To Be or Not To Be...

Rating: 7/10 (5 December 2016)

"Departures" follows the life of Daido Kobayashi, a washed up cellist that attempts to find a new job and life back in his hometown. Little does Daido know, that when he discovers an ad for an opening at a departure agency that will change help him discover his real passion. Written by Kundo Koyama and directed by Yojiro Takita, "Departures" connects with the audience on a level that is very much opposite of its actions in the feature. The departure job that Daido ends up accepting is not for a travel agency like he and others thought, but instead, it is a funeral business that prepares the dead for their loved one's families and attempts to help the deceased, peacefully pass over into the next life. At the same time, we watch the arguments and solutions that occur between Daido and his wife Mika, as everyone encourages him to quit his job and peruse the passion of playing the cello in an orchestra. Overall, the movie "Departures" is a great example of what some Buddhist believe and how they treat the afterlife, as well as keeping a sense of entertainment through the journey of the protagonist searching for his true self instead of the self that is given to him by others or even the one that he thinks is the correct path. At its base, this movie shows the audience what it looks like to discover and pursue a person's authentic self that builds a level of identity that is real, true, genuine, inside of each one of us, and although it can change it is truly who you are at the core, and more importantly it is the one thing that separates everyone from each other because you are uniquely yours.