This epic masterpiece is about a group of 16th century samurai who are hired to defend a small Japanese village that finds itself annually raided by an army of bandits who steal the meager crops harvested by the peasants. Tired of relinquishing their food supply but woefully inept in combat skills, the villagers decide to hire a band of samurai to protect them. In addition to the primary conflict between the villagers and the bandits, much of the...

Set in 1960, a power vacuum is formed within the Muraoka family when underboss Uchimoto (Takeshi Kato) refuses to avenge the assassination of a superior. With the help of series hero Shozo Hirono (Bunta Sugawara), Uchimoto pledges loyalty to the powerful Akashi gang, but is soon expelled from the Muraoka for the act. Meanwhile, Akashi rivals the Shinwa Group form their own pact with Muraoka, and the enmity between the two gangs threatens to erupt...

In ancient China, a young boy dreams of becoming the greatest general of the Qin Kingdom.

"An Imperial Japanese Army regiment surrenders to British forces in Burma at the close of World War II and finds harmony through song. A private, thought to be dead, stumbles upon spiritual enlightenment disguising himself as a Buddhist monk and stumbles upon spiritual enlightenment. Magnificently shot in hushed black and white"--Container.

In 1945, the United States and Japanese armies met on Iwo Jima. Decades later, hundreds of letters are unearthed from that stark island's soil. The letters give faces and voices to the men who fought there, as well as the extraordinary general who led them. Leading the defense is Lt. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi. With little defense other than sheer will and the volcanic rock of the island itself, Gen. Kuribayashi's unprecedented tactics transform...

Rurouni Kenshin Part III takes place after Kenshin's confrontation with Shishio ends in defeat. Kenshin Himura awakens at the home of his old Master. With his mind set on revenge, he trains day and night to learn the final technique of his deadly fighting style. While he builds up his strength, Shishio and his army attack the coastline and force the new government to name Kenshin a wanted man.

Chronicles the events leading up to Emperor Hirohito's momentous speech, the historic renunciation of his divine status, and his meetings with General Douglas MacArthur, the commander-in-chief of the occupying American forces, who advises his own president not to declare the Japanese leader a war criminal.

Sanshiro Sugata: Akira Kurosawa's effortless debut is based on a novel by Tsuneo Tomita about the rivalry between judo and jujitsu. The most beautiful: This portrait of female volunteer workers at an optics plant during world War II, shot on location at the Nippon Kogaku factory, was created with a patriotic agenda. Sahshiro Sugata, part two: This sequel is a hugely entertaining adventure, reuniting most of the major players from the original and...

"Having refined his craft in the silent era, Kenji Mizoguchi was an elder statesman of Japanese cinema fiercely revered by Akira Kurosawa and other younger directors by the time he made Ugetsu. And with this exquisite ghost story, a fatalistic wartime tragedy derived from stories by Akinari Ueda and Guy de Maupassant, he created a touchstone of his art, his long takes and sweeping camera guiding the viewer through a delirious narrative about two villagers...

SAMURAI WOLF: Isao Natsuyagi stars as Kiba, a charismatic ronin who wanders into a small town and ends up ensnared in a local conflict that's more than meets the eye. After dispatching a pair of highway criminals seen robbing a courier wagon, Kiba agrees to assist a beautiful blind woman who runs the local shipping company. SAMURAI WOLF 2: HELL CUT: Charismatic ronin Kiba returns, once again entangled in a complex web of intrigue, involving a crooked...