Movies by Akira Emoto

Bedtime Eyes

Bedtime Eyes

Based on a polemic novel by Amy Yamada, Bedtime Eyes is about the intense love relationship between a second rate Japanese jazz singer and a black American GI on the margins of the law.

It Feels So Good

It Feels So Good

When it rains it pours. Kenji divorced his wife, lost his job and his old squeeze Naoko is getting married back home in the north of Japan, specifically in Akita. He returns there in order to attend her wedding. Naoko surprises him by proposing that they have sex again. The one night stand is the new beginning.

Memories of Matsuko

Memories of Matsuko

While combing through the belongings of his recently deceased aunt, Matsuko, nephew Sho pieces together the crucial events that sank Matsuko's life into a despairing tragedy.

Hard Days

Hard Days

After going to extremes to cover up an accident, a corrupt cop's life spirals out of control when he starts receiving threats from a mysterious witness.

Lu Over the Wall

Lu Over the Wall

In a small fishing village, a gloomy middle school student named Kai meets a mermaid named Lu.

The End of the Tiny World

The End of the Tiny World

Kida and Makoto grew up together because they have it in common that they don't have parents. And a transfer student, Yotchi, also gets along with them because she has a similar background, which is that they come from not such a good home environment. They spent their school life supporting each other. But, at the age of 20, Yotchi disappeared. Then Lisa, the daughter of a politician and a top model, appears in front of the two men. Makoto takes an unusual romantic interest in Lisa, who lives in a different world from them, and asked her ou...

Legend of the Cat Monster

Legend of the Cat Monster

A legendary actress thought to be dead is discovered living in an isolated mansion. A screenwriter is tasked with writing her comeback film, which leads the two to live under the same roof.

Haru's Journey

Haru's Journey

Stuck in a fishing village in Hokkaido, Tadao's grand-daughter Haru is desperate to visit Tokyo, a trip Tadao is reluctant to make.

Vampire in Love

Vampire in Love

Kiira seems like an ordinary young girl, who likes to talk with her friends and to dress up. Her ultimate goal is to become the world's best baker, but what differentiates her from others is that she is a vampire. She has never told anyone her secret, including her childhood friend Tetsu, whom she played with everyday and liked as a child. After her parents died when Kiira was only 12-years-old, she had to go live with her relatives and lost contact with Tetsu. Now, 8 years later, Tetsu appears at the bakery where Kiira is working part-time...

Egoist

Egoist

After losing his mother at the age of 14, Kōsuke spent his depressed adolescence hiding his gay identity in a rural town. Now working as a fashion magazine editor, he spends his free time with his close friends. One day, he meets Ryūta, a personal trainer who works in part to support his aging mother.

0.5 mm

0.5 mm

Sawa, a home helper for a middle class family with an elderly infirm grandfather, is forced to stretch her morals to keep her job. As a result, she finds herself broke and out on the street. She survives her first night by striking up an ambiguous friendship with a kindly old man, gaining access to a portion of the immense wealth held by Japan's aging population. She continues with similar encounters, and while these begin as scams or revenge on rampant sexism, they ultimately become vulnerable intergenerational exchanges.

Roar of the Crowd

Roar of the Crowd

Based on the non-fiction books by Takushi Ono (the NHK announcer, not the gymnast) and Yoshinari Tobe.

Boku to Mama No Kiiroi Jitensha

Boku to Mama No Kiiroi Jitensha

Taishi lives with his father Kazushi. His mother left home when Taishi was very young and he barely has any memories of her. He believes that his mother left home to study in Paris. His favorite moments come once a week when he receives a letter from his mother. But one day, during Taishi's summer vacation, he learns that his mother isn't in Paris but in Shodoshima, Japan. Taishi then decides to take his pet dog with him and bicycle from his hometown of Yokohama all the way to Shodoshima. On his 500 kilometers trip to Shodoshima, Taishi meet...

Double Bed

Double Bed

Kato is a small time TV producer. He has a wife Masako, and a young son Taro. Kato also has a friend Yamazaki who he knew since college. Yamazaki has a girl friend Riko who lives with her younger sister Yuko who's an actress. Yamazaki is a lyric writer/womanizer and he starts to have an affair with Masako, but he's still going out with Riko.

Free and Easy 8

Free and Easy 8

When Su-san invites his late friend's daughter to come along on a fishing trip, she falls in love with Hama-chan's fishing protégé.

Umami

Umami

Following a near-death experience France's leading chef throws himself into a quest seeking the flavor that has confounded his life since he was defeated by a Japanese chef's bowl of noodles as a young man.

A Naive History of the Bakumatsu Era

A Naive History of the Bakumatsu Era

In the last days of the Tokugawa shogunate, there was a cute warrior, Souji Okita, who belonged to the armed police of the shogunate in Kyoto. Very few knew that Souji was not a boy, but a woman. Souji loved the vice-leader of the armed police, Toshizou Hijikata. Souji suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis and coughed up blood during a battle. Toshizou helped her but said that he did not care for the girl with a smell of blood. Souji had a real talent for swordsmanship and no one but Ryouma Sakamoto could compete with her. Ryouma was a libera...

Masked Crusader, Mr. Jirenman

Masked Crusader, Mr. Jirenman

A meek salaryman who gets no respect at home and is belittled at work gets inspiration from Superman and somehow becomes a strangely suited, hugely endowed, masked sexual avenger.

A Grain of Wheat

A Grain of Wheat

“A Grain of Wheat” is a story of two bakeries in Yokohama. A French baker, Eriko, makes a sudden visit to Honda who is the owner of a historical bakery in Yokohama. They have different attitudes towards the craft of bread making but they start to feel mutual respect as they make bread together.

Revolver

Revolver

When a gun belonging to a police officer is stolen, it ends up in the hands of a student, who decides to use it on a yakuza who beat him recently. Now the police officer is hot on the student’s trail, and he’s determined to prevent the gun from going off.