The most celebrated Japanese movies ever

For nearly 20 years, 'Spirited Away' held the record of highest-grossing film in Japan and was the first non-English-language animated film to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Directed by Hayao Miyazaki, it tells the story of Chihiro, a child who ends up at an abandoned amusement park inhabited by supernatural beings.

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'Godzilla' (1954) -

The first film in the Godzilla franchise, the Ishirō Honda-directed 'Godzilla' remains a monster movie classic. It was met with mixed reviews upon release, but was a box-office success. 'Godzilla' symbolizes nuclear holocaust from Japan's perspective, and has since been culturally identified as a strong metaphor for nuclear weapons.

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'Drive My Car' (2021) -

Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 'Drive My Car' was the first Japanese film to receive a nomination for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, where it also won the Oscar for Best International Feature Film.

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'Howl's Moving Castle' (2004) -

This animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki is loosely based on the 1986 novel 'Howl's Moving Castle' by British author Diana Wynne Jones. The picture was influenced by Miyazaki's opposition to the United States' invasion of Iraq in 2003, and contains strong anti-war themes.

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'Ring' (1998) -

A skin-crawling supernatural psychological treat, 'Ring' helped popularize and establish J-horror internationality. A box-office success, director Hideo Nakata's tale about the cursed VHS tape that condemns anyone who watches it to a horrible death seven days later was remade in Hollywood to lesser acclaim.

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'Rashomon' (1950) -

Credited with introducing Japanese cinema to a worldwide audience, Akira Kurosawa's breakthrough picture follows various individuals who describe how a samurai was murdered in a forest.

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'Godzilla Minus One' (2023) -

Directed by Takashi Yamazaki, 'Godzilla Minus One' was hailed as cinematic masterpiece, with many critics praising it as the best film of 2023 and among the greatest in the Godzilla franchise.

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'Tokyo Story' (1953) -

Widely regarded as director Yasujirō Ozu's masterpiece, 'Tokyo Story' is about an aging couple who travel to Tokyo to visit their grown children.

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'Ikiru' (1952) -

Director Akira Kurosawa's classic tragedy examines the struggles of a terminally ill Tokyo bureaucrat and his final quest for meaning.

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'Ugetsu' (1953) -

'Ugetsu' won the Silver Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival and is considered a triumph of Japan's Golden Age of Cinema. Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, the film explores themes of lust, arrogance, and women's place in society.

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'Late Spring' (1949) -

Director Yasujirō Ozu's influential masterpiece is a classic example of a shomin-geki film (a genre about the ordinary lives of ordinary people). It was released to critical acclaim. In 1972, the film was commercially released in the United States, again to very positive reviews.

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'Battle Royale' (2000) -

This gory and bombastic dystopian action film directed by Kinji Fukasaku follows 42 teens left on a deserted island and forced to fight before the last survivor is allowed to leave. The film drew considerable controversy and was banned or excluded from distribution in several countries. Famed filmmaker Quentin Tarantino has cited 'Battle Royale' as one of his favorite movies.

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'My Neighbor Totoro' (1988) -

'My Neighbor Totoro' received worldwide critical acclaim, its adult themes,such as the fear of loss, environmentalism, and the importance of family, finding favor with young and old alike. It was written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

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'Fireworks' (1997) -

'Fireworks,' also known as 'Hana-bi,' was included on legendary director Akira Kurosawa's list of his 100 favorite films, a huge honor for the movie's director, Takeshi Kitano. 'Fireworks' won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival.

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'Shoplifters' (2018) -

'Shoplifters,' directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Palme d'Or. The film follows a family who rely on shoplifting to cope with a life of poverty in modern-day Tokyo.

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'The Tale of Princess Kaguya' (2013) -

A bamboo cutter discovers a palm-sized girl inside a glowing bamboo shoot. Named Kaguya, she grows into a beautiful young woman coveted by five nobles. To avoid marrying a stranger she doesn't love, she sends her suitors on seemingly impossible tasks. The consequences of her actions decide her fate. Directed by Isao Takahata and based on folklore, 'The Tale of Princess Kaguya' received universal acclaim and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

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'Audition' (1999) -

Described as both a grisly shocker and a psychological drama, Takashi Miike's 'Audition' unfolds slowly as it follows a widower who enlists the help of his film producer friend to stage an audition for a fake movie to meet a potential new partner. However, the one he takes a liking to hides a dark past.

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'Kwaidan' (1964) -

A horror anthology directed by Masaki Kobayashi. 'Kwaidan' won the Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival, and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. It features four unrelated ghost stories based on Japanese folk tales.

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'Tokyo Drifter' (1966) -

Considered ahead of its time when released in 1966, 'Tokyo Drifter' addresses the themes of loyalty and corruption as the protagonist, a former yakuza turned businessman, must roam Japan in order to avoid assassination by rival gang members. It was directed by Seijun Suzuki.

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'Akira' (1988) -

This Japanese animated cyberpunk action film directed by Katsuhiro Otomo is set in a dystopian 2019 and follows a bike gang leader, Shōtarō Kaneda, who tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a secret government project. 'Akira' effectively redefined the anime genre and set the bar for everything that followed.

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'Tampopo' (1985) -

Director Juzo Itami's delightful comedy takes audiences on an amusing adventure as they follow a delivery man who stops at a small family-run ramen shop and decides to help its owners find the perfect noodle.

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'Tokyo Godfathers' (2003) -

This animated Christmas tragicomedy adventure film, written and directed by Satoshi Kon, follows three homeless people after they find a baby in the garbage. A hit in Japan, 'Tokyo Godfathers' has gained a cult audience in the United States.

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'Harakiri' (1962) -

One of the best samurai films ever made, 'Harakiri' takes place between 1619 and 1630 during the Edo period and the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate. Directed by Masaki Kobayashi, the picture received the Special Jury Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

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'Woman in the Dunes' (1964) -

Released in 1964 and representative of Japanese New Wave cinema, 'Woman in the Dunes,' directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara, is considered a masterpiece of avant-garde filmmaking. The psychological thriller was nominated for two Oscars and won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

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'Grave of the Fireflies' (1988) -

'Grave of the Fireflies' is generally regarded as one of the darkest animated films of all time. Written and directed by Isao Takahata, this historical war drama tells the story of two siblings struggling to survive the horrors of war in 1940s Japan.

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'Shall We Dance?' (1996) -

A rom-com Japanese style, 'Shall We Dance?' is about a middle-aged accountant who signs up for dance classes to escape his mundane life. He hides the lessons from his wife and is infatuated by a woman in the class. Directed by Masayuki Suo, the film was a box-office success both in Japan and America.

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'Paprika' (2006) -

Directed by acclaimed anime auteur Satoshi Kon, 'Paprika' follows a battle with an unknown "dream terrorist" who causes nightmares by stealing a device that allows others to share their dreams.

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'My Sunshine' (2024) -

Hiroshi Okuyama's heartfelt coming-of-age sports drama explores the relationship between two young ice dancers who are training under the guidance of their gay figure skating coach. The film premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it was named as a nominee for the Queer Palm, an independently sponsored prize for selected LGBTQ-relevant films entered into the festival.

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'Your Name' (2016) -

Makoto Shinkai's animated fantasy 'Your Name' combines comedy, romance, and heartache as it depicts the story of two high school students who suddenly begin to swap bodies in the lead-up to the sighting of a rare comet.

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'The Twilight Samurai' (2002) -

This historical drama is set in mid-19th-century Japan and follows the life of a low-ranking samurai employed as a bureaucrat. Things change when a woman from his past arrives in town. Directed by Yoji Yamada, 'The Twilight Samurai' won 12 Japanese Academy Awards and was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

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'Cloud' (2024) -

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's psychological thriller 'Cloud' is the story about an unethical online goods reseller who finds himself at the center of a series of mysterious events that put his life at risk.

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'Equinox Flower' (1958) -

Yasujiro Ozu's first color film, 'Equinox Flower' is a skillful comedy about a businessman who clashes with his elder daughter over her choice of husband. The director's use of color adds a bright veneer to the humor this light-hearted picture exudes.

Sources: (Forbes) (British Film Institute) (Metropolis Japan) (The Guardian)