Kamikaze Girls

Kamikaze Girls centres around the special, yet unlikely, bond that forms between two girls, Momoko (Kyoko Fukada) and Ichigo (Anna Tsuchiya), who are from completely different backgrounds: one dresses in doll-like ‘Lolita’ garb and the other is a surly black-lipsticked biker.  The film is a mildly surreal and comic journey into Japan’s youth subcultures.

No, Not Yet! (Madadayo)

No, Not Yet! (Madadayo)  is a simple, yet engrossing, tale based on the life of Japanese academic and author, Hyakken Uchida (1889–1971). Resigning as professor of German in the period immediately before the Second World War, the plot of the film is centred on his relationship with former students, who care for him in his old age during the harsh post-war period.  Madadayo is the final film made by renowned director Akira Kurosawa.

Breathe In, Breathe Out (Shinkokyu no hitsuyo)

Breathe In, Breathe Out (Shinkokyu no hitsuyo) is set in the picturesque southern islands of Okinawa.  The film details the experiences of a group of young Japanese who work on a plantation cutting sugarcane.  Trouble befalls the group as the deadline to harvest 70,000 sugarcane plants approaches, and they must work as a team to make up the shortfall and ensure that their kind hosts do not face financial ruin. 

A Stranger of Mine (Unmei ja nai hito)

In A Stranger of Mine (Unmei ja nai hito) we witness the events of a single night at a restaurant from the point of view of five different characters. This thrilling and heartwarming tale of fate is an innovative love story that comically depicts the innocence of men and the tenacity of women.