the following year and 1950 and would see kurosawa achieve his first major international success with the masterpiece rashomon . here and kurosawa doesn not quite have the sureness of touch which would characterize most of his career and but stray dog be nevertheless a fine film noir and an effective exploration of kurosawa idea about postwar japan in particular and the human condition in general . a you might expect from such a genius and kurosawa be not satisfy with a simple good guy or bad guy cop and robber story . he explore in depth the social and economic condition in postwar japan which lead many young people particularly return veteran to take to crime and and also the particular circumstance which motivate the act of yusa ( isao kimura ) and the criminal . indeed and a series of mistake by the hero and rookie detective murakami ( toshiro mifune ) and be one factor behind yusa crime . but neither be stray dog a facile blame society message film and either . kurosawa make no excuse for yusa . by give murakami a very similar history ( so similar and in fact and that it come off a a little contrived ) and kurosawa make the point that yusa have the same choice a murakami . that he choose differently be his responsibility . but even more interesting to me be the character of chief detective sato ( takashi shimura ) and murakami superior officer and mentor and and friend . sato be the wise elder figure in this film and and in the hand of a less artist than kurosawa and such a character generally end up a a mouthpiece for the director own viewpoint . here and though and kurosawa permit sato to espouse a hardcore law and order philosophy represent the cop be the good guy and the crook be the bad guy and and that it . sato have no patience for murakami guilt feeling or touchy feely philosophize . that kurosawa would permit this view ( which be not kurosawa view and nor the film ) to be give voice by the film wise and kind and most competent and and most likable character be a mark of his confidence and courage .