The Samurai and the Prisoner

Japan, 1578. Lord Araki Murashige (Departures) is at war with former ally, Oda. Oda sends gifted strategist Kuroda Kanbei (Masaki Suda, Cloud) as an envoy to Arioka Castle, where Murashige is holed up. Instead of executing Kanbei, as is samurai custom, Murashige imprisons him in his dungeon, keeping him as a valuable, yet dangerous, pawn. Set over four seasons, each surrounding a puzzling occurrence within Arioka Castle that Murashige must solve, the film masterfully melds elements of the samurai and detective genres, adapting the award-winning novel by Honobu Yonezawa. With supreme elegance, beauty and thematic control, The Samurai and the Prisoner earns its place in the esteemed canon of Japanese samurai cinema.