Reviews from Japan

Superlative - everyone should see this

Great, a must-see if you like the genre

Good, a decent example of the genre

Watchable, but only for serious genre fans

Unwatchable

Half stars could have gone either way depending on mood.

Movie Name / Release Year	Summary	Date	Reviewer
Okinawa Yakuza War (1976)	A strong but predictable Yakuza film	2024-04-21	Simon
The Flowers of Evil (2019)	Shockingly mature Noboru Iguchi film	2024-01-02	Simon
The Trap (1996)	A lesser final entry but still great	2024-01-01	Simon
The Stairway to the Distant Past (1995)	Dazzling	2024-01-01	Simon
The Most Terrible Time in My Life (1994)	Smart, stylish and funny	2024-01-01	Simon
Waru (2006)	Not one (or two) of Miike's best	2023-11-03	Simon
Black Rain (1989)	Not as traumatic as I'd been expecting	2023-09-29	Simon
Blessing Bell (2003)	Not my favourite Sabu film	2023-03-31	Simon
Lesson of the Evil: Prologue (2012)	Not clear what purpose this serves	2022-07-27	Simon
Chasuke's Journey (2015)	Another unique film from Sabu	2022-06-18	Simon
Wandering Ginza Butterfly 2 (1972)	...read review...	2022-01-29	Simon
Wandering Ginza Butterfly (1972)	The Meiko Kaji reboot	2022-01-25	Simon
Sanshiro Sugata (1943)	Fine, if a little insubstantial	2022-01-22	Simon
Graveyard Of Honour (Miike) (2002)	Less interesting than Fukasaku's original	2021-10-05	Simon
Graveyard of Honour (Fukasaku) (1975)	A reminder that Yakuza are generally not nice people	2021-10-03	Simon
Jam (2018)	A bit of a Sabu throwback	2021-09-29	Simon
Blues Harp (1998)	A subtle and complex work	2021-08-24	Simon
Happiness (2016)	Happiness is just sadness you haven't reached yet	2021-08-22	Simon
Ley Lines (1999)	One of Miike's least plot-driven film	2021-08-12	Simon
Hana-Bi (1997)	Close to cinematic perfection	2021-08-10	Simon
All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001)	Beautiful and harrowing	2021-08-08	Simon
Undo (1994)	Love unravelling	2021-08-05	Simon
Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning (2021)	A strange film to end the series on	2021-07-30	Simon
Hydra (2019)	Very low budget but a great calling card for the crew	2021-07-24	Simon
Tezuka's Barbara (2019)	Rather lifeless interpretation of a manga	2021-07-02	Simon
The World of Kanako (2014)	An astonishing glimpse into a disturbing world	2021-06-12	Simon
My Blood And Bones in a Flowing Galaxy (2021)	Sabu in dark mode	2021-06-04	Simon
Big Bang Love: Juvenile A (2006)	Enigmatic and thought provoking, but is it art?	2021-06-01	Simon
Red Post On Escher Street (2020)	My face isn't a crowd	2021-05-15	Simon
Hanagatami (2017)	If war is worth dying for, so is a festival	2021-05-14	Simon