Movies by Mitsuru Hirata
Call Me Chihiro
An unapologetic former sex worker starts working at a bento stand in a small seaside town, bringing comfort to the lonely souls who come her way.
The Women in the Lakes
A 100-year-old resident of a Lake Biwa nursing home dies mysteriously. Did a respirator keeping him alive suddenly malfunction, or was he murdered? A young detective on the case meets a female caregiver. The investigation runs into a dead end, but the two fall into a passionate but forbidden relationship. Terrifying memories emerge from the vast, deep lake to ensnare the detectives on the case, the caregivers, and a reporter trying to uncover a hidden past.
Fukushima 50
Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi facility in Japan risk their lives and stay at the nuclear power plant to prevent total destruction after the region is devastated by an earthquake and tsunami in 2011.
The Man from Shimizu
On the day his mother dies, young gambler Jirocho swears in front of her grave that he'll never gamble again. But, that night, Jirocho heads to a gambling den, where he bets the condolence money for his mother's funeral. No surprise to learn he loses the lot. Not the hard-boiled yakuza story it seems, this is a comedy featuring many new artists who were making a name for themselves at the time.
Tora-san, the Go-Between
In Nagasaki, Tora-san and an acquaintance help an old woman who has fallen and injured herself. She invites them to her home where the three share a night of eating and drinking. The old woman's health deteriorates and she dies. At her funeral, Tora-san falls in love with the old woman's daughter, but winds up acting as a go-between for her and a young law student.
A Lone Scalpel
Dr Toma, a skilled surgeon, starts work at a regional hospital in Japan. After performing an operation to remove a patient’s liver cancer, something that normally would not be done at this hospital, he quickly gains a very good reputation amongst the town’s people. Some of his colleagues become so jealous they are resentful and waiting patiently for the perfect opportunity to crucify him. Soon they get their chance as Dr Toma considers performing a controversial operation…
Memoirs of a Murderer
The movie begins in the year 1995 where there were 5 peculiar murder cases. The murderer would always get someone close to the victim to witness how he would strangle the victim from behind with a rope but he would let the witnesses go and speak to the media on how the murders happened. Ito plays the role of Makimura, the police detective who was in charge of investigating the serial murders but failed to catch the cunning murderer and his respected superior ended up being killed as well. 22 years later in 2017 when the case is nearing its s...
Miracle in Four Days
Dvorak's Symphony No. 9, "From the New World" wafts through a hospice recreation room. Sitting at the grand piano is a young girl, Chiori, with a prodigious ability to play any piece of music after one hearing. Keisuke Kisaragi whose career was abruptly cut short when he jumped in front of a bullet fired by a crazed gunman. The nerves in one hand were severed but he saved the life of Chiori. The tragic incident takes the lives of Chiori's parents, however, and Keisuke becomes her guardian. Not long after their return to Japan, Keisuke discov...
Spectacle of Buds
A weak willed man teams up with a stripper after her stage show partner runs off with another dancer. He is obsessed with her unique inverted nipples and they soon develop a successful stage show around them. But then the old partner returns…
Hold Me and Kiss Me
Keiko’s life is turned upside down when she discovers that she has been infected with HIV. As she struggles to cope with the situation and resist the infection, she finds new friendship and companionship with a journalist named Miyuki and a man named Akira.