ICM Japanese Movie Nomination List
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- DirectorShunji IwaiStarsHayato IchiharaShûgo OshinariAyumi ItoThe problematic lives of teenager students for whom the singer Lily Chou-Chou's dreamy music is the only way to escape an alienating, violent and insensitive society.
- DirectorKon IchikawaStarsEiji FunakoshiMantarô UshioYoshihiro HamaguchiIn the closing days of WWII, remnants of the Japanese army in Leyte are abandoned by their command and face certain death by starvation.
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsHiroyuki NagatoJitsuko YoshimuraMasao MishimaA young hoodlum decides to work for a criminal organization that is tearing itself apart.
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsKinnosuke NakamuraEijirô TônoKyôko KishidaAfter a salary-man's fiancée attempts suicide, he remembers his gruesome family history, which sees his ancestors sacrificing themselves for the sake of their cruel lords, and realizes that he's about to repeat their mistakes.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraKeiko AwajiDuring a sweltering summer, a rookie homicide detective tries to track down his stolen Colt pistol.
- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsDaveigh ChaseSuzanne PleshetteMiyu IrinoDuring her family's move to the suburbs, a sullen 10-year-old girl wanders into a world ruled by gods, witches and spirits, and where humans are changed into beasts.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneEijirô TônoTatsuya NakadaiA crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsKeiji SadaYoshiko KugaChishû RyûTwo boys begin a silence strike to press their parents into buying them a television set.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsArata IuraErika OdaSusumu TerajimaAfter death, people have a week to choose only one memory to keep for eternity.
- DirectorSatoshi KonStarsJunko IwaoRica MatsumotoShinpachi TsujiA pop singer gives up her career to become an actress, but she slowly goes insane when she starts being stalked by an obsessed fan and what seems to be a ghost of her past.
- DirectorYoshihiko MatsuiStarsToshihiko HinoSimon KumaiYukiko MurataIn the slums of Osaka, various marginalized misfits have their own interpretations of love. Completely alienated from the outside world, they commit sexual perversions, violence and cannibalism.
- DirectorKiyoshi KurosawaStarsTeruyuki KagawaKyôko KoizumiYû KoyanagiAn ordinary Japanese family slowly disintegrates after its patriarch loses his job at a prominent company.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraKeiko TsushimaFarmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTatsuya NakadaiKeiju KobayashiA crafty samurai helps a young man and his fellow clansmen trying to save his uncle, who has been framed and imprisoned by a corrupt superintendent.
- DirectorSatoshi DezakiTsuneo TominagaStarsAkira KamiyaMichiko KawaiHideyuki TanakaCosmo Academy has set a test for ten of its applicants to survive on a spaceship for 2 months. But there is an eleventh member aboard.
- DirectorHideo GoshaStarsTatsuya NakadaiIchirô NakataniHisashi IgawaFresh out of prison, a broken man reluctantly takes a job to kill three men, but changes his mind when some gangsters target the same men. He then tries to find out why the men are being targeted in the first place.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsTatsuya NakadaiAkira TeraoJinpachi NezuIn Medieval Japan, an elderly warlord retires, handing over his empire to his three sons. However, he vastly underestimates how the new-found power will corrupt them and cause them to turn on each other...and him.
- DirectorIsao TakahataStarsTsutomu TatsumiAyano ShiraishiAkemi YamaguchiA young boy and his little sister struggle to survive in Japan during World War II.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsYûya YagiraAyu KitauraHiei KimuraIn 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.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneMachiko KyôMasayuki MoriThe rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.
- DirectorMamoru OshiiStarsMako HyôdôJinpachi NezuKeiichi NodaA mysterious young girl wanders a desolate, otherworldly landscape, carrying a large egg.
- DirectorKaneto ShindôStarsNobuko OtowaJitsuko YoshimuraKei SatôTwo women kill samurai and sell their belongings for a living. While one of them is having an affair with their neighbor, the other woman meets a mysterious samurai wearing a bizarre mask.
- DirectorEiichi KudôStarsRyûtarô ÔtomoMinoru ÔkiHizuru TakachihoThis is a classic early Japanese Ninja movie. The Iga ninjas are a dying breed as Toyotomis rule allows Japan to experience some peace. Juzo, an Iga ninja who had vowed revenge for the death of his family, is hired by a rich weapons merchant to assassinate Toyotomi, restarting his quest for blood. In his way are rival ninja, and his once best friend who has decided to become a government vassal. The main plot centers around the conflicts that confront Juzo. The largest of these is the conflict between Juzo and his oldest friend, Gohei. Then there is the conflict each of these characters has with their respective women, whom are also Ninja in their own right. Finally Juzo is faced with the ultimate conflict between duty and happiness. Can he complete his mission of assassinating Toyotomi? Or will he choose a life of happiness and fulfillment with his woman? There was a remake of this classic in 1999 entitled Owl's Castle, but for people that have seen both versions, this first version, Castle of Owls, stands as the penultimate adaptation of the classic Ryotaro Shiba novel "Ninja hicho fukuro no shiro".
- DirectorHiroshi InagakiStarsToshirô MifuneHideko TakamineHiroshi AkutagawaA poor rickshaw driver finds himself helping a young woman and her son after the woman's husband dies suddenly.
- DirectorShunji IwaiStarsHiroshi MikamiCharaAyumi ItoThe struggles of a group of immigrant outcasts living in an alternative-future, xenophobic Japanese metropolis.
- DirectorNagisa ÔshimaStarsTatsuya FujiEiko MatsudaAoi NakajimaA passionate telling of the story of Sada Abe, a woman whose affair with her master led to an obsessive and ultimately destructive sexual relationship.
- DirectorNagisa ÔshimaStarsTatsuya FujiKazuko YoshiyukiTakahiro TamuraA married woman and her lover murder her husband and dump his body into a well. After a while, his ghost comes to haunt them while the local gossip grows stronger.
- DirectorYasushi KikuchiKôki MatsunoStarsIsamu NagatoTetsurô TanbaHaruko WanibuchiYoung Lord Takenaka stands to succeed his father until a series of violent actions lead his retainers to believe that he has gone insane with blood-lust.
- DirectorUmetsugu InoueStarsRaizô IchikawaHizuru TakachihoMasayo BanriA warlords' retainer offers a farmer the chance to become a samurai, but he is instead forced to serve as a double of the warlord at expense of his freedom.
- DirectorSadao YamanakaStarsChôjûrô KawarasakiKan'emon NakamuraTsuruzô NakamuraThe lives of two slum neighbors, one of a happy-go-lucky gambler and the other of a poor ronin, converge when the two get involved with the affairs of a powerful samurai official and his gangsters.
- DirectorYûzô KawashimaStarsFurankî SakaiSachiko HidariYôko MinamidaIn the last days of the Shogunate, a resourceful grifter seeks to outwit competing prostitutes, rebellious samurai and other inhabitants of a brothel in order to survive the hardened times.
- DirectorYôji YamadaStarsHiroyuki SanadaRie MiyazawaNenji KobayashiAs the feudal Japan era draws to a close, a widower samurai experiences difficulty balancing clan loyalties, 2 young daughters, an aged mother, and the sudden reappearance of his childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorHiroshi TeshigaharaStarsTatsuya NakadaiMikijirô HiraKyôko KishidaA businessman with a disfigured face obtains a lifelike mask from his doctor, but the mask starts altering his personality.
- DirectorSatoshi KonStarsMegumi HayashibaraTôru EmoriKatsunosuke HoriWhen a machine that allows therapists to enter their patients' dreams is stolen, all hell breaks loose. Only a young female therapist, Paprika, can stop it.
- DirectorKatsuyuki MotohiroStarsEita NagayamaYoshiaki YozaDaijirô KawaokaA sci-fi club concocts a plan to repair a remote by using a time machine that suddenly appears.
- DirectorKon IchikawaStarsRentarô MikuniShôji YasuiTatsuya MihashiA conscience-driven Japanese soldier traumatized by the events of WWII adopts the lifestyle of a Buddhist monk.
- DirectorMamoru HosodaStarsRiisa NakaTakuya IshidaMitsutaka ItakuraA high-school girl named Makoto acquires the power to travel back in time, and decides to use it for her own personal benefits. Little does she know that she is affecting the lives of others just as much as she is her own.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneMisa UeharaMinoru ChiakiLured by gold, two greedy peasants unknowingly escort a princess and her general across enemy lines.
- DirectorSatoshi DezakiStarsKazuhiko InoueMaya OkamotoKiyoshi KobayashiIn a barren, war torn future Earth, a soldier and his female comrade look for a lost friend in a quest that would shake their reality.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsTakashi ShimuraNobuo KanekoShin'ichi HimoriA bureaucrat tries to find meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.
- DirectorMasaki KobayashiStarsTatsuya NakadaiAkira IshihamaShima IwashitaWhen a ronin requesting seppuku at a feudal lord's palace is told of the brutal suicide of another ronin who previously visited, he reveals how their pasts are intertwined - and in doing so challenges the clan's integrity.
- DirectorJun FukudaStarsHiroshi FujiokaKaoru YumiMasao KusakariA bad ESP syndicate is planning to kill world leaders through mental telepathy. The good guys are a top secret group called ESPY and they're in charge of stopping the killer psychics.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsKinuyo TanakaYoshiaki HanayagiKyôko KagawaIn medieval Japan, a compassionate governor is sent into exile. His wife and children try to join him, but are separated, and the children grow up amid suffering and oppression.
- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsHitoshi TakagiNoriko HidakaChika SakamotoWhen two girls move to the country to be near their ailing mother, they have adventures with the wondrous forest spirits who live nearby.
- DirectorHeinosuke GoshoStarsJitsuko YoshimuraKeizô KawasakiTaiji TonoyamaOshima Ayako, a young woman in her teens, lives in a small, impoverished fishing village. Her father is too ill to work. As a result, her mother sells her to a nearby brothel. There she quickly is stripped of her innocence and illusions.
- DirectorKazuo MoriStarsRaizô IchikawaMikio NaritaYumiko NogawaA former soldier, reduced to working at a restaurant post-war, becomes a contract killer for the yakuza gangs he's in contact with.
- DirectorMikio NaruseStarsHideko TakamineMasayuki MoriMariko OkadaA tragic social drama set in post war Japan and concerns a lonely woman trying to find purpose and stability in a devastated Tokyo.
- DirectorMori MasakiStarsIssei MiyazakiCatherine BattistoneYoshie ShimamuraA powerful statement against war, Barefoot Gen is a disturbing story about the effect of the atomic bomb on a boy's life and the lives of the Japanese people.
- DirectorShûji TerayamaStarsKaoru YachigusaKeiko NiitakaMasumi HarukawaA young boys' coming of age tale set in a strange, carnivalesque village becomes the recreation of a memory that the director has twenty years later.
- DirectorHideyuki HirayamaStarsEtsushi ToyokawaChizuru IkewakiKôji KikkawaA talented but troubled Edo Period swordsman, Kanemi Sanzaemon. Three years earlier, Kanemi killed a woman, Renko, the corrupt mistress of the powerful daimyo Tabu Ukyou. Unexpectedly, Kanemi received a lenient sentence for his crime and is allowed to return to his clan after only one year of imprisonment. Following his return, Kanemi is faced with the death of his wife, Mutsue. Thereafter, Kanemi lives with and cares for his wife's niece, Satoo, who has secret affections for Kanemi and expresses them by helping change his bleak outlook on life. Meanwhile, Kanemi's develops his unique "bird-catching" sword technique which he will soon put to test in battle for the first time against the fearsome swordsman, Hayatonosho Obiya.
- DirectorKeisuke KinoshitaStarsShima IwashitaMariko KagaGô KatôA Tokyo family escaping the war relocates to a Hokkaido village; their daughter is set to marry the local leader's son, but her siblings disapprove, which eventually leads to a violent tragedy.
- CreatorChiaki KonakaStarsHiroko KasaharaYasunori MasutaniRyûsei NakaoIn the year 2046, a cop and his female android partner called Armitage, part of the latest android line known as "class III" models that look, act and feel human, investigate illegal manufacture of class III androids on colonized Mars.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsTatsuya NakadaiTsutomu YamazakiKen'ichi HagiwaraA petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsKazuo HasegawaKyôko KagawaEitarô ShindôIshun is a wealthy but unsympathetic master printer who has wrongly accused his wife and best employee of being lovers. To escape punishment, the accused run away together, but Ishun is certain to be ruined if word gets out.
- DirectorRyôtarô MakiharaStarsYoshimasa HosoyaYôko HikasaMamoru MiyanoA humanoid robot is asked to replace Hal, who was killed in a terrible accident, in order help Hal's girlfriend move on in life, but struggles to understand the real Hal's past and the meaning of being alive.
- DirectorMasahiro ShinodaStarsRyô IkebeMariko KagaTakashi FujikiA gangster gets released from prison and has to cope with the recent shifts of power between the gangs, while taking care of a thrill-seeking young woman, who got in bad company while gambling.
- DirectorMasaki KobayashiStarsHideko TakamineKeiji SadaYoshiko KugaA family in the city of Tokyo running a liquor store overcome their impotence and dysfunction as they induce an understanding through each other of how to deal with their individual problems.
- DirectorTatsuo SatôMasaaki YuasaA young anthropomorphic cat goes on a psychedelic journey with his sister in order to save her soul.
- DirectorKihachirô KawamotoStarsIsao HashizumeJi Chang wants to be the best archer in the world. He seeks out a master who is able, at a distance, to shoot a single leaf off a tree. Over several years, the apprentice studies with the master. Finally, after mastering the techniques, as well as his own ambition, he sets off for the mountains, home of a legendary master of archery...
- DirectorMamoru OshiiKôji SawaiStarsToshio FurukawaDavid JarvisDoug ErholtzThe screwball cops of Special Vehicles Section 2 Division 2 must investigate and stop a spree of rampaging construction robots.
- DirectorShin'ichi TsujiStarsMîna TominagaBin ShimadaNachi NozawaAfter two-month-old kitten Chibi-neko is abandoned by her former owners, she is found by 18-year-old Tokio. Although his mother is allergic to cats and has a great fear of them, she agrees to let him keep the kitten because she fears he is becoming too withdrawn after failing his university entrance exams. Chibi-neko soon falls in love with Tokio. In her own mind, Chibi-neko is a small human who speaks in human words, although people only ever seem to hear her meow, and she believes that all humans were once kittens like her. A stray cat tells Chibi-neko of a paradise called Cottonland, where dreams can come true.
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsHiroshi SekineMiwa SekineTaku SekineThis documentary follows the life of a man who has a disability which prevents him from forming new memories. The vital importance of human memory is revealed through his daily interactions with his family and the filmmakers.
- DirectorTeinosuke KinugasaStarsRaizô IchikawaYukiko FujiMiyako EndôA Buddhist priest becomes also a magician, dedicating himself to the protection of life wherever it's needed, whereupon he finds himself in direct service of the Queen. Political intrigue tightens around him as it is increasingly assumed that he harbors ulterior motives. Set in Japan's Nara Era (710 - 794 A.D.), the story is loosely based on Mikado (Empress) Koken-Shotoku and Dokyo, a Yamabushi (mountain warrior monk who practices a rugged, intense form of Vajrayana Buddhism founded by his master, Do-en).
- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsShûichirô MoriyamaTokiko KatôBunshi Katsura VIIn 1930s Italy, a veteran World War I pilot is cursed to look like an anthropomorphic pig.
- DirectorAtsushi YamatoyaStarsMiki WatariYûichi MinatoShôhei YamamotoA private detective is hired to find a woman who has apparently been murdered in a snuff film. It turns out the woman's not dead, but very much alive, and he gets sucked into a torrid affair with her that leaves him questioning his sense of reality.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneYûzô KayamaTsutomu YamazakiIn 19th-century Japan, a rough-tempered yet charitable town doctor trains a young intern.
- DirectorTakeshi KoikeStarsTakuya KimuraYû AoiTadanobu AsanoA story about the most popular racing event in the galaxy, the Redline, and the various racers who compete in it.
- DirectorKinji FukasakuStarsKen TakakuraRentarô MikuniKin'ya KitaôjiA lonely gangster tries recruiting men to plunder a respected and powerful gang.
- DirectorHideo GoshaStarsTetsurô TanbaIsamu NagatoMikijirô HiraWhen poor peasants kidnap a magistrate's daughter to coerce him into reducing their unfair taxes, a wandering ronin decides to give them some help.
- DirectorKôichi ChigiraYoshikazu YasuhikoStarsKatsuhide UekusaYûko MizutaniEriko HaraTwo thriving colonies, Ishtar and Aphrodia, exist on the planet Venus in the year 2089. War breaks out, and Ishtar invades Aphrodia, sweeping its residents, including motorcycle rider Hiro and his teammates, into the chaos of the conflict.
- DirectorKinji FukasakuStarsTatsuya FujiwaraAki MaedaTarô YamamotoIn the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.
- DirectorKei KumaiStarsEiji OkudaToshirô MifuneKinnosuke NakamuraYears after the death of legendary tea master Rikyu, his disciple Honkakubo attempts to resolve the mystery of the master's death.
- DirectorHideo GoshaStarsRumi AikiHideyo AmamotoNoboru AndôAfter going to prison for killing the boss of the Kanno gang, a gangster gets released early - only to find that his ex-gang has merged with the Kannos. But with bitter resentments lingering on both sides, bloodshed is bound to begin anew.
- DirectorKoreyoshi KuraharaStarsTamio KawajiYuko ChiyoEiji GôA juvenile delinquent gets out of the pen and causes reckless mayhem, mostly directed at the girlfriend of the journalist who helped send him up.
- DirectorTakashi MiikeStarsMasahiro MotokiRenji IshibashiMakoA salaryman and yakuza are each sent by their bosses to a remote Chinese village but discover more than they expected.
- DirectorKatsuhiro ÔtomoStarsMitsuo IwataNozomu SasakiMami KoyamaA secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psychic psychopath who can only be stopped by a teenager, his gang of biker friends and a group of psychics.
- DirectorToshiaki ToyodaStarsRyûhei MatsudaHirofumi AraiSôsuke TakaokaA group of a run-down Tokyo high school students face the struggles of growing up, growing apart from their friends and worrying about their future, while living in a highly violent environment.
- DirectorMasahiro ShinodaStarsShima IwashitaYoshio HaradaTomoko NaraokaA blind traveling musician is abused and oppressed while she tours the country, even though the modern world imposes changes on people's behavior.
- DirectorMasaki KobayashiStarsTatsuya NakadaiKomaki KuriharaWakako SakaiThe story takes place in feudal Japan, when any commerce with the rest of the world was strictly prohibited. An idealist suddenly appears in an isolated inn (the one that the title refers to), the head-quarters of a group of smugglers, with stolen money intended to ransom his loved one who is forced to work in a brothel.
- DirectorKôji YamamuraStarsSensaku ShigeyamaShigeru ShigeyamaDoji ShigeyamaSurreal events occur when a hapless country doctor visits an ill boy one cold night.
- DirectorYasuzô MasumuraStarsAyako WakaoTakahiro TamuraNobuo ChibaOn the eve of the Russo-Japanese war at the beginning of the 20th century, small-town girl Okane has married an old wealthy man to escape a life of poverty.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneIsuzu YamadaKyôko KagawaIn a Japanese slum, various residents play out their lives, dreaming of better things or settling for their lot. Among them is a man who pines for a young woman but is stymied by her deceptive family.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsKen OgataMasayuki ShionoyaHiroshi MikamiA fictionalized account in four chapters of the life of celebrated Japanese writer Yukio Mishima.
- DirectorKihachi OkamotoStarsYûzô KayamaMakoto SatôTatsuya MihashiWhile testing the advance prototype of a revolutionary gas engine, the vehicle is involved in a mysterious accident killing its driver. The police report states that it was an accident, caused by the driver. But driver's younger brother senses foul play.
- DirectorHiroshi TeshigaharaStarsEiji OkadaKyôko KishidaKôji MitsuiAn entomologist on vacation is trapped by local villagers into living with a woman whose life task is shoveling sand for them.
- DirectorYoshishige YoshidaStarsMariko OkadaYoshie MinamiTadahiko SuganoA woman, unhappily married to a cheating executive, starts meeting her dead mother's lover and gets thrown into a romantic dilemma after succumbing to a rough laborer.
- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsYôji MatsudaYuriko IshidaYûko TanakaOn a journey to find the cure for a Tatarigami's curse, Ashitaka finds himself in the middle of a war between the forest gods and Tatara, a mining colony. In this quest he also meets San, the Mononoke Hime.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraMiki SanjôA surgeon gets syphilis from a patient when he cuts himself during an operation. The doctor's life is destroyed, but unlike the patient, he doesn't destroy others along with him.
- DirectorKiyoshi SaekiStarsKen TakakuraRyô IkebeYoshiko MitaAfter World War II, their town was a pile of rubble. Gennosuke, the second generation boss of the Kamizu Group was upholding yakuza chivalry by keeping black-market and illegal items out of their open-air market. Taking advantage of the mess, Iwasa and his gang take hold of goods from the US military, black-market and controlled items in order to become the most powerful group in Enko area.
- DirectorShûji TerayamaStarsHiroshi MikamiTakeshi WakamatsuKeiko NiitakaA young man, haunted by his past, travels the land in search of the lyrics to a lullaby his mother used to sing to him.
- DirectorTai KatôStarsNoboru AndôIchirô NakataniSanae NakaharaKorean gangsters try to take over from their Japanese counterparts in post war Japan.
- DirectorTaiji Yabushita
- DirectorYoshishige YoshidaStarsMariko OkadaShigeru TsuyuguchiTamotsu HayakawaA married woman lets her lover take naked pictures of her. The photos end up in possession of a man who starts blackmailing the couple.
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsNarutoshi HayashiRaizô IchikawaTatsuya IshiguroAfter his father is not rewarded for his military achievements, Taira Kiyomori rebels against the court and the monks who rule the country. He also falls in love with Tokiko and discovers unsettling revelations about his parentage.
- DirectorJunji KurataStarsOgami AyunosukeYoshio InabaRyûji KitaLord Gennosuke is to be betrothed to Princess Yoshi, but Gennosuke is already in love with Suzue, who is from a lower caste. The order has been sent from up on high that if he won't change his mind, then Suzue must be dealt with one way or another. Then spearmaster Fuwa Mondo, a Ronin and all-around happy guy, stumbles into the plot.
- DirectorJûzô ItamiStarsKen WatanabeTsutomu YamazakiNobuko MiyamotoA truck driver stops at a small family-run noodle shop and decides to help its fledgling business. The story is intertwined with various vignettes about the relationship of love and food.
- DirectorYûgo SerikawaWilliam RossStarsMorio KazamaYukiko OkadaChiharu KuriPrince Susano's mother dies; when his father tells him she has gone to another place, he sets off in search of her. He builds a boat and goes to see, first, his brother, in his crystal palace in the land of night (where he causes much damage to the palace, but his brother still gives him a magic ice crystal). Next, he fights the fire god, who gives him a magic bird after Susano defeats him, with help from the magic crystal and his little rabbit sidekick. Susano also picks up another traveling companion, a large but dim villager. Next, he goes to his sister, in the land of light. As with his brother, though, he causes much unintentional damage; his sister, who also happens to be the sun, goes off to hide in a cave. The frantic villagers stage a party (in the original legend, an orgy) outside the cave and trick her into coming outside again. Finally, Susano finds a little princess whose land is being threatened by an 8-headed dragon. With the help of a flying horse (who we later learn was sent by his sister) and his sidekicks, they get the dragon a bit drunk and take out one head at a time (mostly, though two of the last three take each other out).
- DirectorMakoto ShinkaiStarsMiyu IrinoKana HanazawaFumi HiranoOn a rainy morning in Tokyo, 15-year-old Takao, an aspiring shoemaker, decides to skip class to sketch designs in a beautiful garden. This is where he meets Yukari, a beautiful yet mysterious woman. They strike an unlikely friendship.
- DirectorYôji YamadaStarsTakuya KimuraRei DanMitsugorô BandôA look at the relationship between a young blind samurai (Kimura) and his wife, who will make a sacrifice in order to defend her husband's honor.