Acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa skill at crafting tense, psychological thrillers such as Cure, Pulse, and Creepy has led to comparisons with the body horror works of David Cronenberg. But now Kurosawa is doing something radically different with The Samurai and the Prisoner, a murder mystery set in the world of samurai.
Kurosawa’s first-ever samurai movie, it nonetheless bears his trademarks: paranoia and claustrophobia, as a Lord is besieged in his own castle. The film stars Masahiro Motoki, Masaki Suda, Yuriko Yoshitaka, Joe Odagiri, Munetaka Aoki, Ryota Miyadate, and Tasuku Emoto.
SYNOPSIS: When Lord Murashige rises against the tyrannical Oda, he finds himself besieged within the walls of his own castle. Isolated, he is confronted with a series of mysterious crimes that shatter the fragile order of his court, plunging the fortress into fear and suspicion. With Oda’s army closing in and a traitor hiding among his ranks, Murashige is forced into an uneasy alliance with Kanbei, a brilliant and dangerous strategist held prisoner in the dungeon, as he must outwit his enemies and uncover the truth before time runs out.
Janus Films will release The Samurai and the Prisoner in theaters July 31st.
