Isao Kimura had featured roles in several of Akira Kurosawa's masterworks. The handsome young actor portrayed a wide range of characters under the master's guidance. He first played the war-damaged hoodlum Yusa in Stray Dog with antagonism and palpable pain; then, at the opposite end of the spectrum but with equal veracity, Kimura played the innocent, hero-worshiping, faun-like apprentice Katsushiro in Seven Samurai. Although Kimura was 31 when he did the latter role, he looked the part perfectly, and portrayed the wide-eyed teenage warrior with sympathy and passion. After a long film career in film, Kimura founded and directed an acting company which ultimately went bankrupt. He worked arduously for years to pay off all its debts, but shortly after completing this self-imposed task he became ill, and died much too young at 58 years old. It is, therefore, fair to say that Isao Kimura led his life with the same sense of honor that he so often portrayed in his films.
