Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Suna no utsuwa

  • 19741974
  • 2h 23m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
1.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
38,584
16,572
Suna no utsuwa (1974)
CrimeMysteryThriller
Detectives investigate the murder of an old man found in a Tokyo rail yard.Detectives investigate the murder of an old man found in a Tokyo rail yard.Detectives investigate the murder of an old man found in a Tokyo rail yard.
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
1.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
38,584
16,572
  • Director
    • Yoshitarô Nomura
  • Writers
    • Shinobu Hashimoto
    • Seichô Matsumoto(novel)
    • Yoshitarô Nomura
  • Stars
    • Tetsurô Tanba
    • Gô Katô
    • Kensaku Morita
Top credits
  • Director
    • Yoshitarô Nomura
  • Writers
    • Shinobu Hashimoto
    • Seichô Matsumoto(novel)
    • Yoshitarô Nomura
  • Stars
    • Tetsurô Tanba
    • Gô Katô
    • Kensaku Morita
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 11User reviews
    • 9Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 7 wins & 1 nomination

    Photos73

    Kensaku Morita and Tetsurô Tanba in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Gô Katô in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Gô Katô and Ken Ogata in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Yoshi Katô, Tetsurô Tanba, and Yoshiko Togawa in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Taketoshi Naitô in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Kazuko Imai, Ken Ogata, and Kazuhide Haruta in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Ken Ogata in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Kazuko Imai in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Kazuko Imai and Kazuhide Haruta in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Ken Ogata in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Yoshi Katô in Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Kazuhide Haruta in Suna no utsuwa (1974)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Tetsurô Tanba
    Tetsurô Tanba
    • Detective Imanishi
    Gô Katô
    Gô Katô
    • Eiryo Waga
    Kensaku Morita
    Kensaku Morita
    • Detective Yoshimura
    Yôko Shimada
    Yôko Shimada
    • Reiko
    Karin Yamaguchi
    Karin Yamaguchi
    • Sachiko
    Yoshi Katô
    Yoshi Katô
    • Waga's Father
    Kazuhide Haruta
    Kazuhide Haruta
    • Motoura Hideo
    Chishû Ryû
    Chishû Ryû
    • Kirihara
    Junko Natsu
    • Akiko, hostess at Cabaret Bonuru
    Seiji Matsuyama
    • Miki's Son
    Taketoshi Naitô
    Taketoshi Naitô
    • Search section chief
    Masumi Harukawa
    Masumi Harukawa
    • Naka Sumie, woman at fan shop
    Yoshio Inaba
    Yoshio Inaba
    • Search chief clerk
    Tokue Hanazawa
    • Miki's colleague in flashback
    Taiji Tonoyama
    Taiji Tonoyama
    • Publican at Ebisu
    Kinzô Shin
    Kinzô Shin
    • Linguistics Professor Kuwabara
    Kappei Matsumoto
    • Mimori police chief
    Jun Hamamura
    Jun Hamamura
    • Patrolman
    • Director
      • Yoshitarô Nomura
    • Writers
      • Shinobu Hashimoto
      • Seichô Matsumoto(novel)
      • Yoshitarô Nomura
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Seicho Matsumoto once said he preferred this version over his own novel.
    • Connections
      Version of Suna no utsuwa (2004)

    User reviews11

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Nice to see an (almost) forgotten movie again
    This movie has three stories which are skillfully merged together at the end. One story is about a determined detective who is searching for a murderer. The second story is about a composer with social aspirations who is preparing to perform the debut of his piano concerto. I won't spoil it by describing the third story which is a flashback 30 years into the past. The third story has very little dialog and shows what silent movie fans have always known: you don't need much dialog to tell a good story.

    The English subtitling on the dvd version I saw is not great, but passable. As a minor quibble, the subtitles are not present to translate written documents when a newspaper article or arrest warrant is shown on the screen.

    There are some nice visual scenes which are quite effective. I last saw this movie in the 1970's and although I forgot the movie title, I never forgot the scene where the two detectives ride silently on their way to arrest the murderer. When I viewed this movie again recently, I was surprised to see how brief this scene actually is.
    helpful•18
    4
    • caddie1976
    • Jun 14, 2003

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 19, 1974 (Japan)
    • Country of origin
      • Japan
    • Language
      • Japanese
    • Also known as
      • The Castle of Sand
    • Filming locations
      • Ebisu, Naniwa, Osaka, Japan
    • Production company
      • Shochiku
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 23 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Suna no utsuwa (1974)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Suna no utsuwa (1974) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View image
    Photos
    Trending: Stars to Watch
    See the gallery
    View list
    List
    IMDb's Top 50 TV Dramas
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    New & Upcoming Sequels, Prequels, and Spin-Offs
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more access
    Sign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.