Where to watch/buy Japanese mainstream movies legally?

Japanese Language Resources
#7

Oh! I know of one place. Although my friend used to order K-dramas boxsets from there, so I’m not sure how many movies there would be.

Other than Amazon.co.jp (you can order from Amazon Japan!), I’m thinking of Yes Asia!
It just came to me. I haven’t used the site myself, however all her boxsets looked pristine, and worked well. (She had them shipped to Canada, we were roommates for about a year and a half.)

EDIT: Link directly to Japanese Movies (at YesAsia).
EDIT 2: From a quick glance poking about for about 3 minutes, the prices are steep. As steep as I would’ve expected 10-15 years ago.
EDIT 3: Oooh, a search taught me that my favourite Drama had a movie that takes place after the 2 series.

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#8

+1 on amazon.

I have Amazon Prime in Japan and it includes three things: Amazon.co.jp, Amazon Video, and Amazon Music. It’s like ebay, Soundcloud and Netflix in one subscription.

I pay $40 using my credit card and it’s good for a year.


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#9

Exactly, I was so confused for a second, like “As for today…” ???

#10

This is probably not helpful at all, but there was just a film festival where I live called Fantasia that happens to include (amongst other things) a lot of Japanese films, the majority of them live action. We went to see five of them and there were a lot more showing. Maybe you could scope out a film festival near you and see if there are any Japanese films playing? (I realize this depends heavily on location! I am pretty lucky to have such a good festival near me). We used to have a video store that had a TON of foreign films but it shut down :cry: I have absolutely no idea where to look online for live action Japanese films, sadly.

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#11

You already mentioned Netflix, but did you know there is a decent amount of JDramas/Movies/Misc. series on there? Not nearly as many as Korean, but still a lot of material. I particularly enjoyed Samurai Gourmet, Tokyo Diner, and Terrace House. There are also a lot of variety shows and whatnot on youtube, like Gaki no Tsukai and YamaP no Kiss Eigo.

Oh, and I heard the Samurai 13 movie on Netflix was good.

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#12

Not exactly for movies, but I am subscribed to DramaFever and there’s a few Japanese dramas (and a lot of Korean and Chinese ones).

#13

But you need an address in Japan for that, correct?

#14

Hmm, it’s been a while since I signed up but I don’t think so.

I did some google search and it seems like Amazon Prime isn’t available outside UK, US, Germany, Austria, and Japan.

https://www.flashrouters.com/blog/2015/10/22/amazon-prime-instant-comes-to-japan-how-to-watch-amazon-instant-from-anywhere/

I can choose where my orders are shipped. I can add an address or send it to the nearest convenience store. If you can make an account, you can pay for Prime.

#15

For ordering things and shipping it to you - you do not.

For Music and streaming services… I don’t know.

#16

In my experience with amazon prime jp, you don’t need a Japanese address but you would need a VPN to stream most prime shows. If I try to stream one without being on a VPN I get the, “service unavailable because of geological restrictions” error.

However, there is a section on prime videos “海外で視聴可能なTV番組” ~ shows available to watch overseas, but there is only like five shows.

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#17

This looks great, thanks! And you’re right, expensive. Luckily all us Japanese language fans are loaded - I just went on Amazon to order Your Name and it’s $68 (!?!)

#18

Yeah, I ordered skincare from Amazon.co.jp, but I was fairly certain that streaming was region protected.

#19

That’s a great question. I’ve downloaded ebooks from amazon.jp but it’s worth researching to see if there’s a work-around for streaming…

#20

Geological restrictions… Guess the Canadian Shield isn’t the right type of rock.(Sorry, couldn’t help it)

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#21

It very probably is. Canada at least is very serious about that. I don’t even know if we have Amazon video (it’s not something I’m interested in, personally). However, that is what VPNs are good for - as long as VPNs are legal in your country. (They are in mine!)

#22

You are a mindreader - I just got 13 Assassins from the library!

#23

I get most of my imports off of ebay

#24

Well, they also sell DVDs. Do you know if there is any way to buy something from Amazon jp without a credit card?

#25

Ha, I just recently got the kanji version on a test, and I assumed that I’d been writing it wrong. Guess my 先生 was trying to trip us up…

#26

In the US, you can do this through gift cards. Make an account, register the card. I would think this would work? I know that you can buy Itunes Japan gift cards online, maybe someone is selling Amazon cards?

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