Asian Language Features worth watching

by Rad82 | created - 29 May 2013 | updated - 17 Oct 2021 | Public

Just my Asian Favorites.

For the moment this consists mostly Eastern & Central Asian cinema: Japan, Korea, China, Iran and fewer from Taiwan, India, Kazakhstan, Iraq, Israel and Palaistine.

Order is more or less irrelevant since it's just personal in the end.

Animation Films are excluded ofc.

Enjoy!

Last updated on: ---17-10-21---

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1. Harakiri (1962)

Not Rated | 133 min | Action, Drama, Mystery

85 Metascore

When a ronin requesting seppuku at a feudal lord's palace is told of the brutal suicide of another ronin who previously visited, he reveals how their pasts are intertwined - and in doing so challenges the clan's integrity.

Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Ishihama, Shima Iwashita, Tetsurô Tanba

Votes: 68,742

---Harakiri---

2. Oldboy (2003)

R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery

78 Metascore

After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok

Votes: 636,266 | Gross: $0.71M

---Oldboy---

3. Children of Heaven (1997)

PG | 89 min | Drama, Family, Sport

77 Metascore

After a boy loses his sister's pair of shoes, he goes on a series of adventures in order to find them. When he can't, he tries a new way to "win" a new pair.

Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Amir Farrokh Hashemian, Bahare Seddiqi, Nafise Jafar-Mohammadi

Votes: 80,754 | Gross: $0.93M

---Children of Heaven---

4. Parasite (2019)

R | 132 min | Drama, Thriller

97 Metascore

Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.

Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-sik

Votes: 960,521 | Gross: $53.37M

---Parasite---

5. Seven Samurai (1954)

Not Rated | 207 min | Action, Drama

98 Metascore

Farmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Tsushima, Yukiko Shimazaki

Votes: 366,984 | Gross: $0.27M

---Seven Samurai---

6. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003)

R | 103 min | Drama, Romance

85 Metascore

A boy is raised by a Buddhist monk in an isolated floating temple where the years pass like the seasons.

Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Kim Ki-duk, Oh Yeong-su, Jong-ho Kim, Kim Young-min

Votes: 86,838 | Gross: $2.38M

---Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring---

7. Hero (2002)

PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

85 Metascore

A defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang

Votes: 187,684 | Gross: $53.71M

---Hero---

8. Oasis (2002)

133 min | Drama, Romance

79 Metascore

An irresponsible and childish ex-con befriends a girl with cerebral palsy and develops a progressively stronger bond with her.

Director: Lee Chang-dong | Stars: Sol Kyung-gu, Moon So-ri, Ahn Nae-sang, Ryu Seung-wan

Votes: 10,406

9. The Wailing (2016)

TV-MA | 156 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery

81 Metascore

Soon after a stranger arrives in a little village, a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman, drawn into the incident, is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter.

Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Jun Kunimura, Hwang Jung-min, Kwak Do-won, Chun Woo-hee

Votes: 82,079

---The Wailing---

10. Dreams (1990)

PG | 119 min | Drama, Fantasy

A collection of tales based upon eight of director Akira Kurosawa's recurring dreams.

Directors: Akira Kurosawa, Ishirô Honda | Stars: Akira Terao, Mitsuko Baishô, Toshie Negishi, Mieko Harada

Votes: 29,200 | Gross: $1.96M

---Dreams---

11. Sansho the Bailiff (1954)

Not Rated | 124 min | Drama

96 Metascore

In medieval Japan, a compassionate governor is sent into exile. His wife and children try to join him, but are separated, and the children grow up amid suffering and oppression.

Director: Kenji Mizoguchi | Stars: Kinuyo Tanaka, Yoshiaki Hanayagi, Kyôko Kagawa, Eitarô Shindô

Votes: 18,239

---Sansho the Bailiff---

12. Love Exposure (2008)

Unrated | 237 min | Action, Comedy, Drama

78 Metascore

A bizarre love triangle forms between a young Catholic upskirt photographer, a misandric girl and a manipulative cultist.

Director: Sion Sono | Stars: Takahiro Nishijima, Hikari Mitsushima, Sakura Andô, Yutaka Shimizu

Votes: 15,918

---Love Exposure---

13. The Twilight Samurai (2002)

129 min | Drama, Romance

82 Metascore

As the feudal Japan era draws to a close, a widower samurai experiences difficulty balancing clan loyalties, 2 young daughters, an aged mother, and the sudden reappearance of his childhood sweetheart.

Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa, Nenji Kobayashi, Ren Ôsugi

Votes: 25,524

---The Twilight Samurai---

14. Ikiru (1952)

Not Rated | 143 min | Drama

92 Metascore

A bureaucrat tries to find meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Shin'ichi Himori, Haruo Tanaka

Votes: 87,621 | Gross: $0.06M

---To Live---

15. Departures (2008)

PG-13 | 130 min | Drama

68 Metascore

Soon after buying an expensive cello, Daigo learns that his orchestra is disbanding. He moves back to his hometown with his wife, where he answers an ad for what Daigo thinks is a travel agency but is, in actuality, a mortuary.

Director: Yôjirô Takita | Stars: Masahiro Motoki, Ryôko Hirosue, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kazuko Yoshiyuki

Votes: 54,998 | Gross: $1.50M

---Departures---

16. The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi (2003)

R | 116 min | Action, Comedy, Crime

75 Metascore

The blind masseur/swordsman comes to a town in control of warring gangs, and while bunking with a farming family, he meets two women with their own agenda.

Director: Takeshi Kitano | Stars: Takeshi Kitano, Tadanobu Asano, Yui Natsukawa, Michiyo Yasuda

Votes: 51,550 | Gross: $0.85M

---Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman---

17. The Human Condition I: No Greater Love (I) (1959)

Not Rated | 208 min | Drama, History, War

A Japanese pacifist, unable to face the dire consequences of conscientious objection, is transformed by his attempts to compromise with the demands of war-time Japan.

Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Michiyo Aratama, Chikage Awashima, Ineko Arima

Votes: 9,362

---The Human Condition I---

18. Castaway on the Moon (2009)

PG-13 | 116 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

A failed suicide attempt leads a heartbroken man to live a life in the wilderness.

Director: Lee Hae-jun | Stars: Jeong Jae-yeong, Jung Ryeo-won, Yeong-seo Park, Yang Mi-kyeong

Votes: 19,721

---Castaway on the Moon---

19. Yi Yi (2000)

Not Rated | 173 min | Drama, Romance

94 Metascore

Each member of a middle-class Taipei family seeks to reconcile past and present relationships within their daily lives.

Director: Edward Yang | Stars: Nien-Jen Wu, Elaine Jin, Issei Ogata, Kelly Lee

Votes: 28,434 | Gross: $1.14M

---Yi Yi: A One and a Two---

20. The Handmaiden (2016)

Not Rated | 145 min | Drama, Romance, Thriller

85 Metascore

A woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Kim Min-hee, Ha Jung-woo, Cho Jin-woong, Moon So-ri

Votes: 172,903 | Gross: $2.01M

---The Handmaiden---

21. Rashomon (1950)

Not Rated | 88 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

98 Metascore

The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are recalled from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai's ghost and a woodcutter.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Machiko Kyô, Masayuki Mori, Takashi Shimura

Votes: 180,565 | Gross: $0.10M

22. To Live (1994)

Not Rated | 133 min | Drama, War

After Fugui and Jiazhen lose their personal fortunes, they raise a family and survive difficult cultural changes during 1940s to 1970s China.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: You Ge, Gong Li, Ben Niu, Wu Jiang

Votes: 20,454 | Gross: $2.33M

---To Live---

23. Kwaidan (1964)

Not Rated | 183 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror

A collection of four Japanese folk tales with supernatural themes.

Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Rentarô Mikuni, Michiyo Aratama, Misako Watanabe, Kenjirô Ishiyama

Votes: 20,002

---Ghost Stories---

24. Joint Security Area (2000)

Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller

58 Metascore

After a shooting incident at the North-South Korean border DMZ leaves two North Korean soldiers dead, a neutral Swiss and Swedish team investigates what actually happened.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Lee Yeong-ae, Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, Kim Tae-woo

Votes: 34,225

---Joint Security Area---

25. Throne of Blood (1957)

Not Rated | 110 min | Drama

A war-hardened general, egged on by his ambitious wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become lord of Spider's Web Castle.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Minoru Chiaki, Isuzu Yamada, Takashi Shimura

Votes: 55,986

---Throne of Blood---

26. Raise the Red Lantern (1991)

PG | 125 min | Drama, Romance

China in the 1920s. After her father's death, Songlian is forced to marry the wealthy Master Chen. With three wives already, each living in a separate house, there is fierce competition for his attention and the privileges that are gained.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Gong Li, Jingwu Ma, Saifei He, Cuifen Cao

Votes: 35,365 | Gross: $2.60M

---Raise the Red Lantern---

27. Lady Snowblood (1973)

Not Rated | 97 min | Action, Crime, Drama

80 Metascore

A strikingly beautiful young woman is trained from birth to be a deadly instrument of revenge against the swindlers who destroyed her family.

Director: Toshiya Fujita | Stars: Meiko Kaji, Toshio Kurosawa, Masaaki Daimon, Miyoko Akaza

Votes: 16,311

---Lady Snowblood---

28. Kagemusha: The Shadow Warrior (1980)

PG | 162 min | Drama, History, War

84 Metascore

A petty thief with an utter resemblance to a samurai warlord is hired as the lord's double. When the warlord later dies the thief is forced to take up arms in his place.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ken'ichi Hagiwara, Jinpachi Nezu

Votes: 38,197

---Kagemusha the Shadow Warrior---

29. Love and Honor (2006)

PG-13 | 122 min | Drama, History, Romance

A look at the relationship between a young blind samurai (Kimura) and his wife, who will make a sacrifice in order to defend her husband's honor.

Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Takuya Kimura, Rei Dan, Mitsugorô Bandô, Takashi Sasano

Votes: 4,287 | Gross: $0.02M

---Love and Honor---

30. Vengeance Is Mine (1979)

Not Rated | 139 min | Crime, Drama

85 Metascore

Chronological exploits of Iwao Enokizu, a murderous thief on the run.

Director: Shôhei Imamura | Stars: Ken Ogata, Rentarô Mikuni, Chôchô Miyako, Mitsuko Baishô

Votes: 7,300

---Vengeance is Mine---

31. Samurai Rebellion (1967)

Not Rated | 128 min | Drama

90 Metascore

The mother of a feudal lord's only heir is kidnapped away from her husband by the lord. The husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to get her back.

Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yôko Tsukasa, Gô Katô, Tatsuyoshi Ehara

Votes: 14,106

---Samurai Rebellion---

32. Onibaba (1964)

Not Rated | 103 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller

Two women kill samurai and sell their belongings for a living. While one of them is having an affair with their neighbor, the other woman meets a mysterious samurai wearing a bizarre mask.

Director: Kaneto Shindô | Stars: Nobuko Otowa, Jitsuko Yoshimura, Kei Satô, Jûkichi Uno

Votes: 21,879

---Devil Woman---

33. The Road Home (1999)

G | 89 min | Drama, Romance

71 Metascore

Prompted by the death of his father and the grief of his mother, a man recalls the story of how they met in flashback.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Ziyi Zhang, Honglei Sun, Hao Zheng, Yulian Zhao

Votes: 13,920 | Gross: $1.28M

---The Road Home---

34. High and Low (1963)

Not Rated | 143 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

90 Metascore

An executive of a Yokohama shoe company becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yutaka Sada, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kyôko Kagawa

Votes: 53,246

---High and Low---

35. Memories of Murder (2003)

Not Rated | 132 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

82 Metascore

In a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.

Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roe-ha, Song Jae-ho

Votes: 216,645 | Gross: $0.01M

---Memories of Murder---

36. The Hidden Fortress (1958)

Not Rated | 126 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

89 Metascore

Lured by gold, two greedy peasants unknowingly escort a princess and her general across enemy lines.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Misa Uehara, Minoru Chiaki, Kamatari Fujiwara

Votes: 42,265

---The Hidden Fortress---

37. Stray Dog (1949)

Not Rated | 122 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir

During a sweltering summer, a rookie homicide detective tries to track down his stolen Colt pistol.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Awaji, Eiko Miyoshi

Votes: 18,944

---Stray Dog---

38. Not One Less (1999)

G | 106 min | Drama

73 Metascore

13-year old Wei Minzhi is the new substitute teacher of a mountain village school. She is told not to lose any of her pupils under any circumstances.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Minzhi Wei, Huike Zhang, Zhenda Tian, Enman Gao

Votes: 9,362 | Gross: $0.59M

---Not One Less---

39. Lady Vengeance (2005)

R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller

75 Metascore

After being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Nam-mi Kang, Jeong-nam Choi, Hye-Sook Go, Bok-hwa Baek

Votes: 86,146 | Gross: $0.21M

---Lady Vengeance---

40. Battle Royale (2000)

Not Rated | 114 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

81 Metascore

In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.

Director: Kinji Fukasaku | Stars: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Aki Maeda, Tarô Yamamoto, Chiaki Kuriyama

Votes: 194,504

---Battle Royale---

41. Nobody Knows (2004)

PG-13 | 141 min | Drama

88 Metascore

In a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.

Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Yûya Yagira, Ayu Kitaura, Hiei Kimura, Momoko Shimizu

Votes: 31,428 | Gross: $0.68M

---Nobody Knows---

42. Dodes'ka-den (1970)

Not Rated | 140 min | Drama

Various tales in the lives of Tokyo slum dwellers, including a mentally deficient young man obsessed with driving his own commuter trolley.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Yoshitaka Zushi, Kin Sugai, Toshiyuki Tonomura, Shinsuke Minami

Votes: 7,626

43. Close-Up (1990)

Not Rated | 98 min | Biography, Crime, Drama

92 Metascore

The true story of Hossain Sabzian, a cinephile who impersonated the director Mohsen Makhmalbaf to convince a family they would star in his so-called new film.

Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Hossain Sabzian, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Abolfazl Ahankhah, Mehrdad Ahankhah

Votes: 23,039 | Gross: $0.00M

---Close-Up---

44. Shoplifters (2018)

R | 121 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller

93 Metascore

On the margins of Tokyo, a dysfunctional band of outsiders are united by loyalty, a penchant for petty theft and playful grifting. When the young son is arrested, secrets are exposed that upend their tenuous, below-the-radar existence.

Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Lily Franky, Sakura Andô, Kirin Kiki, Mayu Matsuoka

Votes: 86,500 | Gross: $3.31M

---Shoplifters---

45. Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)

Not Rated | 124 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

80 Metascore

A senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.

Director: Ang Lee | Stars: Sihung Lung, Kuei-Mei Yang, Wang Yu-wen, Chien-Lien Wu

Votes: 23,212 | Gross: $7.29M

---Eat Drink Man Woman---

46. Devils on the Doorstep (2000)

139 min | Comedy, Drama, War

70 Metascore

Villagers in World War II China are unsure what to do with the two enemy prisoners who have been left in their care.

Director: Wen Jiang | Stars: Wen Jiang, Kenya Sawada, Hongbo Jiang, Teruyuki Kagawa

Votes: 8,619 | Gross: $0.02M

---Devils on the Door Step---

47. The Color of Paradise (1999)

PG | 90 min | Drama, Family

80 Metascore

The story of Mohammed, a blind Iranian boy and his father, Hashem, who is always oscillating between accepting his son as he is and abandoning him, as he represents a burden for him, after the loss of his wife.

Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Hossein Mahjoub, Mohsen Ramezani, Salameh Feyzi, Farahnaz Safari

Votes: 18,206 | Gross: $1.81M

---Color of Paradise---

48. A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)

R | 114 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery

65 Metascore

After being institutionalized in a mental hospital, Su-mi reunites with her sister, Su-yeon, and they return to live at their country home. But strange events plague the house, leading to surprising revelations and a shocking conclusion.

Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lim Soo-jung, Yum Jung-ah, Kim Kap-su, Moon Geun-young

Votes: 68,296

---A Tale of Two Sisters---

49. Farewell My Concubine (1993)

R | 171 min | Drama, Music, Romance

84 Metascore

Two boys meet at an opera training school in Peking in 1924. Their resulting friendship will span nearly 70 years and endure some of the most troublesome times in China's history.

Director: Kaige Chen | Stars: Leslie Cheung, Fengyi Zhang, Gong Li, You Ge

Votes: 33,181 | Gross: $5.22M

---Farewell my Concubine---

50. Pather Panchali (1955)

Not Rated | 125 min | Drama

Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.

Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Subir Banerjee, Chunibala Devi

Votes: 38,570 | Gross: $0.54M

---Song of the Little Road---

51. Ran (1985)

R | 160 min | Action, Drama, War

97 Metascore

In Medieval Japan, an elderly warlord retires, handing over his empire to his three sons. However, he vastly underestimates how the new-found power will corrupt them and cause them to turn on each other...and him.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryû

Votes: 136,273 | Gross: $4.14M

52. Like Father, Like Son (2013)

Not Rated | 121 min | Drama

73 Metascore

Ryota is a successful workaholic businessman. When he learns that his biological son was switched with another boy after birth, he faces the difficult decision to choose his true son or the boy he and his wife have raised as their own.

Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Masaharu Fukuyama, Machiko Ono, Yôko Maki, Lily Franky

Votes: 28,156 | Gross: $0.28M

---Like Father, Like Son---

53. Red Beard (1965)

Not Rated | 185 min | Drama

90 Metascore

In 19th-century Japan, a rough-tempered yet charitable town doctor trains a young intern.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Yûzô Kayama, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Reiko Dan

Votes: 21,111

---Red Beard---

54. Yojimbo (1961)

Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller

93 Metascore

A crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.

Director: Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Toshirô Mifune, Eijirô Tôno, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yôko Tsukasa

Votes: 131,412

---The Bodyguard---

55. Curse of the Golden Flower (2006)

R | 114 min | Action, Drama, Romance

70 Metascore

During China's Tang dynasty the emperor has taken the princess of a neighboring province as wife. She has borne him two sons and raised his eldest. Now his control over his dominion is complete, including the royal family itself.

Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Gong Li, Jay Chou, Ye Liu

Votes: 45,974 | Gross: $6.57M

---Curse of the Golden Flower---

56. Infernal Affairs (2002)

R | 101 min | Action, Crime, Drama

75 Metascore

A story between a mole in the police department and an undercover cop. Their objectives are the same: to find out who is the mole, and who is the cop.

Directors: Andrew Lau, Alan Mak | Stars: Andy Lau, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Anthony Chau-Sang Wong, Eric Tsang

Votes: 131,504 | Gross: $0.17M

---Infernal Affairs---

57. The Sword of Doom (1966)

Not Rated | 120 min | Action, Drama

Through his unconscionable actions against others, a sociopath samurai builds a trail of vendettas that follow him closely.

Director: Kihachi Okamoto | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Michiyo Aratama, Yûzô Kayama, Yôko Naitô

Votes: 12,079

---Sword of Doom---

58. Thirst (2009)

R | 134 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror

73 Metascore

Through a failed medical experiment, a priest is stricken with vampirism and is forced to abandon his ascetic ways.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Ok-bin, Choi Hee-jin, Seo Dong-soo

Votes: 51,425 | Gross: $0.30M

---Thirst---

59. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

94 Metascore

A young Chinese warrior steals a sword from a famed swordsman and then escapes into a world of romantic adventure with a mysterious man in the frontier of the nation.

Director: Ang Lee | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Ziyi Zhang, Chang Chen

Votes: 281,682 | Gross: $128.08M

---Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon---

60. The Song of Sparrows (2008)

PG | 96 min | Drama, Family

74 Metascore

When an ostrich-rancher focuses on replacing his daughter's hearing aid, which breaks right before crucial exams, everything changes for a struggling rural family in Iran. Karim motorbikes ... See full summary »

Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Maryam Akbari, Kamran Dehghan, Hamid Aghazi

Votes: 11,113 | Gross: $0.12M

---The Song of Sparrows---

61. Fear and Trembling (2003)

Unrated | 107 min | Comedy, Drama

75 Metascore

A Belgian woman looks back on her year at a Japanese corporation in Tokyo in 1990. She is Amélie, born in Japan, living there until age 5. After college graduation, she returns with a ... See full summary »

Director: Alain Corneau | Stars: Sylvie Testud, Kaori Tsuji, Tarô Suwa, Bison Katayama

Votes: 4,810

---Fear and Trembling---

62. Omar (2013)

Not Rated | 98 min | Crime, Drama, Romance

75 Metascore

A young Palestinian freedom fighter agrees to work as an informant after he's tricked into an admission of guilt by association in the wake of an Israeli soldier's killing.

Director: Hany Abu-Assad | Stars: Adam Bakri, Leem Lubany, Eyad Hourani, Samer Bisharat

Votes: 15,496 | Gross: $0.36M

63. Still Walking (2008)

Not Rated | 115 min | Drama

89 Metascore

A family gathers together for a commemorative ritual whose nature only gradually becomes clear.

Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Stars: Hiroshi Abe, Yui Natsukawa, You, Kazuya Takahashi

Votes: 18,629 | Gross: $0.16M

---Still Walking---

64. The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity (II) (1959)

Not Rated | 181 min | Drama, History, War

As a conscript in war-time Japan's military, a pacifist struggles to maintain his determination to keep his ideals.

Director: Masaki Kobayashi | Stars: Tatsuya Nakadai, Michiyo Aratama, Kokinji Katsura, Jun Tatara

Votes: 7,504

---The Human Condition: Part II---

65. A Chinese Ghost Story (1987)

Unrated | 98 min | Action, Fantasy, Horror

After a string of bad luck, a debt collector has no other choice than to spend the night in a haunted temple, where he encounters a ravishing female ghost and later battles to save her soul from the control of a wicked tree demon.

Director: Siu-Tung Ching | Stars: Leslie Cheung, Joey Wang, Wu Ma, Wai Lam

Votes: 11,081

---A Chinese Ghost Story---

66. I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (2006)

Not Rated | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

A girl who thinks she is a combat cyborg checks into a mental hospital, where she encounters other psychotics. Eventually, she falls for a man who thinks he can steal people's souls.

Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Lim Soo-jung, Rain, Park Byeong-eun, Kim Byeong-Ok

Votes: 25,909

---I'm a Cyborg but that's OK---

67. Ye yan (2006)

Not Rated | 131 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy

A loose adaptation of Hamlet, "The Night Banquet" is set in an empire in chaos. The Emperor, the Empress, the Crown Prince, the Minister and the General all have their own enemies they would like to finish off at a night banquet.

Director: Xiaogang Feng | Stars: Ziyi Zhang, You Ge, Daniel Wu, Xun Zhou

Votes: 7,172

---The Banquet---

68. Fireworks (1997)

103 min | Crime, Drama, Romance

83 Metascore

Nishi leaves the police in the face of harrowing personal and professional difficulties. Spiraling into depression, he makes questionable decisions.

Director: Takeshi Kitano | Stars: Takeshi Kitano, Kayoko Kishimoto, Ren Ôsugi, Susumu Terajima

Votes: 33,199 | Gross: $0.23M

---Fireworks---

69. Painted Fire (2002)

Unrated | 120 min | Biography, Drama, History

78 Metascore

In a time of political and social unrest in nineteenth-century Korea, an uncouth, self-taught painter explores his natural talent amidst the repressive world around him.

Director: Im Kwon-taek | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Ahn Sung-ki, Yoo Ho-jeong, Kim Yeo-jin

Votes: 2,824 | Gross: $0.06M

---Painted Fire---

70. The Chaser (2008)

Not Rated | 125 min | Action, Crime, Drama

64 Metascore

A disgraced ex-policeman who runs a small ring of prostitutes finds himself in a race against time when one of his women goes missing.

Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Seo Yeong-hie, Kim Yoo-jung

Votes: 72,805

---Chaser---

71. Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan (2007)

R | 126 min | Action, Biography, Drama

74 Metascore

The story recounts the early life of Genghis Khan who was a slave before going on to conquer half the world in 1206.

Director: Sergei Bodrov | Stars: Tadanobu Asano, Amadu Mamadakov, Khulan Chuluun, Honglei Sun

Votes: 49,201 | Gross: $5.70M

72. Ajami (2009)

Not Rated | 124 min | Crime, Drama

82 Metascore

Ajami is the religiously mixed community of Muslims and Christians in Tel Aviv. These are five stories about the everyday life in Ajami.

Directors: Scandar Copti, Yaron Shani | Stars: Fouad Habash, Nisrin Siksik, Elias Saba, Youssef Sahwani

Votes: 6,532 | Gross: $0.62M

73. Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War (2004)

R | 140 min | Action, Drama, War

64 Metascore

When two brothers are forced to fight in the Korean War, the elder decides to take the riskiest missions if it will help shield the younger from battle.

Director: Kang Je-kyu | Stars: Jang Dong-Gun, Won Bin, Eun-ju Lee, Kong Hyeong-jin

Votes: 41,080 | Gross: $1.11M

---The Brotherhood of War---

74. City of Life and Death (2009)

R | 133 min | Drama, History, War

85 Metascore

In 1937, Japan occupied Nanjing, the Chinese capital. There was a battle and subsequent atrocities against the inhabitants, especially those who took refuge in the International Security Zone.

Director: Chuan Lu | Stars: Ye Liu, Wei Fan, Hideo Nakaizumi, Yuanyuan Gao

Votes: 11,721 | Gross: $0.12M

---City of Life and Death---

75. Three... Extremes (2004)

R | 125 min | Horror

66 Metascore

An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.

Directors: Fruit Chan, Park Chan-wook, Takashi Miike | Stars: Bai Ling, Lee Byung-hun, Kyoko Hasegawa, Pauline Lau

Votes: 20,874 | Gross: $0.08M

---Three Extremes---

76. Burning (2018)

Not Rated | 148 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller

91 Metascore

Jong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood, who asks him to look after her cat while she's on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confesses his secret hobby.

Director: Lee Chang-dong | Stars: Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, Jeon Jong-seo, Kim Soo-Kyung

Votes: 76,400 | Gross: $0.72M

---Burning---

77. Kikujiro (1999)

PG-13 | 122 min | Drama, Comedy

44 Metascore

A young, naive boy sets out alone on the road to find his wayward mother. Soon he finds an unlikely protector in a crotchety man and the two have a series of unexpected adventures along the way.

Director: Takeshi Kitano | Stars: Takeshi Kitano, Yusuke Sekiguchi, Kayoko Kishimoto, The Great Gidayû

Votes: 22,177 | Gross: $0.20M

78. Osama (2003)

PG-13 | 83 min | Drama

83 Metascore

After the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the restriction of women in public life, a pre-teen girl is forced to masquerade as a boy in order to find work to support her mother and grandmother.

Director: Siddiq Barmak | Stars: Marina Golbahari, Zubaida Sahar, Khwaja Nader, Mohammad Arif Herati

Votes: 9,533 | Gross: $1.13M

79. Woman in the Dunes (1964)

Not Rated | 147 min | Drama, Thriller

An entomologist on vacation is trapped by local villagers into living with a woman whose life task is shoveling sand for them.

Director: Hiroshi Teshigahara | Stars: Eiji Okada, Kyôko Kishida, Kôji Mitsui, Hiroko Itô

Votes: 22,718

---Woman in the Dunes---

80. Samaritan Girl (2004)

R | 97 min | Drama

Jae-Young is an amateur prostitute who sleeps with men while her best friend Yeo-Jin "manages" her, fixing dates, taking care of the money and making sure the coast is clear. When Jae-Young... See full summary »

Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Lee Eol, Kwak Ji-min, Han Yeo-reum, Hyun-min Kwon

Votes: 14,079

---Samaritan Girl---

81. Mother (2009)

R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

79 Metascore

A mother desperately searches for the killer who framed her son for a girl's horrific murder.

Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Kim Hye-ja, Won Bin, Jin Goo, Yun Je-mun

Votes: 71,679 | Gross: $0.55M

---Mother---

82. Peppermint Candy (1999)

Not Rated | 129 min | Drama

Following a man's suicide, time traverses back to reveal six chapters of his life on why he committed suicide.

Director: Lee Chang-dong | Stars: Sol Kyung-gu, Kim Yeo-jin, Moon So-ri, Se-beom Park

Votes: 10,843

---Peppermint Candy---

83. A Bittersweet Life (2005)

Not Rated | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama

Things go wrong for a high ranking mobster when he doesn't follow his boss's orders.

Directors: Jung Doo Hong, Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Shin Min-a, Kim Yeong-cheol, Hwang Jung-min

Votes: 42,929

---Bittersweet Life---

84. Mad Detective (2007)

Not Rated | 89 min | Action, Crime, Mystery

68 Metascore

A rookie cop teams up with a former detective with a supernatural gift to hunt down a serial killer.

Directors: Johnnie To, Ka-Fai Wai | Stars: Ching Wan Lau, Andy On, Ka-Tung Lam, Kelly Lin

Votes: 8,131 | Gross: $0.00M

---Mad Detective---

85. The Last Emperor (1987)

PG-13 | 163 min | Biography, Drama, History

76 Metascore

Bernardo Bertolucci's Oscar-winning dramatisation of the life story of China's last emperor, Pu Yi.

Director: Bernardo Bertolucci | Stars: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Ruocheng Ying

Votes: 111,550 | Gross: $43.98M

86. Baran (2001)

PG | 94 min | Drama, Romance

79 Metascore

In a building site in present-day Tehran, Lateef, a 17-year-old Turkish worker is irresistibly drawn to Rahmat, a young Afghan worker. The revelation of Rahmat's secret changes both their lives.

Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Hossein Abedini, Zahra Bahrami, Mohammad Amir Naji, Hossein Mahjoub

Votes: 8,964 | Gross: $0.13M

---Rain---

87. Pieta (2012)

Not Rated | 103 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller

72 Metascore

A loan shark is forced to reconsider his violent lifestyle after the arrival of a mysterious woman claiming to be his long-lost mother.

Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Jo Min-soo, Lee Jung-Jin, Woo Ki-hong, Eunjin Kang

Votes: 15,771 | Gross: $0.02M

88. Ringu (1998)

Not Rated | 96 min | Horror, Mystery

A reporter and her ex-husband investigate a cursed video tape that is rumored to kill the viewer seven days after watching it.

Director: Hideo Nakata | Stars: Nanako Matsushima, Miki Nakatani, Yûko Takeuchi, Hitomi Satô

Votes: 77,536



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