Pale Flower (Japan, 1964)

Muraki, a hardboiled Yakuza gangster, has just been released from prison after serving a sentence for murder. Revisiting his old gambling haunts, he meets Saeko, a striking young upper-class woman who is out seeking thrills, and whose presence adds spice to the staid masculine underworld rituals. Muraki becomes her mentor while simultaneously coping with the shifts of power that have affected the gangs while he was interred. 

Pale Flower is a stylish and seriously cool film that takes place in the city's underworld among dangerous yakuza thugs that all have one common passion: playing cards. Beautifully shot, and the bright white mixed with the pitch black is mesmerizing. 

Genre: Crime/Thriller.

The Protector (Thailand, 2005)

In Bangkok, the young Kham was raised by his father in the jungle with elephants as members of their family. When his old elephant and the baby Kern are stolen by criminals, Kham finds that the animals were sent to Sidney. He travels to Australia, where he locates the baby elephant in a restaurant owned by the evil Madame Rose, the leader of an international Thai mafia. With the support of the efficient Thai sergeant Mark, who was involved in a conspiracy, Kham fights to rescue the animal from the mobsters.

If you've seen Ong-bak: Muay Thai Warrior (2003), you know what to expect from Tony Jaa, who plays the main character. And with The Protector, he delivers yet again, with explosive violence and so much bone crushing fist fights that you wonder if they really can keep it up all the way? The answer is yes. Plus, The Protector features one of the best fight sequences ever made, all shot in one take. 

Genre: Action/Crime

Police Story (Hong Kong, 1985)

Kevin Chan (aka Jackie) is a Hong-Kong cop, who scores his first big hit by virtually single-handedly capturing and arresting a big drug- lord. Of course, the drug-lord isn't too happy about this, and frames Kevin with the murder of another cop (who happened to be on the take). Kevin has to clear his name, whilst keeping himself from getting killed or arrested, and keeping his girlfriend from leaving him.

Police Story is a perfect example of how great of a stuntman and martial artist Jackie Chan could be on film before his american career made him much, much worse. The car chase near the beginning of the film is incredibly cool and is one of many moments where you just want to cheer at the screen at how awesome it is. An often very funny film that's packed with amazing stunts. 

Genre: Action/Comedy/Thriller

Save the Green Planet! (South Korea, 2003)

A traumatized young man abducts Korean leaders, believing they're toxic reptilian aliens - a fifth column launching a takeover of beloved Earth. Law enforcements half-seriously hire a disgraced, disheveled private detective with a long-ago history of super-crime solving. The alienated youngster Lee Byeong-gu builds an isolated basement command post/torture chamber/ to force the awful truth out of the slimy, uncooperative politicians and businesspeople. 

Save the Green Planet! is a strangely working mix of sci-fi, horror and comedy. What first seems to be a mostly funny and quirky film, soon takes a dark turn and descends into Lee Byeong's twisted mind and we really start to question wether if he's insane or the only human who knows the truth. A surprisingly deep, unpredictable and moving film.

Genre: Drama/Comedy/Thriller

Outrage Beyond (Japan, 2012)

As the police launch a full-scale crackdown on organized crime, it ignites a national yakuza struggle between the Sanno of the East and Hanabishi of the West. What started as an internal strife in Outrage has now become a nationwide war in Outrage Beyond.

The first Outrage was a brilliant Yakuza epic, it had the right attitude and the right amount of brutal violence (that dentist scene, wow). Outrage Beyond somehow manages to completely blow the first one out of the water. It's a film by Takeshi Kitano and is about what he does the best, the Yakuza.  It's a hard-boiled, well-told story about a huge power struggle between two Yakuza clans and everything that follows. Not to be missed by fans of Yakuza flicks, Kitano, or just a good crime fest. 

Genre: Action/Crime 

Twenty-Four Eyes (Japan, 1954)

Schoolteacher Hisako Oishi struggles to imbue her students with a positive view of the world and their place in it, despite the fact that she knows full well that most of them will die in the war.

Twenty-Four Eyes will not be kind to you, as it's a heart-wrenching and tragic story that will stay with you for a long time. It portrays one of Japan's hardest times in history, from the eyes of students, and follows them through their teens and into adulthood. We get to witness how they're changing, just as Japan is changing along with them. 

One of the best classic films out there. 

Genre: Drama  

The Blue Light (Japan, 2003)

Shuichi Kushimori is a 17-year-old student who lives a happy life with his mother and his sister. Without warning, one day his missing stepfather, Sone, is back after a long absence. Sone is soon in a vicious circle of drinking and starts to harass his ex-wife and stepdaughter. When he makes sexual advances towards Shuichi's sister, Shuichi decides to take matters into his own hands. 

The Blue Light is a well-performed dive into a young mans psyche as he feels forced to commit murder. The anxiety grows and it all becomes a downward spiral that can't possibly end well. Or could it? 

Genre: Drama/Crime

The Grandmaster (Hong Kong/China, 2013)

Ip Man, a legendary martial artist and teacher of Bruce Lee, lives a peaceful life in Foshan. But it changes after Gong Yutian seeks an heir for his family in Southern China. Ip Man then meets Gong Er who challenges him for the sake of regaining her family's honor. After the Second Sino-Japanese War, Ip Man moves to Hong Kong and struggles to provide for his family. In the mean time, Gong Er chooses the path of vengeance after his father was killed by Ma San.

The Grandmaster became quite the spectacle for some time, due to being in development for many years. Director Wong Kar-wai (Fallen Angels, 2046) took many breaks during the production (some were even long enough that actor Tony Leung could shoot other movies during that time) but luckily he finished it. 

It's a smash hit on all fronts, a martial art film of epic proportions and delivers jaw-dropping moments constantly. One of the best shot movies in recent years, without a doubt.

Genre: Action/Drama

Zatoichi (Japan, 2003)

Blind Zatoichi makes his living by gambling and giving massages. But behind his humble facade, Zatoichi is a master swordsman, gifted with lightning-fast draw and strokes of breathtaking precision. Zatoichi wanders into a town run by sinister gangs and a powerful samurai. He's destined for violent showdowns when he stumbles on two beautiful geishas avenging their parents' murder... Duels, wit and a touch of zen! Cult anti-hero Zatoichi is back in a sword-fighting adventure written, directed and starring Takeshi Kitano.

Acclaimed director and actor Takeshi Kitano takes a spin at the popular tale of Zatoichi, the blind swordsman.  Almost everyone knows the story in this day and age: blind man Zatoichi, a humble and kind man makes his living by giving massage or performing acupuncture. But beneath the harmless surface, a master samurai dwells, and every thug that messes with him soon regrets it. The film has some cheesy stabbing effects, but overall it's a great samurai film with fantastic sword fighting. 

Genre: Action/Crime

The Ballad of Narayama (Japan, 1983)

In a small village in a valley everyone who reaches the age of 70 must leave the village and go to a certain mountain top to die. If anyone should refuse he or she would disgrace their family. Old Orin is 69. This winter it is her turn to go to the mountain. But first she must make sure that her eldest son Tatsuhei finds a wife.

The Ballad of Narayama is a journey that every fan of asian cinema should take at least once. The sheer quality and the amount of effort that must have gone into this movie is astounding. You can almost  smell the wet autumn leafs as they fall. A most unique movie.

Genre: Drama

Secret (Hong Kong/Taiwan, 2007)

Ye Xiang Lun is a music student majoring in piano who just transferred to Tamkang, a school famous for its musically talented students, especially those who play piano. On his first day of school, he hears a mysterious melody being played, and following it meets Lu Xiao Yu, another piano major. When he asks her about the song she was playing, she tells him that it is a secret that cannot be told. The two form a friendship that quickly evolves into a romantic relationship. However unbeknownst to Xiang Lun, there is more to Xiao Yu than initially meets the eye.

Secret is a melodrama taking place in a music school, and, by now, you probably now if you'll like it or not. Whether you're a fan of these kind of romantic films or not, it's hard to deny the great things about this one; the surprisingly good visual effects, the lovely soundtrack and the sudden turns of the plot. Not bad by any means.

Genre: Drama/Fantasy/Romance

Gate of Hell (Japan, 1953)

In 1159, during an attempted coup, one of the court's ladies in waiting disguises herself as the lord's wife, and a loyal samurai conveys her from the city. This diversion allows the royal family to escape. After the coup fails, the samurai asks his lord to let him marry the woman as his reward. The lord grants the request and then discovers she is already married to one of the ruling family's lieges. The samurai clings to his desire, importuning her to leave her husband, then challenging the husband to release her. 

Filmed using Eastmancolor, Gate of Hell was Daiei Film's first color film and the first Japanese color film to be released outside Japan. In its native country, critics weren't too impressed by it, but at the 1954 Cannes Film festival it won the grand prize award. The use of colors is absolutely mesmerizing, with exceptionally bright kimonos and other small details which lights up beautifully in the moonlight. A love triangle where there's little hope of a happy ending. A sparkling gem from the old days of Japanese cinema. 

Genre: Drama/History/Romance

Kabei: Our Mother (Japan, 2008)

Set in Tokyo in 1940, the peaceful life of the Nogami Family suddenly changes when the father, Shigeru, is arrested and accused of being a Communist. His wife Kayo works frantically from morning to night to maintain the household and bring up her two daughters with the support of Shigeru's sister Hisako and Shigeru's ex-student Yamazaki, but her husband does not return. WWII breaks out and casts dark shadows on the entire country, but Kayo still tries to keep her cheerful determination, and sustain the family with her love.

A tragic story that's both grim, and warm of love. Naturally, this was a hard time to live in Japan, and the movie portrays one family's hard struggle through those rough years. 

Genre: Drama

A Company Man (South Korea, 2012)

Hyeong-do wears a suit and tie like any other rank-and-file white collar worker, except his profession is murder. Seemingly a section chief in the sales division of a metal fabrication company that is actually a front for an organization of hit men, Hyeong-do is regarded as one of the best contract killers in the business. One day, he meets a married woman named Su-yeon and instantly falls in love. Feeling guilty about his bloody past, Hyeong-do tries to quit the "manufacturer", to the surprise of his colleagues and his enemies. Seen as the ultimate betrayal, he is immediately hunted down by his former employers

A Company Man won't win any prizes for originality, but it's a solid and wildly entertaining action flick with great shooting scenes. It flirts with stronger films in the action genre such as A Bittersweet Life (2005), and fans of Korean action should definitely check this one out.

Genre: Action/Drama/Thriller

9 Souls (Japan, 2003)

A convict in an isolated prison stumbles upon a hole in the wall and nine men break out. Some of the escapees have a definite goal but for others it is just a spur of the moment decision. Each of the convicts is carrying a baggage of difficult memories. The men steals a van and head for a primary school near Mt. Fuji to pick up some hidden loot, but when they get to the school, all they find is a small glass key in a time capsule. The men are dumbfounded. But, as they continue on their journey they begin to experience a strange new sense of possibility. Their thoughts turn towards the unfinished business in their lives before they were locked up and one by one they decide to act. But where will their resolutions lead them?

Made by the director of the fantastic school drama Blue Spring (2002), 9 Souls is yet another engrossing film that deals with nine, deeply troubled men and their attempt at facing society. 

Genre: Drama

The Last Ronin (Japan, 2010)

16 years after the fateful "revenge of the 47 Ronin," involving samurais from the Ako domain who avenged their leader and then commited seppuku (ritual suicide), the sole survivor of that incident, Kichiemon Terasaka traverses the country on a mission. His purpose is to find the families of the fallen samurais and spread the truth of the ronin uprising. On his way to attend the 17th Buddhist ceremony for the 47 Ronins in Kyoto at Choho Shindo's mansion, Kichiemon unexpectedly comes across his close & long time friend Magozaemon Senoo - who ran away the day before the ronin uprising. 

Slow-paced and somewhat eventless, The Last Ronin still manages to be one of the better samurai dramas in years. Koji Yakusho (13 Assassins) is one of my favorite actors, and he fits the role as an aging samurai perfectly. It's full of iconic imagery such as bamboo forests in fog and old temples. Nothing short of a samurai masterpiece.

Genre: Drama 

Infernal Affairs (Hong Kong, 2004)

Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. Lau Kin Ming, a young mafia member, infiltrates the police force. Years later, their older counterparts, Chen Wing Yan and Inspector Lau Kin Ming, respectively, race against time to expose the mole within their midst.

Infernal Affairs is widely regarded as a landmark in the Hong Kong thriller genre. It's a slick, perfectly paced cat-and-mouse game and never looses your interest. A huge classic.

Genre: Crime/Thriller