There is a Japanese drama/sfi show called "Jin" (2009) that I liked a lot. It's about a doctor from 2009 who ends up in the time of the Samurai.
Also - one of my favorite movies is the Japanese movie http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1069238/ The subject seems rather heavy, but the movies isn't gloomy. It's an excellent movie with drama, but also humour.
Jin sounds interesting I'll definitely add it to my list to watch. I think I've read about that movie before too, can't remember where though, but do remember it got positive reviews.