Kiyoshi Kurosawa on His Samurai Mystery Drama Premiered at Cannes

Kiyoshi Kurosawa, the Japanese director known for horror films like Cure and Pulse, premiered his new film The Samurai and the Prisoner at the Cannes Film Festival. The film is a jidaigeki (period drama) based on Honobu Yonezawa's prize-winning novel, set during the Sengoku period. It follows Lord Murashige Araki (Masahiro Motoki) and imprisoned strategist Kanbei Kuroda (Masaki Suda) as they navigate mysterious murders and deceptions in a besieged castle. Unlike Kurosawa's horror works, the film is a conversational mystery with minimal action. Kurosawa drew inspiration from classical Japanese films of the 1950s by Akira Kurosawa and Kenji Mizoguchi. The film's four mysteries have no clear logical solutions, prompting characters to rely on deduction. The dungeon set serves as a central space where Kanbei's influence spreads outward. Kurosawa's former students Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Koji Fukada attended the premiere. The film is set for release in 2026.