Rubber's Lover (Japan, 1996)

A powerful and secretive corporation is conducting underground psychic experiments utilizing Digital Direct Drive, otherwise known as DDD. While under the influence of the drug ether, the human subjects are outfitted in rubber suits and bombarded with DDD with extremely intense sound. Though the experiments are successful in unleashing psychic powers in the test subjects, the results are usually fatal. As a result, the corporation attempts to shut down the experiments against the wishes of Motomiya and Hitotsubashi who are in charge of the research.

Rubber's Lover goes in the same vein as Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989), which is an amazing movie. This doesn't have the same level of quality, but still is a recommended watch for people who like bloody body horror and gritty cyberpunk. 

Genre: Horror/Sci-Fi

Fudoh: The New Generation (Japan, 1996)

Set on the island of Kyushu, it tells the story of successful high school student Riki Fudoh, who leads a double life in organized crime. With his gang of underage assassins, including five-year-olds with hand guns and a teenage stripper, he not only controls the goings-on at his school, but aspires to take over criminal affairs on the entire island. Fudoh's true motivations however, are not just a lust for power, but for something far more personal.

Something tells me that there's only a handful of people who have directed as many Yakuza films as Takashi Miike (13 Assassins). His filmography is a mountain of Yakuza flicks, including some of my favorites such as Gozu (2003) and Graveyard of Honor (2002). Even with an early film like Fudoh, Miike showcases what his vision is all about: over the top-violence and buckets of blood. 

Fudoh isn't a masterpiece, but it's definitely a fun and intense Yakuza story about vengeance, honor, and of course, a woman who assassinates Yakuzas by shooting darts out of her vagina. Yes, it's a Miike film, alright.   

    

Genre: Action/Comedy/Crime

Gamera 2: Attack of Legion (Japan, 1996)

A year has passed since the battle between Gamera and the Gyaos, and Japan has struggled to rebuild its cities in the meantime. Suddenly, a series of bizarre incidents reveal a new threat to the land of the rising sun. On a moonlit stroll, science instructor Midori Honami watches as a huge meteor plunges into the mountain snow. The next night, two security guards are horrified as they see large insect-like creatures stealing glass bottles from a nearby warehouse. Soon after, the entire city of Sapporo is covered with strange plants and the link between these events soon becomes clear.

Attack of Legion is the second entry in Gamera's great reboot series, and it delivers spectacular action scenes with amazing miniature sets that gets completely demolished by giant monsters. It's almost like you want to cheer whenever an apartment complex or a skyscraper gets ripped apart because it looks so fantastic when all that concrete explode and crashes into other houses. It's a must-watch for every giant monster fan, and everyone who finds the thought of Tokyo being smashed to bits appealing. A kaiju masterpiece and by far one of the films in the genre.

Genre: Action/Drama/Fantasy

Shall We Dance? (Japan, 1996)

Sugiyama is a successful salaryman, with a house in the suburbs, a devoted wife, Masako, and a teenage daughter. He works as an accountant for a firm in Tokyo. Despite these external signs of success, however, Sugiyama begins to feel as if his life has lost direction and meaning and falls into depression. One night, while coming home on the Tokyo Subway, he spots a beautiful woman with a melancholy expression looking out from a window in a dance studio. This is Mai, a well-known figure on the Western ballroom dance circuit. Sugiyama becomes infatuated with her and decides to take lessons in order to get to know her better.

Shall We Dance? is a charming and splendid drama that puts you in a happy mood. The movie became actor Koji Yakusho's (13 Assassins, Cure) major breakthrough, and that's great because he's one of my favorite Japanese actors. It gives an interesting insight to the conservative view the Japanese people have of relationships. It became such a big deal that it inspired a huge dance craze all over Japan, A delightful movie that will without a doubt lift you off your feet.

Genre: Drama/Comedy

Kids Return (Japan, 1996)

Two friends visit the schoolyard of the high school they used to attend, and remember their young and carefree days. They used to be the bullies in the school, until they find their own ways of life; one as a boxer, and the other as a member of the yakuza. 

Around the time director/actor Takeshi Kitano (Battle Royale, Kikujiro) had his near-fatal motorcycle accident where he damaged most of his face, he directed Kids Return. Many thought that he wouldn't be able to ever direct again, but he did. He wrote a fantastic film about two guys who find themselves at a crossroad in life. The character development is amazing here, and at the end of the film you can't help but think back of all the things they've gone through and how small events became huge stepping stones on the road to something else. 

Naked Blood (Japan, 1996)

Naked Blood (a.k.a. Splatter: Naked Blood) tells the story about a boy who develops a new chemical that turns pain into pleasure. He decides to try it out on three patients at a clinic that his mom works at, and record the effects.

Wait right here, I'm just gonna go and vomit. Naked Blood is somewhat of a gore fest, with some scenes looking much better than others. The sound effects, though really nasty-sounding, feels out of place and you can always tell that they've been added to the scenes after filming was done. It's a great B-horror film in other words and has some truly sick content. Anyhow, it's a hidden gem for gore lovers and contains some very disturbing scenes.

Genre: Horror/Mystery/Thriller