Review: Departures

This year’s Oscars had no surprises. Well, almost. Japanese director Yojiro Takita managed to snag the Best Foreign Language award from Israel’s Waltz with Bashir with the inspiring drama Departures. With that in mind, there is a lot to expect from such a film.

Departures follows the story of Daigo, (Masahiro Motoki) a cellist who finds himself out of work after a Tokyo orchestra disbands. His only choice is to return to his rural hometown with his wife to start over.

Looking for work, Daigo finds a job listing for “departures.” Thinking it is for a travel agency, he applies for the position, only to realize it is for a job at a mortuary. He takes the job out of desperation and embarks on a personal odyssey of his past and his estranged family while dealing with the stigma of his newly discovered career.

The drama starts off as a light-hearted comedy but it later evolves to address themes of life, death, rebirth and compassion. Takita weaves together Daigo’s rebirth while equally focusing on the importance of death to the human journey, making use of symbols like location, food, music and even plants to deliver its message.

In one ceremony for a deceased teenager, writer Kundo Koyama not only manages to sum up the importance of Daigo’s profession to society despite its stigma, but also helps his self-realization.

The beauty of the cinematography enhances the intricacy and care taken to extract meaning from “nokanshi,” the art and ritual of encoffinment central to the film.

Death never felt so pivotal to life. Takita is able to reveal the kind of closure and importance death plays in all of our lives, as both the mourner and the deceased. In the end, Daigo discovers that his work as an intermediary between the living and the end is paramount in resolving a past that still torments his memories.

The film’s weakest point is the poorly-handled conflict between Daigo and his wife regarding his profession. Its resolution may come off as predictable for some but it is ultimately redeemed in the film’s third act. Either way, it’s a film worth the trip to the theatre.

Originally published in Vol. 15 No. 9 of  the Nanyang Chronicle