The best Kumiko Aso’s drama movies

The time: 1814. The place: Edo, now known as Tokyo. A much accomplished artist of his time and now in his mid-fifties, Tetsuzo can boast clients from all over Japan, and tirelessly works in the garbage-loaded chaos of his house-atelier. He spends his days creating astounding pieces of art, from a giant-size Bodhidharma portrayed on a 180 square meter-wide sheet of paper, to a pair of sparrows painted on a tiny rice grain. Third of Tetsuzo's four daughters and born out of his second marriage, outspoken 23-year-old O-Ei has inherited her father's talent and stubbornness, and very often she would paint instead of him, though uncredited. Her art is so powerful that sometimes leads to trouble. "We're father and daughter; with two brushes and four chopsticks, I guess we can always manage, in a way or another."

After her werewolf lover unexpectedly dies in an accident, a woman must find a way to raise the son and daughter that she had with him. However, their inheritance of their father's traits prove to be a challenge for her.

Kyuta, a boy living in Shibuya, and Kumatetsu, a lonesome beast from Jutengai, an imaginary world. One day, Kyuta forays into the imaginary world and, as he's looking for his way back, meets Kumatetsu who becomes his spirit guide. That encounter leads them to many adventures.

Fifty years of war between the Great Eastern Federation and Europa - now merged as Eurasia - have taken their toll on planet Earth. As a result of the use of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons, much of Earth has become uninhabitable and people have become prey to new diseases. Professor Azuma's "neo-cell" project, which is supposed to be the answer to mankind's hardships, becomes a nightmare come true when mutants spawned from the experiment escape and declare war on the human race. Azuma's son Tetsuya, who was killed during the previous war, is reborn into the cyborg Casshern as mankind's last hope against the new mutant threat. This live-action sci-fi movie based on a 1973 Japanese animé of the same name.

The movie follows a 4-year old boy who is struggling to cope with the arrival of a little sister in the family until things turn magical. A mysterious garden in the backyard of the boy's home becomes a gateway allowing the child to travel back in time and encounter his mother as a little girl and his great-grandfather as a young man. These fantasy-filled adventures allow the child to change his perspective and help him become the big brother he was meant to be.

Upon reaching the train station to death, a dejected soul is informed that he is lucky and will have another chance at life. He is placed in the body of a 14-year-old boy named Kobayashi Makoto, who has just committed suicide. Watched over by a neutral spirit named Purapura, the soul must figure out what his greatest sin and mistake in his former life was, before his time limit in Makoto's body runs out. He also has a number of other lesser duties he must complete, such as understanding what led Makoto to commit suicide in the first place and learning how to enjoy his second chance at life.

Machisu is a painter. He never had the success he thinks he is entitled to. Regardless of this, he always remains trying to be successful. His wife Sachiko keeps supporting him, despite all setbacks. Machisu, the only son of a rich collector, has a childs love for painting. Praise from a famous artist friend of his father inspires the young boy to dream of becoming a painter himself. s a young man, poor loner Machisu manages to attend art school with money earned from working. He is introduced to an unconventional world of bold creativity but he also gets his first bitter taste of harsh criticism from a dealer. Encouragement comes in the form of attractive clerk Sachiko who is convinced that she alone understands him. Marriage is soon followed by a daughter, as love and hope drive Machisu to commit even more deeply to his art ...

Filmmakers from all over the world provide short films – each of which is eleven minutes, nine seconds, and one frame of film in length – that offer differing perspectives on the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

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.

Set one year after the drama series "Moteki." 31-year-old Yukiyo Fujimoto (Mirai Moriyama) doesn't have money, dreams or a girlfriend. He has left his job at a staffing firm and is attempting to start a new life by working as a writer for a news site. Suddenly, Yukiyo experiences "moteki" - a period when a man becomes suddenly popular with woman. Cute magazine editor Miyuki (Masami Nagasawa), pure and naive office worker Rumiko (Kumiko Aso), beautiful shop assistant Ai (Riisa Naka) and beautiful, but tough co-worker named Motoko (Yoko Maki) all become interested in Yukiyo. He tries to calm down, but is shaken by the interests of these women.

At the end of WWII, Japanese doctor Akagi searches for the cure for hepatitis in the prisoner-of-war camp.

Majime, an eccentric man in publishing company, who has unique ability of words, joins the team that will compile a new dictionary, ‘The Great Passage.’ In the eclectic team, he becomes immersed in the world of dictionaries. But the team is overwhelmed with problems. Will ‘The Great Passage’ ever be completed?

Yutaka was fourteen years old when he was run over by a car and fell into a coma. Now, ten years later, he wakes up and realizes that his family is not intact anymore: father, mother and sister live at different places. Yutaka decides to re-open the pony farm that his family once ran.

A man, who once dreamed of becoming a punk rocker, is working as a low salaryman at a musical instrument parts company. He’s secretly in love with his colleague. One day, he finds a little turtle on the rooftop, naming it Pikadon.

Tears for You is a love story about two step-siblings, Yota and Kaoru. Long ago, Yota's mother married Kaoru's jazz-playing father, effectively merging the two families. Unfortunately, Kaoru's father skipped town, and Yota's mother passed away, but not before imparting a dying wish to her young son to take care of Kaoru. In the meantime, the two young children were raised by Yota's grandmother on a small island off the coast of Okinawa. When Yota came of age, he took on a role not just as a brother but as a surrogate father of sorts for Kaoru, al

When Mutta was 12-years-old and Hibito was 9-years-old the two brothers saw what they thought was an UFO flying towards the moon. They made a pact then to become astronauts and one day fly into space together. Fast forward to the year 2025. Older brother Mutta (Shun Oguri) works as for an automotive company and his younger brother Hibito works as an astronaut. Although Mutta failed to follow through on his childhood promise, after losing his job, he receives a phone call from Hibito which reignites his childhood dream of flying into outer space ...

In Somai's final film, an alcoholic civil servant wakes up under a cherry tree in Tokyo next to a bar hostess with whom he's impulsively made a suicide pact. Though he's now changed his mind, he agrees to travel with her to Hokkaido, her preferred site for ending it all. An elegiac road movie of restrained emotion.

Japan, 250 years ago. Soetsu is a moneylender who is killed by the cruel samurai Shinzaemon. His body is dumped in the Kasenega-Fuchi river. According to legend, all who drown in the river will never surface again. 20 Years later, Shinkichi, the handsome son of Shinzaemon, coincidentally meets Toyoshiga, the daughter of Soetsu. They fall in love. It is a doomed love, as the spirit of Soetsu is far from dead

During the Edo period, a gifted swordsman was exiled from his clan when he questioned the misconduct of his leader. Years after, his dying wife wish was for him to go back to his clan.

Youjin is a quirky young man living in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. Yojin has a difficult time sitting still and can't focus on extended conversations. His life revolves around farming his grandmother's vegetable garden. Yojin experiences a new kind of feeling when he meets a pretty young lady named Machiko. The feelings are strong enough that he feels the need to be with her and gain her affection.