Best Japanese Films (1921-)

Top 10

1. "The Million Ryo Pot" (1935, Sadao Yamanaka)

2. "The Masseurs And A Woman" (1938, Hiroshi Shimizu)

3. "Arigato-san" (1936, Hiroshi Shimizu)

4. "The 47 Ronin: Part 1" (1941, Kenji Mizoguchi)

5. "The 47 Ronin: Part 2" (1942, Kenji Mizoguchi)

6. "An Inn In Tokyo" (1935, Yasujiro Ozu)

7. "The Seven Samurai" (1954, Akira Kurosawa)

8. "Onibaba" (1964, Kaneto Shindo)

9. "A Page Of Madness" (1926, Teinosuke Kinugasa)

10. "A Star Athlete" (1937, Hiroshi Shimizu)

Chronologically:

1921

"Souls On The Road" (Minoru Murata)

1922

"Shibukawa Bangoro" (Kokichi Tsukiyama)

1923

"Kosuzume Pass" (Koroku Numata, short)

1924

"Backward Flow" (Buntaro Futagawa, short)

1925

"Orochi" (Buntaro Futagawa)

1926

"A Page Of Madness" (Teinosuke Kinugasa)

1927

"Ship Of Oranges" (Noburo Ofuji, cartoon)

1928

"Crossroads" (Teinosuke Kinugasa)

1929

"Days Of Youth" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1930

"That Night's Wife" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1931

"Tokyo Chorus" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1932

"I Was Born But" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1933

1. "The Water Magician" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

2. "Woman Of Tokyo" (Yasujiro Ozu)

3. "Passing Fancy" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1934

1. "The Story Of Floating Weeds" (Yasujiro Ozu)

2. "1936" (Takao Nakano, Yoshitsugu Tanaka)

3. "Mother Should Be Loved" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1935

1. "The Million Ryo Pot" (Sadao Yamanaka)

2. "An Inn In Tokyo" (Yasujiro Ozu)

3. "Wife Be Like A Rose" (Mikio Naruse)

1936

1. "Arigato-san" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

2. "The Only Son" (Yasujiro Ozu)

3. "Sisters Of The Gion" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1937

1. "A Star Athlete" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

2. "Humanity And Paper Balloons" (Sadao Yamanaka)

3. "Children In The Wind" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

1938

"The Masseurs And A Woman" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

1939

"Tale Of Late Chrysantemums" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1940

"Nobuko" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

1941

"The 47 Ronin: Part 1" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1942

"The 47 Ronin: Part 2" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1943

"Sayon's Bell" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

1944

"Miyamoto Musashi" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1945

"The Men Who Tread On The Tiger's Tail" (Akira Kurosawa)

1946

"No Regrets For Our Youth" (Akira Kurosawa)

1947

"Record Of A Tenement Gentleman" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1948

"Children Of The Beehive" (Hiroshi Shimizu)

1949

"Late Spring" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1950

"Rashomon" (Akira Kurosawa)

1951

1. "Early Summer" (Yasujiro Ozu)

2. "The Idiot" (Akira Kurosawa)

3. "Miss Oyu" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1952

1. "Life Of Oharu" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

2. "Ikiru" (Akira Kurosawa)

3. "The Flavor Of Green Tea Over Rice" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1953

1. "Ugetsu" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

2. "Tokyo Story" (Yasujiro Ozu)

3. "Gate Of Hell" (Teinosuke Kinugasa)

1954

1. "The Seven Samurai" (Akira Kurosawa)

2. "Sansho The Bailiff" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

3. "Godzilla" (Ishiro Honda)

1955

1. "I Live In Fear" (Akira Kurosawa)

2. "Empress Yang Kwei Fei" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

3. "Taira Clan Saga" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1956

1. "The Burmese Harp" (Kon Ichikawa)

2. "Early Spring" (Yasujiro Ozu)

3. "Street Of Shame" (Kenji Mizoguchi)

1957

"Throne Of Blood" (Akira Kurosawa)

1958

"Hidden Fortress" (Akira Kurosawa)

1959

"Ohayo" (Yasujiro Ozu)

1960

"The Island" (Kaneto Shindo)

1961

"Yojimbo" (Akira Kurosawa)

1962

"Sanjuro" (Akira Kurosawa)

1963

"High And Low" (Akira Kurosawa)

1964

"Onibaba" (Kaneto Shindo)

1965

"Tokyo Olympiad" (Kon Ichikawa)

1966

"The Face Of Another" (Hiroshi Teshigahara)

1967

"Branded To Kill" (Seijun Suzuki)

1968

"Death By Hanging" (Nagisa Oshima)

1969

"Go Go Second Time Virgin" (Koji Wakamatsu)

1970

"The Man Who Put His Will On Film" (Nagisa Oshima)

1971

"Dodes'ka-den" (Akira Kurosawa)

1972

"Ecstasy Of The Angels" (Koji Wakamatsu)

1973

"Sex And Fury" (Norifumi Suzuki)

1974

"Wife To Be Sacrificed" (Masaru Konuma)

1975

"Terror Of Mechagodzilla" (Ishiro Honda)

1976

"In The Realm Of The Senses" (Nagisa Oshima)

1977

"House" (Nobuhiko Obayashi)

1978

"Empire Of Passion" (Nagisa Oshima)

1979

"The Castle Of Cagliostro" (Hayao Miyazaki)

1980

"Kagemusha" (Akira Kurosawa)

1981

"Hokusai manga" (Kaneto Shindo)

1982

"Space Adventure Cobra" (Osamu Dezaki)

1983

"The Ballad Of Narayama" (Shohei Imamura)

1984

"Nausicaa" (Hayao Miyazaki)

1985

"Ran" (Akira Kurosawa)

1986

"Castle In The Sky" (Hayao Miyazaki)

1987

"Wicked City" (Yoshiaki Kawajiri)

1988

"Akira" (Katsuhiro Otomo)

1989

"Kiki's Delivery Service" (Hayao Miyazaki)

1990

"Guy: Double Target" (Yorihisa Uchida)

1991

"The Abashiri Family" (Takashi Watanabe)

1992

"Porco rosso" (Hayao Miyazaki)

1993

"Ninja Scroll" (Yoshiaki Kawajiri)

1994

"New Love In Tokyo" (Banmei Takahashi)

1995

"Ghost In The Shell" (Mamoru Oshii)

1996

"Shall We Dance" (Masayuki Suo)

1997

"Unagi" (Shohei Imamura)

1998

"Kite" (Yasuomi Umetsu)

1999

"Dead Or Alive" (Takashi Miike)

2000

"Freeze Me" (Takashi Ishii)

2001

"Mezzo Forte" (Yasuomi Umetsu)

2002

"Spirited Away" (Hayao Miyazaki)

2003

"Hard Luck Hero" (Sabu)

2004

"Howl's Moving Castle" (Hayao Miyazaki)

2005

"Flower And Snake 2" (Takashi Ishii)

2006

"Man Woman And The Wall" (Masashi Yamamoto)

2007

"Bakushi" (Ryuichi Hiroki)

2008

"Departures" (Yojiro Takita)

2009

"Ponyo" (Hayao Miyazaki)

2010

"The Outrage" (Takeshi Kitano)

2011

"Underwater Love" (Shinji Imaoka)

2012

"Lesson Of The Evil" (Takashi Miike)

2013

"Sweet Whip" (Takashi Ishii)

2014

"Gun Woman" (Kurando Mitsutake)

2015

"When Marnie Was There" (Hiromasa Yonebayashi)

2016

"Suki demo nai kuseni" (Kota Yoshida)

2017

"Dawn Of The Felines" (Kazuya Shiraishi)

2018

"Shoplifters" (Hirokazu Kore-eda)

2019

"Under Your Bed" (Mari Asato)

2020

"The Island Of Giant Insects" (Takeo Takahashi, Naoyuki Tatsuwa)

2021

"Drive My Car" (Ryûsuke Hamaguchi)

2022

"Zen - Grogu And Dust Bunnies" (Katsuya Kondo)

2023

1. "Perfect Days" (Wim Wenders)

2. "Monster" (Hirokazu Kore-eda )

3. "Suzume" (Makoto Shinkai)