"Black Prison," a film adaptation of Honobu Yonezawa's masterpiece mystery starring Masahiro Motoki and directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, will be released on June 19th. On May 8th, a report from the Kyoto set and behind-the-scenes photos were released, capturing the acting battle between the isolated castle lord Murashige Araki (Motoki) and the imprisoned genius strategist Kanbei Kuroda (Masaki Suda Suda), as well as the process of creating a psychological battle in a locked room from approximately 500 years ago, as attempted by director Kurosawa.
The novel "Kuro Rōjō" (English title: THE SAMURAI AND THE PRISONER), published in 2021 by Kadokawa Bunko/KADOKAWA, is a popular work that has won numerous awards, including the 166th Naoki Prize and the 12th Yamada Futarō Prize. The story is set in Arioka Castle during the Sengoku period. Lord Araki Murashige (played by Motoki) rebels against the tyrannical methods of Oda Nobunaga and decides to siege the castle, but a series of strange incidents occur. The suspects are among his retainers and relatives who are trapped inside the castle... As everyone becomes suspicious of each other, Murashige teams up with Kuroda Kanbei (played by Sugada), a dangerous genius strategist imprisoned in jail, to try and solve the case... This is a psychological mystery set in the Sengoku period. This marks director Kurosawa's first period drama. It has been officially selected for the Cannes Premiere section of the 79th Cannes International Film Festival, which will be held in Cannes, France from May 12th to 23rd (local time).
◇Large-scale filming takes place over a month and a half, visiting historical buildings.
This film, which tackles "one of the greatest mysteries in Japanese history" that has remained unsolved for 500 years, began filming in October 2025. Extensive location shooting took place over approximately one and a half months, visiting numerous historical buildings designated as national treasures or important cultural properties, including Himeji Castle (a World Heritage Site), Akashi Castle, Sasayama Castle, Iga Ueno Castle, Hikone Castle, as well as Tofuku-ji Temple and Manpuku-ji Temple.
The newly released behind-the-scenes photos capture glimpses of the strong bond unique to the Kurosawa team, including Motoki and Sugada's serious expressions as they concentrate on filming, Joe Odagiri and Snow Man's Ryota Miyadate diligently checking the staging with director Kurosawa, and Motoki and director Kurosawa chatting between takes.
◇ Masahiro Motoki and Yuriko Yoshitaka break the silence as filming begins
On October 1st of last year, when Motoki began filming, the scene at Shochiku Kyoto Studio started with Murashige (Motoki) and his wife Chiyoho (Yuriko Yoshitaka) talking in a room in Arioka Castle. The peaceful conversation was short-lived, however, as the silence was broken by the intrusion of Jinen (Yuto Makiki), a boy whose father had defected to Nobunaga's side. This was an important scene spanning four pages of the script, and director Kurosawa gave Motoki and Yoshitaka detailed instructions on their positions and movements. After several rehearsals, the scene was shot in a long take using two cameras, and the atmosphere on set completely changed, becoming enveloped in a suffocating tension.
Watching Motoki and Yoshitaka's performances, director Kurosawa, with his masterful direction, drew out natural emotions and kept the filming moving at a good pace. Drawn to the universal themes and intriguing mystery of the original work, Kurosawa, who took on his first period drama, said, "It was the most interesting novel I've read in recent years, and I wanted to turn it into a film myself." However, he admitted that he felt anxious on the first day of filming, saying, "It's always like that on the first day of any set. I'm always anxious because I'm not an actor, wondering if the directorial plan I had thought of beforehand is really working, whether the actors are able to act both physically and mentally as real people, and whether they'll say they can't do it."
From the following day onward, the set was filled with a host of eccentric retainers who supported Murashige. Odagiri-san, who played the loyal Gunjuemon, Miyadate-san, who played Inui Sukesaburo, and Aoki Munetaka-san, who played Araki Kyuzaemon, were among those who participated. During the investigation scene of the first case, "The Locked-Room Murder of Self-Indulgence," the Kurosawa team staff approached the scene with meticulous preparation, while the cast members, though occasionally exchanging smiles and words, were deeply immersed in their roles. A pleasant tension and sense of fulfillment permeated the entire set.
◇Director Kurosawa: "It was the same kind of tension and excitement as my debut film."
In November, Sugada joined the set. The scene of Murashige and Kanbei confronting each other was filmed in a vast and uneven underground prison set built in Studio 6, which retains the "raw dirt ground" characteristic of Shochiku Kyoto Studios.
This scene was filmed in chronological order, featuring a massive exchange of lines where true feelings and outward appearances intertwine. Filmed in long takes, a technique director Kurosawa insisted on, the atmosphere was tense, and the debate between the two characters gave the director a real sense of accomplishment. "I enjoyed watching the back-and-forth between Motoki and Sugada. Just like the relationship between Murashige and Kanbei in the story, one overwhelms the other, and the other fights back. I think their acting battle is a must-see," he said confidently.
Filming wrapped up in mid-November. After finishing the shoot, Motoki said, "In order to get closer to what Director Kurosawa envisioned, the staff put their hearts and souls into it, using all their skills to capture it on film. I felt a certain tension and a sense of significance throughout the whole process." He added with deep emotion, "Looking back, I think that experience was a miracle. I was able to spend precious time in Kyoto, under the direction of Mr. Kurosawa, that could not have happened anywhere else."
Sugada also spoke of his experience, saying, "It was a shoot where I was covered in knowledge, blood, and dirt, and my brain was working at full capacity. I will never forget the look in Motoki's eyes when we faced each other as Araki Murashige." He then smiled and added, "I had almost no interaction with anyone other than Murashige, so I think I will enjoy the movie the most. I am looking forward to its completion."
Director Kurosawa reportedly showed a look of fulfillment, saying, "There were many firsts for me, and filming while pursuing what was right was challenging every day, but it was also refreshing. Even at this age, I felt the same tension, excitement, and novelty as when I made my debut."
