Masa Yamaguchi Top Knot Detective is a 2017 mockumentary film directed by Aaron McCann and Dominic Pearce.

It humorously chronicles the rise and fall of a fictional Japanese samurai/detective series, known in Japan as Ronin Suiri Tentai and in the West as Top Knot Detective.

The series follows Sheimasu Tantei, an Edo-era police officer turned ronin/private detective on a never-ending road to vengeance after being framed for the murder of his Master.

The show features a variety of adversaries including ninjas, samurai, yakuza, aliens, monsters, demons, robots, time-traveling baseball players, and go-go dancers...[1] Originally shot as a short film for Australian broadcaster SBS in 2014,[2] the film was later greenlit in late 2015 and shot in 2016 in the Australian cities of Perth and Sydney, and also the Japanese cities of Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto.

Nathan Mattise of Ars Technica described the film as “wildly original,” highlighting its delightful derivation from the “show” it portrays.