[KineJapan] Nakadai has passed

[jacline MORICEAU]

Thanks Markus and Aaron for your writings about Nakadai. It is so sad but
at the same time he was such a great person that he will  always remain
alive for us.

Le mar. 11 nov. 2025 à 11:33, Aaron Gerow via KineJapan <
kinejapan at mailman.yale.edu> a écrit :

> Thanks Markus for announcing the sad news.
>
> I was on the train when Seiko sent me a LINE text saying that Nakadai had
> died. He was 92, but it was still a shock. Not only was he one of the
> greatest of Japanese film actors—and one of my all-time favorites—but we
> had the splendid pleasure of bringing him to Yale in 2016 (which actually
> became the subject of a Jidaigeki Senmon Channel documentary). I visited
> his acting school Mumeijuku a couple of times as well as interviewed him
> for Criterion. I got to know him on screen through Kurosawa’s films, but I
> maybe I liked him the most in his work for Okamoto, where he could show his
> supreme comic skill.
>
> The entire interview is on the Criterion Channel, but here’s a section of
> our interview:
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVvx9jQ5FcM
>
> At Yale, he talked about Harakiri and The Age of Assassins, but also did
> an acting workshop. He asked attendees to do portions of the Mumeijuku
> audition, and then gave a demonstration himself. The difference between him
> and others was significant.
>
> Nakadai never played "Nakadai", in part, as expressed by his nickname
> "Moya", he had a "fuzzy" identity which enabled directors to use him in
> such varying ways. He was extremely devoted to pursuing the art of acting,
> refusing to sign a contract with a studio and instead insisting on devoting
> half of each year to film and half to stage. He started Mumeijuku with his
> wife, the actor Miyazaki Yasuko, which didn't charge students a penny and
> ended up training such great actors as Yakusho Koji, Maki Yoko, and Takito
> Ken'ichi. With my first visit to Mumeijuku, I quickly sensed that
> Nakadai-san had mistakenly thought I was associated with the Yale School of
> Drama, I place he revered since it produced one of his favorites, Paul
> Newman. He had his students perform sections of plays such as Hamlet and
> The Seagull for me, and I had to comment on them. I think I didn’t do a bad
> job, but he remained kind to me even after that!
>
> I learned of his devotion to Miyazaki, who passed away in 1996, through
> several stories, but it was evident at Mumeijuku, where he gave direction
> to students directly underneath a large portrait of her.
>
> I made sure to tell him this, but he is one reason I got into Japanese
> cinema. He will be sorely missed.
>
> Aaron
>
> Aaron Gerow
> Alfred W. Griswold Professor of East Asian Languages and Literatures
> and Film and Media Studies
> Yale University
>
> P.S. We have the transcripts for his talks at Yale. Sometime we have to
> publish those.
>
>
> 11/11/25 午後1:18、Markus Nornes via KineJapan <kinejapan at mailman.yale.edu
> >のメール:
>
>
> Nakadai Tatsuya, perhaps my favorite Japanese actor of all time, has
> passed. Here’s Variety’s initial report:
>
>
> https://variety.com/2025/film/obituaries-people-news/tatsuya-nakadai-dead-japanese-ran-harakiri-1236574628/
> - Tatsuya Nakadai, Japanese Film Legend That Starred in ‘Ran,’ ‘Harakiri’
> and ‘The Human Condition’ Trilogy, Dies at 92
>
> I know Aaron was close, so I look forward to this obit/tribute in
> particular.
>
> Markus
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