
Akiji Kobayashi
Actor · 1930 – 1996 · Yodobashi ward, Tokyo, Japan
Akiji Kobayashi (小林昭二, Kobayashi Akiji, September 6, 1930 – August 27, 1996), sometimes credited as Shōji Kobayashi, was a Japanese actor. He attended Nihon University College of Art, but withdrew before completing his degree and joined the Haiyuza Theatre Company in 1949. He made his film debut with Satsujin Yogisha in 1952. He is best known in the West for portraying the role of Captain Toshio Muramatsu in the 1966-1967 television series, Ultraman. From 1983-84, he appeared in the popular television detective series Seibu Keisatsu. His other notable television role was Tōbei Tachibana ("Oya-san") in several series of the Kamen Rider franchise. He was one of Kon Ichikawa's favorite actors, appearing in 12 Ichikawa films. His final film appearance was Yatsuhaka-mura as Head of a Factory directed by Kon Ichikawa in 1996. He was the official dubbing artist of John Wayne and Richard Crenna. Kobayashi died of lung cancer in Yokohama on August 27, 1996, ten days before his 66th birthday.
Movies24
Movie8.5ActionDramaDown-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.
Movie7.7HorrorFantasyTaking its title from an archaic Japanese word meaning "ghost story," this anthology adapts four folk tales. A penniless samurai marries for money with tragic results. A man stranded in a blizzard is saved by Yuki the Snow Maiden, but his rescue comes at a cost. Blind musician Hoichi is forced to perform for an audience of ghosts. An author relates the story of a samurai who sees another warrior's reflection in his teacup.
Movie6.9ActionAdventureThe Futurians, time-travelers from the 23rd century, arrive in Japan to warn them of the nation's destruction under Godzilla. They offer to help erase Godzilla from history by preventing his creation. With Godzilla seemingly gone, a new monster emerges as the Futurians' true intentions are revealed.
Movie8.2WarDramaKaji, sent to the Japanese army labeled Red, witnesses cruelties in the army and revolts against the abusive treatment against a fellow recruit. He also sees his friend Shinjô defecting to the Russian border, and he ends in the front to fight a lost battle against the Russian tanks division.
Movie6.9ActionAdventureMothra's dark counterpart, Battra, emerges to eliminate humanity on behalf of the Earth. Two tiny fairies called the Cosmos offer their help by calling Mothra to battle the creature. Unfortunately a meteorite has awoken a hibernating Godzilla as a three way battle for the Earth begins.
Movie6.9ActionAdventureA Shogun who grew paranoid as he became senile sent his ninjas to kill his samurai. They failed but did kill the samurai’s wife. The samurai swore to avenge the death of his wife and roams the countryside with his toddler son in search of vengeance.
Shogun Assassin
1980 · 196 votes
Movie6.2ActionDramaFearless Edo-period police inspector Hanzo Itami, nicknamed The Razor, has developed his own unique way of extracting information for his inquiries. His first adventure sees him investigating his superior officer's mistress, whom he suspects of having ties with a reputed criminal on the loose.
Movie7.3ActionAdventureOgami Itto is hired to kill a tattooed female assassin and battles Retsudo, head of the Yagyu clan, and his son Gunbei.
Movie7.4ActionDramaKon Ichikawa's retelling of the classic true story of Samurai honor. When a young clan lord is forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide), his loyal followers (now Ronin, masterless Samurai) dedicate their lives to avenging his death.
Movie7.4ActionDramaOgami Itto battles a group of female ninja in the employ of the Yagyu clan and must eliminate a traitor who plans to sell his clan's secrets to the Shogunate.
Movie10.0DramaAfter a passenger ship sinks in 1954, Go Akutsu devises a life-saving project in the form of a tunnel under the Tsugaru Strait. While working on this project Akutsu becomes involved with Tae Makimura leading to his estrangement from his wife.
Movie7.4FantasyScience FictionA strange meteor lands in Japan and unleashes hundreds of insect-like "Legion" creatures bent on colonizing the Earth. When the military fails to control the situation, Gamera shows up to deal with the ever-evolving space adversary. However the battle may result in Gamera losing his bond with both Asagi and humanity.
Movie8.0A widowed restaurateur is faced with scandal after discovering her late husband had a child out of wedlock. Hearing that two criminals had attempted to take over the restaurant from her late husband, she hires her late husband's best friend, a private detective, to investigate.
Movie6.0ActionScience FictionWith an unquenchable thirst for the blood of virgin women, the wicked King Dark enslaves the brilliant Thai scientist Dr. Wisut to create an army of monsters to put an end to the chivalrous efforts of the cyborg warrior Kamen Riders. When their efforts fail, can the Hindu god Hanuman help? Semi-official Thai/Japan co-production between Chaiyo and Toei. Toei allowed the usage of the Five Riders vs. King Dark film while Chaiyo forgot to license the characters out (Source: Dubbing Wiki).
Movie7.4DramaRomanceThis sensuously beautiful film chronicles the activities of four sisters who gather in Kyoto every year to view the cherry blossoms. It paints a vivid portrait of the pre-war lifestyle of the wealthy Makioka family from Osaka, and draws a parallel between their activities and the seasonal variations in Japan.
Movie7.4DramaActionOfficial Shogunate executioner Ogami Itto has been framed for disloyalty to the Shogunate by the Yagyu clan, against whom he now is waging a one-man war, along with his infant son, Daigoro.
Movie5.7ComedyWhile pursuing his dream of having car sex, a goofy middle-aged man makes all the wrong moves and ends up enrolling in a number of crazy escapades.
Movie6.6MysteryHorrorKôsuke Kindaichi, a somewhat peculiar private detective, visits a remote town. He meets a police detective and they start to investigate an old unsolved murder. Then some murders happen. Kindaichi must find out about the past in order to reveal who the murderer is.
Movie7.0ThrillerCrimeWhen a mysterious stranger muscles into two rival yakuza gangs, Tokyo's underworld explodes with violence.
Movie7.6DramaHistoryShigematsu Shizuma, who lives with his family in a village near Fukuyama, was in Hiroshima with his wife and niece just after the devastating atomic bombing, a tragedy that cruelly took the lives of thousands of people and forever marked the harsh existence of the survivors.
Movie6.7Science FictionActionDuring a battle against Destron's forces, Shiro Kazami helps a priest who has been attacked by the evil organization's kaijin Hasami-Jaguar. Little does he know that the church where the priest resides is a front for a Destron hideout. After finding out the organization's latest motive, Kamen Rider V3, along with the Double Riders, must stop Destron from detonating a nuclear bomb in Tokyo.
Movie7.0HorrorMysteryWhen a tycoon passes away, he unexpectedly leaves the family fortune to outsider Tamayo on the condition that she marries one of the grandsons, pitting blood against blood.
Movie7.3ComedyDramaA former Buddhist monk turned erotic filmmaker, Subuyan lives with hairdresser Haru and her two teenage children. Shooting two skin flicks per day, he somehow manages to stay out of the clutches of the yakuza, but real trouble starts when Haru discovers him lusting after her daughter.
Movie6.9AnimeRomanceGinga is a simple—yet energetic—country girl, living with her father far from the capital city of the empire in ancient China. When she learns of an opportunity to become a concubine of the young new Emperor, with the possibility of becoming his head wife in charge of all of the other wives, Ginga convinces her father to let her go. Once there, she meets all of the other potential head wives, each of whom have various reasons for being there. All of them must learn to read and write, learn the history of their country, and learn the proper mannerisms for being in the royal court. Ginga's enthusiasm tends to get her in trouble more often than not, but it works to her advantage when they learn that the former emperor's head wife, who is not the mother of the current emperor, is plotting treachery against the new emperor, and that a rebellion is headed toward the capital.
Series17
TV6.4Action & AdventureSci-Fi & FantasyTakeshi Hongo is a promising young man with a passion for motorcycle racing. However, his dreams are suddenly ruined when he gets kidnapped by Shocker, the evil secret organization planning to dominate the world. After being remodeled into a cyborg, Takeshi escapes and swears to protect the world from the inhuman monsters.
TV7.8Sci-Fi & FantasyMysteryInspired by American TV movies like "Hitchcock Theater" and "The Twilight Zone," the show features multiple works with Tamori as the storyteller and actors as the main characters. While horror and supernatural themes are predominant, a variety of genres like comedy and drama are also produced. Most episodes, however, have a bad ending.
TV8.4Action & AdventureSci-Fi & FantasyHayata is a member of the Science Patrol, an organization tasked with investigating bizarre anomalies. He is mortally wounded when accidently encountering an alien being from Land of Light, who grants Hayata new life as the two are merged into one. Now, whenever a threat arises that is too great for the Science Patrol to handle, Hayata activates the beta capsule and becomes the hero known as Ultraman.
TV8.0DramaCrimeA shikakenin was an under-the-cover trade that undertook killing in Edo. Hanemon of Otowa, an agency that introduced laborers and maids, was also one of these. Katsugoro Iseya was a timber dealer who had come in as a client. His target was the constructions magistrate Hanno, and the Tatsumiya who sipped on the benefits. Hanemon who had a stong code towards killing, where he would only kill those who do no good to be in the world, accepts this request. Baian Fujieda, a needle doctor would carry out the killing. However, the professional killer Baian fails to bring down Tatsumiya. Hanemon then looks to another shikakenin, the ronin Sanai Nishimura for the role. Although Sanai's ability with the sword is good, he lives poorly in a tenement, and accepts this commission on the condition that it is kept a secret from his wife and child. Here, they close in on Hanno and Tatsumiya again...
TV9.5Action & AdventureDramaShigeru Jo joins the evil organization Black Satan after the death of his close friend and mentor Goro Numata. He, promised power, and fueled by a desire for revenge, undergoes surgery to become one of Black Satan's super warriors. However, Shigeru knows that Black Satan were in fact the murderers of his friend; he was using Black Satan in order to gain new powers. The newly powered up Shigeru escapes from the Black Satan headquarters before they can brainwash him into following their campaign of evil and becomes Kamen Rider Stronger. While escaping from Black Satan, Stronger meets Yuriko Misaki another cyborg warrior created by Black Satan who has the ability to transform into Electronic Wave Humanoid Tackle. Together they fight the evil Black Satan and later the Delzer Army to restore peace in Japan.
TV9.5Action & AdventureDramaRobotics scientist Keitaro Jin and his son Keisuke become caught up in a campaign of terror by an evil organization known as "G.O.D.". They are attacked and the professor's technology gets stolen, but before Keitaro dies, he performs surgery on his son, using the last of his robotics technology to transform Keisuke into the "X-Rider". To avenge his father's death and ensure the safety of the entire world, Keisuke uses this technology as he battles the monstrous minions of G.O.D.’s Japan branch.
TV8.2Drama
TV7.0Seibu Keisatsu is a television drama series produced by Ishihara Promotions and broadcast on TV Asahi
Seibu Keisatsu
1979 · 1 votes
TV7.7MysterySci-Fi & FantasyAdvancements in science and the unchanging human psyche have given rise to new forms of terrifying crimes as the Science Research Institute (SRI) investigates various strange phenomena in Japan.
TV10.0Action & AdventureKidsFollow the adventures of Shiro Kazami, a bio-chem major at Jonan University in Tokyo. After witnessing the murder of a member of the evil organization Destron, Kazami is targeted by Destron which kills his family and leads him down a road of revenge that crosses paths with both Takeshi Hongo and Hayato Ichimonji, the original Kamen Riders and his eventual transformation into Kamen Rider V3!
TV9.0AnimeAnimation
TV7.5AnimeAnimation宇宙少年ソラン
1965 · 2 votes
TV8.0AnimeAnimationThe series follows the adventures of Sabu, a young Edo bakufu investigator traveling with the blind master swordsman Ichi. In their travels, they assist the common people in solving mysteries and righting wrongs (usually committed by bandits or corrupt officials). Sabu is engaged to Midori, the daughter of his boss, who works as a police officer for the Tokugawa shogunate.
TV9.0Action & AdventureSci-Fi & FantasyLed by the terrible Ten-Faced Demon, the ferocious forces of Gedon burn through the rainforest in search of the Gigi Armlet—an ancient Incan artifact of untold power! In a last-ditch effort to safeguard the relic, it is grafted onto the body of an orphan simply known as Amazon. Now imbued with superhuman abilities, the feral hero travels to Japan in order to rip apart Gedon’s plans for world domination! However, when a young boy gets caught up in the battle, he realizes that Amazon’s fighting form looks kind of like a rider... A Kamen Rider!
- TV
Set in the eighteenth century, during the reign of the fifth Tokugawa shōgun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi. Akō-han is demolished by the Tokugawa shogunate. Hotta Hayato is a ronin who is living a desperate life because of his sad past. But one day he starts working for Chisaka Takafusa, the Chief retainer of the Uesugi clan. The Uesugi clan and Chisaka are wary of Ōishi Kuranosuke and Ako Roshi's movements, so Chisaka orders Hotta to observe Ōishi Kuranosuke.
TV7.0Drama"Don't pity me, just give me money." A smart little girl, Suzu, for the sake of her beloved sick mother, has no choice but to attempt all ways to fork up the money required for the operation. It includes stealing, cheating and almost anything that could yield cash. However, deep within her is a sadness unseen by many. --Snowflakes (source: dramawiki) It received the 1st Television Drama Academy Awards (1994-06-22)for Best Drama and Best Theme Song and also received a Special Award. It was the highest rated NTV drama of 1990s, with average viewership rating around 24,7%.
TV8.5Action & AdventureDramaWhile rescuing his wealthy boss's daughter from kidnappers, Sugata Kageoh, struck by an electric shock, was given the ability to merge with his shadow and transform into Kagestar!