A very delicate and serene reflection upon life and death

Rating: 8/10 (5 May 2011)

Although not being myself a lover of Japanese movies, I decided to see "Departures", mainly because the recently released "Poetry", which I liked so much, was in a way associated with it. The two pictures are in my opinion distant as far as content, but similar for the mood pervading them, which is indeed part of oriental culture and which allows the viewer to approach the most strong and disturbing topics in a very serene way. Here the theme is death, in particular the special rite performed on corpses in front of relatives, before letting the dead leave, for good: it's a delicate, and very respectful sequence of simple but significant gestures which sanction the final reconciliation of this world with the next, a kind of reconciliation between arrival and departure. The movie manages, very simply, and using no virtuosity to reflect upon the theme of death, avoiding all macabre or morbid particulars, keeping a solid balance between drama and grotesque humor, but never abandoning its serious intention, and it makes the viewer reflect avoiding any anguish or uneasiness. Inevitably and significantly focus shifts continuously from death to life, particularly to the meaningfulness of life, no matter how socially successful you are, to the real founding human values of life. As a whole, a sweet, delicate, and in a way comforting picture, where the slowness of typical of oriental movies does not bore, but leaves space to deep and serene reflection. Very good performances by the two male characters, we can perceive the evolution and growing maturity of Daigo and appreciate the more quiet but reassuring presence of Sasaki. I would have never believed that a movie centred on death could have left me with such a feeling of serenity and peace.