[go: up one dir, main page]

    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 news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideToronto Int'l Film FestivalSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
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)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Le vase de sable

Original title: Suna no utsuwa
  • 1974
  • 2h 23m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
1.7K
YOUR RATING
Le vase de sable (1974)
Police ProceduralCrimeDramaMysteryThriller

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.

  • Director
    • Yoshitarô Nomura
  • Writers
    • Seichô Matsumoto
    • Shinobu Hashimoto
    • Yôji Yamada
  • Stars
    • Tetsurô Tanba
    • Gô Katô
    • Kensaku Morita
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.3/10
    1.7K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Yoshitarô Nomura
    • Writers
      • Seichô Matsumoto
      • Shinobu Hashimoto
      • Yôji Yamada
    • Stars
      • Tetsurô Tanba
      • Gô Katô
      • Kensaku Morita
    • 20User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 7 wins & 1 nomination total

    Photos73

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 69
    View Poster

    Top cast69

    Edit
    Tetsurô Tanba
    Tetsurô Tanba
    • Eitaro Imanishi
    Gô Katô
    Gô Katô
    • Eiryo Waga
    Kensaku Morita
    Kensaku Morita
    • Hiroshi Yoshimura
    Yôko Shimada
    Yôko Shimada
    • Reiko Takagi
    Karin Yamaguchi
    Karin Yamaguchi
    • Sachiko Tadokoro
    Yoshi Katô
    Yoshi Katô
    • Chiyokichi Motoura
    Kazuhide Haruta
    Kazuhide Haruta
    • Hideo Motoura
    Chishû Ryû
    Chishû Ryû
    • Kirihara
    Junko Natsu
    • Akiko
    Seiji Matsuyama
    • Miki's Son
    Taketoshi Naitô
    Taketoshi Naitô
    • Search Section Chief
    Masumi Harukawa
    Masumi Harukawa
    • Naka Sumie
    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
    • Professor Kuwabara
    Kappei Matsumoto
    • Mimori Police Chief
    Jun Hamamura
    Jun Hamamura
    • Patrolman
    • Director
      • Yoshitarô Nomura
    • Writers
      • Seichô Matsumoto
      • Shinobu Hashimoto
      • Yôji Yamada
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews20

    7.31.6K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    8simonize-1

    This film expands on genre conventions and is cinematic in the best sense

    This film CASTLE OF SAND expands on genre conventions and is cinematic in the best sense. YOSHITARO NOMURA takes what was presumably a best selling novel in Japan, and creates a fascinating mystery with all the requisites: the pairing of a veteran and a rookie detective; a murder with a minimum of clues; an unidentified victim; a journey of discovery for both detectives when the investigation seems to have come to a dead end; the seemingly arbitrary introduction of a key figure on which much hinges, and so forth.

    The director tells a story with voice overs and the requisite dialogue but as often as not his camera tells the story.

    I have seen any number of Japanese films in my 50 plus years, but I still felt I was undergoing the journey and the search that the two detectives take, through the rural regions of Japan that are in stark contrast to their operating base, Tokyo.

    The story has elements that take it beyond the realms of the mystery and police procedure genres, and the conclusion is worthy of the time the director has spent in weaving his tragic tale.

    The film is now available on DVD via Panorama; it is in the original Japanese with Chinese and English subtitles. It is a SINGLE LAYER DISK, LETTERBOXED and in STEREO, which is paramount because music is central to the whole affair.

    Unfortunately my copy had a sequence when the senior detective is addressing his colleagues and no subtitling is provided (you simply see the same line for an awkward length of time). However the viewer should be able to extrapolate what has been said. All in all, a film and DVD worth seeking out!
    9Drucilla_Black

    Doesn't get the attention it deserves

    I saw "The Castle of Sand" at a Japanese Film Festival this year in Sydney, and I must say that I'm surprised that this movie isn't better known as it's so beautifully made and incredibly moving...It's one of those near-perfect gems that are few and far between. It's a fairly long movie at nearly 2.5 hours, but the movie is one that draws you in very quickly and keeps you wondering up until the very end.

    The plot centres around the mysterious murder of Miki, a retired policeman in his 60's who was well-liked by pretty much everyone who knew him for his kindness and integrity. Two detectives, one a rookie and one fairly older, are assigned to the case and what at first seems like three unrelated stories slowly weave together to reveal the reasons and the person behind Miki's death. Even if you're not a fan of foreign movies, "The Castle of Sand" is still definitely worth a watch.
    7deschreiber

    Too long

    There's a lot to like about this film, mostly because of the beautiful cinematography and the picturesque Japanese countryside. The unraveling of the police investigation of the central murder has interesting moments, but by the end it becomes too strung-out and torturous. The last 45 minutes or so had me tapping my toes waiting for it to end, as every plot point and every shot was prolonged far past the limits of my patience.

    Lovers of classical music will be amused by what passes for the output of the "genius" composer. While composing in the early stages in his home at the piano, he plays quite awful nightclub music. It would never get him an invitation to perform with the New York Philharmonic, as the plot requires. In the last section, with him performing on stage, intercut with scenes of the police concluding their investigation, he plays a pretty forgettable late-Romantic piano concerto, apparently written by a real Japanese composer, Yasushi Akutagawa.
    caddie1976

    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.
    6poikkeus

    A tragedy it ends so badly

    CASTLE OF SAND is an engrossing, laid-back police procedural that captures your attention even when the plot seems fairly ordinary. A Tokyo cop (Tetsuro Tamba) is troubled when a retired cop is found brutally murdered, with no evidence save the vague recollections of a few townsfolk. At times, the story is reminiscent of a regional travelogue, but in learning more about Japan, Tamba hones in on a small set of likely suspects, but everyone is so agreeable that uncovering the truth becomes like rooting out the one hidden evidence of violence in a sea of potential data.

    Regrettably, the film unravels in the final forty or so minutes, when the remainder of the story is told with musical accompaniment of a famous pianist. The plot becomes frankly loses credibility and even becomes rather nonsensical. The movie changes mood and style, and dripping with melodrama.

    More like this

    Inugami-ke no ichizoku
    7.1
    Inugami-ke no ichizoku
    L'été du démon
    7.4
    L'été du démon
    Le Détroit de la faim
    7.9
    Le Détroit de la faim
    Giwaku
    7.1
    Giwaku
    Amagi goe
    7.0
    Amagi goe
    Confessions d'une épouse
    7.4
    Confessions d'une épouse
    Yatsuhaka-mura
    6.5
    Yatsuhaka-mura
    Nihon no ichiban nagai hi
    7.7
    Nihon no ichiban nagai hi
    Harikomi
    7.1
    Harikomi
    Zero Focus
    7.0
    Zero Focus
    Akuma no temari-uta
    6.8
    Akuma no temari-uta
    Suna no utsuwa
    7.5
    Suna no utsuwa

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Seichô Matsumoto once said he preferred this movie, based on his novel, over said novel.
    • Connections
      Referenced in NHK supesharu: Sayonara eiga no furusato: Ofuna satsueijo (2000)

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ14

    • How long is The Castle of Sand?Powered by Alexa

    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 companies
      • Hashimoto Productions
      • Shochiku
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 2h 23m(143 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.