Ken Takakura (高倉 健, Takakura Ken), born Gouichi Oda (February 16, 1931, in Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka, Japan), was a Japanese actor best known for his brooding style and the stoic presence he brings to his roles. Takakura gained his streetwise swagger and tough-guy persona watching yakuza turf battles over the lucrative black market and racketeering in postwar Fukuoka. This subject was covered in one of his most famous movies, Showa Zankyo-den (Remnants of Chivalry in the Showa Era), in which he played an honorable old-school yakuza among the violent post-war gurentai. A graduate of Meiji University in Tokyo Takakura happened by an audition in 1955 at the Toei Film Company, and decided to look in. Toei found a natural in Takakura as he debuted with Denko Karate Uchi (Lightning Karate Blow) in 1956. Japan experienced a boom in gangster films in the 1960s as the Japanese people struggled with the generational differences between those raised in pre-war and post-war Japan and these were Takakura's stock and trade. His breakout role would be in the 1965 film Abashiri Prison, and its sequel Abashiri Bangaichi: Bokyohen (Abashiri Prison: Longing for Home, also 1965), in which he played an ex-con antihero. By the time Takakura would leave Toei in 1976, he had appeared in over 180 films. Takakura gained international recognition after starring in the 1970 war film Too Late the Hero as the cunning Imperial Japanese Major Yamaguchi, the 1975 Sydney Pollack sleeper hit The Yakuza with Robert Mitchum and is probably best known in the West for his role in Ridley Scott's Black Rain (1989) where he surprises American cops played by Michael Douglas and Andy García with the line, "I do speak fucking English". He again proved himself bankable to Western audiences with the 1992 Fred Schepisi comedy Mr. Baseball starring Tom Selleck. While he has slowed down a bit in his older years, he is still active. His most recent film was the 2005 Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles by Chinese director Zhang Yimou. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ken Takakura, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Movie | Ken San | Self | 2016-08-20 |
Movie | Dearest | Eiji Shimakura | 2012-08-25 |
Movie | Black Rain: Making The Film | Self (archive footage) | 2006-10-10 |
Movie | Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles | Gou-ichi Takata | 2005-12-22 |
Movie | The Firefly | Yamaoka Shuji | 2001-05-01 |
Movie | Railroad Man | Otomatsu Sato | 1999-06-05 |
Series | SMAP×SMAP | Bistro Guest | 1996-04-15 |
Movie | The detective whose path was crossed by a snake | Unknown | 1995-07-01 |
Movie | 47 Ronin | Kuranosuke Oishi | 1994-10-22 |
Series | Korekara: Umibe no Tabibitotachi | Unknown | 1993-05-21 |
Movie | Mr. Baseball | Uchiyama | 1992-10-01 |
Series | An Elegy of Tyrole | Tateishi Jiro | 1992-04-11 |
Movie | Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star | Self (archive footage) | 1991-03-10 |
Movie | Black Rain | Masahiro | 1989-09-22 |
Movie | Buddies | Kadokura | 1989-11-03 |
Movie | See You | Unknown | 1988-05-18 |
Movie | Demon | Shuji | 1985-08-31 |
Movie | A Portrait of the Author | Self | 1984-08-26 |
Movie | Antarctica | Ushioda | 1983-07-23 |
Movie | Choji Snack Bar | Eiji | 1983-11-12 |
Movie | Karate Cop | Detective Mikami | 1982-04-17 |
Movie | The Longest Tunnel | Go Akutsu | 1982-10-16 |
Movie | Station | Eiji Mikami | 1981-11-07 |
Movie | The Revolt | Keisuke Miyagi | 1980-01-15 |
Movie | A Distant Cry from Spring | Kosaku Tajima | 1980-03-15 |
Movie | Winter's Flower | Hidetsugu Kano | 1978-06-17 |
Movie | Never Give Up | Takeshi Ajisawa | 1978-10-07 |
Movie | The Yellow Handkerchief | Yusaku Shima | 1977-09-30 |
Movie | Mount Hakkoda | Captain Tokushima | 1977-06-04 |
Series | Older brother | Eiji | 1977-10-07 |
Movie | Manhunt | Morioka | 1976-02-11 |
Movie | Path of Japanese Chivalry: Story of All-Out Attack | Unknown | 1975-01-15 |
Movie | Great Jailbreak | Ichiro Kozue | 1975-04-05 |
Movie | The International Gang of Kobe | Masato Dan | 1975-10-14 |
Movie | The Bullet Train | Tetsuo Okita | 1975-07-05 |
Movie | Third Generation Boss | Unknown | 1974-08-10 |
Movie | The Homeless | Jokichi Anabuki | 1974-10-09 |
Movie | The Yakuza | Tanaka Ken | 1974-12-21 |
Movie | Japan's Top Gangster | Kazuo Taoka | 1973-08-11 |
Movie | Golgo 13 | Duke Togo / Golgo 13 | 1973-12-29 |
Movie | Yakuza of the Present | Ryoichi Shimaya | 1973-10-27 |
Movie | The Kanto Scarlet Cherry Gang | Kuramoto | 1972-03-04 |
Movie | The Pledge | Unknown | 1972-07-30 |
Movie | Lullaby for a Tough Guy | Unknown | 1972-04-01 |
Movie | New Abashiri Prison Story: Honor and Humanity, Ammunition That Attracts the Storm | Unknown | 1972-08-12 |
Movie | Contemporary Tales of Chivalry: The Traitor Shall Die | Unknown | 1972-12-30 |
Movie | Bloodiest Flower | Unknown | 1971-04-03 |
Movie | The Path of the King | Ryutaro Fudo | 1971-03-06 |
Movie | Patience Has An End | Isamu Tekada | 1971-06-25 |
Movie | Dagger | Unknown | 1971-04-28 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri: Stormy Cape | Unknown | 1971-08-13 |
Movie | The Man | Unknown | 1971-12-03 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri: Snowbound Deserter | Unknown | 1971-12-29 |
Movie | Contemporary Tales of Chivalry: Forbidden Love | Hidejiro Hanada | 1971-10-27 |
Movie | The Japan Derby Race | Unknown | 1970-05-13 |
Movie | A Hoodlum At The Risk Of His Life | Unknown | 1970-05-01 |
Movie | Brave Red Flower of the North | Unknown | 1970-01-09 |
Movie | Too Late the Hero | Major Yamaguchi | 1970-05-20 |
Movie | House of Gamblers | Unknown | 1970-03-29 |
Movie | Brutal Tales of Chivalry 7: Hell Is a Man's Destiny | Unknown | 1970-09-22 |
Movie | The Domain: Rising Dragon | Unknown | 1970-12-03 |
Movie | Yukyo-retsuden | Unknown | 1970-07-04 |
Movie | The Last Kamikaze | Koji Yashiro | 1970-10-29 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri: Stray Wolf in Snow | Unknown | 1970-12-30 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri: High Stakes at Abashiri | Unknown | 1970-08-14 |
Movie | Brothers Serving Time | Unknown | 1969-05-03 |
Movie | The Domain: Flower and Dragon | Kingoro Tamai | 1969-05-31 |
Movie | Red Peony Gambler: Second Generation Ceremony | Koji Yashiro | 1969-04-10 |
Movie | Brutal Tales of Chivalry 5: Man With The Karajishi Tattoo | Hanada Hidejiro | 1969-03-06 |
Movie | Red Peony Gambler: Flower Cards Game | Shogo Hanaoka | 1969-02-01 |
Movie | Samurai Geisha | Shimada Seikichi | 1969-07-31 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri: The Vagrant Comes to a Port Town | Unknown | 1969-12-27 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri 2 | Unknown | 1969-08-13 |
Movie | Brutal Tales of Chivalry 6 | Unknown | 1969-11-07 |
Movie | Gambler's Legacy | Tsukuda Ginjiro | 1969-12-27 |
Movie | Memoir of Japanese Assassinations | Saburo Aizawa | 1969-10-16 |
Movie | The Biggest Gamble | Shuzo Honjo | 1969-09-14 |
Movie | Histories of the Chivalrous | Unknown | 1968-08-01 |
Movie | The Drifting Avenger | Ken Kato | 1968-06-14 |
Movie | Prison Boss | Unknown | 1968-04-18 |
Movie | Red Peony Gambler | Naoki Katagiri | 1968-09-14 |
Movie | The Domain: Severed Relations | Unknown | 1968-02-22 |
Movie | Hishakaku and Kiratsune: A Tale of Two Yakuza | Unknown | 1968-10-25 |
Movie | Rogue | Isamu Oba | 1968-10-12 |
Movie | Gambler Biography | Unknown | 1968-12-28 |
Movie | New Prison Walls of Abashiri | Katsuji Suehiro | 1968-12-28 |
Movie | The Day the Sun Rose | Unknown | 1968-11-23 |
Movie | The Chivalrous Life | Ryuma Ibuki | 1967-05-30 |
Movie | The Domain: White Blade | Unknown | 1967-01-28 |
Movie | Classmates | First Lieutenant Kenmochi | 1967-06-03 |
Movie | Abashiri Prison: Duel in Hokkaido | Unknown | 1967-04-20 |
Movie | A Story from Abashiri Prison—Duel in Snow Storm | Shin-ichi Tachibana | 1967-12-23 |
Movie | The Domain: Where The Blade Enters | Unknown | 1967-09-15 |
Movie | Contemporary Tales of Chivalry 4 | Unknown | 1967-07-08 |
Movie | Abashiri Prison: Challenge to the Evil | Shin-ichi Tachibana | 1967-08-12 |
Movie | The Kamikaze Guy | Unknown | 1966-06-04 |
Movie | The Bullet and the Horse | Unknown | 1966-04-23 |
Movie | Contemporary Tales of Chivalry 2 | Unknown | 1966-01-13 |
Movie | Showdown of Men | Unknown | 1966-07-01 |
Movie | The Domain: Kanda Festival Showdown | Unknown | 1966-02-03 |
Movie | Contemporary Tales of Chivalry: The Lone Wolf | Unknown | 1966-07-09 |
Movie | Abashiri Prison: Duel in the Snow Country | Unknown | 1966-12-31 |
Movie | The Domain: Duel at Thunder Gate | Unknown | 1966-09-17 |
Movie | Glorious Fights | Ichiro Takita | 1966-10-29 |
Movie | Abashiri Prison: Duel in the South | Unknown | 1966-08-13 |
Movie | Abashiri Prison | Shinichi Tachibana | 1965-04-18 |
Movie | The Domain: The Naniwa Story | Unknown | 1965-01-30 |
Movie | The Boss | Unknown | 1965-01-03 |
Movie | Prison Walls of Abashiri, Part 2 | Shinichi Tachibana | 1965-07-10 |
Movie | A Fugitive from the Past | Ajimura | 1965-01-15 |
Movie | The Domain: Kanto Legends of Chivalry | Unknown | 1965-08-12 |
Movie | Prison Walls of Abashiri 4 | Shin'ichi Tachibana | 1965-12-31 |
Movie | Prison Walls of Abashiri 3 | Shinichi Tachibana | 1965-10-31 |
Movie | Brutal Tales of Chivalry | Seiji Terajima | 1965-10-01 |
Movie | Miyamoto Musashi V: Musashi vs Kojiro | Sasaki Kojiro | 1965-09-04 |
Movie | Jakoman and Tetsu | Tetsu | 1964-02-08 |
Movie | Miyamoto Musashi: The Duel at Ichijo Temple | Sasaki Kojiro | 1964-01-01 |
Movie | Tokyo Gang Vs. Hong Kong Gang | Unknown | 1964-01-01 |
Movie | An Outlaw | Minami | 1964-04-05 |
Movie | Main Street in the Underworld | Unknown | 1964-04-25 |
Movie | Wolves, Pigs & Men | Jiro Kuroki, the second brother | 1964-08-26 |
Movie | Storm Party | Unknown | 1964-10-21 |
Movie | The Domain | Unknown | 1964-08-13 |
Movie | Life of Hishakaku | Unknown | 1963-03-16 |
Movie | Tokyo Untouchable: Escape | Yoshio Harada | 1963-03-15 |
Movie | Eleven Gangsters | Sawagami | 1963-01-15 |
Movie | The Big Boss | Unknown | 1963-04-12 |
Movie | Gang Loyalty and Vengeance | Asano | 1963-10-20 |
Movie | Duel of the Underworld | Unknown | 1963-07-13 |
Movie | Kyôkatsu | Unknown | 1963-09-14 |
Movie | Miyamoto Musashi: Birth of Two Sword Style | Sasaki Kojiro | 1963-08-14 |
Movie | Lady Sen and Hideyori | Naomori | 1962-03-25 |
Movie | Song of Kagoshima | Shuhei Tategami | 1962-05-01 |
Movie | All Rascals | Unknown | 1962-03-21 |
Movie | The Prickly Mouthed Geisha and the Girl of Osaka | Unknown | 1962-02-07 |
Movie | South Pacific Waves Are High | Unknown | 1962-01-09 |
Movie | The Escape | Unknown | 1962-03-14 |
Movie | Tales of President Mito | Sukesaburo Sasa | 1962-04-04 |
Movie | Uragirimono wa jigoku daze | Unknown | 1962-12-23 |
Movie | Tokyo's Business District | Unknown | 1962-08-29 |
Movie | Tokyo Untouchable | Yoshio Harada | 1962-10-21 |
Movie | Operation Diamond | Unknown | 1962-12-09 |
Movie | Hell's Kitchen | Unknown | 1962-10-12 |
Movie | 365 Nights | Unknown | 1962-09-09 |
Movie | Tenka no Kaidanji Senpû Tarô | Tarô Senpû | 1961-02-14 |
Movie | Hell's Juggler | Unknown | 1961-01-15 |
Movie | The Prickly Mouthed Geisha, Part 4 | Kenichi Hanamura | 1961-01-09 |
Movie | A Fishwife's Tale | Unknown | 1961-05-31 |
Movie | The Prickly-Mouthed Geisha Goes to Sado | Unknown | 1961-08-05 |
Movie | Devil's Nursery Rhyme | Kosuke Kindaichi | 1961-11-15 |
Movie | Flower, Storm and Gangster | 'Smiley' Ken | 1961-06-23 |
Movie | Feisty Edo Girl Nakanori-san | Kenichi Oka | 1961-10-22 |
Movie | Mannen Taro and His Feminine Colleagues | Tarô Mannen | 1961-10-07 |
Movie | The Great Road | Unknown | 1960-03-08 |
Movie | The Prickly Mouthed Geisha Part 2 | Unknown | 1960-03-01 |
Movie | The Second Bullet is Marked | Unknown | 1960-01-27 |
Movie | Bad Angel | Unknown | 1960-03-15 |
Movie | Man of the World | Unknown | 1960-01-21 |
Movie | Outlaw Under a Blue Canopy | Unknown | 1960-05-10 |
Movie | If You're Man Enough | Unknown | 1960-11-29 |
Movie | The Sand City in Manchuria | Hari | 1960-08-24 |
Movie | Man of the World 2 | Unknown | 1960-07-13 |
Movie | The Prickly Mouthed Geisha, Part 3 | Unknown | 1960-08-07 |
Movie | Men in a Rough Town | Fumio Sone | 1959-01-28 |
Movie | The Happy Family | Unknown | 1959-01-28 |
Movie | Hell's Companion | Unknown | 1959-06-01 |
Movie | A Dead Drifter | Unknown | 1959-05-13 |
Movie | Four Hours of Terror | Captain Yamamoto | 1959-09-30 |
Movie | Beyond the Seasonal Wind | Unknown | 1958-06-10 |
Movie | Romance Freestyle | Unknown | 1958-04-30 |
Movie | No Advice Taken | Unknown | 1958-01-03 |
Movie | Man of Thirteen Eyes | Unknown | 1958-01-15 |
Movie | Detective Duel | Unknown | 1958-08-06 |
Movie | Sister with Sister | Hiroshi Ishioka | 1958-12-09 |
Movie | With Songs in My Heart | Unknown | 1958-09-10 |
Movie | The Outsiders | Ichitaro Kazamori | 1958-11-26 |
Movie | The Outsiders | Ichitaro Kazamori | 1958-11-26 |
Movie | Men Fighting Whales | Yosuke Yamagami | 1957-07-09 |
Movie | Employee Full of Fight | Tani | 1957-03-13 |
Movie | The Deep Blue Sea | Unknown | 1957-07-30 |
Movie | Showdown in Blood | Unknown | 1957-08-28 |
Movie | Jet Air Base 101 | Jiro Nakata | 1957-12-15 |
Movie | The Chop Professor | Unknown | 1956-04-04 |
Movie | Lightning Karate Blow | Unknown | 1956-01-29 |
Movie | Manchurian Sunset | Shintaro | 1956-09-18 |
Movie | Mother Peacock | Unknown | 1956-12-05 |
Movie | G-men of Japan 4: Special Armed Unit Mobilization | Unknown | 1956-07-25 |
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