Acting
Tatsuo Yamada
Born January 10, 1956 · Toyama, Japan
Died July 26, 2009 · aged 53
No biography available.
Known For
Door II: Tokyo Diary · 1991Door II: Tokyo Diary
★ 6.21991
MovieDramaThriller
Ai is a call girl that makes good money for what she does but there’s always at risk no matter how good the money is.
Neo Chinpira 2: Zoom Goes the Bullet · 1991Neo Chinpira 2: Zoom Goes the Bullet
1991
Movie
In the sequel to 1990's classic Neo Chinpira, Junko (Sho Aikawa) attempts to take out Kazama and then goes on the run. However, he quickly begins to feel homesick, and returns home to find that almost everything has changed. Noriko is now a bar mama with a lavish lifestyle, Yumeko is nowhere to be found, and his boss (Toru Minegishi) seems to have sinister plans involving Junko and his uncle (Jo Shishido).
Tokyo Noir · 2004Tokyo Noir
★ 9.02004
MovieDrama
Three tales that center around sex and citizens of Tokyo: A repressed woman embraces her sexuality, ("Birthday"), an unexpected reunion disrupts a sex worker's routine ("Night Lovers"), and a sex blogger discovers connection in the depths of loneliness ("Girl's Life").
Neo Chinpira: Zoom Goes the Bullet · 1990Neo Chinpira: Zoom Goes the Bullet
★ 6.71990
MovieCrimeAction
Junko pretends to be a yakuza and gets more than he bargained for when he is tasked with avenging the murder of a fellow gang member. If he turns the task down, he will face the consequences for betrayal.
Departures · 2008Departures
★ 7.82008
MovieDrama
Daigo, a cellist, is laid off from his orchestra and moves with his wife back to his small hometown where the living is cheaper. Thinking he’s applying for a job at a travel agency he finds he’s being interviewed for work with departures of a more permanent nature – as an undertaker’s assistant.
Song of Goodbye · 2007Song of Goodbye
★ 5.02007
MovieDrama
It is the second work of the Oita trilogy of Obayashi . Following " Nigori Snow ", Ise Masazo draws a song written by composers and songwriter "Farewell of 22 years old " as a motif and draws a story of love that spans two generations of mother and daughter.
Sabu · 2002Sabu
★ 6.82002
MovieDramaAction
When a young man is sent to a prison workhouse for a crime he did not commit his friend on the outside must find evidence to clear his name.
The Wicked Reporter 2: The Rebirth of Horserace Betting · 1994The Wicked Reporter 2: The Rebirth of Horserace Betting
★ 6.31994
MovieCrime
The continuing adventures of Matsuzaki, a racing tipster for a sports paper. Matsuzaki befriends a mysterious old track bettor named Tokudaiji. The man turns out to be a well-connected millionaire and invites Matsuzaki to his home.
Movies
Door II: Tokyo Diary · 1991Door II: Tokyo Diary
★ 6.21991
MovieDramaThriller
Ai is a call girl that makes good money for what she does but there’s always at risk no matter how good the money is.
Neo Chinpira 2: Zoom Goes the Bullet · 1991Neo Chinpira 2: Zoom Goes the Bullet
1991
Movie
In the sequel to 1990's classic Neo Chinpira, Junko (Sho Aikawa) attempts to take out Kazama and then goes on the run. However, he quickly begins to feel homesick, and returns home to find that almost everything has changed. Noriko is now a bar mama with a lavish lifestyle, Yumeko is nowhere to be found, and his boss (Toru Minegishi) seems to have sinister plans involving Junko and his uncle (Jo Shishido).
Tokyo Noir · 2004Tokyo Noir
★ 9.02004
MovieDrama
Three tales that center around sex and citizens of Tokyo: A repressed woman embraces her sexuality, ("Birthday"), an unexpected reunion disrupts a sex worker's routine ("Night Lovers"), and a sex blogger discovers connection in the depths of loneliness ("Girl's Life").
Neo Chinpira: Zoom Goes the Bullet · 1990Neo Chinpira: Zoom Goes the Bullet
★ 6.71990
MovieCrimeAction
Junko pretends to be a yakuza and gets more than he bargained for when he is tasked with avenging the murder of a fellow gang member. If he turns the task down, he will face the consequences for betrayal.
Departures · 2008Departures
★ 7.82008
MovieDrama
Daigo, a cellist, is laid off from his orchestra and moves with his wife back to his small hometown where the living is cheaper. Thinking he’s applying for a job at a travel agency he finds he’s being interviewed for work with departures of a more permanent nature – as an undertaker’s assistant.
Song of Goodbye · 2007Song of Goodbye
★ 5.02007
MovieDrama
It is the second work of the Oita trilogy of Obayashi . Following " Nigori Snow ", Ise Masazo draws a song written by composers and songwriter "Farewell of 22 years old " as a motif and draws a story of love that spans two generations of mother and daughter.
Sabu · 2002Sabu
★ 6.82002
MovieDramaAction
When a young man is sent to a prison workhouse for a crime he did not commit his friend on the outside must find evidence to clear his name.
The Wicked Reporter 2: The Rebirth of Horserace Betting · 1994The Wicked Reporter 2: The Rebirth of Horserace Betting
★ 6.31994
MovieCrime
The continuing adventures of Matsuzaki, a racing tipster for a sports paper. Matsuzaki befriends a mysterious old track bettor named Tokudaiji. The man turns out to be a well-connected millionaire and invites Matsuzaki to his home.
The Shootout · 1982The Shootout
★ 7.01982
MovieDramaCrime
A run-in with the police once again puts three former reformatory inmates on the wrong side of the law. Their situation becomes increasingly desperate as events spin out of control, culminating in an audacious hijack at sea...
Semi: Nakanai Semi · 2003Semi: Nakanai Semi
2003
MovieRomanceDrama
A taxi driver becomes involved in the world of the mafia & their wars.
KUMISO · 2002KUMISO
2002
Movie
Hitoshi Izaki, Chairman of the Kanto Chivalrous Union and Head of the Izaki-gumi, has died suddenly! As is to be expected in a yakuza organisation rife with intrigue and scheming, internal strife has erupted, and with rival organisations bound to be scheming in the shadows, the Chairman of the Funeral Preparations Committee—Kazumi Matsuda, the very epitome of chivalry—is racing against time to organise the once-in-a-lifetime ‘clan funeral’ for the boss to whom he owes a debt of gratitude! Will the ‘clan funeral’ he has organised at the risk of his own life actually go ahead without a hitch?
Japan Sinks · 2006Japan Sinks
★ 5.72006
MovieDramaThriller
In the aftermath of a major earthquake, scientists predict that Japan will sink into the sea. As further disasters follow, politicians plead with other countries to take refugees, while scientists struggle to save Japan itself.
When the Last Sword Is Drawn · 2003When the Last Sword Is Drawn
★ 7.42003
MovieActionDrama
Kanichiro Yoshimura is a Samurai and Family man who can no longer support his wife and children on the the low pay he receives from his small town clan, he is forced by the love for his family to leave for the city in search of higher pay to support them.
Moment of Demon · 1985Moment of Demon
★ 5.31985
MovieDrama
Filled with guilt over his forbidden desires, a young man leaves home and his studies. He finds a new smaller place to stay, a low-paying but satisfying job and a girlfriend. Then his mother, unable to fight her forbidden desires, shows up.
Female Lawyer Raped! · 1997Female Lawyer Raped!
★ 2.01997
MovieDrama
Up-and-coming lawyer Sayoko Kirishima takes on the defense of Onodera, the suspect in a rape case involving a high school girl. Onodera, harboring an abnormal love for Sayoko, confines her. As she endures endless abuse, Sayoko gradually loses her sanity. Before long, she becomes addicted to the perverse pleasures and lust of the situation...
Jingi 39: Bloodstained Gravestone · 2004Jingi 39: Bloodstained Gravestone
2004
MovieCrime
39th movie in the series
Bizan · 2007Bizan
★ 6.02007
MovieDrama
Sakiko, works independently at a travel agent in Tokyo. She was raised by her mother, Tatsuko, is hospitalized, Sakiko returns to her hometown Tokushima on Shikoku. The town is famous for its annual Awa Dance Festival. She is told by doctor, Terasawa Daisuke, that her mother has terminal cancer.
Whiteout · 2000Whiteout
★ 6.32000
MovieActionThriller
A group of terrorists has taken hold of the largest dam in Japan. They also capture the workers as hostages, and demanded $5 billion yen from the government with a 24 hour deadline in exchange for the lives of the hostages. To make things more complicated, there was a snowstorm and no one can get in or out near the area. Fortunately, the terrorists did not capture Togashi, the dam controller, and he is the only person who can rescue those hostages from the terrorists...
Switching – Goodbye Me · 2007Switching – Goodbye Me
★ 6.62007
MovieFantasyComedy
After his parent's divorce, Kazuo Saito moves with his mother from Onomichi and must leave his girlfriend behind. At his new school, Kazuo is surprised to reunite with his childhood friend Kazumi.
Ashura · 2005Ashura
★ 5.32005
MovieFantasyAction
Adapted from the successful play, the film takes place in 19th-century Japan, where a war between demons and their slayers is fought. Izumo, a kabuki actor with a demon-slaying past, meets and falls in love with Tsubaki. However, something is not right, as mysterious marks appear on her body as time progresses. At the same time, it is announced that Ashura, the queen of all demons, will be resurrected and bring destruction to the universe.
The Milkwoman · 2005The Milkwoman
★ 6.92005
MovieDrama
Minako (TANAKA Yuko), begins her day running up and down the hills of her hometown delivering milk door to door. When that's done, she heads to her day job as a supermarket cashier. Minako is 50 and single. In one of the houses to which she delivers milk is a man with whom she has secretly been in love since high school. The man, Keita (KISHIBE Ittoku), lives with his wife Yoko, who is terminally ill. Caring for her at home, he works in the children's affairs section of the local municipal office. Though he insists that he wants nothing more than an "ordinary" existence, his life is in turmoil below the surface. The director uses a variety of narrative devises to portray the loneliness, isolation, and hope of these people who have seemingly allowed their goals and dreams to slip away, whilst keeping them agonizingly close to hand.
Blues Harp · 1998Blues Harp
★ 6.61998
MovieCrimeDrama
Ambitious Yakuza Kenji befriends harmonica-playing bartender Chuji, who moonlights as a part-time drug-dealer for the opposing gang. Their friendship is threatened by Kenji's plans for advancement, as well as by his bodyguards' growing jealousy of Chuji.
Leave My Girl Alone · 1986Leave My Girl Alone
★ 7.51986
MovieThriller
Hitomi, a former orphan who is trying to leave behind her delinquent ways, one day agrees to tutor a wealthy young boy who has just become an orphan himself…
The Unbroken · 2009The Unbroken
★ 6.72009
MovieDrama
Onchi was exiled to posts around Asia and Africa due to his work as head of a labor union for National Air Line. He is ordered to return to head office after ten years, and continues to struggle. When a National Air Line plane is involved in the worst air disaster in Japanese history, he is assigned to console and provide restitution to the families of the victims.
TV Shows
The Woman of S.R.I. · 1999The Woman of S.R.I.
★ 7.31999
SeriesDrama
Mariko is a forensic scientist working at the Kyoto PD Crime Lab. Her credo is “science never lies” and she delves into the truth of the case with her colleagues with their specialized skills and knowledge in forensic medicine, physics, chemistry etc. Mariko’s steadfast belief in science makes her stand against conventional institutional ethics of the police department, diehard detectives averse to scientific investigation and sometimes even with her own colleagues, but she stays faithful to her belief in science and continues to pursue the truth.
Sky High · 2003Sky High
★ 5.02003
SeriesDrama
Sky High is a live-action, supernatural Japanese television drama series, starring actress and model, Yumiko Shaku. It aired in Japan, first run, from 2003 to 2004, and was popular enough to spawn the 2003 feature film of the same name. Both are based on the Japanese manga, Skyhigh. Shaku stars as Izuko, the Guardian of the Gate to the afterlife.
The basic premise of the television series is somewhat similar in concept to the American series, Ghost Whisperer, in which the protagonist must use her powers to guide the dead on their journey to the afterlife by helping them determine the meaning or circumstance of their death. However, in Izuko's case, no matter how hard she tries, her guidance does not always result in a happy ending.
Mission To Kill · 2009Mission To Kill
★ 7.02009
Series
Continuation of the popular series of films about the assassins in Edo. This show marks the return of the jidaigeki series "Hissatsu Shigotonin," which has had several seasons between the 1970s and the 1990s. The franchise came back in 2007 with a one-shot special, but this is its first full season since 1992. Makoto Fujita returns as the protagonist Nakamura Mondo, one of the "shigotonin," a team of hired assassins.
San-ban Tēburu no Kyaku · 1996San-ban Tēburu no Kyaku
★ 8.01996
SeriesDrama
A program that uses a script written by Koki Mitani and is produced by a different cast and crew each time. As the narration at the beginning of the show says: "If you think you can create the same work with the same script, you don't know drama". This is a drama that clearly shows how the atmosphere of a work changes depending on the direction, making it ideal for those who aspire to become directors.
Sayonara Sankaku Mata Kite Shikaku · 1982Sayonara Sankaku Mata Kite Shikaku
1982
SeriesDrama
The interactions of two families that have lived next door to each other for generations.