Hisashi Igawa

Hisashi Igawa
Country: Japan
Total Credits at Criticker: 41 (Actor)
Biography and picture submitted by Bullt
Titles you haven't rated - Actor (41)
Madadayo
This film tells the story of professor Uehida Hyakken-sama (1889-1971), in Gotemba, around the forties. He was a university professor until an air raid, when he left to become a writer and has to live in a hut. His mood has hardly changed, not by the change nor by time. Every year his students celebrate his birthday, issuing the question "Mahda kai?" (not yet?), just to hear Uehida-san's answer "Madada yo!" (No, not yet!), in a ritual of self affirmation, and desires of lasting forever. It's a very "japanese" film who portrays everyday life and customs in Japan. (imdb)
Ran
An elderly lord abdicates to his three sons, and the two corrupt ones turn against him. (imdb)
Akira Kurosawa\
A collection of tales based upon the dreams of Kurosawa.
47 Ronin
Oishi Kuranosuke, a chamberlain of the Ako-Asano Clan loses his master to Seppuku. The Asano Lord was forced to commit suicide because of his provoked attack on Lord Kira during the reception for the envoys. In the aftermath, Oishi disbands the clan publicly and at the same time recruits a crew of 47 samurai. They patiently prepare their plans for a year and a half and then storm the fortress of Lord Kira in a mission that-succeed or fail- will ultimately end in their deaths. (asianwiki)
Rhapsody in August
The story centers on an elderly hibakusha, who lost her husband in the 1945 atomic bombing of Nagasaki, caring for her four grandchildren over the summer. She learns of a long-lost brother, Suzujiro, living in Hawaii who wants her to visit him before he dies. American film star Richard Gere appears as Suzujiro's son Clark.
The Face of Another
A businessman facially scarred in a laboratory fire receives psychotherapy from a psychiatrist, and obtains an amazingly lifelike mask from the doctor... (imdb)
Dodes\
Episodes from the lives of a group of Tokyo slum-dwellers: Rokkuchan, a retarded boy who brings meaning and routine to his life by driving an imaginary streetcar (imdb)
Harakiri
An elder ronin samurai arrives at a feudal lord's home and requests an honorable place to commit suicide. But when the ronin inquires about a younger samurai who arrived before him things take an unexpected turn. (imdb)
Goyokin
A guilt-haunted samurai warrior attempts to stop a massacre taking place. (imdb)
Zatoichi\
In this 14th installment of the series, our reluctant warrior, Zatoichi (Katsu), is ambushed by a gang of bandits, and is forced to kill a young man in self-defense. In an odd quirk of fate, Zatoichi meets his victim's sister, Okichi (Yasuda), who attacks him in a fit of uncontrolled anger. Later, realizing that he had no choice in his actions, Okichi's conscience gets the better of her, and as she cares for Zatoichi's wounds, the two fall in love. (amazon)
Bullet Ballet
A man sees his life changed for ever when his fiancee shoots herself. Baffled, he wants by all means to obtain such a weapon of destruction and he finds himself caught in a violent group of young vicious punks. They first beat him severely and then he seeks revenge with his fist, then with a gun. (imdb)
Ame agaru
Ihei Misawa and his wife Tayo, stranded by rains at a country inn, bring a great deal of happiness to the other residents of the inn by means of Ihei's generosity and good spirit. Ihei is a masterless samurai and fencing expert. Ihei comes to the attention of Lord Shigeaki, who hires him as fencing instructor for Lord Shigeaki's men. But Ihei's expertise causes friction and jealousy in Shigeaki's castle and his future there comes into doubt. (imdb)
Pitfall
A man wanders into a seemingly deserted town with his young son in search of work. But after a bit of bad luck, he joins the town's population of lost souls. (imdb)
Basara - The Princess Goh
The film centers on Gohime, a vivacious tomboy living on Hideyoshi's estate who soon develops a strong friendship with Oribe. When the brash young Gohime learns that officials looking to curry favor with Hideyoshi have publicly exhibited Rikyu's head, she and Oribe's gallant gardener Usu retrieve it and place the disembodied body part at Rikyu's gravesite. (All Movie Guide)
Jose Torres
Jose Torres (1959) - Short Film
A short documentary about the boxer Jose Torres
The Professor and His Beloved Equation
This is the story between single mother housekeeper and mathematics professor,who has a brain damage. (imdb)
Three Outlaw Samurai
Shiba, a wandering ronin, encounters a band of peasants who have kidnapped the daughter of their dictatorial magistrate, in hopes of coercing from him a reduction in taxes. Shiba takes up their fight, joined by two renegades from the magistrate's guard, Sakura and Kikyo. The three outlaws find themselves in a battle to the death. (imdb)
Home from the Sea
On a beautiful island in Seto Inner Sea, Seichi and Minko make their living by transporting rocks to construction sites by boat. They cherish the deepest affection for this piece of land they call home, and the simple life they lead. But rapid industrial growth makes it all but impossible to continue their chosen living style, and they are forced to leave their beloved hometown in search of a brighter future.... (imdb)
Hachi-ko
The true story about a dog's loyalty to its master, even after his death (imdb)
Kazoku
An epic about one man's family's journey to discover the new Japan. They are Seiichi Kazami, a young, out-of-work coal miner; Tamiko, his wife; their two small children, and Genzo, Seiichi's old father. (nytimes)
The Wolves
Wolves is set in Japan in the 1920s. The disintegration of the ancient samurai traditions is paralleled with the rise of the Yakuza, Japan's equivalent of the Mafia. Three gangsters try to keep themselves from getting killed, not only by their higher-ups but by those who perceive them as a threat against the old ways.
The Village
A quasi-docu-drama pertaining to the monumental process to bring a performance troupe to a small Japanese village to perform for one night. (dvdbeaver.com)
Otoko-tachi no Yamato
Makiko Uchida arrives in a southern Japanese port hoping to find a boat that will take her to the final resting place of the Battleship Yamato on the 60th anniversary of its sinking. She is rebuffed by all until she reveals to Katsumi Kamio that she is the daughter of Petty Officer Uchida. (imdb)
Cash Calls Hell
Oida goes to prison after causing the death of a man and his daughter in a traffic accident. Shortly before being released, his cellmate offers him half of 30,000,000 yen if he follows instructions without questioning. Having nothing left to lose he decides to give it a try. The job turns out to involve the assassination of three men and Oida has second thoughts after meeting with one of them. However, someone else is after the men on Oida's list and now it is up to him to warn them.
Demon Pond
Outside of a small village in Japan, a mysterious pond is inhabited by mythic creatures. Their story is of revenge, tragedy, and the power of real love. A classical tale which translates wonderfully to film. (imdb)
Fukai kawa
Three Japanese tourists - a soldier, a divorced woman, and a salaryman - make a pilgrimage to the Ganges River in India, each in hopes of finding some spiritual release or meaning in life. (imdb)
Sonezaki shinju
This classic tale is the Japanese Romeo & Juliet. When the starcrossed lovers get to the climactic suicide scene, it is stretched out in lurid detail and their white garments are totally encrimsoned by the time they have finished the horrific chore. (imdb)
The Fossil
An industrialist learns of a medical condition which will greatly shorten his life. He is on a trip to Europe at the time, and a glimpse of a Japanese woman in that setting causes him to fantasize about her as the personification of his impending death. As his dialogue with his imagined mortality continues, he actually meets the living woman who is the template for his fantasy, and together they tour rural churches. (All Movie Guide)
Gassan
This film chronicles a winter in the life of a young man at a temple on Mount Gassan in northern Japan.
Moeru aki
A woman interested in Persian carpets learns of the 5000-year history behind one carpet, and begins to look for something even more important in life than love and happiness... A co-production between Toho Studios and the Mitsukoshi department store. Based on a novel by Hiroyuki Itsuki. (movie.goo.ne.jp (translated))
Mt. Tsurugidake
In late Meiji period Japan, a group of Army surveyors set out to map one of the last and most dangerous unexplored mountains in the country.
Christmas in August
Remake of 1998 South Korean film Christmas in August directed by Jin-ho Hur (asianwiki.com)
The Firefly
A World War II pilot (Ken Takakura) reflects on the friendships he forged in the past. (google)
Zoku Shinya shokudô
Sequel of the story about a small Tokyo restaurant that opens at late night and has clients with unusual lives.
Kamigata Kugaizoshi
Set during Japan's Meiji period, three sisters are abused and exploited by their harsh father, including a daughter who plays the three-corded shamisen for pilgrims visiting the sacred chapel of Ise.
Sono kido o tootte
When an amnesiac woman walks into the household of a young samurai no one knows what to make of the mysterious newcomer. However, with her serene beauty and hard working etiquette both the master of the house, who is engaged, and the servants soon come to admire the woman whom they have named Fusa. This changes everything. Still, Fusa and her new friends and family know nothing about her circumstance prior to her arrival.
The River of Reconciliation
This documentary presents the mutual point of views of the history and relationship between Japan and Korea in this breakthrough documentary film. High school students, Japanese and Koreans born in Japan, meet and over two years, despite barriers, gain understanding and friendship. This journey of youth takes place against the beautiful scenery of the Shimanto River. (BIFF)
Zatôichi Monogatari - Season 4
Oni no uta
Bakyo is a talented but unsuccessful rakugo artist. The very successful Rokyu wants to take Bakyo under his wings, but Bakyo refuses, claiming that Rokyu's rakugo is compromised by the elements of kabuki. But Bakyo changes his mind and determines to learn (or steal) Rokyu's craft and makes it his own.
Tom Cat Holmes\
A detective film by Nobuhiko Ōbayashi. Made for TV.
Ashita
People from all walks of life all receive mysterious messages from loved ones who were killed 3 months earlier in a shipwreck. They are instructed to go to a small island in the Inland Sea that evening.