This paper focuses on the analysis of religious metaphors encoded in select film shots, using semiotics as the theoretical framework for film analysis. However, he finds out that the job entails him to retrieve and prepare bodies for burial and cremation. This exploration into japanese perceptions surrounding death won the. Daigo, a depressed and unemployed cellist, inadvertently finds himself after he takes a job preparing the dead for funerals. Depatrures film analysis running head departures film. Departures is a story of how these rituals comfort us, enchant us, and see us through to a place where our grief is replaced by respectful acceptance. Takita, an auteur of japanese softcore pink cinema before he turned to more prestigious projects, has made a soft, pretty.
Like ikiru and tokyo story before it, takitas departures is another superb film in the rich vein of japanese cinema exploring the rituals of death. I first learned of it from a family member of a patient i was caring for. In films like kurosawas ikiru, ozus tokyo story, itamis ososhiki the funeral and kore edas maborosi and. Yojiro takitas touching japanese drama, departures was the surprise winner of the 2008 oscar for best foreign language film, trouncing the critical favorites such as waltz with bashir and the class. Shinto and buddhist metaphors in departures by yoshiko okuyama. Yojiro takitas okuribito focuses on one japanese death custom that, because of those female relations, i did not experience. In 2009, a japanese movie departures, directed by yojiro takita, beat other entries and won the academy award for best foreign language film. A profile of japanese priest ittetsu nemoto, a counselor for suicidal patients, as he approaches middle age and faces the possibility of his own mortality. Japanese director yojiro takita has created a cinematic masterpiece that is.
The film concerns the historic japanese encoffining ceremony called a nokan. Departures film analysis 1 departures film analysis departures okuribito is a multiple award winning japanese movie and winner of the best foreign language film at the academy awards in 2009. That alone doesnt have anything to do with making a film great, and 2011 may seem too soon to include a 2009 film in this collection of great movies. Nov 21, 2009 today, i would like to share with you the theme song from the movie departures okuribito by yojiro takita. Departures is a 2008 japanese drama film directed by yojiro takita and. Apr 02, 2012 departures 2008 is a japanese film that tells the story of daigo kobayashi, a goodlooking young man who was a cellist in a tokyo based orchestra. Making a living handling death, in yojiro takitas film.
Takita, an auteur of japanese softcore pink cinema before he turned to more prestigious projects, has made a soft, pretty film streaked with just. The departures are a japanese film that encapsulates the theme of love in terms of words and actions. Sep 03, 2016 departures is a heartwarming story, which also provides a wonderful insight into japanese culture, particularly the encoffining ceremony of nokanshi, which is minimally practiced in today. Dec 05, 2009 departures, which won an oscar as best foreign language film, is a moving, gently amusing contribution to this tradition and centres on daigo, a 36yearold japanese cellist who recognises theres. After life, it is handled in terms of ongoing life. The movie departures, embraces the cultural value of japanese society in accordance about their dead. This is probably the best movie i have watched this year. This is a plotoriented film which has a surprising element on how the story develops. Pdf contemporary japanese view of life and death as. This years foreignfilm oscar winner, yojiro takitas movie is a delightful surprise one part engaging dramedy about a cellist turned. It won the academy award for best foreign language film at the 2009 oscars. The symbolism embodies poignant messages that both invoke emotions that cannot be expressed through words, and adhere the different events in the movie together. Departures received the academy award for best foreign language film of 2008. Cinematic language is rich in examples of religious metaphors.
Contemporary japanese view of life and death as depicted in the film departures okuribito. By using a story line approach instead of a documentary one, the viewer, who is not familiar with the japanese culture or this tradition, is drawn into this elaborate procedure and ceremony by. After a long period of searching, daigo responds to an ad for someone to work in departures. This was the official website for the 2009 movie, departures. Departures study guide contains a biography of yojiro takita, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. May 31, 2017 daigo, a depressed and unemployed cellist, inadvertently finds himself after he takes a job preparing the dead for funerals. Shattered by his desperate situation, daigo, the central character masahiro motoki, and his wife mika ryoko hirosue, return from the city to his hometown where they begin to experience stresses and discomforts associated with joblessness. Im including it because having seen in three times i am convinced that departures will hold its power and appeal. The specific metaphors discussed in the paper are the shinto view. In fact, the word did not exist when aoki started the job in toyama, nor for that matter did it exist anywhere else in japan.
In 2009, a japanese movie departures, directed by yojiro takita, beat other entries and won the academy award for best foreign language film at the 2009 oscars. Masahiro motoki and tsutomu yamazaki in departures. Okuribito the departures mi jerica joyce dalunag in film analysis april 22, 2016 april 22, 2016 618 words one of the themes portrayed in the movie okuribito the departure about the japanese belief about having a dead body cleansed before placing inside the coffin. Okuribito, one who sends off is a 2008 japanese drama film directed by yojiro takita and starring masahiro motoki, ryoko hirosue, and tsutomu yamazaki. The movie tells the story of a secondrate cellist who loses his job when an orchestra is disbanded but finds inner peace and fulfillment working as a nokanshi, ceremonially preparing the bodies of the newly deceased before they are placed in coffins for cremation. Departures was very insightful into its depiction of the many facets of life and death. This touching film attracted millions of audiences to the cinema. He sees a local advertisement entitled departures, and thinking that it will be somehow related to travel, goes in for an interview. The discussion about the movie departures about the preparation of the deceased would be elaborated through this, or my, reaction paper. It was arranged in such a way that audiences will have a glimpse of the cultural traditions of the japanese people. The cinematographic approach of the film emphasized the theme of life and death with a touch of comedy. On 10 september 2008, three days before the japanese premiere of departures, a soundtrack album for the filmcontaining nineteen tracks from the film and featuring an orchestral performance by members of the tokyo metropolitan and nhk symphony orchestraswas released by universal music japan.
It touches the heart as it depicts the slow process through which a young man comes to terms with his destiny and the abandonment by his father that he still feels. He answers a classified ad entitled departures thinking it is an advertisement for a travel agency only to discover that the job is actually for a nokanshi or encoffineer, a funeral professional who prepares deceased bodies for burial and entry into the next life. This analysis includes social factors such as demographic trends. Yojiro takitas departure aka okuribito is a magnificent film that encompasses the beauty of japanese culture.
The son felt it so necessary that i see the film that he acted out part of the movie, dropping to his knees to act out a scene while i was rounding. Upon arrival, he immediately looks for a job in order to sustain their daily finances. Jul 12, 2010 departures 2008 departures 2008 is a japanese film that is a must see for those in the palliative care field. Mar 21, 2014 scenes are taken from departures, film from japan. Departures demystifies this profession in the japanese context.
May 27, 2009 it is the insight inspiring departures, the lovely japanese movie that won this years oscar for best foreign film. The scripting of departures by kundo koyama, the oneman tvdrama writing factory who nurtured such delights as iron chef is embarrassingly clunky and obvious. A japanese view of the other world reflected in the movie. The members of the academy who gave departures its oscar must be feeling their mortality. Jul 11, 2014 departures a lifeaffirming movie about death yojiro takitas touching japanese drama, departures was the surprise winner of the 2008 oscar for best foreign language film, trouncing the critical favorites such as waltz with bashir and the class. As nearly as i can recall, there is no discussion of an afterlife. Many people, including men, feel strong emotions and their eyes tear up when they watch this film. The role of shame is very strong in japanese culture, in fact, it is said to be its main source of social control. The movie then moves backwards, when daigo lived in tokyo with his wife, mika. Departures is a heartwarming story, which also provides a wonderful insight into japanese culture, particularly the encoffining ceremony of nokanshi, which is minimally practiced in today. Departures is a movie which involves the viewer in an ancient japanese tradition of the honoring of the dead and the deceaseds family and relatives.
This film won oscar 2009 for category best foreign language film. To his dismay, the orchestra is suddenly disbanded, leaving daigo feeling lost and jobless. Departures, which won an oscar as best foreign language film, is a moving, gently amusing contribution to this tradition and centres on daigo, a 36yearold japanese cellist who recognises theres. Yojiro takitas bittersweet tale of the japanese funeral trade plays a bit like a formal service itself, says xan brooks. Sep 05, 2008 yojiro takitas okuribito focuses on one japanese death custom that, because of those female relations, i did not experience. And like all things japanese, the process comes with an elaborate ritual of preparation, cleansing and presentation, all done with great precision, skillful grace and utmost respect for both the deceased, and the family members.
The drama and humor are in perfect equilibrium, the values. It is the insight inspiring departures, the lovely japanese movie that won this years oscar for best foreign film. The japanese movie okuribito departures, was released in 2008, and won the 81st academy award as best foreign language film, as well as 96 other awards around the world, including the 3rd asian film award for best actor in 2009, and asia. One japanese film that contains religious tropes figurative language is the 2008 human drama, departures. The story involves a young man who apprentices to the trade of encoffinment, the preparation of corpses before their cremation. The departures community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. Japanese director yojiro takita has created a cinematic masterpiece that is both funny and sad and all the emotions in between. The movie tells the story of a secondrate cellist who loses his job when an orchestra. He played the cello in an orchestra but because not many people attended their. The japanese cinema reserves a special place for death. Making a living handling death, in yojiro takitas film the. The film follows a young man who returns to his hometown after a failed career as a cellist and stumbles across work as.
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