Minoru Chiaki makes good nature worth watching, particularly among Akira Kurosawa’s samurai. We value the warmth and comic timing of an actor who gives us good reason to look beyond the leading man.
Fi1m perspective
In Seven Samurai (1954), Minoru Chiaki’s Heihachi Hayashida brings good nature to the assembled fighters. Kurosawa makes their recruitment as absorbing as their battles, and Chiaki helps make the prospect of spending time with these men appealing. We warmed to Heihachi because his friendliness gives us something to value besides fighting ability. It matters in an ensemble: we need reasons to care about the men as well as the job.
The partnership began with Stray Dog (1949) and would stretch to eleven Kurosawa films. Chiaki’s round, expressive face is the first we see in Rashomon (1950), where he plays the priest. He could supply comic relief, but he also took more unsavoury and dramatic supporting parts; the good-natured companion was one useful option rather than the whole of his acting.
Ikiru (1952) gives him the supporting role of Noguchi in Kurosawa’s drama about a dying civil servant. The fear of wasted time is made painfully ordinary by Takashi Shimura; Chiaki is part of the company, not the principal reason we recommend the film. Its satire sometimes explains what we have already understood, though that scarcely diminishes the force of Shimura’s performance.
The later Kurosawa roles make the differences plain. In Throne of Blood (1957), his Yoshiaki Miki is the Banquo figure in Kurosawa’s Macbeth adaptation; The Hidden Fortress (1958) gives him Tahei, a comic deserter, and more opportunity for his timing. Later came supporting work for Toei and television, followed by a leading role in Grey Sunset (1985).
The Kurosawa ensembles remain the clearest way into his work. In Seven Samurai, Mifune can be overemphatic, and Chiaki provides a welcome good-natured contrast without having to compete on the same terms. That is acting worth noticing, even when the larger performance beside it draws attention first. Set aside the full 207 minutes for Seven Samurai, and give the whole group your attention.
Biography
Minoru Chiaki (born Katsuji Sasaki) was a Japanese actor. He appeared in eleven films directed by Akira Kurosawa, including Rashomon (1950) as the priest, Seven Samurai (1954) as Heihachi Hayashida, Ikiru (1952) as Noguchi, Throne of Blood (1957) as Yoshiaki Miki, and The Hidden Fortress (1958) as Tahei.
Chiaki attended but did not graduate from Chuo University. He began his career in theatre before entering film in 1949. Later he appeared in many Toei productions. In 1986 he received the Japan Academy Prize for Best Actor for his performance in Gray Sunset (1985).
He died in Fuchu, Tokyo, on 1 November 1999. His son Katsuhiko Sasaki is also an actor.
