I had the privilege in coming into this film not knowing much about what was going to happen or what embodied the film's narrative. Well, I knew it was about a man who had just been force to quit his job as a musician and soon found a new one as a caretaker, but I forgot it was Japanese, so this sort of job offered itself a certain artistry I was very unfamiliar with. The first scene struck me emotionally in more ways than one because for the first time I seeing such grace and care at moment of death; a moment I usually reserve for sullenness and continuous grieving. When the protagonist, Daigo Kobayashi (played by Masahiro Motoki), caresses the folded hands of the departed and moves them with such reverence I shouted out how beautiful this whole process was. And just when this moment of beauty sunk in as something profound within me, Daigo, while washing the body (note that he is performing this in front of the mourners and must not reveal and skin of the body to sustain his or her dignity), he realizes that he is not washing the body of a girl but of a boy. He turns to his boss, Sasaki Ikuei (played remarkably by Tsutomu Yamazaki), to tell him his unexpected revelation. This creates a feeling of sudden awkwardness that is strengthen by the fact that the film has just begun and the viewer is still trying to orient into the moment of the scene. At first, I felt disappointed that a poignant scene was interrupted by an effective use of unease, yet, this first scene sets up what makes Yojiro Takita's Departures so brilliant and involving. A tale of death brings about revelations of life, all through an individual's inner growth through his dedication of a singular skill, that of undertaking. This sort of story can only be done so well by the Japanese because much of this spawns from national mentality.
Not to inject a stark generalization, but Departures is one of the most compelling life-affirming films since maybe The Shawshank Redemption, but certainly anyone who has seen their share of Japanese films will equate this film with Kurosawa's masterpiece Ikiru, which sees a life through a fragmentation of perspectives. The one thing to consider is that this aspect of the film was done at a wake, a very Japanese ritual and, thus, a cultural edge is placed on the story's narrative. Departures does the same thing, but is not isolated to just one ritual or one craft. There is, of course, the observation of the undertaking ritual, which is shown many times each with much humanity, but there is another aspect that is observed with curious explicitness, and that is food and the act of eating. Now, what I see here is that Daigo's growth is contributed to both his appreciation of death as the next step for a human being through his work while his appreciation for the simplicity of life that, among other things, is emphasized through food. There are many many scenes of Daigo eating with others, the sound effects of chewing also seem to be increased such that the whole sensuous experience of eating. One scene deliberately connects Daigo's two forms a growth; after performing the undertaking ritual of one family, the father gives them several shish kebabs which Daigo and Sasaki eat in the car, the camera lingers on them as their successful job is capped by good food. One of the most important scenes in the film involves eating dinner. Daigo meets with Sasaki in a dining room above their office to tell him he will be quitting the job. Sasaki is eating and insists that Daigo eats with him. Sasaki then talks about his wife, who passed away, as his first job in undertaking and then equates his career with dealing with corpses with the fact that we essentially eat corpses, which segways in the topic of food and allows for Daigo to try Sasaki's favorite snack (Sasaki says things like, "The living eat the dead." and"Unless you want to die, you eat." and then, "And if you eat, eat well." with the chewing sound effects interspersed between these lines.), again the camera lingers as they chew graciously on the food.
There is always a certain joy to all the scenes involving food and eating. This doesn't surprise me from a Japanese film. As a guy who has seen a number of anime series I recalled many scenes of the characters eating in a humorous way, but always in enjoyment. The care and gentility expressed in the scenes of undertaking make sense to as I recall anime again, specifically the Dragon Ball series, where when a character dies they go to the Other World where essentially they live on again either as spirits or themselves where some must travel a one million kilometer road called Snake's Way right above Hell. I'm probably getting a little carried away with all that nostalgia but I wanted to point out how the elements in the film echo in other forms of Japanese art. So Takita essentially meshes the two elements of death and food (life) within a story of one man's growth, surround by subplots that only enhance such philosophy.
Much Japanese thought and philosophy involve in mastering a specific skill and enjoying the simplicity of life. The recent documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, is indicative of such a sentiment in the craft of making sushi. We, as individuals, must grow while we master this craft, skill, or passion. Daigo has found his calling and knows, even in times of trouble, he must maintain focus on the path he chose because it is something he is proud of all while cherishing what makes living a glorious thing. In essence, there is a marriage in an understanding between life and death. This natural process is cyclical, infinite, unending. When we are alive we eat dead things and then, eventually, we die, yet death is not the end of our journey. Now here lies the significance of the title as well as the significance of Daigo misinterpreting the job advertisement in the newspaper as 'departures' instead of 'departed'. Japanese culture ritualizes and celebrates death, differing much from a Western approach. The narrator in the Chris Marker film, San Soleil, describes in much detail the celebratory ceremonies for the dearly departed and there are many scenes showing such extravagance. Departures depicts such celebration and understanding. The narrative brings along this man in not only financial problems but passion problems, but we see this man transform into an individual guided by traditional Japanese philosophy who embraces the inevitability of death and the joviality of life. The Japanese also have a way with reciting simple statements with enlightened meanings and we are left with one conjecture, "While you are alive, eat good food."
PS: I mentioned a lot of outside sources in this essay so here is a list of films that recommend seeing, all Japanese or Japanese influenced:
Ikiru
Jiro Dreams of Sushi
Sans Soleil
Red Beard
Kiki's Delivery Service
Still Walking
...and, hey, if you are up for it, maybe try Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z...
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