Departures: Movie Review
Rating: 6/10
Cast: Masahiro Motoki, Ryoko Hirosue, Tsutomu Yamazaki,
Kimiko Yo, Kazuko Yoshiyuki, Takashi Sasano
Director: Yojiro Takita
It won the Academy Award in 2009 for Best Foreign Language Film and has
resonated with many during its screenings at The New Zealand
International Film Festival this year.
Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Motoki) is by trade a cellist in a Tokyo orchestra,
complete with wife and generally happy lifestyle.
Until one day without any warning, the orchestra is dissolved and Kobayashi
finds himself in need of employment.
He answers an ad in the paper for helping with "assisting departures" (which
it turns out is helping prepare the dead and departed for encoffinment.)
With no other prospects Kobayashi takes the position - and starts to lie to
his family about what he does.
But the strain of what he does starts to take its toll on those around him -
while Daigo has no qualms about finding his job, there are those who urge him to
quit such a disgraceful career.
It's easy to see why Departures took him the Oscar - it has everything that
an Award winning film needs - from an emotional journey for the central
character which will resound with the audience to lushly shot scenery.
There's also a lot of poignancy in Daigo's job - dealing with death on a
daily basis and the stigma and taboo attached to it in Japanese culture, Daigo
is torn between a job he's clearly good at and a society which frowns on the
public acknowledgement of the effect of death.
And yet in places, to be honest, it feels a little manipulative as the viewer
is taken on Daigo's journey and the ultimate resolution of his plight - it's an
interesting tale but it seems to be designed to tug at your heart strings
throughout with the plot following an overly unsubtle approach - and scenes of
Daigo playing his cello at suitably odd moments.
That said, when the end comes round, it's an effective pay off to the
emotional investment you've put in over the last two hours.
At Darren's World of Entertainment - a movie, DVD and game review blog. The latest movie and DVD reviews - plus game reviews as well. And cool stuff thrown in when I see it.
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