For what it is worth--and it may not be worth anything--Nakadai was listed number one when IMDB rated all major actors by the average rating of the movies they appeared in. Yeah, it's IMDB, with all those yahoos who have never even seen a black and white movie, much less a foreign language one--but that only makes the rating that much more impressive.

Don't know if he's still number one or where you can find that list. But let me add my vote for bringing this festival to the west coast.

I don't remember Tatsuya Nakadai ever saying "Get the butter" ... All kidding aside, great article. There was an exhaustive essay on the Critereon website for months, called "The Eight Samurai." Don't know if it is still there.

& O'Hehir, please more comments on other actors & filmmakers ripe for rediscovery.

Also, in an earlier posting you refered to Drudge Report as a "Liberal" website. Liberal? That would be like calling Shrubya & Cheney & Rove "liberal." Drudge, after all, rose to prominence during the whole Monicagate affair & has been a top cheerleader for the White House since 2001....

The Human Condition was available as three volumes on Netflix, but it seems to be all out now (still listed, but with Save button rather than Rent). I saw the whole thing quite some time ago. Powerfully moving, devastating, well worth watching to see that some things are the same in any time or place. At any rate the English subtitled version had been available here at one point in time, so there may be some chance of finding it used on eBay or elsewhere.

NAKADAI TATSUYA IS AN INTRIGUING JAPANESE ACTOR

WHOSE QUIRKY PERFORMANCES ARE AN INTEGRAL FACTOR

OF INTERESTING CINEMATIC PORTRAYALS

WHOSE DEPICTIONS ELICIT NO BETRAYALS

DUE TO HIS STOICALLY-CONTROLLED EMOTIONS GOOD OR EVIL, AS A BESPECTACLED SCHOLAR OR RAVENING RAPTOR!!!!!

One of the great things about the advent of online DVD rentals is that it's now possible for people who don't live in major cities to create their own film festivals at home. Through these outlets it's possible to rent an impressive number of this actor's fine films and I encourage people to do so!

Anyone who is a fan of post-war Japanese cinema (especially the Jidaigeki genre) knows how great Tatsuya Nakadai is. His performance as the Lear character Hidetora in Kurosawa's "Ran" is devastating. He was able to effectively combine modern acting techniques with techniques borrowed from Noh drama. I urge everyone to buy the Criterion DVD of "Ran." It is one of the greatest films ever made. Seriously, this is the greatest film adaptation of Shakespeare (followed closely by Kurosawa's Macbeth adaptation "Throne of Blood." But that's a Mifune film...)

I love Okomoto's "Sword of Doom." Because the film was meant to be a part of a larger series of films (never made) documenting Nakadai's ultimate anti-hero bad-ass, Ryunosuke Tsukue, it is a difficult film to follow. If Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" inspired "Star Wars" generally, then Nakadai's portrayal of Ryunosuke Tsukue must have been the inspiration for Darth Vader and the dark side of the force. "Sword of Doom" is quite possibly (in the best sense) the most violent picture I've ever seen. It's confusing, but worth it for Nakadai's nihilistic performance and the violent fury of the last 20 min. Another Nakadai film along these lines (albeit more fun)is Okamoto's 1967 "Kill!" The film uses the same source material Yojimbo used(and therefore "A Fistful of Dollars" as well.)

Outside of these films I highly recommend three Nakadai/Kobayashi films:

"Harakiri" is a comment on the hypocrisies of ritualized honor. The scene where Motome Chijiiwa is forced to commit seppuku with a bamboo sword is one of the most intense scenes I've ever seen. Nakadai's Tsugumo character conveys the essence of what honor is all about. Great film.

The second Kobayashi film with Nakadai is "Kwaidan." It is an anthology of supernatural stories. Think jidaigeki Hitchcock Presents. Nakadai is in the story "The Woman of the Snow." That being said, the creepiest story is "Black Hair" (genuinely creeped me out) and my favorite story is "Hoichi the Earless." This film should be more highly regarded. A true work of art.

The third Kobayashi film is "Samurai Rebellion." I know Mifune and Nakadai are both in "Sword of Doom" but the final showdown in "Samurai Rebellion" is akin to a Pachino and De Niro gunfight climax in some fantasy 70's gangster film directed by Scorsese. Bad ass.

There moments in "Sword of Doom" where you're not sure Nakadai is acting insane, or it's real - he inhabits the role like a second skin. The amazing fight scene at the bridge in the snow uses his expression changes from contempt to outright fear as we track the wounds to his psyche as deep as sword-strokes, and he never even draws his weapon - the cutting from his face to Mifune's annihilation of his attackers was masterful, but without Nakadai's acting, it would never have been so powerful.

"Face of Another" - how far different is that from the samurai films? - far enough that almost no one else could've carried it off, other than Nakadai, who's subtleties are unmatched. He was also a standout supporting actor in almost all the great films from Japan, as well, altho he adds so much to each role, they could stand alone. I'm hoping to catch "The Human Condition" triad someday, but just what I've managed to see of his films so far only confirms my impression - he's really the most interesting figure in all of Japanese cinema, and I hope this retrospective gets over to the Left Coast. He's certainly more than just a Brando.

Probably my favorite Nakadai moment is that scene of him in "Yojimbo," where he grins and slowly pulls a pistol from his kimono. Mifune had met his match, on screen and off.