The best Kazuyuki Asano’s comedy movies

A hustler who gets in trouble with a gang boss in the port town of Sukago agrees to make good with the don by putting him in contact with a mysterious hitman -- an assassin the hustler has no idea how to contact. Instead, he hires an actor to play the role, though the thespian has no idea what he's getting into.

Set in a five star Tokyo hotel on New Year's Eve, the film follows the misadventures of various hotel staff and guests in the run-up to midnight. The plot involves numerous characters, the different problems or situations they face in the run-up to midnight, and the ways that these different storylines interact and are resolved. The film is reminiscent of the Hollywood screwball comedies of 1930s and 1940s, and explicitly references the 1932 film Grand Hotel, whose plot also followed the interlinked lives of various characters in a fictional hotel over a short period.

When salary man Jun gets home, he finds his wife bleeding from her mouth and lying on the floor. He is shocked by the scene, but it turns out the blood is just ketchup and she is pretending to be dead. Without telling him why, she pretends to be dead everyday. Jun is dumbfounded by his wife's behavior, but he begins to feel uneasy with her.

Would-be writer Ryunosuke Chagawa is still living across the street from Norifumi Suzuki and his auto repair shop, though now he shares his home with Junnosuke, an orphan he's taken under his wing at the urging of pretty Hiroi, who continues to manage a nearby tavern. Chagawa dreams of publishing a successful novel and settling down with Hiroi and Junnosuke, but his day job running the candy store keeps him busy, and Hiroi mistakes his tight schedule for a lack of interest in her. Hiroi has also embarked on a secret career as a burlesque dancer, which isn't doing much to improve her opinion of men. At the Suzuki household, seven-year-old Ippei isn't happy to be sharing the house with a guest, his distant cousin Mika who is the same age but far more demanding. Mutsuko, the apprentice female auto mechanic, is still staying with the Suzukis, and she's becomes the object of the affections of Takeo, a downbeat young man who is studying cooking.

Defence lawyer Emi is assigned to a particularly unusual case: a man is suspected of murdering his wealthy wife, and his only alibi is a 421-year old ghost, Rokubei. At first Emi is hesitant, but when she pursues her lead she is visited by the ghost herself. And so the fun begins in the courtroom when Prosecutor Osano starts to cross examine…

Riku, the heir to a corporate conglomerate, is determined to go through life never owing anything to anyone on principle. However, one day he nearly drowns in a river and is saved by a homeless girl named Nino. To repay his debt, he begins living together with her on the banks of the river as her lover.

Ichiko is a 30-year-old unemployed woman. She meets Ryoichi at a drinking establishment. Even though he is a lot younger than her, she can't forget him. Meanwhile, Ichiko has 5 different characters in her brain that governs her actions. The 5 characters are Yoshida, Ishibashi, Ikeda, Hatoko and Kishi. These 5 character then have a fierce meeting. Yoshida presides over the meeting as the chairman. Ishibashi is the optimist. Ikeda is the pessimist. Hatoko is the character that lives in the moment and Kishi thinks about the past.

Set in the year 2265. There is a small restaurant along the main road Galaxy Kaido, which connects Earth and the space colony Uzushio.

In a small town on the countryside, where everyone knows everyone, all the children pay their respect to the middle-aged woman who runs "Barber Yoshino". An old tradition is rooted in this town. Every young boy is forced to have the same ridiculous hairstyle to have their bangs cut straight, known as the "Yoshino-gari" hairstyle. Of course they all get their hair done at the only barbershop in town, "Barber Yoshino". Then one day, a drastic change occurs when a transfer student with bleached hair comes from Tokyo....