Crowd-pleaser doesn't disappoint

A beloved Japanese film star is grateful that fans worldwide can enjoy his work

By Mike Gordon

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Oct 21, 2012

~~<p>The staff of the Hawaii International Film Festival is quite accustomed to gauging the mood of international celebrities, so hosting Japan's biggest movie star should have been free of surprise. But Koji Yakusho has been so accommodating that he's become the feel-good moment of the festival.</p>
<p>After HIFF organizers gave him a career achievement award last week before the screening of his new film, "The Woodsman and the Rain," Yakusho stayed to watch the film (with his wife and mother-in-law), answered questions from the standing-room-only audience of 400 for 45 minutes and then patiently allowed fans to photograph him in the lobby of the Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18 Theaters.</p>
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The staff of the Hawaii International Film Festival is quite accustomed to gauging the mood of international celebrities, so hosting Japan's biggest movie star should have been free of surprise. But Koji Yakusho has been so accommodating that he's become the feel-good moment of the festival.

After HIFF organizers gave him a career achievement award last week before the screening of his new film, "The Woodsman and the Rain," Yakusho stayed to watch the film (with his wife and mother-in-law), answered questions from the standing-room-only audience of 400 for 45 minutes and then patiently allowed fans to photograph him in the lobby of the Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18 Theaters. Login for more...