Must See: Departures

Everyone I know told me I had to go and see the movie, Departures. Even people who normally do not go to the movies told me to see Departures. You know people like that, they are probably your parents or grandparents. People who only watch old Samurai movies that come out on KIKU on occasion. People who think mass media means watching lots of Korean soap operas. People who last went to the movies at the Cinerama or Toho theatres. People who last went to the movies to see James Shigeta star in Flower Drum Song.

Now, I knew about the buzz on Departures. It won the best foreign film at the Academy Awards last year. I read interviews with the actors and directors, including a great spread in my favorite magazine, Giant Robot, which is the arbiter of all that is cool in Asian-Americanville. Even the cowboy dude from Tampopo was in it. Yet I couldn't bring myself to go. I mean, how hyped can you get to see a movie about people who prepare dead bodies for cremation?

But my cousin LN came in from Washington DC and a group of my family were planning to go. I was in post-mental breakdown from dealing with the kids and my Mom offered to take them with her so I could go with the movies. So faced with the option of going to the movies, staying at work and trying to sort through 10+ years of unfiled papers, or going home and doing a Quickbooks tutorial, it was a no brainer. Off to the movies I went.

Being who I am, I was late and the theatre was completely dark. My friend AS had told me that when she went to Departures, everyone in the theater was a Japanese senior citizen. I found this to be true as I could not find my under 65 year old cousins in the darkness of the sea of Asians. So I just plopped down in a seat by myself. This was a good thing since I bawled during the entire movie, the ugly cry complete with rivers of hanabata. Also being who I am, I had no kleenix or anything to blow my nose on. I thought of doing what my Mom does (and what she has taught my children to do) and blow my nose on my shirt but I had a black shirt on and it would show.

This was a great, life changing movie for me. I was feeling very down since earlier in the day, we had gone to Punchbowl to have LN's father interned in his niche there. As I walked passed the names of veterans I knew and also those I didn't know, I felt very sad. I have been getting philosophical about life the past few weeks - wondering why the bad people of the world seem to be getting away with everything at the expense of the good people of the world. Here I was in the presence of heroes who gave their lives for our freedom yet those who are still alive are still fighting against evil in various forms and seemingly losing the battle.

It is strange but this movie about death really cheered me up and put things into perspective for me. It made me realize that there is beauty in everything and even when the sky is blanketed with darkness, a little light will sneak in and brighten the horizon. It gave me hope for the future and see the power of forgiveness. Those who are pure of heart will be able to pass through the gates of the next life with ease while those truly heinous souls will find the gates are premanently closed.

You MUST see this movie, if:

you had a dream and lost it

you had a plan for life but it changed

you thought your were talented but found out you were ordinary

you are married or in a relationship

you have a secret

you have lied to protect yourself or someone else

you have a job or lost a job

you are a parent

you are a child

you are a human being

So, go see this movie and don't mind the jijis and babas wondering out loud, "What kind of thing did he find?"