STRAY DOG (1945)

Nora inu (aka Stray Dog) 
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Grade: B+

I believe there’s a point in every filmmaker at which the restrained, cautionary artist within him is sent packing, banished at the eleventh hour, leaving said filmmaker with a sudden clarity and vigor rivaled only by sex – or a great french toast platter. Suddenly, said filmmaker finds he can breathe – fully – and on his own. It’s a heavy release, with all of the preconceived laws of the craft, notions of his duty to the art, or his worries of the expectations of others are cast out, leaving the filmmaker with the one thing that absolutely defines his style and shapes his vision: the language.

Nora inu is one of the earlier works of Akira Kurosawa, and one that bridges an acclaimed master of cinema with that of a beginning auteur. There’s so much in this work that is reserved and controlled, perhaps for fear of becoming something too much too quickly, and you can almost sense an emerging artist painting by numbers who desires nothing more than to smash his palette into the canvas, just to see what takes shape. This is a different Kurosawa – a young and clinical filmmaker – astute, but still unrefined. And, when you watch a film like Nora inu, you can’t help but feel as if Kurosawa is standing on the edge of something big.

Nora inu is a well-acted, straight-laced crime drama that follows the rules of the road, albeit in a rather dry and lackluster manner. The story lunges from the gate, not wasting any time revealing the reason as to why we are here: A wet-behind-the-ears police detective has just had his gun lifted by a pickpocket on a crowded bus, and now he must hunt down the thief before the weapon is used in any kind of crime. Kurosawa does play around with composition and pacing, though cautiously, and is helped along by an equally youthful and eager Toshiro Mifune. Yet, the film is steady and plays out its clues and benchmarks with full disclosure, like slowly flipping through a deck of playing cards – one after the next.

Then, something thrilling happens as we enter into the third act of the film. It’s almost as if something in Kurosawa gives way and a completely new filmmaker emerges. One minute the film is decidedly procedural – the next minute we’re watching twenty minutes of cinema that is uncharacteristically stylistic – one might say Hitchcockian, even. The shot design now carries an obvious sense of purpose, and Kurosawa’s rhythm follows a sharp cadence, as if his pulse has quickened. We catch an early glimpse at the Kurosawa to come – a director who will layer his action with daring camera movement, flesh out his look with stunning production value, and place emphasis on his actors through bold facial expressions and unhindered performances. Ultimately, the last twenty minutes of Nora inu are quite unlike the ninety minutes that precede it.

Don’t get me wrong – it’s not that the first two-thirds of the film are weak, not by any stretch. However, Stray Dog could have been a film from any given director, but it’s the last third of the film that are recognizably Kurosawa, signature Kurosawa, the filmmaker we know from his post Rashomon (1950) works. He sneaks himself in towards the end of the picture, almost as if saying, “Alright, I’ve played by the rules for the majority of the film. Now we’re going to wrap things up my way,” rightly offering up a whirlwind climax upon which the rest of the film has been gradually building. The shift in style caps the film wonderfully, and to see it unfold is like discovering Kurosawa for the first time all over again.

Japanese cuisine is on the menu today and Cinema Goulash is plating two different options: The first is a recommendation by the lovely Goulash Wife, whose guilty pleasure comes in the form of some sushi at Moritomo here in Concord. This local Japanese restaurant is usually the eatery of choice for my wife’s occasional girls-only lunch with friends. I’ve never had a lot of sushi, although some recent Food Network programs featuring sushi and the fixings have piqued my curiosity, so I’ll have to give it a try and report back. Moritomo Japanese Restaurant is located at 32 Fort Eddy Road in Concord, NH. In addition, after taking a gander at a variety of Japanese recipes on the web, I came across this scrumptious-looking dish: Baked Onion Chicken Thighs with Umeboshi and Shiso. You’ll find the recipe here.