Kamikaze Taxi (Japan, 1995)

A young foot soldier in the yakuza seeks revenge when his prostitute girlfriend dies after a session with a high-ranking Japanese politician with a taste for torture. He sets out on a 'kamikaze' mission to kill his bosses and the politician; along the way, he acquires the aid of a taxi driver who has recently returned to Japan after living in South America for several decades and is struggling to cope with poverty and the prejudices of native-born Japanese.

I'm a broken record about this but Koji Yakusho makes every film so much better. Here, he lends his hand to a second-rate thug who's trying to tear down a whole crime syndicate. It's a bit on the long side, clocking in at 134 minutes, and yet it manages to never get stale. So grab a beer (or some other beverage of choice) and experience a crazy taxi ride from the wonderful age of 90's Japanese action.

Genre: Action/Crime

301/302 (South Korea, 1995)

Two obsessive-compulsives, a chef and an anorexic writer, are neighbors in an apartment building. The chef (301) tries to entice her neighbor to eat with fabulous meals. The writer (302) refuses to eat, and this refusal begins a turbulent relationship that forces both women to delve into their pasts of torment.

Here's a weird little film. 301/302 blends sex, cooking, murder and strange personalities in one large, unhealthy and gross mix. Definitely a film I never hear people talk about or find on any lists, which is a shame because it's absolutely worth watching. Nice to see that it's not only Japan that makes these kind of strange films.  

Genre: Horror/Mystery/Thriller

Like Grains of Sand (Japan, 1995)

The movie is built around the very complex relationships between Yoshida, leaving Shimizu for Aihara (or at least he tries to), and his friend Ito, whose love for Yoshida seems to have little chance for success. In the end we have a coalition of Ito and Aihara - who may or may not be in love with Ito - teaching Yoshida a lesson.

How this film has passed me by through the years is beyond me. Maybe it fell under the radar when it didn't became a box office hit, making it so that most people didn't hear about it. Which is incredibly unfortunate because it's an amazing little film that faces the controversy of homosexuality in the Japanese society head-on. It get's very intimate and some scenes almost makes you feel like a peeping Tom for watching something private.

It also has a killer soundtrack, beautiful and atmospheric. When the ending theme "SAYONARA" kicks in, you'll almost close your own eyes together with Yoshida.

Genre: Drama

Eko Eko Azarak: Wizard of Darkness (Japan, 1995)

Misa Kuroi is an adorable high-school girl who arrives at her new school when it is falling under an evil supernatural force. Trying to figure out who's behind the supernatural attack, Misa also has to deal with assumptions by her fellow classmates that believe she is the one behind it all. Misa and twelve other students are kept late after school hours one day to retake an exam. Then, after sunset, the entire school is deserted, and the students find themselves trapped inside and their teacher no where to be found. One by one, the thirteen students are picked up and disposed of in horrific and graphic fashion. It is now up to Misa to try and save them all.

Wizard of Darkness isn't exactly A+ material, but it's an enjoyable, low-budget teen-horror flick with school students who's experimenting with black magic and satanic rituals. Good stuff. 

Genre: Horror

Fallen Angels (Hong Kong, 1995)

A disillusioned killer embarks on his last hit but first he has to overcome his affections for his cool, detached partner. Thinking it's dangerous and improper to become involved with a colleague he sets out to find a surrogate for his affections. Against the sordid and surreal urban nightscape, he crosses path with a strange drifter looking for her mysterious ex-boyfriend and an amusing mute trying to get the world's attention in his own unconventional ways.

Fallen Angels is a dreamlike ride through a hazy, violent Hong Kong. Wong's incredible work behind the camera and the perfect cinematography makes this one of the coolest films of his career. One of the biggest surprises is how well he handles the action scenes, making it all look like a John Woo-film with spraying bullets and slow-motion. The use of black-and-white filters to reflect the characters bleak emotions, the constant handheld camera that always flies across the scenes all contribute to making this one of the most brilliant films ever.

Genre: Crime/Drama. 1h 39min.

Cyclo (Hong Kong/Vietnam, 1995)

A young man who struggles through life by earning some money with his bicycle-taxi in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh city) gets contact to a group of criminals. They introduce him to the mafia-world of drugs and crime.

Cyclo is a raw, unforgettable story about a young man trying to escape his dangerous life and has some brutally stunning visuals. Directed by Tran Anh Hung (Norwegian Wood, The Scent of Green Papaya), it's one of the most powerful dramas I've ever seen, with many scenes that alone deserves a handful of prizes. Acting like this doesn't grow on trees, as it is quite extraordinaire. 

A film that truly leaves you breathless, amazing direction and storytelling.

Genre: Crime/Drama

Maborosi (Japan, 1995)

Yumiko and Ikuo are a young Osaka couple who have a new baby. One day Ikuo is walking along the tracks and is hit by a train. It seems like he may have done this deliberately yet there is no apparent motive. A few years pass. Yumiko agrees to an arranged marriage with a widower, Tamio, and she and her son Yuichi move to Tamio's house in a rustic village by the coast.

Maboroshi no Hikari (a.k.a. Maborosi) was directed by one of my favorite film makers, Hirokazu Koreeda, so before seeing it I had high expectations on the camera work. I was not let down. Most scenes are done with only a fixed camera, just like Yasujiro Ozu, with no movement and the sequences that are done with only one take makes me drool. The setting also seems to suit Koreeda like a glove; the sea, the small village by the coast and the desolate beach all gets filtered through his lens. He's a master at examining still, ordinary life, but never letting go of that melancholy underneath.  

The story is very somber, with little to no answers after a man's suicide. A personal, moving drama all around. 

Genre: Drama

Memories (Japan, 1995)

Memories is made up of three separate science-fiction stories. In the first, "Magnetic Rose," three space travelers are drawn into an abandoned spaceship that contains a world created by one woman's memories. In "Stink Bomb," a young lab assistant accidentally transforms himself into a human biological weapon set on a direct course for Tokyo. The final episode, "Cannon Fodder," depicts a day in the life of a city whose entire purpose is the firing of cannons at an unseen enemy.

With three great animation stories for the price of one, how can it possibly go wrong? From horror elements in space to retro-futurism, all done with crazy good animation. Based on short stories by artist and director Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira, Steamboy), this is a shining gem for fans of anime.

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action/Animation

Love Letter (Japan, 1995)

Hiroko's fiancé Itsuki died two years earlier in a mountain climbing accident. While looking through his high school yearbook, Hiroko in a fit of grief decides to write a letter to him using his old school address. Surprisingly she receives a reply, not from the dead Itsuki, but from a woman with the same name whom had known Hiroko's fiancé in school. A relationship develops between the two women as they continue to exchange letters and share memories of the dead Itsuki.

When watching Love Letter for the first time, it might be easy to get confused by the shared appearance of the two main characters, so I'll recon you will gain a lot by seeing it a second time. And that is recommended, because it's a great film, depicting lost love and teen angst as well. For some reason it's a perfect film to watch during a cold, winter's night around Christmas.  

Genre: Drama/Romance

Ghost in the Shell (Japan, 1995)

The year is 2029. The world has become intensively information oriented and humans are well-connected to the network. Crime has developed into a sophisticated stage by hacking into the interactive network. To prevent this, Section 9 is formed. These are cyborgs with incredible strengths and abilities that can access any network on Earth.

One of the most critically acclaimed anime films of the 90's, Ghost in the Shell is a stunning action fest that will be both loved by anime fans and a great introduction for viewers new to the genre. Something so insignificant as reloading a gun is a joy to watch, and the amount of detail that's been put in every scene is overwhelming. 

A sequel, Ghost in the Shell: Innocence, was released in 2004.

Genre: Action/Mystery/Sci-Fi

Tokyo Fist (Japan, 1995)

A businessman, Tsuda, runs into a childhood friend, Tajuki, on the subway. Tajuki is working as a semiprofessional boxer. Tsuda soon begins to suspect that Tajuki might be having an affair with his fiance Hizuru. After an altercation, Tsuda begins training rigorously himself, leading to an extremely bloody, violent confrontation.

Here, Shinya Tsukamoto once again plays the lead role in his own film. Crazy camerawork put together with lightning fast cuts and bone-crushing violence. Over-the-top fights where every punch creates av huge, bloody lump of meat in the opponents face.  An insane (a word which describes most of Tsukamoto's films actually), psychotic ride through dirty boxing rings where the fists punches through air so fast it sounds like jet engines. 

Genre: Action/Drama/Thriller