Stray Dog (The Criterion Collection)
by Akira Kurosawa
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Actor: Eiko Miyoshi, Keiko Awaji, Noriko Sengoku, Takashi Shimura, Toshirô MifuneDirector: Akira Kurosawa
Brand: MIFUNE,TOSHIRO
Cinematographer: Asakazu Nakai
Producer: Akira Kurosawa
Writer: Akira Kurosawa
Producer: Kajirô Yamamoto
Producer: Senkichi Taniguchi
Producer: Sôjirô Motoki
Writer: Ryûzô Kikushima
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Japanese (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 122 minutes
Published: 2004-05-01
DVD Release Date: 2004-05-25
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Criterion
DVD Reviews of Stray Dog (The Criterion Collection)
DVD Review: A mad dog only sees straight paths.
Summary: 5 Stars
Anybody who's seen any of Akira Kurosawa's films should not only see this one, but own it as well. Toshiro Mifune stars as Murakami, a young but troubled Tokyo homicide detective. In the opening sequence, his Colt is stolen from someone on a hot and crowded bus. Ashamed, he takes it upon himself to get the gun back at all costs, and in doing so goes undercover as a down-and-out war veteran. Then when he gets amazingly close to his suspect, he sees that he's only arrested the thief's subordinate and not the thief himself. However, he questions the girl until she's fet up with him and the heat of the room she's being interrogated in. That's when he calls upon larceny detective Sato, played by Takashi Shimura. His methods are slower, kinder, and less reckless than Murakami. They find that she doesn't know anything about the guns, but is linked to an even bigger criminal with the alias of Hondo, and wait at a baseball game to find him. After several methods and attempts that prove fruitless, his real name is announced over the loudspeakers and they have no trouble catching him. Then with him out of the way, Sato invites Murakami over for dinner to get to know each other better. Everything seems fine, until the next morning when a robbery/homicide occurs. A man's wife is found dead, and guess whose gun was used: it's Murakami's same Colt.
From there on out the real story begins, and Murakami's attempt to get a good first arrest becomes a nightmare of how to catch the killer before he tries anything else. Director Kurosawa was inspired by French crime novels, and even wrote this first as a novel itself. However, when he wrote the accompanying screenplay, it took him twice as long to finish it. This isn't just a simple "cat-and-mouse" crime thriller like you'd see in modern crap that pretends to be cleverly thought out. It really has a reason for so much crime and so many lowlifes to be walking about, and using WWII as a scapegoat is actually quite a realistic (and at the time very innovative) approach. People were desperate during those times, and post-war Japan was not exactly the # 1 travel destination in the world. If anything, this is a film about desperation and survival, the truest sense of Darwin's law of natural selection. Even the police are as desperate as dogs to assure that the most dangerous men are put away for good, and it's very evident in the final climatic showdown.
The DVD package is VERY cool, very chic, and perfect for the grittiness of the film. The menu is equally cool, but no trailer to be seen. There is a commentary, but don't listen to it on a late night, the moron will bore you to tears. However, to make up for it there's a 32-minute documentary about the film and Kurosawa's work overall, and a booklet from Kurosawa's autobiography. The Criterion Collection did a really good job with this one.
The only problem I have with the film itself is the soundtrack. Sure, the music does its job, but this movie demands something cooler.
There are many modern day examples of this film's influence. For example, the dinner scene is very closely related to that of "Lethal Weapon", where the older cop invites his younger partner, only to show up tomorrow to a murder. Then there's the taking of the cop's gun to kill people, like in "48 Hours". If you like either film, or detective films in general, then buy this movie. Good luck trying to find a video store that carries it for rental, but buy it despite the exorbitant amount for it. This is a very cool movie.
Description of Stray Dog (The Criterion Collection)
A detective whose revolver is stolen goes undercover to locate the thief, sinking to such depths that even his colleagues don't recognize the difference between him and the thief.Genre: Foreign Film - Japanese
Rating: UN
Release Date: 25-MAY-2004
Media Type: DVD
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