Black Rain 1989  R, 110 min.
Genre: Action / Drama
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Michael Douglas, Kate Capshaw, Andy Garcia, Ken Takakura, Yusaku Matsuda, Tomisaburo Wakayama, Shigeru Koyama, Yuya Uchida, Miyuki Ono, John Spencer, Guts Ishimatsu, Luis Guzman, John Costelloe, Stephen Root, Richard Riehle
American police detective Nick Conklin (Michael Douglas) and his partner Charlie Vincent (Andy Garcia) take a Japanese yakuza gangster, Sato (Yusaku Matsuda), back to Osaka where he is to go on trial for murder. But, they inadvertently hand Sato over to yakuza members who are dressed like police. Now, Conklin is put in the position of trying to recapture Sato, and he gets help from Japanese cop Masahiro "Mas" Masumoto (Ken Takakura) and from bargirl Joyce Kingsley (Kate Capshaw) who has information on the yakuza gang. During the investigation, Vincent is killed, and Conklin and "Mas" blend their cultures to work on the crime together.
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Mr. Baseball 1992 PG-13, 109 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Fred Schepisi
Cast: Tom Selleck, Ken Takakura, Aya Takanashi, Dennis Haysbert, Toshi Shioya, Art LaFleur, Larry Pennell, Kosuke Toyohara, Toshizo Fujiwara, Mak Takano
Jack Elliot (Tom Selleck) is a New York Yankee baseball player who is traded to a Japanese team. Unhappy at first, he shows his teammates how to loosen up, and they teach him to respect baseball. Along the way, he falls in love with his new manager's (Ken Takakura) daughter (Aya Takanashi), and life begins anew.
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Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles 2005  PG, 107 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Zhang Yimou
Cast: Ken Takakura, Shinobu Terajima, Kiichi Nakai, Li Jiamin, Oiu Lin, Jiang Wen, Ken Nakamoto, Bin Li Li, Chen Ziliang, He Zhezhou, Yang Zhenbo
Gou-ichi Takata (Ken Takakura) is an aging Japanese fisherman who has been estranged from his son Ken-ichi (voice of Kiichi Nakai). The son's wife, Rie (Shinobu Terajima), contacts Gou-ichi to report that his son has terminal cancer. Ken-ichi refuses to see him, but Rie does give Gou-ichi a video tape that Ken-ichi has been working on. That tape marks the turning point as Gou-ichi journeys to China to complete the video and, in the process, begins to understand more about the relationship between his son and himself.
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The Yakuza 1975 R, 112 min.
Genre: Action / Drama / Thriller
aka: Brotherhood of the Yakuza
Director: Sydney Pollack
Cast: Robert Mitchum, Ken Takakura, Brian Keith, Herb Edelman, Richard Jordan, James Shigeta, Keiko Kishi, Eiji Okada, William Ross, Denis Akiyama, Kyosuke Mashida, Christina Kokubo, Eiji Go, Lee Chirillo, Akiyama
Harry Kilmer (Robert Mitchum) is a detective who answers the call of his friend, George Tanner (Brian Keith). Tanner's daughter has been kidnapped in Japan by the gangsters, Yakuza, who are the Japanese Mafia. In order to save George's daughter, Harry knows that he must show great power and seeks out his old nemesis Tanaka (Ken Takakura) to aid him in the rescue efforts that, before all is said and done, involve uncovering an espionage plot.
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| 1. Black Rain (1989)
2. Mr. Baseball (1992)
3. Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (2005)
4. The Yakuza (1975)
aka: Brotherhood of the Yakuza
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