Ichi the Killer is a 2001 Japanese horror yakuza film directed by Takashi Miike, written by Sakichi Sato, and starring Tadanobu Asano and Nao Omori. Based on Hideo Yamamoto's manga series of the same name, its plot follows a psychologically damaged man who is manipulated into assaulting or killing rival faction members of feuding yakuza gangs while being pursued by a sadomasochistic enforcer.
Violent Cop is a 1989 Japanese neo-noir action thriller film directed by Takeshi Kitano, written by Kitano and Hisashi Nozawa, and starring Kitano, Maiko Kawakami, Makoto Ashikawa, Hakuryu, Ken Yoshizawa, and Ittoku Kishibe. It follows Azuma, a Japanese police detective known for his rough and unprofessional conduct, after he is assigned to investigate drug trafficking by the yakuza. It was Kitano's directorial debut, and marked the beginning of his career as a filmmaker.
Hana-bi, released in the USA as Fireworks, is a 1997 Japanese crime drama film written, directed and edited by Takeshi Kitano, who also stars in it. The film's score was composed by Joe Hisaishi in his fourth collaboration with Kitano.
Jonathan Rhys Meyers is an Irish actor. He is known for his roles in the films Michael Collins (1996), Velvet Goldmine (1998), Titus (1999), Bend It Like Beckham (2002), Alexander (2004), Match Point (2005), Mission: Impossible III (2006) and his television roles as Elvis Presley in the biographical miniseries Elvis (2005), for which he won a Golden Globe Award and earned a Primetime Emmy Award nomination, as King Henry VIII in the historical drama The Tudors (2007–10), which earned him two Golden Globe Award nominations, and in the NBC drama series Dracula (2013–14) as the title character. He also starred as Bishop Heahmund, a character inspired by the Catholic Saint of the same name, in the History Channel television series Vikings.
Gozu is a 2003 Japanese horror film by Takashi Miike.
War is a 2007 American action film directed by Philip G. Atwell in his directorial debut and featuring stage combat choreographed by Corey Yuen. The film stars Jet Li and Jason Statham. The film was released in the United States on August 24, 2007. War features the second collaboration between Jet Li and Jason Statham, reuniting them for the first time since 2001 film The One. Jason Statham plays an FBI agent determined to take down a mysterious assassin known as Rogue, after his partner is murdered.
Zatoichi is a 2003 Japanese jidaigeki action film, directed, written, co-edited by and starring Takeshi Kitano in his eleventh directorial venture. Kitano plays the role of the blind swordsman, with Tadanobu Asano, Michiyo Okusu, Yui Natsukawa, Guadalcanal Taka, Daigoro Tachibana, Yuko Daike, Ittoku Kishibe, Saburo Ishikura, and Akira Emoto in supporting roles.
Tsuyoshi Ihara is a Japanese actor, martial artist, and writer of Korean descent.
Eijiro Ozaki is a Japanese actor. To English-speaking audiences he is known for playing Lieutenant Okubo in Letters from Iwo Jima, Kaito Nakamura as a younger man in Heroes Season 2, Masao Kume in Little Boy, and Admiral Inokuchi in The Man in the High Castle Seasons 3 & 4.
Ninja Assassin is a 2009 martial arts film directed by James McTeigue from a story and script by Matthew Sand and J. Michael Straczynski. The film stars Rain as a disillusioned assassin looking for retribution against his former mentor, played by Sho Kosugi. Ninja Assassin explores political corruption, child endangerment and the impact of violence. The film was produced by The Wachowskis, Joel Silver and Grant Hill under Legendary Pictures, Dark Castle Entertainment and Silver Pictures. It was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures.
Outrage is a 2010 Japanese yakuza film written, directed, co-edited and starring Takeshi Kitano. It competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. It is followed by Beyond Outrage (2012) and Outrage Coda (2017).
Dirty Hearts is a 2011 Japanese/Brazilian drama-thriller film directed by Vicente Amorim, based on the book of the same name by Fernando Morais. The film was premiered at Festival do Rio on October 13, 2011, and was released in Brazil on August 17, 2012.
Séance is a 2000 Japanese television horror film directed and co-written by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, based on the 1961 novel Séance on a Wet Afternoon by Mark McShane. The novel had previously been adapted in a 1964 British film of the same name.
American Night is a 2021 neo-noir film written and directed by Alessio Della Valle, in his directorial debut. It stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Emile Hirsch, Jeremy Piven, Paz Vega and Michael Madsen.
London Town is a 2016 American-British drama film directed by Derrick Borte and written by Matt Brown. The film stars Daniel Huttlestone, Dougray Scott, Natascha McElhone, Nell Williams and Jonathan Rhys Meyers.
Black Butterfly is a 2017 American thriller film directed by Brian Goodman and written by Marc Frydman and Justin Stanley. The film stars Antonio Banderas, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Piper Perabo, Abel Ferrara, Vincent Riotta and Nathalie Rapti Gomez. It was released on May 26, 2017, by Lionsgate Premiere. It is based on a 2008 French television film, Papillon Noir, directed by Christian Faure.
The Aspern Papers is a 2018 period drama, co-written, co-produced and directed by Julien Landais, based on Jean Pavans' scenic adaptation of Henry James' eponymous 1888 novel. The film stars Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Joely Richardson and Vanessa Redgrave; Academy Award-winner James Ivory acting as executive producer.
Edge of the World is a 2021 adventure drama film directed by Michael Haussman and starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the British soldier and adventurer James Brooke (1803–1868), the first White Rajah of Sarawak. The film also features Atiqah Hasiholan, Dominic Monaghan, Hannah New, and Josie Ho. The script was written by Rob Allyn, who also produced the film. Edge of the World is a co-production of Malaysia, China, the US and the UK.
Altered Carbon: Resleeved is a 2020 Japanese animated film that is a spin-off of Netflix's Altered Carbon television series. The film is directed by Jō Nakajima and written by Dai Satō and Tsukasa Kondo. Set 253 years before the main events of season 1, and 283 years before the events of season 2, Takeshi Kovacs, on the planet Latimer, must protect a tattooist while investigating the death of a yakuza boss alongside a no-nonsense CTAC.
Ambush is a 2023 war action thriller written by Mark Earl Burman, Michael McClung, Johnny Lozano, and Dillon Slack, directed by Burman and starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Connor Paolo, and Aaron Eckhart.
