Tuesday 28 June 2011

Top Ranked Films from Japan

© William L. Sinclair

The top ranked films from Japan, based on our survey of internet polls. A total of 38 made the top 1000, up from 34 in 2009.





1. Seven Samurai, The [Kurosawa, Akira; 1954] #7 [photo top]

2. Rashomon (1950) Kurosawa, Akira #29 Japan

3. Ran (1985) Kurosawa, Akira #39 Japan-France

4. Tokyo Story (1953) Ozu, Yasujiro #76 Japan

5. Spirited Away (2001) Miyazaki, Hayao #78 Japan

6. Ugetsu (1953) Mizoguchi, Kenji #85 Japan

7. Ikiru (1952) Kurosawa, Akira #101 Japan

8. Yojimbo (1961) Kurosawa, Akira #163 Japan

9. Hotaru no Hakaa (Grave/Fireflies, 1988) Takahata, Isao #228 Japan

10. Sansho the Bailiff (1954) Mizoguchi, Kenji #240 Japan

11. Throne of Blood (1957) Kurosawa, Akira #244 Japan

12. Howl's Moving Castle (2004) Miyazaki, Hayao #352 Japan

13. Mononoke-hime (1997) - anime Miyazaki, Hayao #355 Japan

14. I Was Born, But… (1932) Ozu, Yasujiro #370 Japan

15. My Neighbour Totoro (1988) Miyazaki, Hayao #382 Japan

16. Princess Yang Kwei Fei (Yokihi, 1955) Mizoguchi, Kenji #415 Japan-Hong Kong

17. High and Low (1963) Kurosawa, Akira #450 Japan

18. Late Spring (1949) Ozu, Yasujiro #454 Japan

19. Ponyo (anime, 2008) Miyazaki, Hayao #569 Japan

20. In the Realm of the Senses (1976) Oshima, Nagisa #583 France-Japan

21. Nobody Knows (2004) Kore-eda, Hirokazu #608 Japan

22. Story of the Late Chrysanthemums, The (1939) Mizoguchi, Kenji #618 Japan

23. Life of Oharu, The (1952) Mizoguchi, Kenji #636 Japan

24. Woman in the Dunes (1964) Teshigahara, Hiroshi #637 Japan

25. Floating Clouds (1955) Naruse, Mikio #638 Japan

26. Dersu Uzala (1975) Kurosawa, Akira #647 Japan-Russia

27. Castle in the Sky (1986) Miyazaki, Hayao #668 Japan

28. Kagemusha (1980) Kurosawa, Akira #682 Japan

29. Still Walking (2008) Koreeda, Hirokazu #707 Japan

30. Autumn Afternoon, An (1962) Ozu, Yasujiro #767 Japan

31. An Actor's Revenge (1963) Ichikawa, Kon #786 Japan

32. Hidden Fortress, The (1958) Kurosawa, Akira #789 Japan

33. 13 Assassins (2010) Miike, Takashi #852 Japan

34. Harakiri (1962) Kobayashi, Masaki #867 Japan

35. Children of Hiroshima (1952) Shindô, Kaneto #891 Japan

36. Akira (anime, 1988) Ôtomo, Katsuhiro #907 Japan

37. Red Beard (1965) Kurosawa, Akira #963 Japan

38. Black Rain (1989) Imamura, Shohei #990 Japan



Masahiro Motoki in Departures


My Favorites



1. Seven Samurai, The (1954) Kurosawa, Akira #2 Japan

2. Departures (2008) Takita, Yôjirô * Japan

3. Shall We Dance? (1995) Suo, Masayuki * Japan

4. The Twilight Samurai (2002) Yamada, Yôji * Japan

5. Ugetsu (1953) Mizoguchi, Kenji #85 Japan

6. Stray Dog (1949) Kurosawa, Akira #1899 Japan

7. Crazed Fruit (1956) Nakahira, Kô * Japan

8. High and Low (1963) Kurosawa, Akira #450 Japan

9. Dersu Uzala (1975) Kurosawa, Akira #647 Japan-Russia

10. Rashomon (1950) Kurosawa, Akira #29 Japan

11. Hotaru no Hakaa (Grave/Fireflies, 1988) Takahata, Isao #228 Japan

12. The Bird People in China (1998) Miike, Takashi * Japan

13. Ikiru (1952) Kurosawa, Akira #101 Japan

14. Yojimbo (1961) Kurosawa, Akira #163 Japan

15. Samurai 1: Musashi Miyamoto (1954) Inagaki, Hiroshi * Japan

16. Tokyo Story (1953) Ozu, Yasujiro #76 Japan

17. Ran (1985) Kurosawa, Akira #39 Japan-France

18. Burmese Harp (1956) Ichikawa, Kon #1525 Japan

19. Harakiri (1962) Kobayashi, Masaki #867 Japan

20. Hidden Fortress, The (1958) Kurosawa, Akira #789 Japan

21. Floating Weeds (1959) Ozu, Yasujiro #1435 Japan

22. Woman in the Dunes (1964) Teshigahara, Hiroshi #637 Japan

23. Throne of Blood (1957) Kurosawa, Akira #244 Japan

24. Sansho the Bailiff (1954) Mizoguchi, Kenji #240 Japan

25. Godzilla (1954) Honda, Ishirô #1599 Japan

26. Kagemusha (1980) Kurosawa, Akira #682 Japan



These are an acquired taste but nearly everyone agrees that The Seven Samurai is one of the all-time classics of both black and white cinematography, and action-adventure captured dramatically on film, making viewers feel part of the action. The original title in Japan: The Magnificent Seven! When the U.S. western based on this came out, Kurosawa's film title was changed in the west to avoid confusion.



Ugetsu is one of the more haunting stories put on film, suffice to say that there are surprising plot twists that no one can see coming.



Departures won 33 awards overall. Shall We Dance? won 52 awards out of 55 nominations.



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