 Godzilla 2000 1999  PG, 97 min.
Genre: Foreign / Sci-Fi / Action / Horror / Thriller
Director: Takao Okawara
Cast: Takehiro Murata, Naomi Nishida, Mayu Suzuki, Hiroshi Abe, Shiro Sano, Tsutomu Kitagawa, Natalia Adams, Koichi Ueda, Shelley Sweeney, Amy Hill, Ron Yuan
This Japanese version of Godzilla strikes back against US productions–horrible dubbing included. In this Godzilla flick, over 500 digital effects are on screen contributing to the story of Godzilla fighting against a new monster, Orga (voice of Natalia Adams), an alien blasted from a 60-million-year-old rock!
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Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out A 2001 N/R, 105 min.
Genre: Foreign / Sci-Fi / Fantasy / Horror / Thriller
Director: Shusuke Kaneko
Cast: Chiharu Niyama, Ryudo Uzaki, Masahiro Kobayashi, Shiro Sano, Takashi Nishina, Kaho Minami, Shin'ya Owada, Kunio Murai, Hiroyuki Watanabe, Shingo Katsurayama, Masahiko Tsugawa, Toshikazu Fukawa, Eisei Amamoto, Nobuaki Kakuda, Takafumi Matsuo
[Full title: "Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack"] Mysterious incidents in and off the coast of Japan indicate that Godzilla may have awakened after nearly 50 years. Three guardian monsters–King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Baragon–are awakened to help rid the world of the destructive Godzilla.
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The Most Terrible Time in My Life 1993  N/R, 92 min.
Genre: Foreign / Comedy
Director: Kaizo Hayashi
Cast: Masatoshi Nagase, Shiro Sano, Kiyotaka Nanbara, Yang Haitin, Hou De Jian, Kaho Minami, Akaji Maro, Shinya Tsukamoto, Jo Shishido, Haruko Wanibuchi
Private eye Maiku Hama (Masatoshi Nagase) is plying his trade in Yokohama when he agrees to track down the brother of a waiter (Yang Haitin). Too late, Maiku Hama finds himself at the center of a gang war. There are sequels ("The Stairway to the Distant Past" and "The Trap").
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The Princess Blade 2001 R, 97 min.
Genre: Foreign / Action
Director: Shinsuke Sato
Cast: Hideaki Ito, Yumiko Shaku, Shiro Sano, Yoichi Numata, Kyusaku Shimada, Yoko Maki, Takashi Tsukamoto
Female assassin Yuki (Yumiko Shaku) is a member of the Takemikazuchi clan whose members are hired to suppress rebels in a near-future Japan run by a monarchy. Just before her 20th birthday, Yuki learns that the Takemikazuchi leader (Kyusaku Shimada) killed Yuki's mother and took Yuki's rightful place as clan leader. Yuki seeks revenge, is wounded, and then nursed back to health by Takashi (Hideaki Ito) who just happens to be stalked by his own rebel band. The action scenes are great.
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The Stairway to the Distant Planet 1994 N/R, 101 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Kaizo Hayashi
Cast: Masatoshi Nagase, Kiyotaka Nanbara, Haruko Wanibuchi, Shiro Sano, Eiji Okada, Tetta Sugimoto, Mika Ohmine, Shinya Tsukamoto, Jo Shishido, Akaji Maro, Sumiko Sakamoto, Noriko Sengoku
This is the second of three Detective Hama films (preceded by "The Most Terrible Time of My Life" and followed by "The Trap"). This time around, Mike Hama (Masatoshi Nagase) investigates the true identity of a crime lord known as the White Man (Eiji Okada) and, in the process, uncovers surprising information about his own father.
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The Trap 1996  N/R, 106 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Kaizo Hayashi
Cast: Masatoshi Nagase, Yui Natsukawa, Tomoko Yamaguchi, Kiyotaka Nanbara, Shiro Sano, Akaji Maro, Jo Shishido, Mika Ohmine, Hiro Arai, Tetta Sugimoto
This is the last of the Detective Maiku Hama trilogy (preceded by "The Most Terrible Time in My Life" and "The Stairway to the Distant Past"), and Masatoshi Nagase is back in his role playing that bungling detective. This time around Maiku Hama's fingerprints are appearing on the corpses of murdered women, and he must work hard to clear his name.
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 Violent Cop 1989 N/R, 103 min.
Genre: Foreign / Action / Drama / Thriller
Director: Takeshi Kitano
Cast: Takeshi Kitano, Maiko Kawakami, Makoto Ashikawa, Shiro Sano, Sei Hiraizumi, Mikiko Otonashi, Hakuryu, Ittoku Kishibe, Ken Yoshizawa, Hiroyuki Katsube, Noboru Hamda, Taro Ishida, Yuuki Kawai, Ritsuko Amano, Katsuki Muramatsu
Detective Azuma (Takeshi Kitano) does not hesitate to use violence–especially when his mentally handicapped sister Akari (Maiko Kawakami) is kidnapped. Azuma learns that his partner Iwaki (Sei Hiraizumi) has been selling drugs to yakuza assassin Kiyohiro (Hakuryu)–and to make matters worse, it is Kiyohiro who has kidnapped Akari. This film is star/director Takeshi Kitano's first directorial effort.
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| 1. Godzilla 2000 (1999)
2. Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out A (2001)
3. The Most Terrible Time in My Life (1993)
4. The Princess Blade (2001)
5. The Stairway to the Distant Planet (1994)
6. The Trap (1996)
7. Violent Cop (1989)
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