THE D-SLOPE MURDER CASE -directed by Akio JISSOJI-
Place around Dangozaka, HONGO, TOKYO
1927, time of the "financial panic"
There's plenty of time 'til the funeral
I'm gonna pee my pants... I'm gonna pee my pants...
Pee your pants?
Shame on you! You are the mistress.
So don't you pee your pants in front of your employee.
Oh, your pussy was already wet before that...
So many different opinions while he lived.
But his death is a great loss.
A ceramist and an epicurean.
A judge of art and the curious.
We will never find a man like him again.
He was fine until quite recently.
All too brief.
Hey, who is it?
The mistress of Suiko-Do, a bookstore.
Do you know what a bookstore owner does first in the morning?
No... what?
The morning of the owner begins by reading an obituary.
The library of a man whose obituary is in the paper is a great one.
It's called Hitokuchimono.
It has much importance in bookstore world.
She's too sexy to be the mistress of a second hand bookstore.
She's the owner's second wife.
She used to be a geisha in Fukagawa.
A geisha in fukagawa!
No wonder she is sexy.
How is her husband?
He died a few years ago.
Over her body.
Who the hell are you?
Sorry to interrupt you.
I've called you many times.
But, you didn't notice me.
So I came in.
You were so careless for a forger.
A forger...?
You must be joking.
I only restore art objects.
You can't fool me.
Someone's told me everything about you.
You are so young, but you are a master of art-forging.
Who are you?
I'm Tokiko Sunaga of Dangozaka.
Nice to meet you.
Anyway, please look at this.
They were drawn by... Shundei Ohe.
I'm sure you know that.
"Legendary artist of tortured women" from the middle to the end of the Meiji Era.
He was so unique that he wasn't accepted.
And he died miserably about 20 years ago.
But I've never seen such excellent pictures of Shundei Ohe.
They are called "Shiranui".
They are legendary missing sequences!
I heard that he tortured a woman by the name of Ohou-san.
That's how he drew them.
Yes, you're right. The woman tortured in those pictures is Ohou-san.
The reason why I came here is...
...that I want you to make forgeries of them.
But why Shundei's works?
Because the price of his art has risen.
It's the best time to sell.
But I charge a high fee.
10,000 yen now...
...and I'll give you 10,000 more when you finish them.
Is it a deal?
I know you're not a man to just take a job for money.
But nobody has ever been successful in making forgeries of Shundei's art before.
You know that.
Because his lines can't be imitated.
Tell me now if you can't.
Then I'm leaving.
CLOSED TODAY
The wife of Kiku-Soba's owner is always looking for you.
Oh, does she?
You know very well.
I know her husband hasn't fucked her for years.
Maybe you should take her to bed another time.
If she ever knew the kind of sex we'd have, she'd be crazy for it.
I'm sure she'll love it.
How would you know?
Her eyes tell me.
HOTEL - KIKUSUI
He's a very strange guest.
He hasn't left his room since he checked in.
His bills have accumulated.
We did find out he has many dirty second hand books in his room.
So much that the floor should cave in.
We deal in pornography you know.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Sir, allow us to come in.
Wow, this is fantastic!
I told you so.
Would all this be enough to pay his bills off, if we sell them?
He has a lot, it should be enough.
This room is full of treasures.
As we talked before,
I'm going to sell your books. Alright, Mr. Akechi?
...Akechi?
Yes. His name is Kogoro Akechi.
It's amazing.
The Dentist murder case, the Kurotegumi case,
and the missing daughter case.
You solved them all.
It's all in the past.
And I've been doing them just to kill time.
I get bored with detective work.
So I'm leading an idle life now and...
it makes me feel like I'm worthless.
I think that you're too smart.
That's why you can't be happy.
You must find something trifling to live for.
To live for?
My "something" could be... women.
2 cold soba's, Madam.
2 cold soba's.
These are the originals,
and these are the fakes.
Superb...
I'm glad to hear that.
Here, take this. It's the money as promised.
Please make sure.
Mr.Fukiya,
you haven't finished this work yet.
What?
I want you to make 6 reproductions
of Shundei's " Akegarasu".
"Akegarasu"?
Has he drawn the works of Akegarasu?
They are the last works of Shundei.
I will pay you double the price of "Shiranui".
Do you have any samples?
No, I don't.
For about a month,
you have copied 12 works of Shundei, haven't you?
I'm sure the soul of Shundei, dwells in your hands now.
A man of your skills...
You can do it easily, even without a sample.
However, I can offer you a model If you need one.
Has Mr. Akechi left?
You've taken away all the books he had, haven't you?
3 days after that, he just left and never came back.
It's a great load off of our mind.
Umm...
We have a bill for 10 days, what should we do?
Well...
The mistress of Suiko-Do told me to come.
You are Mayumi Hanazaki.
Yes.
Please come in.
Thank you.
Shall I undress here?
Well... please put this on.
Dress like a prostitute?
Do you know of a play called "Akegarasu"?
"Akegarasu"?
"Akegarasu yume no awa yuki",
A love story about Tokijiro and the prostitute Urazato.
In that play they enter a world of shrewd proprietress.
She tortures Urazaton in the snowy court.
I want to draw that scene.
I'm going to pick up the empty bowls.
Hey...
Come on.
The bill is expensive isn't it?
Paid in advance.
Not my money, though.
Is it all right?
No one will say anything about that.
But... take it easy.
Do you know what this is? Eh?
I will teach you with this.
Eh? Is it good?
You love this, Eh?
You love this.
Say : "I love it."
Do you want to be tortured, Eh? Eh? Eh?
Do you want it?
Yes, I do...
Ok, I'll give it to you...
I'll give it to you... I'll give it to you...
I'll give it to you.
Thank you.
The modeling contract expires today...
but you haven't finished anything.
Can I go home?
I want to see a play...
Doing nothing like this is a very hard job to do.
You draw very fast. Let's do it...
I'm going to deliver some books.
Would you like to sell them?
Actually, I've come to see the mistress.
These are indeed Shundei's works.
This one really excites me.
Thank you.
Because Mayumi said that you couldn't draw them well,
it got me to thinking...
that I'll show you this.
What is it?
The photo-album of Ochou-san.
When she was a model of Shundei.
If you please...
Let me look at it for reference.
Sure.
This woman is...
me, it's me when I was young.
Now I'm too old.
I wouldn't dare being naked in front of you.
And I asked her to be a model.
You made them such wonderful works of art.
These photos are useless.
Mr. Fukiya.
I never expected you to bring them here, I don't have enough money.
Would you please come back again?
Come by the after tomorrow. Afternoon okay?
Sure, afternoon on the 17th.
Right, I'll make it by that time.
Well, the mistress of Suiko-Do. What offerings do you have today?
We can't wait to see it.
You arranged this gathering today.
It must be a great find for you to go through so much trouble.
You seem to be more relaxed.
Today, I'm going to offer you...
Shundei Ohe's "Shiranui" and " Akegarasu".
Shundei's "Shiranui" and " Akegarasu"?
Are you saying that you have the legendary collections?
Let us seen them.
The beauty of a tortured woman is the broken shape of her black hair.
Look at this!
The beauty of Ochou-san's messy hair.
Maybe I am a fetishist.
I love the look of a woman's open mouth.
The impression of this chin.
Oh... I really love it.
CLOSED TODAY.
Is it quite all right?
My husband goes to Komoro to buy soba seeds.
He won't be back untill the evening.
What a terrible wife you are!
I've always wanted to do it once in here.
It's you...
Hello.
I'm going to pay you the rest.
Please come in.
You were reading a very difficult book.
I've loved books for as long as I can remember.
That's why I married him.
MUNSTERBERG PSYCHOLOGY & CRIME
Is it good? Eh?
It's good...
Reading the stories of Tadasuke Ohoka, I got interested in it.
Ohoka, the judge of the Edo period, was great.
I heard that he had put the latest theory of psychology to practical use.
Really?
Psychological tests.
They say that it's been experimentally adopted in the preliminary court.
Psychology...
Oh, yes...
Mr. Fukiya, I had something to ask you.
What is it?
I can't let you live...
I want you to die...
I'm back...
Miss.
Miss, what's wrong?
Hey, Miss. Hey, Miss...
Miss!
Help!
The mistress, the mistress!
The mistress!
The mistress has been murdered!
She's been murdered!
The mistress! The mistress has been murdered!
"Have fun!"...
or "Have a good time!"...
Something like that...
Anyway, those were the last words the mistress said to me.
I ate lunch.
And I came back.
Then I found her dead in the room.
As you know, my shop is in front of that used bookstore.
But nothing was wrong at that time.
No, I didn't see anything.
I've had relations with the man since I made love to him weeks ago.
I've heard from him that he had been in trouble for lack of money.
Mister...
please don't tell my husband...
He's an honest man...
Yes.
Who's there?
Oh, Mr. Akechi!
Hello.
Hey, how are you?
Where have you been?
We've been so worried...
thinking you might've killed yourself
Forgive me.
I heard that you'd been depressed ever since the incident.
I'm alright now.
I decided to be a detective.
I came here because today I'm opening my new office.
Well...
At last you'll be a real private detective.
Kojimachi Apt. House, Kototome-cho, Chiyoda-ku...
That's a good place!
It's my home and my office.
You used to read books all day in a room of a lodging house.
I exchanged my books for money.
By the way,
the employee of the bookstore who bought my books is involved...
You're talking about the case of Dangozaka killing.
You're in charge, aren't you?
That man, Saito, is supposed to be a suspect.
The newspaper is saying that he's denying he's involved.
We, magistrates investigate carefully
and collect vital evidence.
Making a full report is our job.
In this case I also made an in depth investigation.
and detailed preparation for the trial.
But...
You're not satisfied...
Right.
The prosecution insists that he's guilty.
It's the fact that he stole Suiko-Do's money.
But when it comes to the decision that he's guilty of murder...
I'm not so sure.
Saito returned to Suiko-Do after 2.pm
And Saito informed a policeman on patrol of the murder
at a quarter past 2.
Saito admitted the other day that he stole the money at the bottom of the pot.
Tokiko was strangled to death.
What is this black thing?
It's an ink stick.
She must've seized it at the time.
We can't determine Saito as an offender.
So I investigated Tokiko Sunaga's past.
Tokiko was born in Wada-Muta, Akita Prefecture.
Her father died when she was 3.
Her mother died when she was 15.
And she came to Tokyo alone.
Lodging above a hardware store.
she attended art school after a neighbor's introduction.
She made a living as a model.
This is her photo album she had in those days.
At 24 she quit her job and became a geisha in Fukagawa.
Then she met Eijiro Sunaga and became his second wife.
There is one thing I don't understand.
Why did Tokiko Sunaga have so much money hidden away?
Suiko-Do business hadn't been doing well because of this recession.
Here, look at this!
Well... this is Shundei's.
You said it.
The Kanda Bank had gone under.
This was in it's released property seized by the court.
This is "Akegarasu."
The question is what the other ones are.
This one is from the Kanda Bank.
At this one was found during the inspection of Suiko-Do.
"Shiranui."
2 boxes containing the same kinds of pictures of tortured women.
The problem is that they are exactly the same.
They are all handwritten drawings.
Exactly the same?
They are the same
and they have the same stains,
and dirt...
How do you think that's possible?
You're saying that Suiko-Do has something to do with art forgery?
Tokiko's relationship.
I looked into it.
And this man emerged.
Who is he?
His name is Fukiya, he does art restoration.
You know the Kochuan case?
Oranized crime of selling Ukiyoe fakes happened in Kyoto 15 years go.
Many were arrested.
Fukiya is the only son of Toichi Hirata, a forger involved in the Kochuan case.
Fukiya was only 15 at the time,
but he also helped forge some of those fakes.
He was born a genius in forgery wasn't he?
Saito testified that on March 15th.
It's two days before the case.
And did you summon this man named Fukiya?
Of course. Three days ago.
You get anything from him?
No, I didn't.
He admitted that he'd been making fakes in Kyoto.
But he said that now he's earning an honest living.
by restoring art.
You get nothing from him...
There's no proof against him in this case.
Saito is suspicious as the police say.
But Fukiya is also suspicious.
One thing I know is...
that there are no other suspects but them as a result of severe inspection.
Mr. Akechi, I think there is only one thing left to do.
A Psychological test?
Yes, I'll test Saito and Fukiya.
To celebrate your new start
I would ask you to solve this case but I'm going to solve it with the test.
So I'll make it some other time.
We are going to give you a word association test.
First I will read a word.
And then you say a word you associate with it.
"Head."
Hair.
Hips.
"Water."
Hot-water.
Fish.
"Long."
Short.
Rope.
"Kill."
Throat.
Crime.
"Boat."
River.
Water.
"Fake."
Original.
Ukiyoe.
"Red."
Maple.
Wine.
"Cooking."
Sashimi.
Katsudon.
"Blood."
Flow.
Red.
"Shundei Ohe."
Art.
Woman.
"Flowerpot."
Pine.
...Flower.
"Crime."
Murder.
Jail.
"Money."
Bills.
...Safe.
"Murder."
Blood.
The mistress...
"Steal."
Money.
Looking at their pulse rates, Fukiya responded so normally.
But Saito responded so sensitively.
So was the word association test.
it's clear which one is obviously suspicious.
But, even I'm not sure even now.
It's so interesting, isn't it?
All of Fukiya's answers seem genuine.
But Saito's are so romantic.
We always get interesting results from a word association test.
Let me introduce Yoshio Kobayashi, my assistant.
Thank you. You may go.
I'm looking after him for some reason.
I'm going to devote all my energy to bringing him up.
By the way, what do you think of those results?
As a magistrate I have to conclude that Saito is guilty.
Judging from the results from the test...
I think Fukiya is the murderer.
You are wondering.
If Fukiya is a murderer,
why did he respond so normally?
Someone must've taught him how to act in a psychological test.
Assuming the test, maybe he trained himself.
You think it's impossible to tell a lie.
because it's a psychological test
for finding the truth hidden by the examination.
Suppose you are a criminal,
and you are asked "Did you kill the mistress...
In that case you can easily say "Can you prove that?"
But inside your body your pulse gets quicker, doesn't it?
But somehow you won't be like that if you ask that question to yourself.
Even though the question is so severe.
It's because you thought it over in your mind.
Repetition disturbs the effect of the psychological test.
Having examined countless words in a dictionary,
Fukiya has assumed questions,
And he trained himself for that.
That's to say, he made forgeries of his own feelings.
Do you know why I am so sure?
Look at the time it took him to answer.
"Money", "Blood", "Murder"...
He answered the words concerning the case sooner than other words.
It means he trained himself too hard for the questions.
I heard that you wanted to see me.
So I came immediately.
I'm sorry that I suspected you.
For a token of our regret,
I'm going to explain the details of this case.
That's very polite of you. I'm glad to be cleared of suspicion.
I know well you wanted to see me, in order to find out the truth.
I'm willing to cooperate with you.
I'm so glad to hear that.
Yes.
The administrator wants to see you.
He's very early for the appointment.
I'm talking with Mr. Fukiya.
Well,
I must be going...
Mr. Fukiya...
You restore works of art, don't you?
Yes, I do.
Very good.
Would you please help us?
The administrator is...
a lawyer who is in charge of the property of Suiko-Do.
Show him in...
No, show him to the depository.
We'll be there soon.
Yes.
Well, it's a little things.
But you happen to be here...
Maybe you don't know, but there was a folding screen at the scene of the crime.
But a scratch on that screen is the matter.
Really?
We are keeping that screen...
since you are a specialist in the world of art,
Would you look at it?
Sure.
Hello.
This is Mr. Fukiya, a specialist.
He says he can help us.
Very good!
Now, I'll leave it to you.
Please come in.
Well... this is it.
This isn't Suiko-Do's but an old lady's.
She says the scratch was made at the time of the case.
At one point you had been in the inner room of Suiko-Do, right?
Yes, once. Two days before the case.
Do you remember this screen?
Well, yes. Yes I do.
How about this?
No... There was no scratch.
Are you sure?
Of course...
Well, would you testify to that if you please could?
Why not?
The owner of that screen, I mean the old lady, is so greedy.
We've had trouble with her.
Well, she says that the screen is very expensive.
No, this isn't the original.
Here, this is also an imitation.
It's a fake.
A fake...
It's too bad.
You pay more than you bought it for, getting it repaired.
You should be careful because fakes are so popular these days.
I have to apologize...
Actually I'm not a real lawyer.
What?
My name is Akechi. I'm a private detective.
You're that Akechi...?
To tell you the truth, I thought you would remember the screen from the very start.
Mr. Fukiya, you killed Tokiko Sunaga...
Hey, you've taken your joke too far.
I examined the results of your test.
You answered "Maple" for the question "Red".
I noticed that.
Your answers to the questions were realistic but this was so romantic.
You dared to answer "Murder" and "Blood" the questions.
Very suspicious words.
It's a trait of yours that you pretend to be innocent by not playing cheap tricks.
I knew that, and I was going to take advantage of this screen.
I was so sure that you weren't lying about anything.
Mr. Detective.
Your mind must've went soft when you were away.
If you say I'm a murderer,
show me some positive evidence then...
I am a painter.
It's very natural of me to be deeply impressed by the red in that painting.
No, it isn't.
Do you know when this was brought to?
The next day you visited Suiko-Do. The day before the crime happened.
Tokiko bought this screen with the money she got from "Shiranui" and "Akegarasu."
That's ridiculous!
Too bad for you, it's true.
This is the receipt.
Here, it's signed "March 16th, for Suiko-Do."
You must'nt have been in Suiko-Do after March 16th right?
Positive evidence as you say.
In this case Tokiko Sunaga has told me.
She became a geisha after she quit modelling.
They call an ink stick "Akegarasu" in that line of work.
I'd compared "Shiranui" to this "Akegarasu."
And I found this.
There is a little mole under the eye of Ochou-san in "Akegarasu."
This is a fake made by drawing your own figure as a model.
Tokiko knew that and left a message for us.
Would you tell me if you please.
Why did you kill her?
You saw this photo when you visited Suiko-Do.
Your fingerprints were on the photo.
The photo told you that she'd been Ochou-San, didn't it?
I always make two fakes.
I make one of my fakes the original and I burn the real one.
That's how I do things.
I was shocked...
I was so shocked to find out that the mistress was Ochou-san.
If I am to be the original of Ohou-san,
she couldn't be in this world.
So I had to kill her.
Here you are.
It was established that Fukiya was guilty.
The police say that they are going to investigate the cases of Fukiya.
They'll give us the whole story.
They say that a great number of Fukiya's fakes are introduced as the originals.
There are men who can't live without being possessed by something.
A man like you?
You might be right.
You helped me again this time.
Thanks.
Not at all.
But to tell you the truth,
I don't understand how Fukiya felt.
Even if I understand it in theory.
I think I can understand him very well.
I can't explain it very well.
but I think I can understand how he felt.
Mr. Akechi, come here please.
Is it a fake or an original?