The Best Films From Japan Released in 2014

Films from Japan Released In 2014

One could think that the 18-year-old Nozomi is a normalstudent in a normal family somewhere in Japan. One day, when she suffers from neck pain, her mother hires "expert" help in the form of a sect master friend who immediately realizes that only an evil spirit can be behind it. Driven by parental love, a cruel exorcism ritual begins for Nozomi.

Sweet Home Inferno (2015)

Plain, timid and obsessed with jellyfish, Tsukimi is a far cry from her idea of a princess. Her tepid life as a jobless illustrator comes complete with roommates who harbor diehard hobbies that solidify their status as hopeless social rejects. These wallflowers run a tight, nun-like ship, but their no-men-allowed-not-no-one-not-no-how bubble is unwittingly burst after Tsukimi brings home a rescued sea jelly and a beauty queen... who's actually a guy. When the threat of losing their cozy convent inspires this glamour boy to turn the neurotic entourage into a portrait of success, will Tsukimi take her chance to bloom, or will she end up a hot mess?

Princess Jellyfish (2014)

A young, mentally retarded boy is wrongfully accused of murder, but his family lacks the means to hire an attorney to defend him. The boy’s sister, Kiriko, pleads with an accomplished attorney named Otsuka to defend her brother pro bono. But because of Otsuka’s busy schedule and other priorities, he refuses to take the case. Lacking a proper defense, Kiriko’s brother is eventually convicted of murder, and dies in prison. From that point on, Kiriko is determined to take revenge against Otuska.

Pro Bono (2014)

Alien pods come to Earth and, naturally, start taking over Human Hosts. One such pod only manages to take over one human's, Shin Izumi, right arm. Together they grow and co-exist, all the while the other aliens are making meals of other humans; Shin feels he must put a stop to it all, but his alien, Migi, doesn't see why.

Parasyte: Part 1 (2014)

Gajirou Honda is a self-centered man who only cares about money and women. When he’s involved in a car accident, he encounters the ghosts of the deceased occupants of the other car, including the driver and three pole dancers. The four ghosts promise him a large sum of money in exchange for his help fulfilling their last wishes, thus allowing their spirits to pass over to the afterlife.

Lingering Spirits (2014)

Daily, Rika Umezawa battles a nagging sense of emptiness and dissatisfaction. She works a tiring job, comes home to an unappreciative husband and has little opportunity to enjoy life. But things change when office gossip about affairs and embezzlement inspire Rika to do the unthinkable. Soon, Rika finds herself filling the void with a university student named Kota and the millions entrusted to her by clients. Is her newfound lifestyle the key to happiness? And if so, how long can it last?

Pale Moon (2014)

Takahata Shun's day at high school begins just as boring as ever, but it doesn't end that way. He and his classmates find themselves forced to play children's games with deadly stakes. With no idea who is behind, the only thing Shun and other students can do is keep trying to win.

As the Gods Will (2014)

1000 years from now a young womans' life is at risk in a post nuclear sci-fi community as she investigates who controls and operates society and the economy. As she gets close to the truth the walls start to close in on her.

Wonogawa (2014)

Every night, Master (Kaoru Kobayashi) is busy with customers at the restaurant he runs. He has a worried face, looking at the funerary urn which someone left at his restaurant. His customers also talk about the funerary urn.

Midnight Diner (2014)

Nagisa, the heroine, has the ability to “synch” with all the powerful emotions that linger in crime scenes. When this happens though, she blacks out. Even in her day-to-day life, she can hear people's evil intentions and true colors and senses their lies and deception. That is why she always wears headphones in order to shut out people's emotions. She works well with her colleagues at the "Red Spider Lily" (Higanbana) unit, who are all brutally honest acid-tongued women with no qualms about speaking their minds. "Red Spider Lily" is an eclectic unit that includes a science geek, a single mom, and a woman who grew up abroad. Seen by many as a department that's been taken off the main career track, "Red Spider Lily" turns out to be full of fabulous detectives!

Higanbana - Women's Crime File (Higanbana: Onnatachi no Hanzai Fairu) (2014)

Chiyoko’s mother died when she was young. Since that time, Chiyoko has closed her heart to others. After her pet dies, Chiyoko feels loneliness. Her mother liked the Italian movie "La Strada." Due to movie study club senior, Masamune, Chiyoko is able to watch the Italian movie "La Strada," which her mother liked. Chiyoko soon acts in a movie directed by Masamune.

Chokolietta (2014)

Tales of the Bizarre: Fall 2014 Special (2014)

A retired samurai must redeem himself for a crime that he committed earlier in his life.

A Samurai Chronicle (2014)

High school student Aya Tsukimori becomes cursed and is unable to leave her school dormitory. Meanwhile, many students begin reporting ghost sightings at the school, while others go missing and are later discovered to have drowned mysteriously. Soon, Aya attempts to communicate with fellow student Michi Kazato, who begins investigating the disappearances of her friends.

Fatal Frame (2014)

Country bumpkin Haruko only ever wanted to become a maiko, an apprentice geisha. Initially rebuffed for lack of references, Haruko's strong accent intrigues a linguistics professor, who undertakes to coach her.

Lady Maiko (2014)

Shishio has set sail in his ironclad ship to bring down the Meiji government and return Japan to chaos, carrying Kaoru with him. In order to stop him in time, Kenshin trains with his old master to learn his final technique.

Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends (2014)

48-year-old Wataru Honjo is a big fan of Bruce Lee and works as a suit actor (stunts performer wearing costumes). Even though he doesn't have the typical body type for his profession he has worked in the business for 25 years. Wataru doesn't get along with cocky rookie suit actor Ryo Ichinose, but an incident draws them closer. Ryo Ichinose then takes an audition for a Hollywood movie and passes. For the fighting scene in the climax scene, the action actor quits citing the scene is too dangerous. The movie staff hears that Wataru is the best Japanese action actor and offers the job to him. Will Wataru go for it?

In the Hero (2014)

Convinced of the final outcome, a team of scientists travels back in time to stop the spread of a virus turning men into zombified rapists through society and causes them to finally uncover the source of the deadly disease which causes them to attempt to stop it before it happens again.

Rape Zombie: Lust of the Dead 5 (2014)

In the final days of World War II, occupying Japanese forces in the Philippines face resistance from the local population and the American offensive. The dwindling Japanese soldiers attempt to survive through the horrors of war.

Fires on the Plain (2014)

Interpol Inspector Zenigata begins a world-wide hunt for the infamous thief Lupin The 3rd. But together, they face a powerful enemy and form the Lupin team in response. The Lupin team then faces the challenge of retrieving the "Crimson Heart of Cleopatra" locked away in a fort like safe. The treasure is thought to allow its owner to control the world.

Lupin the 3rd (2014)