Movies Like Chikamatsu Monogatari (1954)

Chikamatsu Monogatari is a 1954 drama, romance film from Kenji Mizoguchi with a MovieMagicScore of 7.7/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Sisters of the Gion and Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno.

Drama Romance

Sisters of the Gion

1936

Umekichi, a geisha in the Gion district of Kyoto, feels obliged to help her lover Furusawa when he asks to stay with her after becoming bankrupt and leaving his wife. However her younger sister Omocha tells her she is wasting her time and money on a loser. She thinks that they should both find wealthy patrons to support them. Omocha therefore tries various schemes to get rid of Furusawa, and set themselves up with better patrons.

7.1

MagicScore

Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno

2014

Kenshin has settled into his new life with Kaoru and his other friends when he is approached with a request from the Meiji government. Makoto Shishio, a former assassin like Kenshin, was betrayed, set on fire and left for dead. He survived, and is now in Kyoto, plotting with his gathered warriors to overthrow the new government. Against Kaoru's wishes, Kenshin reluctantly agrees to go to Kyoto and help keep his country from falling back into civil war.

7.6

MagicScore

When the Last Sword Is Drawn

2003

Kanichiro Yoshimura is a Samurai and Family man who can no longer support his wife and children on the the low pay he receives from his small town clan, he is forced by the love for his family to leave for the city in search of higher pay to support them.

7.5

MagicScore

Harakiri

1962

Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.

8.5

MagicScore

Lust, Caution

2007

During World War II, a secret agent must seduce and assassinate an official who works for the Japanese puppet government in Shanghai.

7.3

MagicScore

The Hidden Blade

2004

Set in 19th Century Japan a young samurai who finds himself in love with a farm girl leaves his home to begin a new life. He has to take stock of his new life when he is put to the test and ordered to kill a traitor who just happens to be his dearest friend.

7.4

MagicScore

Taira Clan Saga

1955

Japan, 1137. The Taira family, a samurai clan, becomes involved in the disputes between Emperor Toba and the monks of Mount Hiei.

6.8

MagicScore

The Great Madcap

1949

Portrayal of a family’s attempt to change the spending habit of the indulgent and hedonistic patriarch, Alfredo. The family decides to try to fool him into spending less by telling him that his large fortune is gone.

7.2

MagicScore

Memoirs of a Geisha

2005

In the years before World War II, a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a maid in a geisha house.

7.7

MagicScore

#10

Hiroshima Mon Amour

1959

The deep conversation between a Japanese architect and a French actress forms the basis of this celebrated French film, considered one of the vanguard productions of the French New Wave. Set in Hiroshima after the end of World War II, the couple -- lovers turned friends -- recount, over many hours, previous romances and life experiences. The two intertwine their stories about the past with pondering the devastation wrought by the atomic bomb dropped on the city.

7.7

MagicScore

#11

The Contestant

2023

The incredible true story of a man who lived for 15 months trapped inside a small room, naked, starving and alone... and completely unaware that his life was being broadcast on national TV in Japan, to over 15 million viewers a week.

6.9

MagicScore

#12

The 47 Ronin

1941

In 1701, Lord Takuminokami Asano has a feud with Lord Kira and he tries to kill Kira in the corridors of the Shogun's palace. The Shogun sentences Lord Asano to commit suppuku and deprives the palace and lands from his clan, but does not punish Lord Kira. Lord Asano's vassals leave the land and his samurais become ronin and want to seek revenge against the dishonor of their Lord. But their leader Kuranosuke Oishi asks the Shogun to restore the Asano clan with his brother Daigaku Asano. One year later, the Shogun refuses his request and Oishi and forty-six ronin revenge their Lord.

6.9

MagicScore

#13

The Taste of Others

2000

Unpolished and ultra-pragmatic industrialist Jean-Jacques Castella reluctantly attends Racine's tragedy "Berenice" in order to see his niece play a bit part. He is taken with the play's strangely familiar-looking leading lady Clara Devaux. During the course of the show, Castella soon remembers that he once hired and then promptly fired the actress as an English language tutor. He immediately goes out and signs up for language lessons. Thinking that he is nothing but an ill-tempered philistine with bad taste, Clara rejects him until Castella charms her off her feet.

6.8

MagicScore

#14

Cloud 9

2008

A romantic drama about a woman who enters into an affair after 30 years of marriage.

5.7

MagicScore

#15

Blue Is the Warmest Color

2013

Adèle's life is changed when she meets Emma, a young woman with blue hair, who will allow her to discover desire, to assert herself as a woman and as an adult. In front of others, Adele grows, seeks herself, loses herself, finds herself.

7.1

MagicScore

#16

Bloody Spear at Mount Fuji

1955

Tragicomic road movie set during the Edo period. It follows a samurai, his two servants – including spear-carrier Genpachi – and the various people they meet on their journey, including a policeman in pursuit of a thief, a young child and a woman who is to be sold into prostitution.

7.4

MagicScore

#17

Blood Simple

1985

The owner of a seedy small-town Texas bar discovers that one of his employees is having an affair with his wife. A chaotic chain of misunderstandings, lies and mischief ensues after he devises a plot to have them murdered.

7.2

MagicScore

#18

Death of a Cyclist

1955

A couple having an affair strike a bicyclist with their car and do not offer aid out of fear of their relationship being exposed.

7.1

MagicScore

#19

Love and Other Disasters

2006

Flighty Emily "Jacks" Jackson works for the British edition of Vogue magazine. Rather than pursue a relationship, Jacks regularly hooks up with her devoted ex-boyfriend, James Wildstone, and lives with Peter Simon, a gay screenwriter. When Jacks meets Argentinian photographer's assistant Paolo Sarmiento, she assumes he is gay and tries to bring him and Peter together, unaware that Paolo is straight and in love with her.

5.7

MagicScore

#20

A Little Chaos

2015

A landscape gardener is hired by famous architect Le Nôtre to construct the grand gardens at the palace of Versailles. As the two work on the palace, they find themselves drawn to each other and are thrown into rivalries within the court of King Louis XIV.

6.3

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Chikamatsu Monogatari?

The top films similar to Chikamatsu Monogatari by MovieMagicScore are Sisters of the Gion (7.1), Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno (7.6), When the Last Sword Is Drawn (7.5). Each shares drama/romance themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Chikamatsu Monogatari worth watching?

Chikamatsu Monogatari holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.7/10 from 142 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Chikamatsu Monogatari?

Chikamatsu Monogatari (1954) is a drama, romance film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, starring Kazuo Hasegawa, Kyōko Kagawa, Eitarō Shindō.

Where can I find more recommendations like Chikamatsu Monogatari?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more drama recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like Sisters of the Gion Movies like Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno Movies like When the Last Sword Is Drawn Movies like Harakiri Movies like Lust, Caution Movies like The Hidden Blade

About movies like Chikamatsu Monogatari

This ranked list pairs Chikamatsu Monogatari (1954), a drama and romance film from Kenji Mizoguchi, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Kazuo Hasegawa take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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