspiring samurai-movie actor lands a major role in a new film, but must contend with a director who has nothing but scorn for him, but who continually fawns over the film’s obnoxious ham of a star....

Yukio is a typical high school student in every way except that he's an only child in a family of five. This is because he has four fathers, each with their own unique personalities and interests. The only thing they share in common is their love of ...

After a failed wedding shoot, Bae-hwan meets Ryu—a callboy tangled in a murder case—and offers him a way out....

Hotel Hibiscus is the story of one very young energetic girl named Mieko and her internatioanl family who live in Okinawa. They live in a run down old hotel called Hotel Hibiscus with only one room for rent....

When Mio was young, she lost her parents in a great flood and also became separated from her best friend Noe. Afterwards, Mio found her talent in cooking and eventually became a cook. Meanwhile, Noe has become an oiran (high-ranking courtesan)....

Compilation film featuring short works from directors Hitoshi Yasaki ("Short Cakes"), Yuki Tanada (scriptwriter "Sakuran," "Tsuki to Cherry"), Hiroyuki Nakano ("Stereo Future," "Samurai Fiction"), Masahiko Nagasawa ("Yoru no Picnic"), Masaya Kakehi (...

Chiyoko's mother died when she was young. Since that time, Chiyoko has closed her heart to others. After her pet dies, Chiyoko feels loneliness. Her mother liked the Italian movie "La Strada." Due to movie study club senior, Masamune, Chiyoko is able...

When Suei was little, his mother had an affair with a young man who lived next door. Suei's mother and the young man killed themselves by using dynamite. After Suei graduated from high school, he worked at a factory before quitting his job. He then w...

A young girl named Sato watches on television as a man named Tomoki states brazenly at a press conference that he hopes convicted murderer Mitsuo is eventually placed back into society so that he can kill him with his bare hands....

Movie adaptation of a novel by Rampo Edogawa....

A sect is threatened to fall apart, when its leader, a young Korean woman, develops doubts regarding her alleged psychic powers....

In a coastal town attracting artists, 14-year-old Sosuke and his friends stay busy painting and helping with school projects. As carefree children interact with secret-laden adults, the sunlit ocean reflects their contrasting struggles—kids embracing...

A successful businessman and his alcoholic wife attempt to piece together their unhappy lives and shattered marriage. Little do Nagai and Akira know that their precarious relationship will soon be transformed by a stranger, the enigmatic Keechie....

Set at the edge of the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, with its beautiful scenic views, the film revolves around two women from different backgrounds who develop a friendship, and how they begin to influence and change each other’s live...

In consequence of his professional mistakes and declining career, Shuji and his family, the Sasaya’s, are forced to leave the wealthy suburb of Tokyo. The move is slow, long and heartbreaking, and the two Sasaya children, an old teenager and a young ...

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Their parents are dead. They should be sad, but they can't cry. So they form a kick-ass band. This is the story of four 13-year-olds in search of their emotions....

From the late 1950s through the '70s, more than 90,000 of the ethnic Koreans in Japan emigrated to North Korea, a country that promised them affluence, justice, and an end to discrimination. KAZOKU NO KUNI tells the story of one of their number, who ...

In this startling psychological thriller from Japan, Mami (Hijiri Kojima) is a teacher who meets Tomo (Koji Chihara), a psychotic criminal with a short temper and no visible means of support. Amour fou blooms between them, and a year later they're li...

Inuyama is intrigued by the existence of "Jake," a mysterious crocodile that has been sighted in many countries around the world. He continues to travel around the world, listening to the testimonies of various people of different ages, nationalities...