Stray Dog

Stray Dog (1949) starring Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura. Directed by Akira Kurosawa. Tokyo homicide detective Murakami (Mifune) loses his gun, goes on search throughout city to try and find it. Old hand Sato (Shimura) helps him out in his quest. When Murakami learns that his gun has been used in a homicide, the search intensifies. The story gives Kurosawa an opportunity to explore post-war Tokyo and the underbelly of society in the late '40s; it's a Japanese film noir. In Japanese, with English subtitles. Grade: B