3 Best Movies to Watch by Hideo Nakaizumi

actor › Hideo Nakaizumi
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, 2009

When we think about the atrocities committed during World War II, most people would remember the Holocaust, but this war was fought on multiple fronts, not just the West, and one of the most notorious incidents was the Rape of Nanjing. City of Life and Death depicts the massacre in black and white through various perspectives, which proved to be controversial considering some Japanese soldiers were depicted with sympathy, but it drives home the horror, the devastation, the terrible reality of the evil unfurled in the war. City of Life and Death is truly harrowing. The only consolation is that Nanjing thrives today as the Jiangsu province’s capital.

Genre: Drama, History, War

Actor: Beverly Peckous, Fan Wei, Gao Yuanyuan, Hideo Nakaizumi, Jiang Yiyan, John Paisley, Qin Lan, Ryu Kohata, Yao Di, Ye Liu, Yuko Miyamoto

Director: Lu Chuan

Rating: R

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Shot from the movie

, 2013

Sure, it takes a special type of crazy to try to make it in the movies, especially if you’ve been at it for ten years without any sort of premiere, but the strangely persistent four-man production of Why Don’t You Play in Hell? takes this to even crazier heights, involving a yakuza gang war and potentially their lives. Writer-director Sion Sono infuses his signature gore with much more playful comedy, slinging together chaotic action scenes through the pure power of cool, and the entire roster’s enthusiasm for cinema is just so infectious, it’s compelling to watch, even when the plotlines don’t fully mesh well. Why Don't You Play in Hell? is such a fun tribute to gritty action filmmaking.

Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama

Actor: Akaji Maro, Akihiro Kitamura, Akira Yamamoto, Daisuke Kuroda, Denden, Donpei Tsuchihira, Fumi Nikaido, Gen Hoshino, Hakase Suidobashi, Hideo Nakaizumi, Hiroki Hasegawa, Hiroyuki Onoue, Itsuji Itao, Jun Kunimura, Jyonmyon Pe, Kazuki Namioka, Kenjirou Ishimaru, Kyōko Enami, Megumi Kagurazaka, Mickey Curtis, Motoki Fukami, Nanoka Hara, Ōmiya Ichi, Riko Narumi, Shimako Iwai, Shinichi Tsutsumi, Tak Sakaguchi, Taro Suwa, Tasuku Nagaoka, Tetsu Watanabe, Tomochika, Tsugumi

Director: Sion Sono

Rating: NR

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Shot from the movie

, 2011

With the difference between our day-to-day selves and our darker desires, it’s hard to say which side is the real slice of one’s identity, given that there are certain compromises we have to make in existing in society. Cold Fish takes a wildly violent and explicit approach to this, with a seemingly innocent favor spiralling into a toxic co-dependence between tropical fish sellers Yukio and Nobuyuki, and it’s a harrowing depiction of how quiet, unassuming men can be pushed into evil deeds because of passivity, whether that’s being taken advantage of, or being unwilling to speak against it. And of course, with Sion Sono at the helm, it’s painted and etched with all the gore and taboo he’s well known for.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller

Actor: Asuka Kurosawa, Denden, Hideo Nakaizumi, Hikari Kajiwara, Ichiro Hashimoto, Jyonmyon Pe, Kazuma Yamane, Lorena Koto, Makoto Ashikawa, Masahiko Sakata, Masaki Miura, Megumi Kagurazaka, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Natsumi Seto, Ryohei Abe, Suwaru Ryû, Taro Suwa, Tetsu Watanabe

Director: Sion Sono

Rating: NR

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