If you don’t know who Takeshi Kaneshiro is (shame on you), this post should prove quite enlightening. Known mostly for his roles in Chungking Express, House of Flying Daggers, Fallen Angels, as well as a host of other films, Kaneshiro is one of Japan’s finest actors and this post is going to show you just why…

1. He’s the Japanese equivalent of Keanu Reeves and yes, he knows kung fu
Part Matrix, part Terminator, The Returner (2002) was a fun and action packed film starring Kaneshiro as would-be hitman who goes from stopping a diabolical mob boss to preventing a future alien invasion. Sounds hokey but it was actually pretty good.

2. The man knows how to eviscerate demons like nobody’s business
Released in 2001, Onimusha Warlords’ lead, Samanosuke Akechi, sported a uncanny likeness to Kaneshiro. Of course, it wasn’t a coincidence. Samanosuke was actually modeled after Kaneshiro and gamers were delighted (at least I was) to slice through hordes of demons with Kaneshiro as the star…plus the game had a sweet opening. Check it out.

3. He sure is dreamy isn’t he?
I’m going to stay away from sounding like a swooning teenage girl but seriously, he’s one handsome dude. It’s no wonder all the girls (Zhang Ziyi for one) love him.

That does it for this meager post. Of course, this is all opinion and like everything, you’re bound to have your own idea of who’s the best actor/actresses in Japanese showbiz right now. Who’s yours?