Cast Member: Koichi Sato

If you manage to remain interested while the film establishes a story and can tolerate the odd sense of the macabre, then ‘Gonin’ does provide a few flashes of excellence.

Colourful, comic booked tinged ninja tale, ‘Kamui’ is a fun sword swishing time that packs in action, drama and some striking scenery.

‘Nobody To Watch Over Me’ packs quality into every area, from the probing direction to a superb cast without a weak link among them.

This is ‘Spaghetti Western’ done Miike style, and one of his strengths is his ability to construct a world that you can’t find anywhere else and that you don’t want to leave.

‘The Magic Hour’ is a fun comedy, though not the classic it promises to be. It still has an enormous amount to recommend it though and is a good starting point for those looking into Japanese comedy.