Ikiru / Living (1952)
Drama
A bureaucrat tries to find a meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.
Starring: Takashi Shimura, Nobuo Kaneko, Shin'ichi Himori, Minoru Chiaki, Miki Odagiri
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Throne of Blood / Kumonosu-jô (1957)
Drama
A ruthlessly ambitious lord, egged on by his wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become Emperor.
Starring: Toshirô Mifune, Minoru Chiaki, Isuzu Yamada, Akira Kubo, Hiroshi Tachikawa, Minoru Chiaki
Director: Akira Kurosawa
The Hidden Fortress / Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958)
Action | Adventure
Lured by gold, two greedy peasants escort a man and woman across enemy lines. However, they do not realize that their companions are actually a princess and her general.
Starring: Toshirô Mifune, Misa Uehara, Minoru Chiaki, Susumu Fujita, Takashi Shimura
Director: Akira Kurosawa
I Live in Fear / Ikimono no kiroku (1955)
Drama
An aging, industrialist Japanese man becomes so fearful of nuclear war that it begins to take a toll on his life and family.
Starring: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Minoru Chiaki, Eiko Miyoshi, Kyôko Aoyama
Director: Akira Kurosawa
The Lower Depths / Donzoko (1957)
Drama
In a Japanese slum, various residents play out their lives, dreaming of better things or settling for their lot. Among them is a man who pines for a young woman but is stymied by her deceptive family.
Starring: Toshirô Mifune, Isuzu Yamada, Kyôko Kagawa, Ganjiro Nakamura, Minoru Chiaki
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Seven Samurai / Shichinin no samurai (1954)
Action | Adventure | Drama
A Japanese farming village, constantly besieged and pillaged by an army of bandits, recruits seven independent samurai to defend it.
Starring: Takashi Shimura, Toshirô Mifune, Yoshio Inaba, Seiji Miyaguchi, Minoru Chiaki
Director: Akira Kurosawa
