Pistol Pickpocket packs punch

Although Kurosawa had made several films before 'Stray Dog' this was the one that started to get a response from an International audience.

Almost quaint now, this film is an excellent time capsule for a Japan with empty streets, honest cops and a layer of criminal activity that equates to Basil Dearden's 'The Blue Lamp' which was actually made a year later.

If you are already a fan of the Akira Kurosawa/ Toshiro Mifune partnership then this is an important film, representing their first collusion. Kurosawa was an artist with his camera and this movie shows the potential that this oriental genius had.

If you just like a good yarn then this film will also be suitable, but an action packed blockbuster it isn't.

Enjoyable with some innovative shots that have now become commonplace and certainly worth the rental.