Meiko Kaji
is a Japanese actress and singer. Since the 1960s, she has appeared in over 100 film and television roles, most prominently in the 1970s with her most famous roles as outlaw characters, best known for her performances in the film series ''Alleycat Rock: Female Boss, Stray Cat Rock'', ''Wandering Ginza Butterfly'', ''Female Prisoner 701: Scorpion'' and ''Lady Snowblood (film), Lady Snowblood''. Kaji also performed as a singer, releasing records concurrently with her film career and beyond, even providing the official feature theme song tracks to a few of the films she also starred in. Career Acting career Meiko Kaji was born Masako Ōta in the Kanda, Tokyo, Kanda area of Tokyo and graduated from the Yakumo Academy high school in Meguro, Tokyo. She began to work in the film industry under her real name at Nikkatsu studio in 1965 after graduating from high school. Her first supporting film role was in 1968 in ''Retaliation (film), Retaliation''. In 1969 she appeared in ''Nihon Zank ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chiyoda, Tokyo
is a special ward located in central Tokyo, Japan. It is known as Chiyoda City in English.Profile ." ''City of Chiyoda''. Retrieved on December 28, 2008. It was formed in 1947 as a merger of and wards following 's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. The modern Chiyoda ward exhibits contrasting [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lady Snowblood (manga)
is a Japanese manga series written by Kazuo Koike and illustrated by Kazuo Kamimura. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Playboy'' magazine from February 1972 to March 1973. The series revolves around the title character, a female assassin who seeks vengeance against the bandits who raped her mother and murdered both her father and older brother. ''Lady Snowblood'' was translated into English and published in four volumes by Dark Horse Comics between 2005 and 2006. The manga was adapted into a live-action film of the same name starring Meiko Kaji in 1973, which was followed by '' Lady Snowblood: Love Song of Vengeance'' in 1974. The manga and film adaptations have influenced a number of other works. Title The Japanese title ''Shurayuki-hime'' is a pun on . Additionally, ''shura'' nods to the Buddhist path of the asura, in which a devout follower is prepared to kill. The title was translated as ''Lady Snowblood'' because Asura is associated with the term ''shuraba'' "sc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fuji Television
JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba today is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo. Odaiba was initially built in this area for defensive purposes in the 1850s. Reclaimed land offshore Shinagawa was dramatically expanded durin ..., Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned-and-operated station, Owned and operated by the it is the flagship (broadcasting), key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System. It is also known for its long-time slogan, ''"If it's not fun, it's not TV!"'' Fuji Television also operates three premium television stations, known as "Fuji TV One" ("Fuji TV 739"—sports/variety, including all Tokyo Yakult Swallows home games), "Fuji TV Two" ("Fuji TV 721"—drama/anime), and "Fuji TV Next" ("Fuji TV CSHD"—live premium shows) (called together as "Fuji TV OneTwoNext"), all available in High-definition television, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shochiku
() is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not all, anime films produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks). Its best remembered directors include Yasujirō Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Mikio Naruse, Keisuke Kinoshita and Yōji Yamada. It has also produced films by highly regarded independent and "loner" directors such as Takashi Miike, Takeshi Kitano, Akira Kurosawa, Masaki Kobayashi and Taiwanese New Wave director Hou Hsiao-hsien. Shochiku is one of the four members of the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (MPPAJ), and the oldest of Japan's "Big Four" film studios. History As Shochiku Kinema The company was founded in 1895 as a kabuki production company and later began producing films in 1920. Shochiku is considered the oldest company in Japan involved in present-day film production, b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Onihei Hankachō
is a series of historical novels written by Japanese author Shōtarō Ikenami. Following the character Heizo Hasegawa in the Edo period of Japan, Ikegami wrote the first story for the December 1967 issue of the light novel magazine ' published by Bungeishunjū. It was well-received and began serialization in January 1968. Ikenami wrote 19 books in the main series before he died in 1990. As of 2021, the series had 30 million copies in circulation. ''Onihei Hankachō'' was also adapted into TV programs, a manga series, live-action films and theater productions. An anime television adaption aired in 2017. Story The title character is Heizo Hasegawa, a historical person who was a Hitsuke Tōzoku Aratamekata Chōkan ( Superintendent General of the investigation agency specialized in theft and armed robbery and arson). He started as a chartered libertine before succeeding his father as his heir and being appointed the head of the special police who had jurisdiction over arson-robberie ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Under The Open Sky
is a 2020 Japanese drama film directed by Miwa Nishikawa. The film premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. Plot Mikami, a middle-aged former yakuza who has spent most of his life in prison, is released after serving 13 years for murder. Hoping to find his long-lost mother, from whom he was separated as a child, he applies to a TV show and meets young TV director Tsunoda. Meanwhile, Mikami struggles to get a proper job and fit in society. His impulsive, adamant nature and ingrained beliefs cause friction in his relationship with Tsunoda and those who want to help him. (cited from Aoi Pro) Cast * Kōji Yakusho as Masao Mikami * Taiga Nakano as Ryūtarō Tsunoda * Seiji Rokkaku as Ryōsuke Matsumoto * Yukiya Kitamura as Hisatoshi Iguchi * Hakuryu as Akimasa Shimoinaba * Midoriko Kimura as Masuko Shimoinaba * Shūhei Takahashi * Maho Yamada * Rina Sakuragi as Lily-san * Yōhei Matsukado * Tamaki Shiratori * Eita Okuno * Takumi Matsuzawa * Masami Nagasawa as Haruka ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sonezaki Shinju (1978 Film)
is a 1978 Japanese historical romance film directed by Yasuzo Masumura starring Ryudo Uzaki and Meiko Kaji based on the Chikamatsu play of the same name. Plot The plot follows closely the original play. Tokubei (Ryudo Uzaki) works as a soy-sauce maker. He falls in love with indentured prostitute O-Hatsu (Meiko Kaji). After O-Hatsu's indenture is bought by a wealthy patron, they plan to commit suicide. Cast * Ryudo Uzaki - Tokubei * Meiko Kaji - O-Hatsu * Hisashi Igawa - Kyuemon * Sachiko Hidari - O-Sai * Isao Hashimoto - Kuheiji * Gen Kimura - Kichibei Production Masumura's treatment of the play is quite literal, and was considered by some (McDonald, 1994) the most faithful screen adaptation of any of Chikamatsu's plays second only to Kurisaki's puppet version two years later. Masumura's casting of Uzaki, a rock star, and Kaji, a young idol, signaled an energetic approach to the story, though the film was restrained by Masumura's standards and did not contain the elements ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yakuza Graveyard
''Yakuza Graveyard'', known in Japan as , is a 1976 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. The screenplay by Kazuo Kasahara is based on a concept by Norimichi Matsudaira, Naoyuki Sugimoto and Kyo Namura. ''Complex'' named it number 17 on their list of The 25 Best Yakuza Movies. Kino International released the film on DVD in North America in 2006. Plot Kuroiwa, a police investigator born in Manchukuo, is cracking down on yakuza business but his rough methods often get him in trouble with his superiors and he is transferred to a new beat in Osaka. Kuroiwa is sleeping with the widow of a man he killed and she demands that he give her enough money to open up her own bar. When Kuroiwa humiliates and beats a group of young yakuza from the Nishida family, the Nishida family offers him money to be on their side in a turf war against the Yamashiro family, but he refuses. The Nishida family tells underboss Matsunaga's half-Korean wife Keiko to convince Kuroiwa to take their side. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kinji Fukasaku
was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Known for his "broad range and innovative filmmaking," Fukasaku worked in many different genres and styles, but was best known for his gritty yakuza films, typified by the ''Battles Without Honor and Humanity'' series (1973–1976). According to the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, "his turbulent energy and at times extreme violence express a cynical critique of social conditions and genuine sympathy for those left out of Japan's postwar prosperity." He used a '' cinema verite''-inspired shaky camera technique in many of his films from the early 1970s. Fukasaku wrote and directed over 60 films between 1961 and 2003. Some Western sources have associated him with the Japanese New Wave movement of the '60s and '70s, but this belies his commercial success. His works include the Japanese portion of the Hollywood war film ''Tora! Tora! Tora!'' (1970), ''jidaigeki'' such as ''Shogun's Samurai'' (1978), the space opera ''Mes ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Love Song Of Vengeance
Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of meanings is that the love of a mother differs from the love of a spouse, which differs from the love for food. Most commonly, love refers to a feeling of a strong attraction and emotional attachment.''Oxford Illustrated American Dictionary'' (1998) Love is considered to be both positive and negative, with its virtue representing human kindness, compassion, and affection, as "the unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another" and its vice representing human moral flaw, akin to vanity, selfishness, amour-propre, and egotism, as potentially leading people into a type of mania, obsessiveness or codependency. It may also describe compassionate and affectionate actions towards other humans, one's self, or animals.Fromm, Erich; ''The Art of Loving'', Har ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The A
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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IndieWire
IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollywood and the expanding universes of TV and streaming." IndieWire is part of Penske Media. History The original IndieWire newsletter launched on July 15, 1996, billing itself as "the daily news service for independent film." Following in the footsteps of various web- and AOL-based editorial ventures, IndieWire was launched as a free daily email publication in the summer of 1996 by New York- and Los Angeles-based filmmakers and writers Eugene Hernandez, Mark Rabinowitz, Cheri Barner, Roberto A. Quezada, and Mark L. Feinsod. Initially distributed to a few hundred subscribers, the readership grew rapidly, passing 6,000 in late 1997. In January 1997, IndieWire made its first appearance at the Sundance Film Festival to begin their coverage o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |