The Samurai and the Prisoner Trailer: Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Epic Mystery is Coming This July

      Apologies in advance to Christopher Nolan, but the ensemble period epic we're most eager to see in July comes from Kiyoshi Kurosawa. The Samurai and the Prisoner—featuring Masahiro Motoki, Masaki Suda, Yuriko Yoshitaka, Joe Odagiri, Munetaka Aoki, Ryota Miyadate, and Tasuku Emoto—has premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and will start its U.S. release on July 31, with the director visiting the country. Prior to its launch, Janus Films has unveiled a new trailer and poster.

      Here’s the synopsis: “When Lord Murashige rises against the oppressive Oda, he finds himself trapped within his own castle's walls. Cut off from the outside, he faces a series of mysterious crimes that disrupt the delicate balance of his court, filling the fortress with fear and distrust. As Oda’s army approaches and a traitor lurks among his men, Murashige must reluctantly team up with Kanbei, a cunning and dangerous strategist imprisoned in the dungeon, in a race to outsmart his foes and reveal the truth before it's too late.”

      Leonardo Goi commented in his Cannes review, “Like its main character, The Samurai and the Prisoner is a peculiar curiosity. It’s a film that minimizes bloodshed and revels in overturning genre expectations to intriguing effect. While other recent films have chosen grand, action-filled spectacles—such as Takeshi Kitano’s brutal 2023 Kubi—this one is much more measured and contemplative, evoking mid-century masterpieces from Kenji Mizoguchi and Akira Kurosawa. Based on Honobu Yonezawa’s award-winning novel of the same title, it is divided into four chapters, each tied to a specific season. It begins in winter 1578, with Arioka besieged by Nobunaga Oda, the tyrannical ruler Murashige once served, and the capture of the titular prisoner, Kanbei Kuroda (Masaki Suda, last seen as an online scammer in Kurosawa’s 2025 Cloud), who was sent to the fortress by Oda as a diplomatic envoy. The enemy’s forces are drawing nearer, but Murashige is more troubled by the mysterious murder of eight-year-old Jinen, the son of a former ally who has defected to Oda’s side. The boy had implored Murashige to kill him as a means of atoning for his father's betrayal, but it was in vain; when his body is discovered in one of Arioka’s chambers, Samurai swiftly transforms into a courtroom drama, with its protagonist taking on the role of a detective and prosecutor, pressing his retainers to confess their wrongdoings.”

      Check out the trailer and poster below: