Videoteca

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Avant-garde 2021

Halfway 2009 star_border 6.1
In this high school romance Hiro is dismayed to learn her new love Shu will be going away to college in Tokyo. She asks him not to go.

Teacher and Three Children 2008
The 95-year-old director shot the film in his hometown of Ishiuchi, Hiroshima. The story is based on a teacher he had when he was a child.

Still Walking 2008 star_border 7.7
A family gathers together for a commemorative ritual whose nature only gradually becomes clear.

The Path 2007 star_border 5.6
Two young Nicaraguan children, Saslaya and her mute brother Dario, must travel to Costa Rica to find their long-lost mother.

Hula Girls 2006 star_border 6.7
Young women in a small Japanese town look to revive their home's declining fortunes by building a Hawaiian village tourist attraction.

Pacchigi! 2005 star_border 6.2
Romeo, A.K.A. Kosuke Matsuyama, is a second-year high school student. A nice, normal, nonviolent type, he suddenly finds himself in the middle of a rampaging crowd of Korean boys, outraged by insults perpetrated by several of his idiotic class-mates on two Korean girls. He makes a narrow escape, but soon after, he and his best bud Yoshio are sent by their home-room teacher to invite the Korean students to a friendly soccer game as a way of restoring the peace.

Dad's Backdrop 2004 star_border 10
Middle-aged pro wrestler Ushinosuke's wife passes away, and he and his son, Kazuo, move in with his father. His fellow wrestlers help them shift house and celebrate their new home, but in the midst of their revelry sits Kazuo with a pained look on his face. He hates pro wrestling with a passion and is embarrassed by his father who has made a heel turn in order to save the ailing wrestling organization he belongs to. He even keeps his dad's profession a secret from his new classmates. When Ushinosuke finds out how his son feels, he sets up an unusual death match with a karate champion in a bid for acceptance. He is knocked down several times, but each time manages to rise to his feet and inch towards the championship. Finally he manages to unleash his finishing move, a devastating backdrop, and achieves a miraculous upset victory with Kazuo watching on proudly.

Nobody Knows 2004 star_border 8
In a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.

Get Up! 2003 star_border 6
A James Brown fanatic gangster decided to disband his own gang and see his long lost daughter before entering prison. Hoping to change his mind, his underlings planned to kidnap James Brown to convince him to perform privately for their boss.

Farewell, Kuro 2003 star_border 6.8
Based on a true story set in Matsumoto city, Nagano, during 1960s. A stray dog wanders into a high school's grounds. The dog, named Kuro, stays at the school and becomes a special friend to everyone.

Mokuyo Kumikyoku 2002
A closed-room mystery where five women gathered in memory of a mysteriously dead female writer to unravel the mystery behind her death. Based on the novel of the same name by Riku Onda, directed by Tetsuo Shinohara. Four years ago, an actress/novelist died of overdose. Since then, five women who were her friends gather around once every year to recollect her memories. However this year, they receive flowers with a strange message which insinuates that her death could have been a murder.

KT 2002 star_border 5.5
This movie is a political/espionage thriller, based on a real kidnapping incident of Korean politician, Kim Dae-Jung.

Kaza-hana 2001 star_border 5.7
A government employee meets a hostess of a "pink club," and together they set out on a journey.

Monday 2000 star_border 6.9
A simple funeral turns a man's world Topsy turvy. He wakes up in a posh hotel room, totally clueless about how he got there. Slowly, he recalls what happened a day before.

Amateur Singing Contest 1999 star_border 5
Traditional Japanese pop singer Reiko (Muroi) decides to enter a well-known TV program for amateur singers along with a confused teenager (Ôtomo) and a 40-year-old father of four (Bito).

Heisei Irresponsible Family: Tokyo de Luxe 1995
The members of the Ameya family are all scammers. After their election scheme goes bust in their hometown, they move from Shikoku to Tokyo and resume their fraudulent activities. Everything carries on smoothly until the eldest and the fourth sons' modus operandi go awry, the mother's lover runs off with another woman, and disasters strike one after another. This film is a collaboration between Yoichi Sai and Goro Kishitani following "All Under the Moon." The family business of the Ameya family is defrauding people. The matriarch, who keeps getting married and divorced, has five children with different fathers. The Ameya family chases after fortune and leaves a trail of trouble on their path.

All Under the Moon 1993 star_border 5.8
A Korean taxi-driver interacts both humorously and tragically with his customers and employers in '90s Tokyo.