is a 1949 Japanese

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American '' ...

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in C ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

directed by

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

and starring Toshiro Mifune and

Takashi Shimura was a Japanese actor who appeared in over 200 films between 1934 and 1981. He appeared in 21 of Akira Kurosawa's 30 films (more than any other actor), including as a lead actor in '' Drunken Angel'' (1948), ''Rashomon'' (1950), ''Ikiru'' (1952) a ...

. It was Kurosawa's second film of 1949 produced by the Film Art Association and released by Shintoho. It is also considered a detective movie (among the earliest Japanese films in that genre) that explores the mood of Japan during its painful postwar recovery. The film is also considered a precursor to the contemporary police procedural and

buddy cop film Buddy cop is a film and television genre with plots involving two people of very different and conflicting personalities who are forced to work together to solve a crime and/or defeat criminals, sometimes learning from each other in the process. ...

genres, based on its premise of pairing two cops with different personalities and motivations together on a difficult case.

Plot

The film takes place during a

heatwave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in th ...

in the middle of summer in post-war

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

. Murakami ( Toshiro Mifune), a newly-promoted homicide detective in the Tokyo police, has his Colt pistol stolen while riding on a crowded trolley. He chases the

pickpocket Pickpocketing is a form of larceny that involves the stealing of money or other valuables from the person or a victim's pocket without them noticing the theft at the time. It may involve considerable dexterity and a knack for misdirection. A th ...

, but loses him. A remorseful Murakami reports the theft to his superior, Nakajima, at police headquarters. After Nakajima encourages him to conduct an investigation into the theft, the inexperienced Murakami goes

undercover To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an ind ...

in the city's backstreets for days, trying to infiltrate the illicit arms market. He eventually locates a dealer who agrees to sell him a stolen gun, but when Murakami arrests the dealer's girlfriend at the exchange, he is distraught to find that she doesn't know anything about his missing gun. Forensics experts determine that Murakami's Colt was used to mug a woman of ¥40,000, and Nakajima partners him up with veteran detective Satō (

). After Satō skillfully questions the girlfriend, the two detectives learn that the dealer, who is using the alias of "Honda", is a fan of

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

. They stake-out a local high-attendance baseball game looking for Honda and manage to lure him away from the crowd before taking him into custody. A ration card found on his person reveals that the gun was "loaned" to Yusa, a disenchanted war veteran who has become involved with the

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

to support himself. The detectives interview Yusa's sister, one of his yakuza associates, and his sweetheart, showgirl Harumi Namiki (

Keiko Awaji was a Japanese film actress. Notable highlights of her career were an appearance in Akira Kurosawa's ''Stray Dog'', and a role as Kimiko in '' The Bridges at Toko-Ri'', in which she appeared alongside William Holden and Mickey Rooney. Her firs ...

); none of these visits produce any useful leads. Murakami's gun is used again, this time to murder another woman during a robbery. He and Satō continue to question Namiki at her mother's house. She is still reluctant to talk, so Satō leaves to trace Yusa's movements, while Murakami remains behind hoping that Namiki's mother can persuade her to begin cooperating. Satō finds the hotel where Yusa is staying. He tries to call Murakami, but just as he is about to reveal Yusa's location, the criminal (having overheard the hotel owners mention that a cop is present) shoots Satō twice before making his escape. Satō, badly wounded but alive, staggers out the door, passes out from blood loss, and is taken to the hospital. A distraught Murakami is forcibly removed from the hospital on Nakajima's orders when he becomes disruptive and starts wailing loudly. The following morning, Namiki has a change of heart and informs Murakami that Yusa called and asked her to meet him at a train station so they can skip town. Murakami races to the station and manages to get a positive identification on Yusa by taking into account his age, white suit stained with mud, and left-handedness, three tips he has collected over the past few days. Yusa tries to flee and Murakami pursues him into the forest; Yusa is able to wound him in the arm, but then panics, wastes his last two bullets, and throws the gun away. Murakami, in spite of his injury, wrestles Yusa down, handcuffs him, retrieves the gun, and takes him into custody. Days later at the hospital, Satō has recovered and congratulates Murakami on receiving his first citation. Murakami admits that he sympathizes with Yusa's situation, to which Satō replies that he will lose such sentimentality as he arrests more people and that he should focus on getting ready for the cases that he will need to solve in the future.

Cast

* Toshiro Mifune as Detective Murakami *

as Detective Satō *

as Harumi Namiki *

Eiko Miyoshi Eiko is a feminine Japanese given name. Eikō, also spelled Eikou or Eikoh, is a masculine Japanese given name. The meanings of these names depend on the kanji used to write them. Kanji In the feminine name Eiko, "ko" is generally written with ...

as Harumi's mother *

Noriko Honma Noriko Honma (本間文子 ''Honma Noriko'') (29 November 1911 – 12 April 2009) was a Japanese actress whose film work occurred primarily during the 1950s. She was born in Hokkaido. She worked in many of Akira Kurosawa's films, first appearin ...

as Wooden Tub Shop woman *

Isao Kimura , also known as Kō Kimura, was a Japanese actor. He entered the Haiyūza theatre troupe in 1946. He appeared in several films directed by Akira Kurosawa, including ''Stray Dog'' (1949) as Yusa the criminal, and ''Seven Samurai'' (1954) as Kats ...

as Yusa *

Minoru Chiaki was a Japanese actor who appeared in eleven of Akira Kurosawa's films, including ''Rashomon'', ''Seven Samurai'', ''Throne of Blood'', and ''The Hidden Fortress''. He was also one of Kon Ichikawa's favorite actors. He attended, but did not grad ...

as Girlie Show director * Ichiro Sugai as Yayoi Hotel owner *

Gen Shimizu Gen may refer to: * ''Gen'' (film), 2006 Turkish horror film directed by Togan Gökbakar * Gen (Street Fighter), a video game character from the ''Street Fighter'' series * Gen Fu, a video game character from the ''Dead or Alive'' series * Gen l ...

as Police Inspector Nakajima *

Reikichi Kawamura Reikichi Nakamura ( ja, 中村礼吉; born 16 October 1916) was a Japanese speed skater who competed in the 1936 Winter Olympics The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games (german: IV. Olympische Winterspiele) a ...

as Officer Ichikawa *

Noriko Sengoku , known by her stage name , was a Japanese film and television actress active primarily in the 1950s and 1960s. She made her film debut in 1947 and starred in several of Akira Kurosawa's early films such as '' Drunken Angel'' (1948), ''The Quiet ...

as Girl

Production

Kurosawa mentioned in several interviews that his script was inspired by

Jules Dassin Julius "Jules" Dassin (December 18, 1911 – March 31, 2008) was an American film and theatre director, producer, writer and actor. A subject of the Hollywood blacklist in the McCarthy era, he subsequently moved to France, and later Greece, whe ...

’s ''

The Naked City ''The Naked City'' (aka ''Naked City'') is a 1948 American film noir directed by Jules Dassin, starring Barry Fitzgerald, Howard Duff, Dorothy Hart and Don Taylor. The film, shot almost entirely on location in New York City, depicts the poli ...

'' and the works of Georges Simenon. ''Stray Dog'' was the first time that Kurosawa collaborated with Ryuzo Kikushima, with the former sending the latter to the

Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department The serves as the prefectural police department of Tokyo Metropolis. Founded in 1874, it is headed by a Superintendent-General, who is appointed by the National Public Safety Commission, and approved by the Prime Minister. The Tokyo Met ...

to collect cases that they could use as the basis for the script of the film, choosing a case where a young detective lost his pistol. It also takes inspiration from contemporary debates in Japan about the ''"après-guerre"'' generation with its apparent rise in delinquency and crime. Despite being one of Akira Kurosawa's most critically renowned postwar films, ''Stray Dog'' was not always held in such high regard by the director himself. Kurosawa initially said that he thought little of the film, calling it "too technical" and also remarking that it contains "all that technique and not one real thought in it." His attitude had changed by 1982, when he wrote in his autobiography that "no shooting ever went as smoothly," and that "the excellent pace of the shooting and the good feeling of the crew can be sensed in the finished film." However, Kurosawa was rankled when someone from the

ASPCA The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing animal cruelty. Based in New York City since its inception in 1866, the organization's mission is "to provide effective mea ...

accused him of infecting a dog with rabies for the movie's opening shot of a canine panting in the heat. He had to write a letter to American occupation officials denying the allegation, and he later said that he never felt "a stronger sense of regret over Japan's losing the war." ''Stray Dog'' was mostly shot at a studio rented by Toho with more than thirty sets built.

Ishirō Honda was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 44 feature films in a career spanning 59 years. The most internationally successful Japanese filmmaker prior to Hayao Miyazaki, his films have had a significant influence on the film industry. Honda enter ...

, who would go on to direct several monster movies such as ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film '' Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produ ...

'' and ''

Mothra is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that first appeared in the 1961 film '' Mothra'', produced and distributed by Toho Studios. Mothra has appeared in several Toho ''tokusatsu'' films, most often as a recurring character in the ''Godzilla'' ...

'', served as Kurosawa's chief assistant, shooting second unit footage for the 10-minute long sequence of Murakami roaming through Tokyo, and often doubled for Toshiro Mifune in waist shots. Kurosawa later praised Honda for helping him capture the atmosphere of post-World War II Tokyo. The film marks the first appearances of

and

in a Kurosawa film. Chiaki would go on to appear in ten more movies by the director, Honma played the medium in ''

Rashomon is a 1950 Jidaigeki psychological thriller/ crime film directed and written by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori, and Takashi Shimura as v ...

'' and Kimura played the youngest of the seven samurai in ''

Seven Samurai is a 1954 Japanese epic samurai drama film co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The story takes place in 1586 during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. It follows the story of a village of desperate farmers who hire sev ...

''. The baseball game scene was shot at the actual

Korakuen Stadium was a stadium in Tokyo, Japan. Completed in 1937, it was originally used for baseball, and was home to the Yomiuri Giants for nearly 50 years. For various periods of time, it was also the home stadium of six other professional Japanese baseb ...

. The film was also the debut of then sixteen-year old

, who plays Harumi Namiki, a dancer and the girlfriend of Yusa, the villain of the film. She was chosen over other actresses because of her mean looks. Kurosawa described her as being too spoiled and that she could not cry on cue, and never cast her again in another movie of his. Awaji would later regret her unprofessionalism during filming. Kurosawa became so close with his cast and crew during filming that he remarked later it was difficult for him to break up with them after filming was completed.

Release

''Stray Dog'' was distributed theatrically by

Toho is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer ...

in Japan on 17 October 1949. The film received a theatrical release in the United States by Toho International with English subtitles on August 31, 1963.

Reception

''Stray Dog'' holds a 95% approval rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

based on 20 reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10. At the 1950 Mainichi Film Concours it won awards for Best Actor (Takashi Shimura), Best Film Score (Fumio Hayasaka), Best Cinematography ( Asakazu Nakai) and Best Art Direction ( Sō Matsuyama). The film was included on ''

Kinema Junpo , commonly called , is Japan's oldest film magazine and began publication in July 1919. It was first published three times a month, using the Japanese ''Jun'' (旬) system of dividing months into three parts, but the postwar ''Kinema Junpō'' ha ...

'' "Best Ten" of the year at third place. In 2009 the film was voted at No. 10 on the list of ''The Greatest Japanese Films of All Time'' by Japanese film magazine

Remake

The film was remade in 1973, under the name '' Nora inu'', for

Shochiku () is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not al ...

. It was later remade for television in 2013.

References

Sources

External links

* *
''Excess in Stray Dog''
an essay by Chris Fujiwara at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scholars, cine ...

*
Stray Dog
' at the

Japanese Movie Database The , more commonly known as simply JMDb, is an online database of information about Japanese movies, actors, and production crew personnel. It is similar to the Internet Movie Database but lists only those films initially released in Japan. Y. ...

{{Akira Kurosawa 1949 films 1940s crime thriller films Japanese black-and-white films Japanese crime thriller films 1940s Japanese-language films Film noir Films directed by Akira Kurosawa Films set in Tokyo Films shot in Tokyo Police detective films Procedural films Films with screenplays by Akira Kurosawa Films with screenplays by Ryuzo Kikushima Films scored by Fumio Hayasaka Films produced by Sōjirō Motoki 1940s police procedural films Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department in fiction Shintoho films Japanese detective films