Red Beard is a 1965 Japanese jidaigeki film co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa, in his last collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune. Based on Shūgorō Yamamoto's 1959 short story collection, Akahige Shinryōtan, the film takes place in Koishikawa, a district of Edo, towards the end of the Tokugawa period, and is about the relationship between a town doctor and his new trainee. Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel Humiliated and Insulted provided the source for a subplot about a young girl, Otoyo, who is rescued from a brothel.
Takashi Shimura was a Japanese actor who appeared in over 200 films between 1934 and 1981. He appeared in 21 of Akira Kurosawa's 30 films, including as a lead actor in Drunken Angel (1948), Rashomon (1950), Ikiru (1952) and Seven Samurai (1954). He played Professor Kyohei Yamane in Ishirō Honda's original Godzilla (1954). For his contributions to the arts, the Japanese government decorated Shimura with the Medal with Purple Ribbon in 1974 and the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette in 1980.
Yojimbo is a 1961 Japanese samurai film co-written, produced, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The film stars Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yoko Tsukasa, Isuzu Yamada, Daisuke Katō, Takashi Shimura, Kamatari Fujiwara, and Atsushi Watanabe. In the film, a rōnin arrives in a small town where competing crime lords vie for supremacy. The two bosses each try to hire the newcomer as a bodyguard.
Stray Dog is a 1949 Japanese film noir crime drama directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura. It was Kurosawa's second film of 1949 produced by the Film Art Association and released by Shintoho. It is also considered a detective movie that explores the mood of Japan during its painful postwar recovery. The film is also considered a precursor to the contemporary police procedural and buddy cop film genres, based on its premise of pairing two cops with different personalities and motivations together on a difficult case.
High and Low is a 1963 Japanese police procedural crime film directed by Akira Kurosawa, starring Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai and Kyōko Kagawa. The film is loosely based on the 1959 novel King's Ransom by Ed McBain.
Drunken Angel is a 1948 Japanese yakuza film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is notable for being the first of sixteen film collaborations between director Kurosawa and actor Toshiro Mifune.
The Bad Sleep Well is a 1960 Japanese crime mystery film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It was the first film to be produced under Kurosawa's own independent production company. It was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festival.
The Quiet Duel is a 1949 Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa.
The Three Treasures is a 1959 Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. The film is based on the legends Kojiki and Nihon Shoki and the origins of Shinto. The film was the highest-grossing film of 1959 for Toho and the second highest grossing domestic production in Japan for the year.
I Live In Fear is a 1955 Japanese drama film directed by Akira Kurosawa, produced by Sōjirō Motoki, and written by Kurosawa with Shinobu Hashimoto, Fumio Hayasaka, and Hideo Oguni. The film stars Toshiro Mifune as an elderly factory owner so terrified of the prospect of a nuclear attack that he becomes determined to move his entire extended family to what he imagines is the safety of a farm in Brazil.
Eagle of the Pacific, also known as Operation Kamikaze, is a 1953 Japanese epic war film directed by Ishirō Honda. The film dramatizes the start of Japan's military action in World War II, with an emphasis on the role of Isoroku Yamamoto.
Daichūshingura (大忠臣蔵) is a Japanese television dramatization of the events of the Forty-seven Ronin. The first episode aired on January 5, 1971, and the 52nd and final episode appeared on December 28 of the same year. The NET network broadcast it in the Tuesday evening 9:00–9:56 prime-time slot in Japan.
The Sands of Kurobe is a 1968 Japanese drama film directed by Kei Kumai. It was Japan's submission to the 41st Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee. Produced by its stars Toshiro Mifune and Yujiro Ishihara, the film's first run in cinemas lasted for a month, significantly longer than the week or ten days that films at that time usually ran in Japan.
Snow Trail is a 1947 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Senkichi Taniguchi from Akira Kurosawa's screenplay. It was the first film role for Toshirō Mifune, later to become one of Japan's most famous actors. Mifune and the other main actor in the film, Takashi Shimura, later became long-term collaborators of film director Akira Kurosawa.
Vendetta of a Samurai is a 1952 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Kazuo Mori made for Toho and starring Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura. The script was written by Akira Kurosawa.
The Militarists is a 1970 Japanese film directed by Hiromichi Horikawa.
Mifune: The Last Samurai, also known as Mifune, is a 2015 biographical documentary directed by Steven Okazaki. It chronicles the life of Toshiro Mifune, a Japanese actor and international star most noted for playing samurai characters in films by Akira Kurosawa.
Attack Squadron! is a 1963 Japanese film directed by Shue Matsubayashi, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film is about Lt. Colonel Senda who commands three fighter squadrons, eventually being dominated by Allied forces in June 1944.
Yōko Katsuragi was a Japanese actress active from 1948 to 1963. She appeared mostly in films of the Shochiku film studios, often under the direction of Keisuke Kinoshita.
