Castle of Sand (砂の器) is a 1974 Japanese police procedural film directed by Yoshitarō Nomura, based on the novel Suna no Utsuwa by Seicho Matsumoto.

Plot

The film tells the tale of two detectives, Imanishi (Tetsuro Tamba) and Yoshimura (Kensaku Morita), tasked with tracking down the murderer of an old man, found bludgeoned to death in a rail yard. When the identity of the old man can't be determined, the investigation focuses on the only other clue: a scrap of conversation overheard at a bar between the old man and a younger one. A witness recalls the cryptic phrases "Kameda did this" and "Kameda doesn't change." This sets off a wide-ranging investigation that covers vast swaths of geography, changing social mores, and time. The investigation ends with an emotional and heartbreaking conclusion, all the more shattering because the reason for the crime no longer exists in the world.

Cast

Awards