Twenty-One Fingerprints

1948 1h 24m JA

Crime

Synopsis

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Third film of the Bannai Tarao series starring Chiezo Kataoka

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Chiezo Kataoka
Chizuru Kitagawa
Minoru Takada
Akio Kobori
Sumiko Hidaka
Reiko Minagawa
Eiko Maruyama
Ryutaro Otomo

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sadatsugu Matsuda
Writers: Yoshitake Hisa
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

84 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

78 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Bannai Tarao series" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sadatsugu Matsuda, shot by Hideo Ishimoto. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Yoshinobu Shiraki. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Chiezo Kataoka and Chizuru Kitagawa and Minoru Takada carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sadatsugu Matsuda directs. Hideo Ishimoto behind the camera. Yoshinobu Shiraki scores. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

184 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
278 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Bannai Tarao series" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Sadatsugu Matsuda, shot by Hideo Ishimoto. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Yoshinobu Shiraki. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Chiezo Kataoka and Chizuru Kitagawa and Minoru Takada carry the top of the cast.