The Criterion Collection has posted their latest Focus piece, a long essay on actor Tatsuya Nakadai by Village Voice film critic Chuck Stephens. It's an excellent overview of one of Japan's most famous thespians. Nakadai's film career spans five decades and includes work with many of Japan's finest filmmakers, from Masaki Kobayashi's Human Condition trilogy and Harakiri, to Mikio Naruse's A Woman's Life, to Kihachi Okamoto's The Sword of Doom, to Akira Kurosawa's Kagemusha and Ran.

It's a great piece on a great actor. Check it out.

Links are also provided to a Nakadai filmography, the actor's eloquent eulogy for Kurosawa, and thoughts on Nakadai from Kurosawa and Kobayashi.

Here's a list of some reviews of Nakadai films here at DVD Verdict:

Yojimbo
Sanjuro
Harakiri
High and Low
Kwaidan
The Sword of Doom
Samurai Rebellion
Kill!
Zatoichi: The Fire Festival
Kagemusha
Ran

(Also posted on Stray Dog).