One of the perks of my job is that I get to take in a LOT of international entertainment. A wonderland of music, film, and television series has introduced me to a colorful cast of characters who have delivered some truly stunning bodies of work. One of those most surprising of those characters is a young man by the name of Kyohei Takahashi (高橋恭平).
As a member of Naniwa Danshi, one of Japan’s most sparkly song and dance units, I am not used to Takahashi being anything but rainbow brite and strawberry sweet. But in his newest drama, My Home Hero he seems to be excitedly exploring his dark side.A far cry from his previous role as the handsome and aloof popular kid in the feature film And Yet, You Are So Sweet, Takahashi plays Kyoichi Majima, a cold and ruthless youth prone to violence and chain smoking; though still with an impeccable sense of fashion, because one should always look good when you’re beating the snot out of someone.
One of those someone’s is Tetsuo Tosu (played by veteran actor Kuranosuke Sasaki) a father just trying to keep his daughter out of harm’s way. Sure, to do that he had to kill her deadbeat ex-boyfriend, Nobuto Matori (Shuichiro Naito), who himself just happens to be the son of the Mafia boss Kyohei works for, but… it was for his little girl. What was he supposed to do!?
As the Mafia’s primary fixer, Majima is sent to Tosu to try to find out what’s happened to Matori, not knowing he’s dead, dismembered, and buried in the potted plants outside of the home Tosu shares with his wife and daughter. Then something strange happens, the more time Majima spends with Tosu the more he starts to identify with the latter’s quest to protect his family. As the story continues, you realize he’s not all bad, but nor is he all good; a very complex individual who joined the mafia for a his own specific purposes.
Taking a brief moment out of his very busy schedule to chat with Life in Cartoon Motion for his fans in Thailand, I was able to speak with him about being the youngest on set, what he learned from the other actors, and how he feels about playing the “bad” boy!
“There were many older people on site like Mr. Kuranosuke Sasaki and Mr. Eisaku Yoshida,” he says. “Additionally, some of the other actors playing the mafia characters were these very tall and intimidating muscular guys accustomed to playing outlaw types. In contrast, I was one of the youngest on set, not to mention that I look even younger than I am and don’t have nearly the same level of experience that they do, so there was a lot to take in. For example, Kyoichi uses a ZIPPO (lighter), and a few of the ‘bad guys’ were really helpful teaching me how to wield it with a subtle disinterest to make every gesture fit the inhumane malevolence my character was supposed to exude. Kuranosuke-san in particular also gave me a lot of advice, and helped me to study and observe people more closely. It turns out you can learn a lot just by watching people and taking note of their mannerisms, facial expressions, and how they react to things.”
“Regarding my feelings towards my character,” he takes a moment to think. “At first, it was hard for me to get into the role. He’s the leader of a criminal organization, and throughout the first few episodes does some really cruel and unforgivable things. But the more I got to know him, the more his humanity started to come out. Yes, he did bad things, but it was because he wanted to avenge those he loved and make it out to a better life someday. His heart is in the right place, but somehow he’s lost his way being so buried in his own obsession for justice, and I wanted to stay true to those feelings. Plus, he’s very cool, so it was fun to play!”
As the flagship group for my introduction to one of Japan’s biggest idol makers, Naniwa Danshi will always have a very special place in my heart and though I will always be partial to their glittering personas, so watching Kyohei develop as an actor is an absolute joy! I can’t wait to see what he (and the other guys) do next!
More Kyohei and Naniwa Danshi soon so…
Stay Tuned!
Life In Cartoon Motion 