Ikkô Furuya

Kosuke Kindaichi is a popular detective found in Seishi Yokomizo's novels, and this is one of several movies that have been made based on his character. Yokomizo's plots have more twists and turns than Japanese calligraphy and loudly invite parody. This film is not an RSVP to that invitation. Director Nobuhiko Obayashi has not parodied Yokomizo's style so much as imitated it. (nytimes.com)

In the Edo period, the Ichiyanagi family ran a honjin, an official guesthouse for travelling representatives of the shogunate; and they are still a family of tradition and influence in the Okayama country where they live. (Yokomizo came from this area, and many of the books are set there or in the neighbouring Inland Sea. (japanesebookshelf)

Kôsuke Kindaichi tries to solve a murder involving a sleepwalking woman.

The shogun’s half-brother, Matsudaira Naritsugu has been slated to join the Roju Council of Elders as a senior adviser even though he is criminally insane. His outrageous acts cause one of his top retainers to commit ritual suicide in protest over his lord’s crimes. Alerted to these crimes, Roju Councilor Doi asks Inspector General Shmada Shinzaemon to assassinate Naritsugu before he can be seated on the council. Gathering a band of 13, Shimada sets out on a death-defying journey to cut down

Osome is a geisha and spy in the Tokugawa period. When she was very young she lost her family to a terrible fire and continues to search for her surviving brother. Along her journey, she discovers much of her family history and gains new friends.