Glad you enjoyed Samurai Rebellion so much Cricket - you rated it higher than I did
You are right about Japanese films of the 60s - so many great ones. Here is my top 20 Japanese films from that period:
1. High & Low (1963) - Akira Kurosawa
2. The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer (1961) - Masaki Kobayashi
3. Naked Island (1960) - Kaneto Shindo
4. Harakiri (1962) - Masaki Kobayashi
5. Late Autumn (1960) - Yasujiro Ozu
6. Autumn Has Already Started (1960) - Mikio Naruse
7. Yearning (1964) - Mikio Naruse
8. The Face of Another (1966) - Hiroshi Teshigahara
9. Woman in the Dunes (1964) - Hiroshi Teshigahara
10. Samurai Rebellion (1967) - Masaki Kobayashi
11. Thirst For Love (1966) - Koreyoshi Kurahara
12. The Inheritance (1964) - Masaki Kobayashi
13. When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960) - Mikio Naruse
14. Red Beard (1965) - Akira Kurosawa
15. Yojimbo (1961) - Akira Kurosawa
16. The End of Summer (1961) - Yasujiro Ozu
17. Kwaidan (1964) - Masaki Kobayashi
18. Daughters, Wives & a Mother (1960) - Mikio Naruse
19. An Autumn Afternoon (1962) - Yasjiro Ozu
20. Good-For-Nothing (1960) - Yoshishige Yoshida