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Daisuke Tengan

Daisuke Tengan

Writer · Born December 14, 1959 (66) · Tokyo, Japan

He is the first son of director Shohei Imamura. He graduated from Ryuku University. In 1984 he joined Shinchosha but left in 1991 to pursue a creative career. His directing debut was in 1990.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
December 14, 1959 (66)
From
Tokyo, Japan
Works as
Writer
Titles
9 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Up 6% in 30 days

What are Daisuke Tengan's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Survival.

Genres

Comedy3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 85th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Action2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 70th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 59th percentile
: browse their Crime movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
40%
Survival
23%
Self
14%
Society
10%
Bonds
7%
Ideas
4%
Power
3%
Purpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDuty2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 2 · Dark 5

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 2 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 1

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 1 · Charged 2 · Intense 5

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 0 · Engaged 8 · Full focus 0

Heavy: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their heavy movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 0 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 6

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 3 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 3

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
6
Melancholic
6
Contemplative
3
Dread
2
Romantic
1
Other
2

How their films linger

Unsettling4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet4
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Daisuke Tengan's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Daisuke Tengan's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

22 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page.

  • Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo(2026)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films

  • Meet Me at Angie’s Bar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Screenplay

  • Dendera (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Director · Screenplay

  • 13 Assassins(2010)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The Most Beautiful Night In The World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Director · Original Story · Writer

  • Waiting in the Dark (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Director · Screenplay

  • Imprint (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Teleplay

  • Detective Office 5 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Writer

  • Aiki (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Director · Writer

  • September 11(2002)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • Warm Water Under a Red Bridge(2001)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • Audition(1999)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Dr. Akagi(1998)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Blood(1998)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • The Eel(1997)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Atlanta Boogie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    Actor

  • Wana(1996)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films

  • The Stairway to the Distant Past (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Screenplay

  • The Most Terrible Time in My Life (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    Screenplay

  • Muteki no Handicap (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Director

  • Asian Beat: I Love Nippon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Director · Screenplay

  • My Sister And Izuna (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Director · Script

Career shape

A full career of 22 titles from 1990 to 2026.

Biggest box office

13 Assassins (2010)

$19M worldwide

Highest rated

13 Assassins (2010)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

Audition (1999)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 22: 1 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting7 of 22: 1 only directing, 6 with another roleWriting19 of 22: 14 only writing, 5 with another role · typical Midcredits score74thOther crew1 of 22: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

22 titles, 6 with more than one role — writing and directing overlap on 5 of them.

By decade

1990s10 · 1 acting · 9 crew2000s8 · crew2010s2 · crew2020s2 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Daisuke Tengan's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 74th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 79th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

79thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

77thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 9 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th2

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 9 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Mixed1

Most divisive · writer

Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo (2026)

81st percentile spread · 22% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer

13 Assassins (2010)

Midcredits 95th · 83% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 59/100 and the plot and story 55/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Daisuke Tengan work with?

People who share at least 2 of Daisuke Tengan's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Takashi Miike shares the most, 3.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers