The Tale of Zatoichi 1962

Since 1984, the Criterion Collection has been dedicated to publishing important classic and contemporary films from around the world in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements. No matter the medium—from laserdisc to DVD and Blu-ray to streaming—Criterion has maintained its pioneering commitment to presenting each film as its maker would want it seen, in state-of-the-art restorations with special features designed to encourage repeated watching and deepen the viewer’s appreciation of the art of film.

Films listed in order of spine numbers. Releases with multiple films are listed as individual items where appropiate.

Last Update: Releases up to July 2024 (Spine #1228)

Source: https://www.criterion.com/shop/browse/list?sort=spine_number

Since 1984, the Criterion Collection, has been dedicated to gathering the greatest films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements for a wider and wider audience. The foundation of the collection is the work of such masters of cinema as Kurosawa, Fellini, Bergman, Tarkovsky, Hitchcock, and Kubrick. Each film is presented uncut, in its original aspect ratio, as its maker intended it to be seen. To date, more than 150 filmmakers have made it into the collection.

Source: https://www.criterion.com/library/list_view?b=Criterion&m=dvd&s=spine

Criterion Collection

Selection of the best movies from Japan, Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India.

The Criterion Collection is a video distribution company which specializes in licensing and selling "important classic and contemporary films" in "editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements."

This is a list of all films (main feature, extra featurette, making of, box-set meta entry, etc if it has a separate entry on trakt) released under Criterion Collection catalog, Essential Art House, Eclipse, Merchant Ivory collections etc. as DVD/BluRay. So far LaserDisc releases have not been included.

Notes to self:
Reviewed/cross-checked entries till Criterion Collection #200.
Last entry: Criterion Collection Spine #845 / Eclipse Series #44.

Careful with that sword, Eugene!

List created and maintained by https://listrr.pro

This list combines 2 books by Patrick Galloway:
#1-51: Stray Dogs & Lone Wolves: The Samurai Film Handbook (2005)
#52-91: Warring Clans, Flashing Blades: A Samurai Film Companion (2009)

"Stray Dogs & Lone Wolves provides essential background on the samurai warrior in Japanese culture to help explain what makes these tales of loyalty, revenge and explosive swordsmanship so watchable. It covers top directors and stars and has over 50 original reviews of a wide variety of films, from classics like Samurai Trilogy and Yojimbo to influential films like Lady Snowblood, plus newly released hits like Takeshi Kitano’s Zatoichi."

"Warring Clans, Flashing Blades picks up where Galloway’s fan-favorite Stray Dogs & Lone Wolves left off, delving deeper into the samurai film and its spin-off genres—yakuza, ninja, and matatabi."

Source:
https://www.amazon.com/Stray-Dogs-Lone-Wolves-Handbook/dp/1880656930
http://www.amazon.com/Warring-Clans-Flashing-Blades-Companion/dp/1933330783

Thanks to all who’ve made this a very popular list, in spite of glitches causing dozens of fans to suddenly disappear :(

A big welcome to the land of cinematic wonders!

I’ve aimed for a rounded overview to include not only personal favourites but popular hits and international award winners, animé landmarks, avant-
garde films, the New Wave, erotic “pink films” and the great classics that are still the glory of world cinema.

Much of silent cinema before the 1930s has been lost, its Benshi narrators displaced but good finally to have the landmark film Souls on the Road on Mubi. In the 20s directors were able to learn their trade through prolific practice, aware of and encorporating developments in both the Soviet Union and the West… and then, what a wealth of wonders! Older masters: the unequalled aesthetic refinement of Mizoguchi, the charm of Shimizu, the quiet observational wisdom of Ozu, the tragically curtailed promise of Yamanaka, the balanced restraint of Naruse, the muscular humanism of Kurosawa… Then, a new generation from the late 50s, in full swing in the sexually freer 60s: the idealism of Kobayashi, the political bite of Oshima, the earthy subversion of Imamura, the cool of Suzuki and Masumura. the avant-garde Terayama.. So many to explore: Yoshida, Ichikawa Kon, Teshigahara, Shinoda, Wakamatsu, Kumai, the documentaries of Ogawa and Hara, the stop motion master Kawamoto, the blood soaked Fukasaku.. the rise of animé, with the international success of Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki’s beautiful flights of fancy, the spiky Tsukamoto, the popular appeal of Kitano, the prolific shocker Miike.. up to the present with Koreeda, Naomi Kawase, Sono, Kurosawa Kiyoshi… oh and i almost went without mentioning Samurai and Godzilla.

Source: http://mubi.com/lists/kenjis-japanese-canon

Missing on TMDB as of now:
ID: tt0242845, Title: Narita: The Peasants of the Second Fortress, Year: -

Updated Jan 2022

Movies I need to see

Stuff I enjoyed and think others may as well.