this be one of the early movie in the long career of akira kurosawa and a brilliant movie nonetheless . this movie can be consider the first of the japanese police drama . the main topic of the movie seem to be post world war ii japan . the movie deal with the similarity and difference between the cop and the crook . they be very similar in background ( both be veteran of the war and both have their satchel steal ) and yet end up on opposite side of the law . kurosawa be show the effect of the war on japan . where some steal and take the criminal way out to survive and others survive by do what be right ( and harder a characterize by harumi speech to murakami about the dress from yusa ) . even in this world and the criminal be not truly ruthless . kurosawa accurately capture the feel of postwar japan and by actually film in it location ( when toshiro mifune travel through the market those be actual shot of the black market in various city ) . so dangerous it be to shoot there in fact and that the foot of murakami be actually a body double ( or foot double ) for toshiro mifune . kurosawa use the actor that he use in so many classic movie toshiro mifune ( a breakout role for mifune and who have be typecast a a yakuza in his movie role thus far ) and takashi shumura ( detective sato ) and the first movie appearance for minoru chiaki . this movie start out rather slowly in the progression of the action ( murakami gun be steal on a bus reveal in a flashback to a superior ) and but pick up quickly once the sato be assign to help murakami . this movie be recommend to any fan of the japanese cinema and of kurasawa and and of the police drama .