Japanese films of the 1940s - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

A list of films produced in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ordered by year in the 1940s. For an A-Z of films see :Category:Japanese films. Also see cinema of Japan

Cinema of Japan

The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world – as of 2009 the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. Movies have been produced in Japan since 1897, when the first foreign cameramen arrived...

1940s

Title	Director	Cast	Genre	Notes
1940 1940 in film The year 1940 in film involved some significant events, including the premieres of the Walt Disney classics Pinocchio and Fantasia.-Events:*February 7 - Walt Disney's animated film Pinocchio is released....
Nobuko Nobuko Nobuko is a Japanese name, used for females. Although written romanized the same way, the kanji can be different.-People:* Nobuko Aso, later Princess Tomohito of Mikasa...	Hiroshi Shimizu Hiroshi Shimizu (director) was a Japanese film director, known for his silent films with detailed depictions of Japanese society.-Career:Shimizu was born in Shizuoka and attended Hokkaidō University but left before graduating. He joined the Shochiku studio in Tokyo in 1921 and made his directorial debut in 1924, at the age...

1941 1941 in film The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:...
The 47 Ronin The 47 Ronin is a 1941/1942 black-and-white two-part jidaigeki Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi.The first part was originally released in Japan just prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor. The film was directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, and adapted from the play by Seika Mayama...	Kenji Mizoguchi Kenji Mizoguchi Kenji Mizoguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. His film Ugetsu won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and appeared in the Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll in 1962 and 1972. Mizoguchi is renowned for his mastery of the long take and mise-en-scène...		Samurai film
Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family is a 1941 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu.-Plot:The upper-class Toda family celebrates the 69th birthday of their father with a commemorative photoshoot at their outdoor garden. Unfortunately, shortly after the photo session, the father, Shintaro Toda , suffers a fatal heart attack...	Yasujirō Ozu Yasujiro Ozu was a prominent Japanese film director and script writer. He is known for his distinctive technical style, developed during the silent era. Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are among the most persistent themes in his body of work...	Mieko Takamine	Drama
*Ornamental Hairpin*	Hiroshi Shimizu Hiroshi Shimizu (director) was a Japanese film director, known for his silent films with detailed depictions of Japanese society.-Career:Shimizu was born in Shizuoka and attended Hokkaidō University but left before graduating. He joined the Shochiku studio in Tokyo in 1921 and made his directorial debut in 1924, at the age...		Drama Drama film A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
1942 1942 in film The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...

1943 1943 in film The year 1943 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 3 - 1st missing persons telecast * February 20 - American film studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor films....
Sanshiro Sugata Sanshiro Sugata was the directorial debut of the Academy Award-winning Japanese film director Akira Kurosawa. First released in Japan on 25 March 1943 by Toho film studios, the film was eventually released in the United States on 28 April 1974. The film is based on the novel of the same name written by Tsuneo...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...		Drama Drama film A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women... Martial arts Martial arts film Martial arts film is a film genre. A sub-genre of the action film, martial arts films contain numerous fights between characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;... 's first film
1944 1944 in film The year 1944 in film involved some significant events, including the wholesome, award-winning Going My Way plus popular murder mysteries such as Double Indemnity, Gaslight and Laura.-Events:*July 20 - Since You Went Away is released....
The Most Beautiful The Most Beautiful is a 1944 propaganda drama film written and directed by Akira Kurosawa.The film is set in an optics factory during the Second World War.The film depicts the struggle for the workers at a lens factory to meet production targets during World War II...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Ichiro Sugai	Drama Drama film A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
1945 1945 in film The year 1945 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Paramount Studios releases theatrical short cartoon titled The Friendly Ghost, featuring a ghost named Casper.* With Rossellini's Roma Città aperta, Italian neorealist cinema begins....
The Men Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail The Men Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail is a 1945 film, written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is based on the kabuki play Kanjinchō, which is in turn based on the Noh play Ataka.The film stars Hanshiro Iwai, Susumu Fujita, Kenichi Enomoto, and Denjirō Ōkōchi....	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Susumu Fujita Susumu Fujita was a Japanese film and television actor. He played the lead role in Akira Kurosawa's first feature, Sanshiro Sugata, and appeared other Kurosawa film including The Men Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail and The Hidden Fortress . Later, he was a supporting actor in Ishirō Honda's Mothra vs...	Samurai film
*Momotarō: Umi no Shinpei*	Mitsuyo Seo Mitsuyo Seo was a Japanese animator, screenwriter and director of animated films who played a central role in the development of Japanese anime. He was born in Himeji, Hyōgo Prefecture.-Career:...		Animation
Sanshiro Sugata Part II Sanshiro Sugata Part II is a 1945 film written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is based on the novel by Tsuneo Tomita.It was filmed in early 1945 in Japan towards the end of World War II....	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Denjiro Okochi Denjirō Ōkōchi was a Japanese film actor most famous for starring roles in jidaigeki directed by such masters as Akira Kurosawa, Daisuke Itō, Sadao Yamanaka, Teinosuke Kinugasa, Hiroshi Inagaki and Masahiro Makino. His real name was Masuo Ōbe...	Martial arts film Martial arts film Martial arts film is a film genre. A sub-genre of the action film, martial arts films contain numerous fights between characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently...
1946 1946 in film The year 1946 in film involved some significant events.-Events:November 21 - William Wyler's The Best Years of Our Lives premieres in New York featuring an ensemble cast including Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, and Harold Russell.December 20 - Frank Capra's It's a...
Aru yo no Tonosama Aru yo no Tonosama is a 1946 Japanese film directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa.-Awards:1st Mainichi Film Award*Won: Best Film-References:...	Teinosuke Kinugasa Teinosuke Kinugasa -External links:* *...
No Regrets for Our Youth No Regrets for Our Youth is a 1946 film written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is based on the Takigawa incident of 1933.The film stars Setsuko Hara, Susumu Fujita, and Denjirō Ōkōchi...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Masao Shimizu	Drama Drama film A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
Those Who Make Tomorrow Those Who Make Tomorrow is a 1946 film written by Yusaku Yamagata and Kajiro Yamamoto and directed by Akira Kurosawa, Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto. Kurosawa would later leave the film out of his credits.-External links:* at the Japanese Movie Database...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Kenji Susukida
Utamaro and His Five Women Utamaro and His Five Women Utamaro and His Five Women or Five Women Around Utamaro is a 1946 Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. It is based on the novel of the same title by Kanji Kunieda, itself a fictionalized account of the life of printmaker Kitagawa Utamaro...	Kenji Mizoguchi Kenji Mizoguchi Kenji Mizoguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. His film Ugetsu won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and appeared in the Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll in 1962 and 1972. Mizoguchi is renowned for his mastery of the long take and mise-en-scène...	Kinuyo Tanaka Kinuyo Tanaka was a Japanese actress and director.Tanaka was born in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. She became a leading actress at an early age, appearing in Yasujirō Ozu's I Graduated, But... in 1929...	Biopic
1947 1947 in film The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25...
Ima Hitotabi no Ima Hitotabi no is a 1947 Japanese film directed by Heinosuke Gosho.-Awards:2nd Mainichi Film Award*Won: Best Film-References:...	Heinosuke Gosho Heinosuke Gosho was a Japanese film director who directed Japan's first talkie, The Neighbor's Wife and Mine, in 1931. He once served as president of the Directors Guild of Japan.- Selected filmography :* Aiyoku no ki...
One Wonderful Sunday One Wonderful Sunday is a 1947 Japanese film co-written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is in black-and-white and runs 108 minutes.Yuzo and his fiancée, Masako, spend a Sunday together in Tokyo. Between them they have 35 yen and are determined to make it last. The film was made during the Occupation and shows some...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Isao Numasaki	Romantic comedy Romantic Comedy Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
The Record of a Tenement Gentleman The Record of a Tenement Gentleman is a Japanese film written and directed by Yasujiro Ozu in 1947. The film was Ozu's first after World War II and his longest production drought of five years.-Plot:...	Yasujiro Ozu Yasujiro Ozu was a prominent Japanese film director and script writer. He is known for his distinctive technical style, developed during the silent era. Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are among the most persistent themes in his body of work...	Chouko Iida, Hohi Aoki	Drama
Snow Trail Snow Trail Snow Trail is a 1947 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Senkichi Taniguchi. It was the first film role for Toshirō Mifune, later to become one of Japan's most famous actors. Mifune and the other main actor in the film Takashi Shimura, later became long-term collaborators of film director...	Senkichi Taniguchi Senkichi Taniguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.Born in Tokyo, Japan, he attended Waseda University but left before graduating due to his involvement in a left-wing theater troupe. He joined P.C.L...
*These Foolish Times*	Kajiro Yamamoto Kajirō Yamamoto was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and actor who was known for his war films and comedies and as the mentor of Akira Kurosawa.-Early life:Born in Tokyo, Yamamoto attended Keio University where he helped form a film appreciation society...
1948 1948 in film The year 1948 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Laurence Olivier's Hamlet becomes the first British film to win the American Academy Award for Best Picture.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :...
Drunken Angel Drunken Angel is a 1948 Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is notable for being the first of sixteen film collaborations between director Kurosawa and actor Toshirō Mifune.- Plot :...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Toshirō Mifune Toshiro Mifune Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...
A Hen in the Wind A Hen in the Wind is a 1948 drama film directed by Yasujiro Ozu, starring Kinuyo Tanaka and Shûji Sano.-Plot:The film is set in immediate postwar Japan, Tokyo. Tokiko , a twenty-nine-year-old mother of a young boy of four, is waiting for her husband's repatriation from World War II...	Yasujiro Ozu Yasujiro Ozu was a prominent Japanese film director and script writer. He is known for his distinctive technical style, developed during the silent era. Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are among the most persistent themes in his body of work...	Kinuyo Tanaka Kinuyo Tanaka was a Japanese actress and director.Tanaka was born in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. She became a leading actress at an early age, appearing in Yasujirō Ozu's I Graduated, But... in 1929...	Drama
1949 1949 in film The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello...
Escape at Dawn Escape at Dawn is a 1950 Japanese film which revolves around a tragic affair between a soldier involved in the Manchurian campaign and a prostitute.-Synopsis:Mikami, a Japanese soldier serving in China, is captured by Chinese forces. Although he is able to escape, he is treated with contempt by his peers...	Senkichi Taniguchi Senkichi Taniguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.Born in Tokyo, Japan, he attended Waseda University but left before graduating due to his involvement in a left-wing theater troupe. He joined P.C.L...
*Jakoman and Tetsu*	Senkichi Taniguchi Senkichi Taniguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.Born in Tokyo, Japan, he attended Waseda University but left before graduating due to his involvement in a left-wing theater troupe. He joined P.C.L...
Kane no naru oka: Dai san hen, kuro no maki Kane no naru oka: Dai san hen, kuro no maki is a 1949 Japanese film directed by Keisuke Sasaki.-Cast:* Keiji Sada* Taeko Takasugi* Masao Inoue* Michiko Namiki* Tōdō Gekidan...
Late Spring Late Spring is a critically acclaimed black-and-white Japanese film drama, directed by Yasujirō Ozu , first released in Japan in September 1949. Based on the novel Father and Daughter by Kazuo Hirotsu, the story concerns a young woman who lives happily in Kamakura with her kindly professor father, a widower...	Yasujiro Ozu Yasujiro Ozu was a prominent Japanese film director and script writer. He is known for his distinctive technical style, developed during the silent era. Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are among the most persistent themes in his body of work...	Haruko Sugimura Haruko Sugimura was a Japanese stage and film actress, best known for her appearances in the movies of Yasujiro Ozu and Mikio Naruse from the late 1940s to the early 1960s...	Drama Drama film A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
The Quiet Duel The Quiet Duel is a 1949 Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa.-Plot:Toshirō Mifune plays a young idealistic doctor who works at his father's clinic in a small and seedy district. During the war, he contracts syphilis from the blood of a patient when he cuts himself during an operation...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Toshirō Mifune Toshiro Mifune Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...
Stray Dog Stray Dog (film) is a 1949 film noir police procedural directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring frequent collaborators Toshirō Mifune and Takashi Shimura.-Plot:Action takes place during a heatwave in a bombed-out, post-war Tokyo...	Akira Kurosawa Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...	Toshirō Mifune Toshiro Mifune Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration with filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, from 1948 to 1965, in works such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo...

External links

Japanese film at the Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...

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